The United States Small Business Administration (SBA), through its administrator, Isabel Casillas Guzmán, recently announced that it has allocated an all-time high of 26.5% of federal contracts dollars to small businesses, exceeding the contracting goal of 23% that had been foreseen for fiscal year (FY) 2022.

This historic level equates to a $162.9 billion investment in the small business economy, an increase of $8.7 billion from the previous fiscal year.

Casillas Guzmán stated in a press release:

Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, we have championed initiatives to fuel our nation’s historic economic growth while reducing barriers and ensuring fair competition in federal contracting.

Outstanding Rating

SBA also highlighted how 10 federal agencies earned an "A+" for their agency's achievement in small business contracting, and, at the same time, an additional ten agencies received an "A" rating.

The federal government, overall, earned an "A" on this year's All-Government Scorecard.

“The Biden Administration continues to raise the bar, reaching a record high level of contract spending with small businesses, supporting over one million good-paying jobs in manufacturing, construction, research & development, and other vital industries,” added Casillas Guzmán. 

Bidenomics is delivering for small businesses.

More Americans applied to start small businesses during @POTUS' first two years in office than any other year on record.

And this Administration’s policies supported one million jobs in small businesses in the last fiscal year.

— The White House (@WhiteHouse) July 20, 2023

Outstanding Milestones

SBA plays a crucial role in setting procurement goals for each agency and works closely with government buyers to emphasize prioritization of small businesses in the procurement process.

Highlights of the overall performance of the federal government include:

• For the second consecutive year, Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) spending exceeded its 11% goal.
• Service-disabled Veteran-owned small business spending has exceeded its 3% goal, reaching 4.6%. This achievement translates to $28.1 billion in procurement, reflecting a $3 billion spending increase compared to the previous year.  
• Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) small businesses were granted a record-breaking $16.3 billion in federal contract awards, marking the highest amount ever awarded to this category in the program’s history. Despite not meeting the 3% statutory goal, the federal government made significant strides in supporting and empowering HUBZone small businesses.
• Women-owned Small Businesses (WOSB) received more than $26 billion for the fourth straight year, accounting for 4.6% of the Fiscal Year 2022 total eligible dollars, slightly below the 5% target.
• The federal government achieved its small business subcontracting goals, awarding 30.9%, or $79.1 billion, to small business subcontractors.
• In Fiscal Year 2022, although there was a significant increase in small business awards, the number of small businesses receiving prime contracts with the federal government continued a multi-year trend of decreases in small-business vendors, spanning a decade.