Dan Hannaher oversees a six-state region for the U.S. Small Business Administration, an agency he was familiar with from running a small business in the Red River Valley.
In 2009, President Obama appointed him administrator for the SBA region that includes North Dakota. But, before that, his family's office supply and furnishing business Hannaher's of Fargo also received an SBA loan for economic disruption when it was forced to close for two weeks because of flooding that spring.
"I think it made me more comfortable in that transition," he said of his appointment. "It's a fit for me, this was job I wanted in the administration."
Hannaher was in Grand Forks Tuesday, he said, to meet with Grand Forks Air Force Base officials to discuss procurement of everything "from toilet paper to rockets" from small domestic businesses.
Meeting goals
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Both of the state's Air Force bases have consistently met government goals for procurement through small business sources, he said. "Here in Grand Forks and in Minot they always hit their numbers."
The federal government's goal is to have 23 percent of its contracts be with domestic small businesses, a target it just missed in its last fiscal year, he said. "We've yet to achieve it."
Region VIII, which he oversees, covers South Dakota, Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and Utah. There are fewer national companies in the region, he said, so it is easier for federal entities such as the Air Force to meet procurement goals.
"Throughout the region, the vast majority of the economic backbone is small businesses," he said.
Hanneher is a former chairman for the North Dakota Democrats and an advisor in Barack Obama's 2008 campaign. He was appointed to his SBA job in August 2009.
He said he gave up direct involvement with Hannaher's, which also owns Gaffaney's in Grand Forks, after taking the job.
Hannaher said he was already very familiar with the SBA for its business assistance programs and for the role that makes the agency familiar to most people in the Grand Forks area: disaster assistance.
"It's probably one that means a lot to you in Grand Forks," he said, speaking at a Rotary Club meeting Tuesday. The SBA provided low-interest loans for flooded homeowners after the 1997 flood.
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"If it wasn't for the SBA, Grand Forks wouldn't be where it is today," he said.
Reach Bjorke at (701) 780-1117; (800) 477-6572, ext. 117; or send e-mail to cbjorke@gfherald.com .
