What is the 8(a) Program

The 8(a) Program -- named for Section 8(a) of the Small Business Act – is a business development program created to help small disadvantaged businesses compete in the market place. It is also designed to assist such companies in gaining access to federal and private procurement markets.

The focus of the program is to provide business development support, such as mentoring, procurement assistance, business counseling, training, financial assistance, surety bonding and other management and technical assistance. The goal, however, is to prepare small disadvantaged firms for procurement and other business opportunities.

One of the benefits of the 8(a) program is the ability of participants to be contracted as a sole source opportunity.  Sole source contracts are usually approved in a matter of days. Most federal agencies have an  8(a) or small business program and the Small Business Representative will guide their planners and engineers through the 8(a) contract program. The 8(a) program is a federal mandate, so federal agencies get credit for the amount of work they contract to a small business, small disadvantaged business, and 8(a) firms.

How the Program Works
The 8 (a) program is benefits both the government as well as the contractor through mechanisms that ensure quality performance. Prior to acceptance into the program, the contractor is subjected to a rigorous review of its ownership, daily management, operations, experience and financial status. Only those contractors that can document disadvantaged business status and demonstrate the viability of the organization are accepted into the program. Once accepted, the contractor is required to provide the SBA with a detailed business plan that must be updated annually.  Therefore, the perceived risk of contracting a small disadvantaged in regard to technical and financial ability, is abated.  SBA will not approve an company for an 8(a) unless they are assured that the company is capable of successfully completing the contract.

Upon acceptance, each contractor is assigned Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes based on the qualifications and experience of the company and key personnel. Performance of 8(a) contracts is then limited to those SIC codes. As a company gains experience and expertise, it may request additional codes from the SBA based on documentation of this experience.

Subcontracting
One of the goals of the 8(a) program is to allow non-8(a) contractors to expand their scope of services. Therefore, the 8(a) contractor is permitted, with approval of the SBA, to subcontract a portion of this work to other qualified firms. While subcontracting is restricted to maintain the integrity of the program as an opportunity for disadvantaged businesses, subcontracting limits can be as high as 85 percent, depending on the industry. Contractors develop valuable relationships, while the client benefits from a qualified, experienced, well-rounded team.

In addition, all large “unrestricted” federal contracts require that at least 70% of all subcontracting be to small businesses.  Of the subcontracted amounts, amounts up to 12% most include 8(a) businesses. 

CONTRACT LG2ES THROUGH THE 8(A) PROGRAM!!!