Set-Aside Alert exclusive research:

8(a) Firms by Year

Set-Aside Alert exclusive research:

Number of 8(a) firms has risen by 10% since low point in 2019

SBA: 65% of 8(a) firms won federal contracts in FY2022

      The Small Business Administration is asking for a 16.5% boost in its budget for its flagship 8(a) Business Development Program in fiscal 2024. The goal is to expand efforts to attract more companies into 8(a) and to help more of those 8(a) companies win federal contracts.

      The SBA recently provided an update on its 8(a) program performance as well as goals for 8(a)’s future in its Fiscal 2024 Congressional Budget Justification and Fiscal 2022 Annual Performance Report.

      Here are the highlights of that report (all data is in fiscal years):

• Number of 8(a) Firms: The number of 8(a) firms rose to 4,958 in fiscal 2022, up from a low point of 4,501 in fiscal 2019. That is a 10% increase. Here are the numbers from the report:

  2018 - 4,680 certified 8(a) firms;
  2019 - 4,501 certified 8(a) firms;
  2020 - 4,635 certified 8(a) firms;
  2021 - 4,910 certified 8(a) firms;
  2022 - 4,958 certified 8(a) firms.
  2023 - 5,000 goal; and
  2024 - 5,100 goal.

• Percent of 8(a) firms awarded federal contracts: This benchmark was set in 2021 at 68%. In fiscal 2022 it fell to 65%, according to the data in the report. (Note: report elsewhere states 68% for fiscal 2022 in apparent error). The goal for fiscal 2023 is 73% and for 2024, 75%.
• Value of 8(a) Contract Awards: In fiscal 2022, approximately $20.72 billion was awarded to 8(a) firms, which is 3.55% of total federal contract awards, the report stated, adding that the 2022 figure is an increase of over $1 billion from fiscal 2021.
• Number of 8(a) Applicants Approved into the Program in the Year:
  This number has fluctuated each year:

  2019 - 450 Approved;
  2020 - 591 Approved;
  2021 - 610 Approved;
  2022 - 542 Approved;
  2023 - 641 Goal; and
  2024 - 600 Goal.

• Federal Surplus: The SBA distributed federal surplus to 89 8(a) firms with savings of $16.7 million.
• 8(a) STARS III: In fiscal 2022, 35 firms in the 8(a) program received their first government contract task order through the 8(a) STARS III contract, totaling nearly $37 million.

More Information:
Congressional Budget Justification and Annual Report: https://bit.ly/3Zw1Dr9

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