Charles L. Heatherly | |
|---|---|
 Heatherly speaking atThe Heritage Foundation in 1990 | |
| 15thAdministrator of the Small Business Administration | |
Acting | |
| In office March 31, 1986 – March 23, 1987 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | James C. Sanders |
| Succeeded by | James Abdnor |
| Director of the President's Commission onWhite House Fellowships | |
Former | |
| Assumed office April 1, 1984[1] | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | James C. Roberts |
| Succeeded by | Linda L. Tarr |
| Deputy Under Secretary for Management in theU.S. Department of Education | |
Former | |
| Assumed office September 3, 1982[2] | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | Kent Lloyd |
| Succeeded by | Linda M. Combs[3] |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1942-06-06)June 6, 1942 |
| Party | Republican |
| Signature |  |
| Nickname | Angel of Death[5] |
Charles L. Heatherly (born June 6, 1942) is an American bureaucrat who was the acting administrator of the U.S.Small Business Administration from 1986 to 1987 following the resignation ofJames C. Sanders.[6]
Heatherly attended theUniversity of Arizona, where he became involved inBarry Goldwater's1964 presidential campaign. After graduating, Heatherly became an organizer for theIntercollegiate Studies Institute. In 1975, Heatherly received a master's degree fromClaremont Graduate School and University Center.[7]
Heatherly joinedThe Heritage Foundation, where, in 1981, he helped author and editMandate for Leadership,[8] which offered policy recommendations to the incomingReagan administration. Subsequent versions ofMandate have since been published by the foundation.
Heatherly's tenure was characterized by his efforts in attempting to carry out theReagan Administration's plan to merge the independent SBA into theU.S. Department of Commerce. The plan was ultimately dropped due to a lack of support from Congress[9] and intense criticism from the small business community. Heatherly conceded that the decision to merge the SBA with the Department of Commerce had "nothing to do with budget savings" and soon shifted his efforts to examining the effectiveness of the SBA's loan guarantee and educational programs.[10][11]
Heatherly's ascension as SBA administrator drew bipartisan ire from SenatorsLowell Weicker (R-CT) andDale Bumpers (D-AR), who both took issue with Heatherly's appointment, which was never considered by theSenate Small Business Committee.[12]
Senator Weicker sent a letter to theU.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) requesting that they examine a pamphlet published by the SBA at Heatherly's direction, titledThe Future of SBA. While the GAO determined that the pamphlet did not violate the law, the office stated that they had "serious difficulties" with the SBA's distribution of its accompanying "suggested editorials" supporting the Reagan administration's reorganization plan for the SBA. The GAO stated that the suggested editorials were "misleading as to their origin and reasonably constitute[d] 'propaganda...'"[13]
Following pressure from small business delegates to the1986 White House Conference on Small Business, PresidentRonald Reagan announced that Heatherly would be replaced as the SBA's acting head.[14]
Following his ouster from the SBA, Heatherly returned to the Heritage Foundation as the organization's vice president for academic relations.[15]
