What Is a Small Business? The Small Business Administration Needs To Reexamine Its Answer
CED-78-149: Published: Aug 9, 1978. Publicly Released: Sep 1, 1978.
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The Small Business Administration's (SBA) size standards define which businesses are small and, therefore, eligible for federal small business assistance programs. SBA regulations state that, since smaller concerns often are forced to compete with middle-sized, as compared with very large, concerns, size standards should be established as low as is reasonably possible. Also, these standards should be limited to that segment of each industry that is "struggling to become or remain competitive."
The present loan and procurement size standards for most industries were established 15 or more years ago and have not been reviewed periodically to determine their continuing validity. SBA records do not indicate how size standards established before 1971 were arrived at. Analyses supporting 10 of the 64 standards established since 1971 do not demonstrate that the standards were set in conformance with agency regulations. Because SBA has not accumulated data on the size of businesses that have bid both successfully and unsuccessfully on set-aside and unrestricted contracts, it does not know the size of firms in many industries which need set-aside protection. The current size standards often define as "small" a high percentage of an industry's businesses. The size standards appear to have little effect on the size of businesses which receive section 7(a) loans.
Jan 19, 2021
Elder Justice:
HHS Could Do More to Encourage State Reporting on the Costs of Financial ExploitationGAO-21-90: Published: Dec 18, 2020. Publicly Released: Jan 19, 2021.
Nov 23, 2020
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Consumer Privacy:
Better Disclosures Needed on Information Sharing by Banks and Credit UnionsGAO-21-36: Published: Oct 22, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 23, 2020.
Nov 19, 2020
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Consumer Product Safety Commission:
Actions Needed to Improve Processes for Addressing Product Defect CasesGAO-21-56: Published: Nov 19, 2020. Publicly Released: Nov 19, 2020.
Oct 30, 2020
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Small Business Loans:
SBA Generally Incorporated Key Elements for Estimating Subsidy Cost of 7(a) ProgramGAO-20-618: Published: Sep 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 30, 2020.
Oct 13, 2020
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Aviation Consumer Protection:
Increased Transparency Could Help Build Confidence in DOT's Enforcement ApproachGAO-21-109: Published: Oct 13, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 13, 2020.
Oct 1, 2020
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Small Business Administration:
COVID-19 Loans Lack Controls and Are Susceptible to FraudGAO-21-117T: Published: Oct 1, 2020. Publicly Released: Oct 1, 2020.
Sep 30, 2020
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Small Business Research Programs:
Many Agencies' Award Issuances Are Not Timely; Some Practices May Improve TimelinessGAO-20-693: Published: Sep 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 30, 2020.
Sep 28, 2020
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Intellectual Property:
Additional Agency Actions Can Improve Assistance to Small Businesses and InventorsGAO-20-556: Published: Aug 27, 2020. Publicly Released: Sep 28, 2020.
Jul 30, 2020
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Small Business Contracting:
Better Documentation and Reporting Needed on Procurement Center RepresentativesGAO-20-462: Published: Jun 30, 2020. Publicly Released: Jul 30, 2020.
Jun 29, 2020
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Small Business Subcontracting:
Oversight of Contractor Compliance with Subcontracting Plans Needs ImprovementGAO-20-464: Published: May 28, 2020. Publicly Released: Jun 29, 2020.
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