was approved by the House by a vote of  409-13  and will ensure small business owners have the opportunity to compete for contracts from the federal government.

“Small businesses are the lifeblood of our economy in central Brooklyn and across America,” said Rep. Clarke. “But for too long, too many small businesses have found it difficult or impossible to compete for federal contracts. I was proud to support legislation that fixes this problem and gives hard-working small businesses a fair shake. From the hair salon in Brownsville to the web designer in Park Slope, small businesses should be able to compete on a level playing field.”

The Small Business Fairness in Contracting Act:

• Gives small businesses a better opportunity at government contracts by making it harder for government agencies to bundle contracts into billion dollar super-contracts

• Makes changes to ensure more federal contracts are available to small firms

• Takes steps to ensure that large corporations are not able to take advantage of small business contracting programs, and requires the Small Business Administration to reach out to small businesses regarding the opportunities to compete for government contracts. 

America is home to more than 26 million small businesses that represent more than 99.7 percent of all employers. Small businesses create half of our gross domestic product, and up to 80 percent of the new jobs nationwide. Additionally, studies have shown that that supporting small businesses is good for the American economy. For every $1 invested, small businesses will contribute $7 to the economy.

In recent years, the federal government has failed to ensure small businesses have the opportunity to compete for government contracts. For the past six years, the federal government has failed to meet its 23 percent small business contracting goal. This failure costs small businesses almost $10 billion in lost contracting opportunities. Additionally, the federal government has incorrectly credited small businesses with receiving $12 billion in contracts that were awarded to large businesses.

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