SBA wants to raise employee-based size standards for 240 industries

The government’s definition of “small business” is about to get larger--in some cases dramatically so.

The Small Business Administration has released its latest round of proposed changes in small business size standards.

In two separate rules, the SBA said it wants to increase size standards for 209 manufacturing industries and 31 non-manufacturing industries that use employee-based standards.

If the proposed changes in the two rules are adopted, about 1,650 more firms will become small and eligible for federal procurement and loan programs.

Some of the changes are substantial. For example, 59 industries would see their size standard double from 500 to 1,000, or from 750 to 1,500.

Those include firms performing scientific research and development, Internet publishing and newspaper and book publishing.

Another 25 industries would see their size standard more than double, from 500 employees now to 1,250 employees. That group includes cheese makers, breweries, book printers and plastic bottle makers.

For 11 industries, the size standard would triple from 500 employees currently, to 1,500 employees. That includes makers of carpets and toilet paper as well as for mining operations and greeting card publishers.

The proposed rules were published in the Federal Register. Comments for both are due on Nov. 10. (See Web link below)

There are a number of other changes proposed to other sectors, subsectors and sub-industries.The SBA also proposes to remove the Information Technology Value-Added-Resellers exception under NAICS 541519 for “other computer-related services” and its 150-employee-based size standard.

At the same time, the SBA reviewed, and left unchanged, employee-based size standards for an additional 150 manufacturing industries and 27 non-manufacuting industries.

SBA said it takes into account the structure of each industry, including average firm size, startup cost and barriers to entry, degree of competition and small business share of federal government contracting dollars.

More information: Federal Register notices:
Manufacturing http://goo.gl/si3Z2Z
Non-Manufacturing http://goo.gl/TUVTOK
SBA methodology http://www.sba.gov/size .

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