Washington, D.C. - SBA's Business Gateway Program recently announced the launch of a new Web initiative - http://Community.Business.gov - the first government-sponsored online community built specifically for small businesses.

The objective of the Business.gov Community supports the White House's mission to create a transparent and connected democracy, and aims to provide small business owners, bloggers and the government with a place to discuss and share information about starting and running a successful business.

An extension of Business.gov, the Business.gov Community combines discussion forums, blogs, an idea exchange and more, and offers advanced tools for navigating the labyrinth of government resources, policies, laws and opportunities that impact the small business owner.

In addition to providing a "home" where users can share expertise and unique experiences, the site also provides a pioneering opportunity for small businesses to provide direct input into Business.gov and voice the ways government and the online community can better serve them.

"Over the past year, we have significantly expanded our efforts to engage with small business owners, by giving them easy access to the information they need to run their business," said Nancy Sternberg, program manager of Business Gateway.  "The launch of the Business.gov Community represents a new milestone.  Through the application of Web 2.0 technologies, we hope to unite small business owners, industry experts and government, and take the program to a new level of collaborative knowledge-sharing and insight."