The Iowa Small Business Development Center (SBDC) has helped small businesses in Iowa boom.

SBDC clients have generated $32 million in incremental sales and created around 800 new jobs in one year, according to a study by James Chrisman, professor of management information systems at Mississippi State University.

They contributed $4 million in additional federal and state tax revenues and returned $9.54 in tax revenues for every dollar spent on long-term counseling.

“The people that we help are going to find some way to be successful — we just help them get there faster,” said Mike Upah, interim director of SBDC.

The SBDC’s mission is to provide mentoring and training to existing and start-up businesses, Upah said.

He said SBDC, 137 Lynn Ave., assists by counseling and providing programs for the small businesses looking for help. Upah said all sorts of businesses receive their counseling.

The three most common are existing business that are struggling, start-up companies, and technology businesses.

Mike Lindaman, owner of LGI, said he has been consulting with SBDC for the past several years. LGI is an environmental testing laboratory. SBDC counseled LGI on its business plan.

“I think that there are a lot of hurdles out there and the SBDC can help you jump over those hurdles,” he said.

Upah said Smart Start is a program offered to help businesses get over those hurdles. It is available to help start-up businesses get a fundamental understanding of what is expected of them from banks, government and other institutions.

The SBDC, partnering with Iowa State’s Pappajohn Center for Entrepreneurship, also offers a tax seminar to owners to discuss what sorts of taxes they must pay when they have employees.

A program about retail strategies and a monthly entrepreneur forum is also available, Upah said.

Budget cuts have also affected the SBCD. The SBDC had to cut three of its sixteen centers after a budget cut in July.