SBA small business loans plunge 57%

In the first quarter of its 2009 fiscal year, which ended Dec. 31, the SBA's 7(a) program backed 8,996 loans. That's a 57% drop from the 20,859 loans the SBA backed in the first quarter of 2008, and a 62% drop from 2007's first-quarter total. The total dollar value of loans processed by the SBA also plummeted to $1.94 billion, down 40% from last year's $3.24 billion.