[NOW Actions] Support Women-Owned Businesses!

Support NOW's Work |	February 22, 2008	| Tell a Friend

Action Needed Background All NOW Actions NOW and Economic Justice		Oppose Change Limiting Federal Contracts for Women-Owned Businesses They're at it again! The Bush administration is moving to further limit equal economic opportunity for women through a critical change in the Small Business Administration (SBA) regulations [Proposed Rule, 13 CFR Parts 121, 125, 127 and 134, Dec. 27, 2007] relating to the Women's Procurement Program. Action Needed: Please send comments to the SBA opposing this regulatory change that would virtually eliminate the "set-aside" program in federal contracts for women-owned businesses. Take action NOW -- comments are due by Monday, Feb. 25! Comments should be submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal and identified by 3245-AF40. You may use our sample message or compose your own statement. Background: Only a Few Businesses would Qualify. Announced during the holidays when few were paying attention, the Bush administration is quietly pushing through a Small Business Administration regulatory change that will dramatically undercut federal contracts for women-owned companies. This move counters the objectives of the Equity in Contracting for Women Act (ECWA) which Congress adopted in 2000 to improve the federal government's implementation of federal contract set-aside program. Called a "slap in the face to women" by Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), this change will further limit women-owned businesses' eligibility for government contracts, depriving women of equal and competitive business opportunities. The proposed change would recognize only four industry sectors in which it says women-owned businesses are underrepresented and therefore eligible to receive set-asides. These include: intelligence; engraving and metalworking; furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing; and motor vehicle dealers. While federal agencies can determine whether other women-owned businesses are underrepresented, they must first find documented evidence of governmental discrimination within their own agency before setting aside contracts. In addition, the regulation change limits the amount of contracts to $5 million for manufacturing work and $3 million for other jobs. Facts Show No Need for Change. Remarkably, the Bush administration is pushing this regulatory change despite the following facts: Though women-owned businesses comprise about 30 percent of national private firms, they only reap roughly three percent of government contracts; and while women-owned businesses have increased by 42.3 percent, their annual revenues have only grown by 4.4 percent. Several efforts have been made to narrow these disparities, but their implementation and reinforcement have been weak. Both the House and Senate small-business committees have held oversight meetings in recent months on this debilitating revision to the Women's Procurement Program. For the last dozen years or so, the Small Business Administration has failed to properly implement the law regarding the awarding of federal contracts to qualified women-owned businesses. Agency's Proposed Rule Denies Equal Opportunity. On Dec. 27, the SBA published the revised rule for implementing the Women's Procurement Program -- ignoring the National Research Council's scientific recommendations, which found that women's businesses are underrepresented in 87 percent of industries. Instead, the SBA selected an extremely limited group of industries as underrepresented. Within these four selected industries - national security and international affairs; coating, engraving, heat treating and allied activities; household and institutional furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing; and motor vehicle dealers - small business size standards haven't been attributed, making these businesses in this industry sector ineligible for the Women's Procurement Program. To add to this careless and arbitrary selection of industries, the SBA proposed yet another limitation -- that each agency must find proof of discrimination within its own agency before it can set aside contracts under the Women's Procurement Program. This proposal undermines Congress' intentions and sincere interest in increasing women's business participation in government procurement. It should be noted that these new restrictions would also set a higher bar for businesses owned by people of color and further limit their access to federal contracts. Take Action: Please send a brief statement to the Small Business Administration emphasizing that this regulatory change would harm millions of women business owners across the U.S. Stress that recognizing only four industries as underrepresented ignores 87 percent of underrepresented businesses when it comes to women-owned businesses.. This change to the Women's Procurement Program would be a severe setback to providing equal business opportunities to women when there is already lagging implementation of the program. With your help and comments, the proposed change could be rejected and years of discrimination against woman-owned small businesses could begin to be rectified. Act NOW -- comments are due Monday, Feb. 25! Comments should be submitted through the Federal eRulemaking Portal and identified by 3245-AF40. Use our sample message, which you may customize, or compose your own statement. Sample Message: Robert C. Taylor Office of Contract Assistance Office of Government Contracting U.S. Small Business Administration 409 3rd St., SW Washington, D.C. 20416 RE: 3245-AF40 - Proposed Rule, 13 CFR Parts 121, 125, 127 and 134 - RIN 3245-4F40 [Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract Assistance Procedures, 72 Fed. Reg. 73,295 (Dec. 27, 2007)] Dear Mr. Taylor: I oppose a change in the Small Business Administration's Women's Procurement Program that would limit women-owned businesses' eligibility to only four relatively narrow industry sectors and to further limit the contract amounts to no more than $5 million for manufacturing and $3 million for other areas. There is no evidence to support SBA's assertion that only those industries (intelligence; engraving and metalworking; furniture and kitchen cabinet manufacturing; and motor vehicle dealers) are underrepresented in women-owned businesses.. Instead, the agency's determination of underrepresented industries should be based upon National Research Council findings that 87 percent of business and industry is not adequately represented with women-owned businesses. An additional study, by RAND Corp., came to the same conclusion about widespread underrepresentation. Clearly, the SBA is attempting to substantiate its case for the rule change on a set of false assertions. Further, businesses in the SBA's four named industry sectors have not been attributed small business size standards, thus making them ineligible for the Women's Procurement Program. The cruel result is that no industry will be eligible for the Women's Procurement Program - unless governmental agencies undertake special studies to determine whether there has been government discrimination. The likelihood of such future study initiatives is low. This rule change is unnecessary and flies against what federal statutes require of the agency. The proposed alteration is wholly contrary to Congress' intention that more federal contracts -- not fewer-- be awarded to qualified women-owned businesses across a broad spectrum of industries. Discouraging discrimination against women-owned businesses is in the fundamental interest of the federal government, as well as enhancing equal opportunities for women business owners and preventing their annual loss of millions of dollars. I urge you to withdraw this unfortunate and damaging regulatory change. Sincerely,
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