In case there was any doubt small businesses have suffered from a lack of access to credit during the recession, CNN Money's Catherine Clifford shares some data from the Small Business Administration. 

The total value of outstanding loans to small businesses plunged by $43 billion, or 6.2%, between June 2009 and June 2010, according to a report released this week by the Small Business Administration. That's a drop of $59 billion, or 8.3%, from June 2008.

Measuring lending to small businesses is like trying to nail Jell-O to a wall, because every institution and government agency has its own definition of what constitutes a small business. For this week's study, the SBA drew on data reported to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which tracks lending by the banks it regulates. Both the SBA and FDIC assume that all commercial loans of $1 million or less went to a small business.

Read the full article here.