Senate Committee Chair Shaheen’s Opening Statement at SBA Oversight Hearing
April 1, 2024
Delaney Sexton
Contributing Editor
Senate Committee Chair Shaheen’s Opening Statement at SBA Oversight Hearing
“As Chair of this committee and as a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, I am firmly committed to making sure that entrepreneurs have every opportunity to realize their dreams. But for our small businesses to succeed, SBA will require real investments from Congress. I intend to continue to support robust funding for these critical resources,” says Chair Jeanne Shaheen.
“This year, the President’s Budget requests 1.4 billion dollars for the SBA. The administration proposes many sound investments, including healthy levels for SBA’s lending programs and disaster funding.
“Without additional funding, SBA will be unable to provide the level of customer service that businesses need, and it will have a difficult time identifying and rooting out fraud in the program.
“We need more funding for enforcement as well, which is why I was glad to see that the administration requested a substantial increase for SBA’s Inspector General, something that I had hoped we could do last year.
“I’ll also work to ensure that SBA uses its resources as effectively as possible. In particular, I would urge SBA to place more staff and resources on the ground where businesses are, rather than at its headquarters here in Washington.
“Over the last few years, we have seen SBA’s investment in its field offices diminish. I along with other senators have repeatedly asked the agency to reverse this trend.
“As business owners know, there is no substitute for local knowledge and expertise. I want to ensure that entrepreneurs will always be able to turn to someone at SBA who knows their communities just like they do.
“Administrator Guzman, I look forward to hearing from you today and discussing some of these concerns, and with that, I will turn it over to Ranking Member Ernst.”