Alaska is the nation's final frontier, but when it comes to a special loan program for Native American small businesses, the "wild frontier" may be a more apt description.

Over a five-year period, a Small Business Administration loan program specifically tailored for native Alaskans mushroomed in size by more than 277 percent to $1 billion annually with virtually no SBA oversight, according to a new Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.

As a result, more than 77 of the contracts were awarded without competitive bidding. Contractors often changed the terms and loan amounts without the SBA's knowledge and often farmed out work to subcontractors in violation of SBA rules.

"One [SBA] contracting officer commented that he would be 'laughed out of the office' if he brought up the compliance issue as a reason for terminating the contract," the GAO report stated.

In written comments, the SBA claimed that concerns raised in the report were "subjective" and based on isolated anecdotes. "We strongly disagree with SBA's characterization of our report," the GAO countered.