Small Business Management (SBA) announced Friday that it plans to cut more than 40% of its workforce amid the restructuring of its entire agency.
The agency cut the workforce of nearly 6,500 employees by about 2,700 positions, returning to staffing levels from the first Trump administration, said SBA administrator Kelly Loeffler.
“The SBA was created as a launchpad for American small business by providing access to capital.
“However, in the last four years, agents have been off track. They have doubled in size and transformed into a vast Leviathan plagued by mission creep, financial mismanagement and waste,” she continued.
The cuts will be made through a “limited number” of voluntary resignations, elimination of roles in the pandemic era and reductions in other appointments, according to a press release.
The announcement revealed that President Trump has revealed plans to move student loan handling (now the Department of Education) to the SBA.
SBA said certain accountability roles will be exempt from cuts, including the Advocacy Bureau and the General Office of Inspectors. He also emphasized that core services to the public will not be affected.
“Like the small business owners we support, the less we have to do more,” added Loeffler.
Recently confirmed SBA administrators criticized the expansion of the agency under former President Biden and denounced the “suite of new progressive programs.” She argued that previous administration efforts led to “deteriorating SBA services and financial performance.”
Government cuts come in a government-wide push to significantly reduce the federal workforce, led by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency.
Hundreds of SBA probation employees were fired last month in a series of chaotic events, according to Politico.
