The federal government desires to do purchasing with small business.
It does all it can to have purchasing officers purchase from small businesses.
To that end the federal government has established programs that certify a business as a small business that the federal government wants to do business with.
The federal purchasing officers are then required to do the certain amount of purchasing with this pool of certified businesses.
The upside to the certified business programs is that all businesses have an opportunity to pursue the certification.
One such program is the SBA 8(a) program.
The SBA 8(a) certification is a program that designates a small business as being socially and economically disadvantaged.
Proving that a business is economically disadvantaged is easy.
It is simply a matter of showing the numbers.
Submit the business financials and net worth statement of the owner(s), if they are below the required limits then a business is economically disadvantaged.
Proving what is socially disadvantage may be easy the also.
There is a set of ethnic minorities that are predetermined to be socially disadvantaged and if a business owner(s) is of those ethnicities then the business is socially disadvantaged.
One still has to submit a narrative and ownership be 51% minority owned.
Should one not be a member of these ethnic minorities, it does not eliminate them from the SBA 8(a) program.
It is just more difficult to prove social disadvantage.
One should look at where they are socially disadvantaged, as an example some have used gender as proving their social disadvantage.
On this point a business owner may need to be creative.
The HUBZone program is another program small businesses can utilize to garner government contracts.
The HUBZone program certifies a business as existing in an economically depressed area.
This designation is geographically based.
The good news is a business is allowed to move its primary office to exist within a HUBZone area.
HUBZone areas are determined by using data from the previous census.
Areas are chosen based upon poverty rates of an area or the unemployment rate of an area.
The HUBZone program is one of the best programs to begin the government certification game as the process is quicker and the application shorter.
It does all it can to have purchasing officers purchase from small businesses.
To that end the federal government has established programs that certify a business as a small business that the federal government wants to do business with.
The federal purchasing officers are then required to do the certain amount of purchasing with this pool of certified businesses.
The upside to the certified business programs is that all businesses have an opportunity to pursue the certification.
One such program is the SBA 8(a) program.
The SBA 8(a) certification is a program that designates a small business as being socially and economically disadvantaged.
Proving that a business is economically disadvantaged is easy.
It is simply a matter of showing the numbers.
Submit the business financials and net worth statement of the owner(s), if they are below the required limits then a business is economically disadvantaged.
Proving what is socially disadvantage may be easy the also.
There is a set of ethnic minorities that are predetermined to be socially disadvantaged and if a business owner(s) is of those ethnicities then the business is socially disadvantaged.
One still has to submit a narrative and ownership be 51% minority owned.
Should one not be a member of these ethnic minorities, it does not eliminate them from the SBA 8(a) program.
It is just more difficult to prove social disadvantage.
One should look at where they are socially disadvantaged, as an example some have used gender as proving their social disadvantage.
On this point a business owner may need to be creative.
The HUBZone program is another program small businesses can utilize to garner government contracts.
The HUBZone program certifies a business as existing in an economically depressed area.
This designation is geographically based.
The good news is a business is allowed to move its primary office to exist within a HUBZone area.
HUBZone areas are determined by using data from the previous census.
Areas are chosen based upon poverty rates of an area or the unemployment rate of an area.
The HUBZone program is one of the best programs to begin the government certification game as the process is quicker and the application shorter.