The Small Business Administration plans to cut thousands of employees as part of a “strategic restructuring” amid the Trump administration’s effort to slash the federal bureaucracy.
The SBA will cut 43% of its workforce, or approximately 2,700 positions, in a move agency chief Kelly Loeffler said would “save taxpayers more than $435 million annually by FY26.”
The cuts announced on Friday come the same day President Donald Trump said the SBA would take over elements of the Department of Education.
As the president attempts to phase out the Education Department, the SBA will absorb federal student loan programs. It is unclear how many, if any, Education Department employees SBA will absorb as part of the restructuring.
Loeffler’s agency did not reply to the Washington Examiner’s request for details.
Loeffler announced the workforce cuts will return SBA’s staffing levels to numbers seen under Trump’s first term in office, saying the agency nearly doubled in size during the Biden administration. The cuts will come through a trio of actions: voluntary resignations, the expiration of COVID-era and other term appointments, and a limited number of reductions in force.
TRUMP: SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION WILL TAKE OVER STUDENT LOANS
“The SBA was created to be a launchpad for America’s small businesses by offering access to capital, which in turn drives job creation, innovation, and a thriving Main Street. But in the last four years, the agency has veered off track — doubling in size and turning into a sprawling leviathan plagued by mission creep, financial mismanagement, and waste,” Loeffler said in a statement.
“Just like the small business owners we support, we must do more with less,” she continued. “We will return our focus to driving private sector growth and delivering disaster relief with accountability, efficiency, and results.”
