Nothing makes a louder roar than the Space Shuttle blasting off into orbit, but when it comes to small business contracting, NASA is like space itself – cold and silent.

That's the allegation of small business gadfly Lloyd Chapman, who says NASA has been stonewalling him for months over its small business contracting practices.

Chapman filed suit in federal court yesterday on behalf of the American Small Business League (ASBL) to force NASA to produce contract documents under the federal Freedom of Information Act. "I believe that NASA is falsifying their small business reports to Congress, and I believe that they are allowing their contractors to falsify their small business reports," said Chapman, who is the ASBL president and founder.

Chapman is attempting to follow up on a 2003 report by the Government Accountability Office, which uncovered evidence that NASA's contracting officers were characterizing contracts to large businesses as small business awards.