NAWBO Testifies On Procurement Before Congress

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF WOMEN BUSINESS OWNERS® TESTIFIES BEFORE CONGRESS ON LACK OF FEDERAL BUSINESS FOR WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS

(McLean, VA)—On October 3, 2006, the National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) testified today at a special in-district hearing of the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship to look into the struggles faced by women-owned small businesses vying for federal contracts. The hearing—which was the result of NAWBO working constructively with the committee for more than a year—examined the progress being made under P.L. 106-554, which stipulates that five percent of all federal contracts be awarded to small businesses owned by women. The hearing was held on the campus of George Mason University in Fairfax, Virginia.

Erin M. Fuller, CAE, NAWBO's Executive Director, testified that this failure to achieve the 5 percent contracting goal has "cost" women business owners more than $16 billion in lost revenues in just the last three fiscal years. Women business owners cannot afford to wait any longer for the government to achieve contract equity. It is not only necessary but urgent for the SBA to implement fully and immediately the restricted competition program for women owned small businesses authorized by Congress in 2000. This program was envisioned by Congress as an important tool in helping to reach the 5 percent contracting goal established more than a decade ago.

Carol Kuc, NAWBO's president and president/CEO of Complete Conference Coordinators in Naperville, Illinois, outlines the situation as "[t]here is currently a $5 billion dollar a year difference between the roughly 3 percent of federal contract dollars that women-owned businesses currently receive and the 5 percent goal established more than six years ago." And she added, "While the long-delayed 8(m) program discussed in the regulations is a good first step, it certainly is not the only solution for correcting the disparity between the minimal 5 percent goal and measurable results."

"Procurement continues to be one of NAWBO's top advocacy issues for our members," adds Kuc. "Our members want and need procurement opportunities with the Federal Government in order to build world-class businesses," she continued. According to Kuc, "Many of our NAWBO members report that they no longer bother to bid on federal contracts because they find it is a waste of their time."

Among other recommendations Fuller noted, NAWBO urges the SBA to develop rules that mandate federal agencies that continue to fall below the Women Owned Small Business 5 percent goal (and other higher goals we expect will be established based on disparity study findings) to participate in the 8(m) set-aside program or provide other commitments or expanded opportunities for Women Owned Small Businesses to secure contracts with their agencies. Stringent success measurement criteria should be set and the program should be evaluated each year as to whether Women Owned Small Business goals were met. To view NAWBO's full testimony and NAWBO's Procurement Task Force Report, which was entered into the congressional record today, visit www.nawbo.org

For more information on NAWBO or to schedule an interview with NAWBO policy experts, please call 1-800-55-NAWBO.

About NAWBO: Founded in 1975, NAWBO propels women entrepreneurs into economic, social and political spheres of power worldwide. More than thirty years later, NAWBO is still the only organization that solely represents the interest of women entrepreneurs in all industries. The organization's mission is to strengthen the wealth-creating capacity of its members and promote economic development; to create innovative and effective change in the business culture; to build strategic alliances, coalitions and affiliations; and to transform public policy and influence opinion makers. Visit www.nawbo.org for more information.