SBA chief Mills to leave Obama's Cabinet

By Vicki Needham - 02/11/13 12:18 PM ET

Karen Mills, the head of the Small Business Administration (SBA), on Monday became the latest departure from President Obama's Cabinet.

“After four years as Administrator of the SBA, I have let President Obama know that I will not be staying for a second term. I will stay on until my successor is confirmed to ensure a smooth and seamless transition,” Mills wrote in a note to SBA staff.

Mills has served for nearly four years in the administration, and became a member of the Cabinet a little more than a year ago after the president elevated the SBA administrator to his inner circle.

Obama credited Mills for her efforts to support start-ups and entrepreneurs and in seeing through the passage of the Small Business Jobs Act.

"I asked Karen to lead the SBA because I knew she had the skills and experience to help America’s small businesses recover from the worst economic crisis in generations — and that’s exactly what she’s done," Obama said.

"Because of Karen’s hard work and dedication, our small businesses are better positioned to create jobs and our entire economy is stronger.”

While the SBA does not lend directly to businesses, it backs loans to encourage banks to invest in small businesses as part of a nearly $90 billion portfolio. The agency also counsels businesses and helps small firms land about 23 percent of all federal government contracts, for a total of $100 billion a year.

House Small Business Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.) said Mills was "particularly helpful" to his panel in the "successful effort to reauthorize the [Small Business Innovation Research] SBIR program, the first full reauthorization in a decade."

The SBIR program provides federal research grants to small businesses to spur innovation.

"She brought experience to an important position, and the profile of the Small Business Administration was elevated on her watch," Graves said.

"I am hopeful that President Obama’s replacement will be an energetic and experienced voice for small businesses."

Mills got an early start in the Obama administration, making SBA a priority for Obama within days of his election victory in 2008.

She was part of the SBA transition team that crafted a plan to pull the agency out of a quagmire in the early days of the financial crisis before being confirmed to her post in April 2009.

Mills thanked SBA staff for making her time at the agency “one of the greatest experiences of my life.”

“The President entrusted me with this enormous responsibility and I believe with your assistance America’s small businesses today are well positioned to do what they do best: grow and create jobs. I will be forever grateful for this opportunity to serve,” she wrote.

For more on Mills, check out The Hill’s interview with her last year.

This story was last updated at 1:11 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.