The U.S. Senate confirmed former Georgia Sen. Kelly Loeffler as administrator of the Small Business Administration Wednesday in a 52-45 vote. No Republicans opposed Loeffler, though two GOP senators did not vote. One Democrat, Nevada Senator Jacky Rosen, voted for Loeffler.
Loeffler, who served in the Senate from Jan. 6, 2020 to Jan. 20, 2021, succeeds Isabella Casillas-Guzman, who left office last month.
Prior to being appointed to the Senate by Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, Loeffler spent nearly three decades in the automotive and financial services industries, working for Toyota, Citigroup and investment bank William Blair.
Loeffler has also served as an executive at Atlanta-based Intercontinental Exchange, the company her husband, Jeff Sprecher, founded in 2000. From 2018 until her Senate appointment, Loeffler founded and led Bakkt, an ICE subsidiary serving the cryptocurrency industry.
"Small business is in my DNA," Loeffler said during a Jan. 29 Senate hearing. During her testimony, Loeffler pledged a zero tolerance policy toward fraud. She also promised to "cut red tape and modernize" SBA.
"Regulatory complexity crushes growth, crushes growth, picks winners and losers and denies opportunities to those who dream of a better future," Loeffler said.
Iowa Republican Sen. Joni Ernst, the chair of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, called Loeffler "the right person" to lead SBA.
"She understands the burdens facing small businesses and recognizes how Washington can often serve as a barrier and a hindrance to their success," Ernst said Wednesday.
Sen. Edward Markey, D-Massachusetts, the Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee's ranking minority member, declared his opposition to Loeffler's nomination last week.
"Donald Trump and Elon Musk have sent a clear message: They are here to illegally cut off funding for critical government agencies and services," Markey said. "They're here to make government work for billionaires but at the expense of the working-class people, and they are filling their cabinet with people willing to carry out that illegal bidding."
Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, chairman of the House Small Business Committee, promised a cooperative relationship. "This Committee, alongside President Trump and Administrator Loeffler, will be fierce advocates for the hardworking small business owners across the nation," Williams said Wednesday in a statement. "I congratulate Administrator Loeffler on her confirmation and look forward to working with her to end burdensome regulations, grow the economy, and restore accountability and common sense back into the SBA."
Brad Close, president of the National Federation of Independent Businesses said he and his group "look forward to working with Administrator Loeffler to highlight the importance of small businesses across the nation, and to strengthen the small business economy."
SBA plays a major role in providing small businesses with access to capital. Its flagship 7(a) loan guarantee program backed more than 70,000 loans totaling $31.1 billion during the government's 2024 fiscal year. So far in fiscal 2025, which began Oct. 1, 7(a) has provided guarantees for 31,089 loans totaling $13.4 billion.
SBA's 504 program, which provides long-term funding for commercial real estate and heavy equipment purchases, has backed nearly 2,500 loans for $2.8 billion in fiscal 2025.
In January, prior to Guzman's departure, the SBA published a report noting entrepreneurs filed a record 21 million business applications during President Biden's four-year term. Guzman called it the "strongest post-pandemic economic recovery in the world."
"The tremendous legacy of the Biden-Harris SBA will be creating a pathway for more Americans from all backgrounds and geographies to build viable businesses, create jobs, innovate and empower communities across the nation," Guzman said in a press release.
In her Senate testimony, however, Loeffler said small businesses lost ground during the Biden years, "burdened by inflation, big government regulation and uncertainty that threaten the very existence of Main Street."
In a January 29 post on X, the former Twitter, Loeffler pledged to donate her SBA salary to charity.
