24 House Democrats blast SBA over plans to relocate 6 regional offices

A group of 24 House Democrats blasted the Small Business Administration (SBA) and is asking the agency for more answers over plans to relocate six of its regional offices out of “sanctuary cities,” contending the transfer would hamper millions of small businesses.

The Democrats in the lower chamber said SBA’s Administrator Kelly Loeffler's plan to move the field officers from six cities — Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, New York City and Seattle — “is a blatant weaponization of the SBA for political gain.”

“To be clear, we firmly believe that our cities should be safe, all acts of violence should be taken seriously, and violent crimes should not be tolerated. But the targeting of these cities is clearly punitive, unjust and counterproductive,” the 24 House lawmakers said in a Friday letter to Loeffler that was shared with The Hill.

“Moreover, your decision will unduly harm millions of small businesses across the country who have been suffering through the chaotic, confusing, and unpredictable economic policies of the Trump administration,” the legislators wrote.

Loeffler announced the agency’s intention to move the offices earlier this month, stating that the six cities are not complying with immigration law and are detrimental to small businesses.

The SBA administrator did not share in the March 6 announcement where the new offices will be, but said they will be “moved to less costly, more accessible locations that better serve the small business community and comply with federal immigration law.”

In the 5-page letter, spearheaded by Rep. Nydia Velázquez (D-N.Y.), the ranking member on the House Small Business Committee, the 24 Democrats said they are concerned the SBA “has no clear plans to relocate the offices or prevent any disruption to the small business owners who rely on them.”

“In fact, few, if any, of the leading practices of effective agency reorganizations identified by the Government Accountability Office (GAO) – an independent, non-partisan agency that examines how tax dollars are spent – seem to have been followed in your rush to penalize these cities,” the lawmakers wrote.

The 24 lawmakers said they were not told about the decision to relocate the regional officers “nor any other policy to reform the agency. In fact, we read about your reforms and staff terminations in the news.”

The House Democrats asked Loeffler to answer 13 questions by March 31, including the summary of the criteria used to make a decision to relocate the offices, how the decision will “better serve small businesses,” and a list of SBA’s district offices that “may be impacted by this reorganization.”

The group of legislators also asked the SBA head if the locations for the new regional officers were identified and what would be the timeline for the relocations. They also asked how many SBA workers will be affected by the locations and how the move aligns with the agency’s “mission to aid, counsel, assist, and protect the interests of small business concerns; preserve free competitive enterprise; and maintain and strengthen the overall economy of the nation?”

Apart from Velázquez, the Friday letter was signed by Democratic Reps. Morgan McGarvey (Ky.). Hillary Scholten (Mich), LaMonica McIver (N.J.), Gil Cisneros (Calif.), Kelly Morrison (Minn.), George Latimer (N.Y.), Derek Tran (Calif.), Lateefah Simon (Calif.), Johnny Olszewski (Md.), Herb Conaway (N.J.), Maggie Goodlander (N.H.), Adriano Espaillat (N.Y.), Nikema Williams (Ga.), Jerry Nadler (N.Y.), Delia Ramirez (Ill.), Diana DeGette (Colo.), Yvette Clarke (N.Y.), Chuy Garcia (Ill.), Pramila Jayapal (Wash.), Jan Schakowsky (Ill.), Ayanna Pressley (Mass.), Dan Goldman (N.Y.) and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (N.Y.).

"Taxpayer dollars should support communities that uphold the law – not those that deliberately undermine it. The SBA is therefore proud to relocate our regional offices out of sanctuary cities and into business-friendly communities that share this Administration’s commitment to secure borders," an SBA spokesperson told The Hill.

Updated at 9:13 p.m. EST.

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