SBA focus on tribes

The Small Business Administration has numerous initiatives to help Native American-owned small business owners succeed in federal contracting, Dorothy Overal, district director for SBA’s Oklahoma district, said at a recent Senate committee field hearing.

In Oklahoma, the focus is on 8(a) and HUBZone programs and on 7a loans. The SBA guaranteed $69 million in loans to Native-American-owned firms in OK in the last five years, Overal said.

Currently, there are 35 tribally-owned 8(a) firms and 25 Native-American-owned 8(a) firms in Oklahoma, she said. That represents 80% of the 75 8(a)s in the state.

In addition, about two-thirds of the state is designated HUBZone based on Indian lands.

The SBA also plans to bring its first small business incubators and growth accelerators to reservations and tribal communities in 2015. There are about 50 such incubators operating in major cities nationwide.

More information: Overal’s testimony: http://goo.gl/d8B7ZU
Other hearing testimony: http://goo.gl/WCu9tu

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