PETALUMA, Calif., March 14, 2006 /PRNewswire/ -- In its annual report to the President, The Small Business Economy, the SBA's Office of Advocacy reported that small businesses were awarded an estimated $119.2 billion in Federal prime and subcontracts during fiscal year 2004.

Responding to a Freedom of Information Act request by the American Small Business League, the SBA claimed that they do not have the names of firms they reported as small businesses in 2004.

ASBL President, Lloyd Chapman, believes the SBA is attempting to withhold information that will prove the SBA has dramatically overstated small business procurement figures by reporting billions in contracts to some of the largest firms in the U.S. and Europe as small business awards.

The ASBL is preparing to file its third Federal lawsuit against the SBA to force them to release the names of the firms. Chapman stated, "I am confident the information we obtain will prove the SBA and the GSA have diverted billions in small business contracts to Fortune 1000 companies. It's unacceptable that we have to go to court over and over just to get the most basic information from the SBA. Clearly they are trying to hide damaging information."

During the past twelve months, the ASBL has won two similar Freedom of Information cases against the SBA. The Justice Department has been directed by the Federal court to pay the ASBL over $54,000 in legal fees due to the SBA's refusal to release records that are supposed to be available to the public.

"These lawsuits are a waste of taxpayer dollars," Chapman said.

Seven Federal investigations and two private studies have documented that Fortune 1000 firms and their subsidiaries have received billions in small business contracts. Three of the reports came from the SBA's own Office of Inspector General (Reports 5-14, 5-15, and 5-16). SBA Administrator Hector Barreto has refuted all nine investigations.

About the ASBL
The American Small Business League was formed to promote and advocate policies that provide the greatest opportunity for small businesses - the 98% of U.S. companies with less than 100 employees. The ASBL is founded on the principle that small businesses, the backbone of a vital American economy, should receive the fair treatment promised by the Small Business Act of 1953. Representing small businesses in all fields and industries throughout the United States, the ASBL monitors existing policies and proposed policy changes by the Small Business Administration and other federal agencies that affect its members.

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