Dear 2026 House and Senate Candidates,
Here is an issue that will help you win in 2026:
Women are half the population. They own 40% of all businesses.
But they get less than 5% of federal contract dollars. Men get at least 95%.
Without economic fairness, women are not political equals. Men dominate in politics.
Men dominate because they earn and save more than women. Men give more in large and self-financed contributions. (They have more influence.) And it’s easier for men to run for office.
Men hold roughly 75% of executive offices, cabinet positions, and congressional seats (and their equivalents at state and local levels). And committee chair and party leadership positions are predominantly held by men.
You will win, we believe, if you run to raise from 5% to 15% the amount of federal contract dollars that must go to women-owned small businesses (WOSBs).
That would raise the amount that should go to small businesses in general from 23% to 33%. $271 billion dollars would be pumped into our economy and create 3.3 million jobs on top of the 2 million jobs that America typically creates. (That’s because every 1% increase of contracts to small businesses creates 100,000 new jobs, according to the Senate small business committee Chair in 2010.)
It's not charity.
Women own over 14 million businesses generating $2.7 trillion in revenue and employing over 12 million workers. They span all major industries, with increasing representation in finance, insurance, real estate, transportation, and warehousing. They sell what the federal government buys.
We are a small business nation.
99.9% of all businesses are small businesses. 98% have less than 100 employees. They employ almost half of the private sector workforce. They create most net new jobs and almost half of GDP.
Small businesses are supposed to get 23% of all federal contract dollars.
Unfortunately, big businesses (who are only 1/10th of 1% of all businesses) get up to 97% of federal contract dollars, including those meant for small businesses, who really get as little as 3% every year (when you define a small business as 100 or less employees, not the 500 to 2,000-employee firms that get “small business” contracts.) That’s what we found in our 100+ Freedom of Information legal victories (against the Pentagon, NASA, the GSA, the SBA, etc.), and many Congressional investigations and SBA Inspector General reports found the same thing.
Your constituents want economic and political fairness for women. America will prosper when we …
- Raise from 5% to 15% the amount of contract dollars that must go to women-owned small businesses (which raises to 33% the amount that will go to small businesses in general).
- Define a small business as 100 or less employees.
- Make the Small Business Administration prove that small business contracts go to small businesses.
Urgently, the SBA should have a budget and staff as big as its mission (to help small businesses). Unfortunately, the Trump administration is cutting its budget and staff and plans to burden it with the $1.7 trillion dollar student loan portfolio (perhaps setting it up to fail).
If you have any questions, please write or call. Our DontCheatWomen.com website has more information. We hope you run on the facts above. Thank you for becoming a candidate.
Bruce de Torres
Director of Communications
American Small Business League, ASBL.com
DontCheatWomen.com, An ASBL Project
415-404-7733, x101
bdetorres@asbl.com
BACKGROUND
Recent Challenges and Disparities
Women-owned small businesses in the United States express significant dissatisfaction with federal support, according to a 2023 survey by Goldman Sachs' 10,000 Small Businesses Voices program. The survey, involving nearly 900 women entrepreneurs across 47 states and Puerto Rico, reveals a staggering 99% of respondents believe the federal government needs to enhance its support for their enterprises. This sentiment is underscored by the 89% of these business owners who feel they do not compete on an equal footing with male-owned businesses, and 72% who would rate the government's support programs at a 'C' level or lower.
Certification Hurdles
A central issue highlighted is the arduous process of obtaining certification as a women-owned small business through the Small Business Administration (SBA). This certification is crucial as it opens doors to compete for federal contracts in sectors where women are traditionally underrepresented. However, only 36% of the surveyed businesses are certified, with many citing the process as overly complex and not worth the potential benefits. Indeed, the SBA has met its goal of assigning 5% of federal contracts to women-owned businesses only twice in the past three decades.
Several potential reforms could better support women-owned businesses:
Streamlining Certification: Simplifying the certification process could make it more accessible and less burdensome for small businesses.
Adjusting Contract Requirements: Unbundling contract requirements to allow smaller, specialized businesses to compete could foster greater diversity and equity in federal contracting.
Technology and Process Modernization: The SBA acknowledges the need for ongoing technology improvements to enhance customer experiences, suggesting that modernization is key to improving support services.
Legislative Actions and the Path Forward
The reauthorization of the SBA, which has not occurred since 2000, presents a significant opportunity to update and refine programs and goals to better meet the needs of today’s small business owners. This reauthorization could address systemic issues and align the agency’s capabilities with the current economic landscape, particularly for women entrepreneurs.
Advocates like Janetta King stress the importance of this legislative action to address the evident gaps and ensure the federal government more effectively supports women-owned businesses. Ms. King is the Midwest Regional Director for Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Voices, a program that amplifies the voices of small business owners nationwide through advocacy and public policy efforts.
The Small Business Administration (SBA) does not have to be reauthorized on a fixed, recurring schedule. Unlike some federal agencies or programs with sunset provisions that require periodic reauthorization, the SBA and most of its programs are permanently authorized by Congress. This means the agency can continue to operate without a formal reauthorization.
However, Congress has historically chosen to periodically reauthorize the SBA, especially from 1980 to 2000, when it did so seven times, typically with reauthorization periods ranging from two to five years. The last comprehensive reauthorization of the SBA occurred in December 2000. Since then, Congress has not passed a full reauthorization, instead keeping the SBA operational through piecemeal reauthorization of specific programs and by continuing appropriations.
The profound disconnect between women-owned small businesses and the federal support mechanisms designed to assist them highlights a critical need for systemic reform. By addressing certification barriers, refining contract requirements, and modernizing administrative processes, there is potential to significantly enhance the entrepreneurial environment for women, contributing to a more equitable and dynamic economic landscape.
Small Business Administration Sued for PPP Data by the American Small Business League - Southwest Florida Business Today
August 20, 2020
The ASBL recently won one of the largest Freedom of Information Act cases in history against the Pentagon. The Pentagon was forced to issue a check to the ASBL for $500,000 to reimburse their legal fees in that case.
Giant Corporations Are Reaping Billions From Federal “Small Business” Contracts – Mother Jones
July 25, 2016
Verizon Communications is the largest wireless provider in the United States, with 178,000 employees and $91.7 billion in sales last year, and yet it somehow managed to wrangle more than $107 million in federal “small-business contracts” last year through the US Small Business Administration. Verizon isn’t the only gargantuan company the SBA deems eligible for assistance. In 2015, according to a recent lawsuit by an advocacy group for actual small businesses, the SBA counted contracts with 150 other Fortune 500 companies in its fulfillment of the federal government’s small-business contracting obligations.
small-business-contracting-report.pdf
Sleighted, Public Citizen, citizen.org, May 6, 2015
Accounting Tricks Create False Impression That Small Businesses Are Getting Their Share of Federal Procurement Money, and the Political Factors That Might Be at Play
RFK Jr. Podcast: Corporate Capture Kills Small Business with Lloyd Chapman
Lloyd Chapman, ASBL, on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s podcast in 2024. “When I get into the White House, I’m going to call you up on Day One and we’re going to do all the things that you want to do.” -RFK Jr. told guest Lloyd Chapman during Kennedy’s 2024 presidential campaign. Trailer of their conversation: RFK Jr. Podcast: Corporate Capture Kills Small Business with Lloyd Chapman, Trailer.
"I am proud to have the support of the American Small Business League and their grassroots efforts to help protect American small business,” said Barack Obama, 2008 presidential candidate. (He unfortunately rejected the advice of his small business advisory group and didn’t recommend a law to prevent big businesses from getting small business contracts.)