With a new year on the horizon, it’s a perfect time to dream about the future and set new goals and resolutions.  If your plans include starting a new business, the best place to start is with the SBA.

The SBA has an office in every state, and we have lenders, counselors, and other partners who work in thousands of communities across the U.S.  With their help, we have been knocking down obstacles for entrepreneurs and small business owners for nearly 60 years.

SBA Lending in Fiscal Year 2011
Region 7 SBA as of 09/30/2011
SBA Office	Number	Dollars
Nebraska	530	$ 167.6  million
Kansas City	600	$ 246.5  million
Springfield	422	$ 162.6  million
Des Moines	347	$ 155.4  million
Cedar Rapids	327	$ 138.2  million
Wichita	239	$   86.2  million
St Louis	533	$ 210.9  million
REGION 7	2,998	$1,167.5 million

In fact, for the fiscal year that just ended, we helped provide almost 3,000 small businesses across Region 7 with lending of over $1.166 million, and nationwide, we had our biggest year ever.

Generally, we can help in two big ways.

First, if you’re someone with a few ideas down on paper and you need someone who can help you formulate a business plan, the SBA or one of our “resource partners” is a great place to start.  You can find local help by going to www.sba.gov/direct and typing in your zip code.  For example, you can find our Small Business Development Centers and check out www.SCORE.org , a volunteer organization with more than 350 chapters and more than 10,000 mentors, many of whom have “been there and done that” when it comes to starting a business. 

The best part is that these folks can often help you for free.

Secondly, the SBA and our partners can help if you’re already a small business owner. Many small business owners have come to us over the past two years, looking for ways to reinvent their business and grow in the face of tough economic times.  Whether it’s getting an SBA loan, winning your first federal contract, or learning the ins-and-outs of exporting, the SBA and our partners can provide you the information and the local connections you need.

Why is all of this so important?  Economists agree that small businesses are a big part of the solution to getting our economy moving again and to creating jobs that we lost in the recession.  The President and Congress have used – and continue to use – the SBA and other federal agencies to help you get the tools you need to succeed.

So, if you’re thinking about starting or growing a business in 2012, you know where to go.  There’s no time like the present to have that first conversation with the SBA or one of our partners in your area.  Log on to a computer and join us.  And, have a Happy New Year!

Pat Brown-Dixon is the regional administrator for SBA’s Region 7 Office in Kansas City, Missouri, and oversees SBA offices in Missouri, Kansas, Iowa and Nebraska.