SBA

Small Business Administration administers certification for the following categories: HUBZone, 8(a) & Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) www.sba.gov

Designation as a small, minority, women-owned business, veteran owned and/or service disabled veteran should be made at www.ccr.gov

What are the criteria for classification as a small business?

Central Contractor Registration defines small business criteria as follows:

A small business is one that:

1. is organized for profit;
2. has a place of business in the United States;
3. makes a significant contribution to the U.S. economy by paying taxes or using American products, materials or labor; and
4. does not exceed the numerical size standard for its industry.

The business may be a sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation, or any other legal form.

Central Contractor Registration has aligned its classification standard with the official classification from Small Business Administration (SBA). The SBA has a size standard for all private sector industries in the U.S. economy, using the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) to identify the industries.

Size standards (usually stated in number of employees or average annual receipts) represent the largest size that a business (including its subsidiaries and affiliates) may be to remain classified as a small business for SBA's programs and for federal contracting programs.

For the most current information on the small business size standard for a variety of industry groups, check the CCR Web site.

VETERAN BUSINESS CERTIFICATIONS

The federal government requires Veteran Owned Small Businesses (VOSBs), including Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs), to register in the www.vetbiz.gov Vendor Information Pages database. All Veteran Owned certification designations are essentially self-certifications/designations.

SCTRCA

South Central Texas Regional Certification Agency is a local/regional small business certification resource. Information about the certifications they offer can be found by visiting www.sctrca.org.