GSA Schedule | Government Business Development | Government | Resources and Insight | Contracts | 2 Min Read
The House is calling for the small business contracting goal to be increased, while the Senate is not. That is one of the differences in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). Some see the increase as a moot point, because the current goal is not being met. Despite this, the House is pushing for a 2 percent increase, from 23 percent to 25 percent. The two bills passed by each chamber will now be attempted to be resolved by deliberations set to begin this week. Some expect see the increase the House is pushing for, as a glass holding no water. They do not see how the increase will benefit small companies. Guy Timberlake, Co-Founder and Chief Visionary Officer at the American Small Business Coalition, is quoted saying:
“Having the small-business provisions in the House NDAA is an indicator of potential progress but in and of itself offers no value to small business,” he said. “Even if included in the version of the NDAA that passes, I’m skeptical of the actual benefits small federal contractors will realize.”
For fiscal years 2010 and 2011 the goal was not met. In FY 2010 small businesses received $97.9 billion, 22.7 percent of government contracts. While in FY 2011 small businesses $91.5 billion, 21.65 percent of government contracts. While the percentage points are not far from the 23 percent, increasing it will not guarantee more government contracts for small businesses.
One of the biggest complaints from small businesses is that the large contracts typically require a portion of the work to be done by small businesses, but that it eliminates them from the competition, because agencies prefer to work with larger companies. While the House bill also includes other provisions to ensure this happens, I do not see how the increase will be met. I can only hope to be proven wrong if the bill does include the 2 percent increase.
