The Small Business Administration's 6,500 workers make up less than half a percent of the entire federal workforce, per CBS News—and that figure is set to shrink. The agency on Friday announced that it planned to cut its workforce by 43%, for an eventual annual cost savings of $435 million. The Wall Street Journal reports the agency grew during the pandemic to facilitate programs like the Paycheck Protection Program, and the cuts will revert it to pre-2020 levels.
The news came as President Trump announced that the SBA would take over the handling of federal student loans from the Department of Education—Trump on Thursday signed an executive order to eliminate that department—saying "it will be serviced much better than it has in the past," reports the AP. He added that programs involving students with disabilities would fall under the Department of Health and Human Services. Two standout quotes on the SBA cuts:
- From the SBA: "The strategic reorganization will begin a turnaround for the agency by restoring the efficiency of the first Trump administration, as well as its focus on promoting small businesses. Core services to the public, including the agency's loan guarantee and disaster assistance programs, as well as its field and veteran operations, will not be impacted."
- From SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler: "Since the pandemic, the SBA has doubled its workforce, expanding in size, scope, and spending with miserable results. That's why change is coming to the SBA. ... This agency is done wasting millions of tax dollars to fund a progressive pandemic-era bureaucracy. We will not allow fiscal mismanagement to threaten our loan programs or criminals to get away with fraud. But we will evaluate every program and expenditure and we will rightsize the agency to transform the SBA into a high-efficiency engine for America's entrepreneurs and taxpayers."
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