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Should the Small Business Administrator Be Cabinet-Rank?
By Marc Tracy
The Small Business Administration is not, automatically, a Cabinet-level department, but some presidents--most recently President Clinton--have used their prerogative to elevate the agency's head to Cabinet-level status. We've said that President Obama should do this (actually, we said we'd be shocked if so uncontroversial a move was not made; but we are in favor of it). So has Sen. Olympia Snowe (R-Me.), who is arguably the most influential legislator as far as the SBA is concerned, and who in fact recommended the current SBA head, Karen G. Mills, for the post. Clinton's SBA heads were Cabinet-level; President George W. Bush's weren't. And, as of right now, Obama's first and so far only SBA head, Mills, is not, either. Clock's a-ticking.
On the one hand, the list of those non-Cabinet officials (being in the Cabinet, as we understand it, means you head a fully-chartered federal department) who are Cabinet-rank at this point is not exactly exhaustive: they include only the heads of the Council of Economic Advisors, the Environmental Protection Agency, and the Office of Management & Budget, plus the Trade Representative, the Ambassador to the United Nations, and the President's chief-of-staff.
Even so. This is taking a little long--the first hundred days are over (perhaps you read about it last week?). If Mills is going to be made Cabinet-level, the administration needs to get on with it already. And if she's not going to be made Cabinet-level, then the administration needs to explain why not. Either way, it needs to happen soon.
Comments (1)May 4, 2009 5:45 PM
Comments (1)
Given the current economic pandemic and the importance of small business to the economy - it makes perfect sense. The SBA does so much more than loans that is should be at the forefront. In particular the Small Business Development Center provide an important engine to growth and the economy.
Posted by John Krech | May 4, 2009 7:57 PM
Posted on May 4, 2009 19:57