Small Business: Efforts to Provide Federal Procurement Dollars to Women-Owned Businesses

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed federal agencies' requirements and procedures for certifying women-owned small businesses that are seeking federal contracts, focusing on: (1) how federal agencies' contracting goals are established for women-owned small businesses and the success in achieving those goals; (2) what procedures agencies use to certify that such businesses are owned by women; and (3) actions that the Department of Transportation (DOT) is taking to address the problem of women-owned and other small businesses needing certification as disadvantaged business enterprises each time they bid on a different contract.