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The Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship works hard to ensure that small businesses have fair access to federal contracting opportunities, including opportunities for minority, women and service-disabled veteran owned firms. Small businesses face many challenges in competing for federal contracts, including a maze of complicated regulations, contract bundling, size standards with loopholes for big businesses, a lack of protections for sub-contractors, and an absence of accountability for meeting small business contracting standards.

Federal agencies are mandated by law to spend 23 percent of their contract dollars with small firms, with women and disadvantaged firms to receive 5 percent of dollars and service-disabled veteran firms to receive 3 percent. In 2007, the Committee passed legislation to improve contracting opportunities for small businesses.

Press Releases
10/30/08	Kerry, Snowe Push for More Time for Women's Procurement Rule
10/29/08	Kerry, Snowe Promote Best Practices for Entrepreneurs
10/23/08	Kerry Response to the Failure of the Administration to Meet its Small Business Goal
09/29/08	Administration Creates Roadblocks for Women-Owned Businesses
07/17/08	Kerry Holds SBA Accountable for Disadvantaged Business Fraud

Statements
11/13/07	Kerry Opening Statement on Lender Oversight and Fraud Prevention
11/07/07	Kerry Opening Statement on Small Business Contracting Revitalization Act Markup
11/01/07	Kerry Statement on the Small Business Contracting Revitalization Act of 2007
10/29/07	Cardin Opening Statement on Improving The Ability of Everyone to Access Federal Contracting Opportunities
07/18/07	Kerry Opening Statement Small Business Contracting Hearing

Articles
12/08/08	What Will Obama's SBA Be Like?
10/31/08	Senators Push for More Transparency in Procurement Plan
10/24/08	SBA at a Crossroads
10/23/08	Feds Short on Contract Target
10/22/08	Agency Counted Big Firms as Small