'Small Business Start-up' to Kick Off 2006 Live Web Chat Series

SBA's Cheryl A. Mills Will Answer Questions on Small Business Basics

Thursday, January 26, 2006, From 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., EST

WASHINGTON, Jan. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- Cheryl A. Mills, associate deputy
administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration's Office of
Entrepreneurial Development, will kick off the SBA's January Web chat
on "Do You Know How to Start a Small Business?"

Mills will share information on what entrepreneurs need to know when
starting a business and how they can utilize the SBA's resources and
services. Mills will answer questions from participants on Thursday,
January 26, 2006, from 2:30 p.m. to 3:30 p.m., EST.

This first live Web chat for 2006 will engage business owners in a
national dialogue on what business basics to know before starting a
business, and provide chat participants with real-world tools and
resources they can use, including the key resource partners of SCORE,
Women's Business Centers, and Small Business Development Centers, and
the SBA's Small Business Training Network of online courses, workshops
and e-learning tools.

Mills manages the SBA's technical assistance programs providing
information, training and business counseling for 2.4 million small
business owners nationwide. With a budget of $200 million, leveraged
by state and local funding, her office provides this service through a
variety of business development networks across the nation. Small
business counseling, mentoring, education and training programs are
offered at colleges, universities, economic development and business
non-profit organizations through more than 950 Small Business
Development Centers, 390 SCORE Chapter locations and 90 Women's
Business Centers. In addition, small business owners can also receive
training and counseling services 24/7 through many of these programs,
as well as through 21 courses offered through the Small Business
Training Network (http://www.sba.gov/training).

The SBA's live Web chat series provides business owners with the
opportunity to have conversations about relevant business issues with
industry leaders and successful entrepreneurs. Participants will have
direct, real- time access to the Web chats via questions they submit
online in advance and during the session, with instantaneous answers.

Participants can join the live Web chat by going online to
http://www.sba.gov, and clicking "Your Small Business Voice Online
Chat." Web chat participants may post a question for Mills before the
January 26th chat by visiting
http://app1.sba.gov/liveMeeting/liveMills/intro.cfm and posting their
questions online.

To review archives of past live Web chats, visit online at
http://www.sba.gov/chats/. SOURCE U.S. Small Business Administration