Most popular set-asides?

      With a spectacular 10.3% increase in discretionary funding approved for fiscal 2018, small business set-aside spending is likely to get a substantial hike as well. But which categories of set-asides will benefit the most?

      Research by CQ Intelligence suggests that some types of set-asides are growing, while others are struggling.

      In recent years, the generic small business set-aside has been the most popular by far, generating the most spending for small firms.

      Spending in the generic small business set-aside category rose from about $32.5 billion in fiscal 2014 to $42 billion in fiscal 2017, a 29% increase.

      Another fast-growing set-aside category with impact is that of set-asides for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSBs). Those grew from about $5 billion to $7 billion over the period, which was a 40% increase.

      Spending in the fastest-growing--but still small--set-aside category of Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs) increased from about $100 million to $570 million during the period, which was a 470% increase, according to the CQ Intelligence analysis.

Flat or floundering

      8(a) and 8(a) sole-source set-asides were flat, in the $7 billion and $8 billion ranges, respectively. HUBZone set-asides were stagnant at about $1.5 billion.

      Set-asides for Economically-Disadvantaged WOSBs rose from $60 million in fiscal 2014 to $80 million in fiscal 2016, then dropped to $50 million in fiscal 2017, CQ indicated.

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