SAN FRANCISCO, CA, Dec. 16, 2005 /PRNewswire/ -- Earlier this week, Congresswoman Nydia M. Velázquez issued a press release to call for the immediate resignation of Hector V. Barreto, Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration. Velázquez, ranking Democrat on the House Small Business Committee, pointed to numerous examples that illustrate the failure of the SBA to uphold its mission to ensure fair treatment and assistance to America's entrepreneurs.

Among the matters listed by Ms. Velásquez are the following:

• SBA has declined 80% of all disaster loans to small businesses in the hurricane regions and has a backlog of over 200,000 pending applications.
• Last year, SBA's flagship 7(a) loan program – responsible for 30% of all long term lending – was temporarily shut down, after the agency failed to notify Congress that the program needed additional funding.
• Three months after announcing record small business contract awards last year, the SBA had to revise the numbers downward due to misrepresentation of contract awards.
• Although the women's procurement program was enacted in 2000, Mr. Barreto has failed to act on it, thus costing women entrepreneurs over $33 billion in lost contracting opportunities and forcing them to file a lawsuit to compel him to implement it.

"The American Small Business League wholeheartedly agrees with the assessment of the SBA by the Democrats of the House Small Business Committee. The Bush Administration has a terrible track record of placing people in Federal posts for which they are not qualified. Hector Barreto should resign," stated Lloyd Chapman, President of the ASBL.

"As a native Texan, I was initially happy to see our nation elect a president from the state of Texas," Chapman added. "Unfortunately, I have been extremely disappointed with the small business policies of the Bush Administration. I would even say that George W. Bush has been the worst president for small business in my lifetime."

About the ASBL
The American Small Business League was formed to promote and advocate policies that provide the greatest opportunity for small businesses - the 98% of U.S. companies with less than 100 employees. The ASBL is founded on the principle that small businesses, the backbone of a vital American economy, should receive the fair treatment promised by the Small Business Act of 1951. Representing small businesses in all fields and industries throughout the United States, the ASBL monitors existing policies and proposed policy changes by the Small Business Administration and other federal agencies that affect its members.