(Washington, DC) – Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), the lead Democrat on the U.S. Senate Committee on Small Business & Entrepreneurship, today issued the following statement on the nomination of Hannibal Ware, President Trump’s choice to be Inspector General of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA):
“I look forward to reviewing Mr. Ware’s record and examining his credentials. SBA’s Office of the Inspector General provides critical auditing and investigative services to ensure the integrity of SBA programs and the proper use of taxpayer dollars. Any person in charge of this office must be fully independent, dedicated to improving SBA’s overall performance and committed to weeding out waste, fraud and abuse.”
SBA has been operating without a permanent Inspector General for almost 300 days. At a hearing last month on SBA’s response to Hurricanes Harvey, Irma and Maria, Senator Shaheen pressed SBA to tell her when the Administration will nominate a permanent Inspector General.
During Hurricane Sandy, SBA’s Inspector General found that 361 loans (totaling $4.3 million) defaulted early and were not approved in accordance with SBA and federal requirements.
