PETALUMA, Calif., March 3, 2016/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Yesterday the Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that small businesses received 25.8 percent of all federal contracts in fiscal year 2015,a total of $90.7 billion.

The American Small Business League (ASBL) has challenged theaccuracy of the data pointing out that the SBA included thousands of largebusinesses including 151 Fortune 500 firms in the calculations of their data.

Some of the firms that the SBA has includedin their small business contracting data include: Verizon, Apple, Microsoft,General Electric, Home Depot, AT&T, UPS, Hewlett Packard, IBM, Bank ofAmerica, Citigroup, Wells Fargo, Pepsi, Oracle, Raytheon, General Dynamics, NorthropGrumman, Anthem and John Deere.

The SBA's Inspector General has challenged the accuracy of theSBA's data for over a decade. In 2005, they released Report5-15 that described the diversion of small business contracts going tocorporate giants as, "One of the most important challenges facing the SmallBusiness Administration (SBA) and the entire federal government today."

A series of federal investigations have all found that thenumbers were dramatically inflated. ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN, CNBC, MSNBC, Fox Newsand RTTVhave all reported on the fraud and abuse in federal small business contractingprograms.

As early as 2003, the Government Accountability Office (GAO)conducted the first investigation into corruption and fraud in federalsmall business contracting programs. The GAO uncovered over 5,300large businesses had been the actual recipients of billions in USGovernment small business contracts.

President Obama acknowledgedthe magnitude of the abuses by releasing the statement, "It is time to end the diversion of federal small businesscontracts to corporate giants."

On March 25, 2015, Congresswoman Janice Hahnrequested aGAO investigation into small business contracting based upon research doneby the American Small Business League.

In 2014, Public Citizen released a report titled "Slighted" which accused the federal government ofusing accounting tricks to "create false impression that small businesses are gettingtheir share of federal procurement money."

Research by the ASBL foundthat the SBA has shortchanged small businesses in two ways. First, to inflate the percentage the SBA uses a number which is lessthan a third of the actualfederal acquisition budget. Secondly, the SBA has included billions ofdollars in contracts to Fortune 500 firms and some of the biggest companiesaround the world in their numbers.

"It is astounding that the President and Congress haveallowed this rampant fraud to go on for so long. When you look at anyreasonable definition of a small business, and the total federal acquisitionbudget, small businesses are receiving probably closer to one tenth of what theSBA claims they are awarding to small businesses. This is blatant fraud and itshould be investigated by the FBI," stated ASBL President Lloyd Chapman.

To view full press release, click here: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/small-business-administration-accused-of-fabricating-small-business-contracting-data-300230102.html?tc=eml_cleartime

PETALUMA, Calif., Feb. 24, 2016/PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Fortune 500 firms and many of the largest firmsin the world will continue to be allowed to receivebillions in federal small business contracts if a new bill is passed inCongress to modernize the Small Business Act. 

The House Small Business Committee has unanimously passed H.R. 4341, the "DefendingAmerica's Small Contractors Act of 2016."  The bill now goes onto the full house for approval. The bill states it would modernize the SmallBusiness Act and implement "common sense" reforms.

Beginning in 2003, the GAO uncoveredover 5,300 large businesses that were receiving federal small businesscontracts. Since then, over two dozen federalinvestigations and investigative reports have uncovered fraud and abuse infederal small business programs. H.R. 4341 does not address any of the fraud, abuseand loopholes that have been uncovered in those investigations.

In 2005, the SBA Inspector General released Report5-15 that stated, "One of the most important challenges facing theSmall Business Administration (SBA) and the entire Federal Government today isthat large businesses are receiving small business procurement awards andagencies are receiving credit for these awards."

President Obama acknowledgedthe magnitude of the fraud and abuse in federal small business contractingprograms when he released the statement, "It is time to end the diversion of federal small businesscontracts to corporate giants."

NBC, CBS, ABC, CNN, MSNBC, RTTV, Fox News and CNBC haveall reported on the fraud and abuse in federal small business contracting programs.

In May of 2015, Pubic Citizen released their investigativereport on the issue titled, "Slighted." Public Citizen accused the federal government of using accounting tricks to "create false impression thatsmall businesses are getting their share of federal procurement money."

The American Small Business League (ASBL) released their annualanalysis of federal contracting data for fiscal year 2015. Information obtained from the Federal Procurement Data System indicated thefederal government counted contracts to 151 Fortune 500 firms as small businesses contracts infiscal year 2015.

In recent years some of the firms that have received federalsmall business contracts include, Chevron, Apple, Microsoft,General Electric, Home Depot, AT&T, CVS, UPS, Bank of America, WellsFargo, Target, Hewlett Packard, Pepsi, Coca-Cola, Boeing, Oracle, Raytheon,Lockheed Martin, General Dynamics, Northrop Grumman and British AerospaceEngineering (BAE.)

ASBL President LloydChapman stated, "This is a perfect example of why so many Americans nolonger trust the government. Congress will pass this bill to 'modernize theSmall Business Act' and adopt 'common sense' reforms but they will still allowFortune 500 firms to receive federal small business contracts. It's absolutelyastounding."

The American Small Business League plans to release a full-length documentary on fraud and abuse infederal small business programs this summer.

To view full press release, click here: http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/fortune-500-firms-are-still-small-businesses-with-new-bill-in-congress-300225066.html?tc=eml_cleartime