SBA Salaries and Expenses
(S&E)
Small Business AdministrationSBA staff administering loan programs, disaster assistance, and business support
Summary
The Small Business Administration's Salaries and Expenses (S&E) account pays for the agency's own staff and operations — the people who run SBA's loan programs, disaster assistance offices, and small-business counseling services nationwide. The FY2027 budget proposes cutting this account by $170 million, a 40% reduction, which the administration says matches staffing to already-reduced program levels. This comes on top of steep staffing cuts SBA already made in 2025.
Who Is Affected
The cut directly affects SBA's own workforce, which had roughly 6,500 employees before 2025 and was already cut by about 43% that year as part of an agency reorganization. Indirectly, small business owners, disaster survivors, and entrepreneurs who rely on SBA staff in district and regional offices to process 7(a) and 504 loans, disaster (EIDL) loans, and contracting certifications like 8(a) and HUBZone would feel the effects of fewer available staff.
What this cut would actually mean
With 40% less funding for staff and operations, SBA would have fewer people available to review loan applications, answer counseling requests, and process paperwork, which typically means longer wait times for small business owners seeking capital. Because the agency already reduced staffing sharply in 2025, an added cut of this size raises the risk of slower disaster loan processing the next time a hurricane, flood, or wildfire hits, and reduced in-person support at local SBA offices. Advocacy groups and some lawmakers have warned the cuts could particularly reduce support for underserved entrepreneurs, including women and minority business owners, who rely more heavily on SBA counseling and lending programs.
Sources
- President Trump Releases FY27 Budget Request - NADO — Summarizes the FY2027 budget request, confirming the SBA Salaries and Expenses account would be reduced by $170 million as part of an overall 67% cut to SBA's discretionary budget.
- White House's Proposed Budget Slashes SBA Funding by 67 Percent - Inc.com — Reports the $170 million cut to salaries and expenses and includes criticism from Senator Ed Markey about the impact on small business owners, especially women and minorities.
- Trump Administration's FY2027 Small Business Administration (SBA) Budget Request - Congress.gov (CRS) — Congressional Research Service brief noting the FY2027 request of $260.2 million for S&E compares to $323.1 million enacted in FY2026, the lowest level since FY2015.
- SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION - FY2027 Budget Justification (govinfo.gov) — Official budget document stating the S&E account grew 34% under the Biden Administration and describing the proposed reduction as 'rightsizing' staffing costs.
- SBA to cut 43% of workforce, return to pre-pandemic staffing levels - Federal News Network — Details the 2025 SBA reorganization that cut 43% of staff, including eliminating pandemic-era loan processing positions and transferring disaster loan servicing staff.
- Small Business Administration cutting 43% of staff - CBS News — Reports SBA employed roughly 6,500 people before its 2025 staffing cuts and that the agency said the reduction would save over $435 million annually.
Administration's Stated Rationale
“SBA workforce reduced commensurate with program cuts.”