[Claim Against SBA for Moneys Owed by Section 8(a) Participant]

A firm submitted a claim against the Small Business Administration (SBA) for an amount it was owed by a participant in the SBA 8(a) program. The claimant argued that SBA failed to monitor and control a special bank account established to administer SBA funds advanced to the participant. As a result, the participant was not able to pay the claimant for services that were provided. SBA had established the account when it became apparent that the participant was having financial difficulties. The claimant contended that SBA assured it that payments for the services would be paid out of the SBA-controlled account. However, account irregularities caused several payments to remain outstanding and the claimant sought to retrieve the payments from SBA based on the assurances. GAO held that the SBA assurances were made in connection with advance payments made on three previous occasions and not these particular payments. Accordingly, the claim was denied.