The SBA's Regulation Watchdog Is Stepping Down

For a little-understood department in a backwater federal agency, the Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy attracts a lot of attention. The office is charged with making sure new government regulations aren’t too burdensome for small businesses. That puts it in the middle of the everlasting war between those who want less regulation and those who want more.

Today, Advocacy’s top official said he is resigning. Winslow Sargeant, appointed as chief counsel for advocacy by President Obama in 2010 and confirmed by the Senate the following year, said he plans to spend more time with his family, although he planned to stay on through the end of the year. “America’s small business have a team of professionals working around the clock to ensure their voice is heard through the regulatory process and their needs are understood through valuable research,” he said in a statement.