The Small Business Administration is offering to cut $8 million from its budget for Small Business Development Centers in fiscal 2014.

The centers work with universities to train small businesses. There are 63 centers with 900 outreach locations.

At the same time, the agency is proposing a $40 million new MBA-like intensive leadership program to help mid-sized entrepreneurs grow their workforces, SBA Administrator Karen Mills said in a recent hearing of the House Small Business Committee.

Asked why the SBA was seeking new funds at a time of budget austerity, Mills said the program would fill a gap by addressing medium-sized small businesses.

The SBA spent $115 million on the small business development centers in fiscal 2012, and its budget is $113 million in fiscal 2013.

The 2014 budget request would reduce funding to $105 million.

The SBA also is looking to save $3.3 million by terminating the PRIME technical assistance program for micro-entrepreneurs; to trim $2 million from 7(j) technical assistance for small disadvantaged firms; and to cut $671,000 from Women’s Business Centers.

On the other hand, the agency also wants to add $7 million for the new Boots to Business program to train veterans to be entrepreneurs and $5 million for the new Growth Accelerator venture capital program. There would be a $1.7 million boost for Regional Innovation Clusters.

Panelists were mostly critical of SBA’s plans at the hearing. Rep. Sam Graves, R-MO, was dismissive of the SBA’s request for allocations for new programs.

The agency “has the audacity to request nearly $57 million in new funding for entrepreneurial development programs not authorized in the Small Business Act,” he said in a statement.

More information: SBA fiscal 2014 budget justification: http://goo.gl/FoZAS