Karen Mills to Step Down as Head of Small Business Administration

Karen Mills, the head of the Small Business Administration, has told President Obama that she will be leaving her position.

She served as the 23rd head of the SBA and was in charge of over 3,000 employees. She was sworn into her position in April 2009 at a time when small businesses were unable to receive credit from many banks. In her four years heading the agency, the SBA has helped businesses to secure more than $106 billion in lending to 193,000 small businesses and entrepreneurs.

President Barack Obama credited Mills with cutting red tape for small businesses and playing a key role in supporting startups. “I asked Karen to lead the Small Business Administration because I knew she had the skills and experience to help America’s small businesses recover from the worst economic crisis in generations — and that’s exactly what she’s done over the last four years.” he said in a statement.

In a letter to her staff, Mills stated that she will stay on until the White House has named a replacement. She added “The President entrusted me with this enormous responsibility and I believe with your assistance America’s small businesses today are well positioned to do what they do best: grow and create jobs. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity to serve.”

The White House is making no personnel announcements today, according to an email from White House spokesperson Shin Inouye, so Mills replacement is unknown at this time.

Mills exit comes as the President has proposed to merge the SBA with the Commerce Department and some other agencies as part of an executive branch consolidation.

SOURCE: U.S. Small Business Administration