News

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL), Chairman of the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, will convene a hearing on the Reauthorization of SBA’s contracting programs on Wednesday, June 5, 2019. The Runway Extension Act was signed into law on December 17, 2018. Under the new law, small businesses would be able to extend their eligibility to qualify as “small” based on their average business revenue from the past 5 years rather than 3 years, giving small businesses more time to grow before competing with larger businesses. The SBA has yet to implement this new size standard, hindering small businesses’ ability to bid for new contracting opportunities while they are in the process of growing.
 
“Thanks to the efforts of Ranking Member Cardin and his growth-minded approach to small business policies, this legislation passed the Senate and was signed into law,” Rubio said. “Yet, SBA has refused to follow the Runway Extension Act despite its enactment nearly six months ago. As a result, millions of small businesses that depend on this law are now uncertain of their future plans and ability to compete for contracts against larger businesses. I look forward to getting to the bottom of why the Runway Extension Act has not been implemented during tomorrow’s hearing and welcome a discussion on how together we can help small businesses grow and participate in practical contracting opportunities.”
On Wednesday, Chairman Rubio will convene a hearing titled, “Reauthorization of the SBA’s Contracting Programs.”
 
The hearing will be live-streamed on the committee’s website here.