Petaluma, Calif. - President Obama’s new jobs bill ignores America’s oldest and most cost-effective economic stimulus program, the Small Business Act of 1953. This legislation aims to stimulate the American economy by requiring that a minimum 23 percent of all federal contract dollars be awarded to small businesses.

Since 2003, a series of federal investigations have found that, despite the Small Business Act, most federal small business contracts are awarded to Fortune 500 firms and other large businesses worldwide.

During his 2008 presidential campaign, Barack Obama stated, “It is time to end the diversion of federal small business contracts to corporate giants.” Yet since taking office, President Obama has done nothing to keep that campaign promise. As a result, every day of his Administration, hundreds of millions of dollars in small business contracts are awarded to large businesses. These companies include Lockheed Martin, General Electric, Rolls-Royce, British Aerospace and Italian defense giant Finmeccanica.

The American Small Business League (ASBL) estimates that American small businesses are cheated out of as much as $200 billion in federal contracts annually due to this widespread and blatant abuse.

In 2005, the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General (SBA IG) released Report 5-15, which described the diversion of federal small business contracts to large businesses as, “One of the most important challenges facing the Small Business Administration and the entire federal government today.”

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, small businesses create more than 90 percent of all net new jobs. Small businesses employ half the private sector workforce, are responsible for half of GDP and more than 90 percent of U.S. exports.

“I watched President Obama’s speech last night and I was infuriated,” said ASBL President Lloyd Chapman. “I wish everyone watching that speech knew that President Obama has cheated small businesses out of hundreds of millions of dollars a day in federal small business contracts that should go them by law. If President Obama wants to create jobs, he needs to keep his campaign promise and end the diversion of federal small business contracts to large corporations.”