WASHINGTON – Reforms announced Thursday by Kelly Loeffler, U.S. Small Business Administration administrator, will end taxpayer benefits for unauthorized immigrants and move SBA offices out of sanctuary cities.
According to Loeffler, in June 2024 the SBA approved a $783,000 loan application for a small business that was 49% owned by an “illegal alien.” The loan was canceled this month after an internal SBA audit, with no money distributed.
The new policy will require SBA loan applications to include a citizenship verification provision to ensure only legal, eligible applicants can assess SBA programs.
Lenders will be required to confirm applicant businesses are not owned in whole or in part by “an illegal alien.”
The effort lines up with President Donald Trump’s executive order ending taxpayer subsidization of open borders and the commitment to secure borders and safe communities, according to the announcement.
“Over the last four years, the record invasion of illegal aliens has jeopardized both the lives of American citizens and the livelihoods of American small business owners, who have each become victims of [former President] Joe Biden’s migrant crime spree,” Loeffler said. “Under President Trump, the SBA is committed to putting American citizens first again – starting by ensuring that zero taxpayer dollars go to fund illegal aliens.”
Additionally, the SBA plans to relocate six regional offices out of cities not complying with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement – Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, New York and Seattle. The offices reportedly will be moved to more accessible and less costly locations.
Loeffler called the decision an effort to partner with municipalities committed to “secure borders and safe communities” instead of ones that “reward criminal behavior.”
Pictured at top: Image via Facebook | U.S. Small Business Administration.