SBA Loses Fourth Lawsuit For Refusing to Release Contracting Data

Petaluma, Calif. – The Small Business Administration (SBA) has lost its fourth lawsuit to the American Small Business League (ASBL) in the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The ruling will increase transparency and set a new legal standard. The SBA will now be forced to release the names of any and all firms that received federal small business contracts.

In September of 2008, the SBA appealed a United States District Court ruling, which directed the agency to release the specific names of all recipients of federal small business contracts during fiscal years (FY) 2005 and 2006.

As a small business owner for the last 12 years I can tell you that the SBA is 100% worthless. Our local office is almost entirely staffed with lazy Ebonics speaking black ladies who would never stay employed at a for profit business. (that's not racism, just an observation.) In twelve years of operation I have never received a cent of loan guarantee or grant money and have been told by bankers that the SBA involvement in loan applications does not change their criteria one iota it only slows the process down considerably, and increases the paperwork necessary. I have never had another CEO recommend that I seek help from the SBA. I've had a ton of well meaning friends ask "have you tried getting help from the SBA?" But I've never been told to go there by someone who has gone there themselves.
Unfortunately having a Small Business Administration gives the masses the misconception that the Federal government is actually doing something to help small businesses. As a small business owner I'd be the first to say eliminate the SBA. At least then people would realize that small businesses are truly the engine of our nation, Nobody helps small businesses. The rest of the nation rides on our success yet kicks us in the teeth when we struggle. Much of the government procurement system is crooked and skewed in favor of the largest businesses and the SBA is undeniably complicit in all of it. The SBA bastards even went to court to refuse to acknowledge which large businesses are getting their small business set aside contracts. I read that no large business has ever been prosecuted for taking a small business set aside contract from the government. Ever!

After 9/11 my aircraft parts manufacturing company got nothing when our sales went from seven figures to zero. The airlines had a small decrease in sales and got a 15 Billion dollar bailout. Once again large Bankers, Brokers, Insurers, Auto Manufacturers, and such are getting eleven figure bailouts while I'm getting told to bend over again. The city came by today and tried to shut the water off at our factory. We owed them less than $100. Funny I never hear about New York shutting the water off to Wall Street.

Honestly for being the engine of the economy, small businesses get the worst of almost everything and never any real dollars and cents help from anyone.

I’m not sure what this is all about, but here’s a guess:

Mom & Pop Enterprises, a small business with $2 million in annual revenue over the last 3 years, wins a small business set aside federal contract for $50 million over 5 years. Winning this contract will cause them to graduate from the small business threshold of $7 million per year in revenue. But, not to worry, the SBA rules ensures that they are still counted as a small business through the life of the contract.

Pop, the CEO, takes a look at his situation. When it comes time to recompete the contract, he will have a problem, he will no longer be a small business. If the recompete is issued as a small business set aside, his company will not be eligible to compete. If it is issued as a full and open competition, then he runs the risk of losing to one of the big boys who can easily beat his price and later turn a profit through change orders.

Pop has a problem, so what does he do? He sells his company at great profit to Lockheed Martin (or any other of the big boys) who execute his contract for the remaining four years and get credit for being a small business. Mom & Pop are cruising the Caribbean and the local contracting shop proudly reports that they have met their small business contracting goals.

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.