The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) will relocate its regional offices out of sanctuary cities and implement new citizenship verification requirements for loan applicants, Administrator Kelly Loeffler announced Thursday, March 6th. The policy changes are part of an effort to ensure that taxpayer-funded small business programs are only available to legal U.S. residents.
The relocation will affect SBA regional offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, New York City, and Seattle. The agency plans to move these offices to locations that, according to Loeffler, “better serve the small business community and comply with federal immigration law.”
In addition to the office relocations, the SBA will require lenders to confirm that businesses seeking loans are not owned, in whole or in part, by illegal immigrants. The policy aligns with an executive order issued by President Donald Trump aimed at restricting government benefits to noncitizens.
“We are making sure that none of our services go to illegal aliens,” 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.”
The agency cited previous instances in which loans were approved for businesses linked to illegal immigrants. A recent internal audit identified a $783,000 loan that had been approved for a company partially owned by an illegal immigrant. The SBA halted the disbursement of funds after reviewing the applicant’s status.
The policy changes are expected to take effect in the coming days, with office relocations occurring over the next several months. The SBA has not yet announced the new locations for the affected regional offices.
