A bipartisan bill that seeks to help small businesses land government contracts was passed in the U.S. House of Representatives this week.
The Small Business Procurement and Utilization Reform (SPUR) Act (H.R. 7988) would require the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to include the number of new small businesses entering the federal contracting market as part of their consideration of each federal agency’s performance meeting small business contracting goals.
The bill is sponsored by U.S. Reps. Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA) and Pete Stauber (R-MN).
The SBA is tasked with ensuring that small businesses are given a fair shot at competing for federal contracting dollars. Although the amount of federal contract dollars awarded to small businesses has reached record highs, the number of small businesses in the industrial base has declined dramatically. Research shows that the federal government is not retaining current small business contractors, and fewer small businesses are choosing to enter the federal market.
The SPUR Act seeks to change that, Gluesenkamp Perez explained.
“Even though more federal contracting dollars are making it to small businesses, fewer small businesses are deciding to take up federal contracts. For our local economies to thrive, it’s important that we level the playing field and ensure more Southwest Washington small businesses can benefit from these opportunities,” Gluesenkamp Perez said. “As more folks retire from the trades, the middle class will lose out if small businesses can’t clear the regulatory burdens of competing for contracts. This bipartisan legislation will help ensure our federal government is retaining and bringing in small business contractors – and today’s bipartisan passage through the House is a big step toward making this a reality for Southwest Washington.”
Gluesenkamp Perez is also leading a bipartisan effort to fully fund Small Business Development Centers in fiscal year 2025. Last year, her Corrective Action Report Oversight and Accountability Act passed the House Small Business Committee to help ensure federal agencies meet their benchmarks for the percentage of contracting dollars reaching women-owned, service-disabled veteran-owned, and small disadvantaged businesses.
The SPUR Act now heads to the U.S. Senate for consideration.