SBA Administrator Karen Mills to Keynote NADCO Annual Meeting in Savannah

MCLEAN, Va., April 29 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Karen Mills, will provide the keynote address at next month's Annual Meeting of the trade association representing the nation's Certified Development Companies, the National Association of Development Companies (NADCO).

Administrator Mills is scheduled to address NADCO members and others who work in the SBA 504 industry at the Savannah International Trade & Convention Center at 9:00 a.m., May 13, 2010.  This will be the first time Administrator Mills has addressed a NADCO member meeting and her appearance is significant.  

As SBA Administrator, Ms. Mills directs a federal agency with more than 2,000 full-time employees with a portfolio of direct and guaranteed business loans and disaster loans worth more than $84 billion.  In fact, the SBA is the nation's largest single financial backer of American small business.   One of the SBA's most important products - the SBA 504 loan – is provided to small business borrowers by the nation's Certified Development Companies.  SBA 504 loans are used to finance the purchase, construction or renovation of commercial real estate and the purchase of long-term capital assets.  Since 1986 the Certified Development Company industry has provided over $56,625 billion worth of financing to American small business owners resulting in the creation or retention of over 2 million jobs.

Jean Wojtowicz, chair of the NADCO Board and President of Indiana Statewide CDC, indicated that "Administrators Mills' participation in our annual industry event sends a very positive message to our members and demonstrates the Administration's support of the important economic development work we do.   We are looking forward to hearing from Administrator Mills next month.  The SBA has been proactive in working to expand our industry's ability to assist small businesses with real estate financing thus allowing them to hire additional employees in the coming months and years."

Both Jean Wojtowicz and Chris Crawford, NADCO President, have had the opportunity to meet with Administrator Mills in Washington on several occasions.  Crawford noted, "Administrator Mills has been a strong advocate for improvements to the 504 product and the 504 lending process.  She clearly wants to maximize the benefits of this government-guaranteed loan program for America's small businesses.  We appreciate her leadership and realize many of the recent initiatives – including the temporary fee reduction, increased loan size and refinancing provisions have been part of her strategic goal for the 504 loan program.  We applaud the Administrator for her continued efforts to increase small business access to capital."

The NADCO annual meeting will be held at the Savannah International Trade & Convention Center, 1 International Drive, Savannah, GA, and Administrator Mills is scheduled to address the group on May 13, 2010 beginning at 9 a.m.

About the National Association of Development Companies (NADCO):

Created in 1981, the National Association of Development Companies is the trade association for America's Certified Development Companies (CDCs). Certified by the U.S. Small Business Administration, CDCs are community-based economic development organizations that serve their local communities and states, and are dedicated to the promotion of small business expansion and job creation through SBA's 504 Loan Program. In addition to the 504 program, many CDCs also provide small businesses with access to other Federal, state and local economic development loan programs. These programs provide both long and short term funding for borrowers.

Based in the suburbs of Washington, D.C., NADCO provides legislative and regulatory support for the 504 Loan Program on behalf of CDCs, the program's lending partners (including first mortgage lenders, attorneys and others allied to the industry), and 504 small business borrowers. For more information, please call (703) 748-2575 or visit www.nadco.org.

SOURCE National Association of Development Companies (NADCO)