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STATEMENT

Of the Honorable Judy Chu, Ranking Member

Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Contracting and Workforce

“Scheduling Success? Issues and Opportunities for Small Businesses on the GSA Schedules”

Thursday, June 7, 2012

For the economy to continue to recover, small businesses must continue to get customers through their doors.  One proven way to do this is to work with the government.  As a buyer of more than a half-trillion dollars’ worth of goods and services annually, federal agencies often are a lucrative source of new revenue for small firms across the country.  A key to making this happen is to ensure that small businesses win their fair share of federal contracts.   After all, when entrepreneurs are hired by the federal government, they bring on new employees, creating opportunity for working families and the communities they are located in.   

For many small firms, this success will happen through the GSA Schedule, which provides agencies with a quick and easy way to buy supplies and services. 

Given that everything from staplers to furniture to travel services can be found there, it is no surprise that 80 percent of the Schedule participants are small businesses.  Agencies spend $50 billion through these Schedules, or approximately 10 percent of all federal procurement dollars.   35 percent – or $13 billion – went to small businesses through these orders, making it a vital marketplace in itself for all small contractors.

Reforming and modernizing the Schedule is necessary to keep pace with changes in economy, as well as the evolving needs of agencies.   It is no surprise that the supply and demand for goods and services within the federal marketplace are constantly evolving, and the GSA must lead by example. Newly announced initiatives that promote small business participation, increase efficiency, and reduce waste are important.  Such process improvements can yield significant results and it is critical that the GSA remains committed to innovation and improvement.

In this regard, this Committee’s role is to examine these changes and make sure that they meet the needs of today’s small businesses.  In particular, it is important to review any proposals that may reduce the participation of small firms on the GSA Schedule.  Such an outcome would not only short-change entrepreneurs, but also government agencies who benefit from more – not less – competition for their business.

In addition, we also have to evaluate these new ideas in the context of an acquisition workforce that is failing to keep pace with the marketplace. While the government has nearly doubled its spending to half a trillion dollars in the last decade, the acquisition workforce that oversees these contracts has only grown by 10 percent.  This strain is compounded by agencies’ demands to receive goods and services more quickly.  

The result is not surprising.  The use of multiple award contracts, such as the GSA Schedule are growing rapidly, allowing agencies to award more dollars, with less time and staffing resources.  This is the future of federal contracting.

Given these trends, it is absolutely critical that small businesses are not left behind as these newer procurement vehicles expand and grow.  Doing so not only gives smaller firms an opportunity to compete for awards, but also gives the government more suppliers to choose from.  This improves quality and price competition and is the number one reason that this Committee continues to fight to open up more federal contracts to small businesses.

The fact remains that the federal government’s commitment to small business has been disappointing at best.  It fails as a whole to meet statutory benchmarks year-after-year, not just for small firms, but also disadvantaged entrepreneurs like veterans, women and minorities.

As the GSA Schedule evolves, it is critical that small businesses are kept in the forefront and do not become a casualty of change.  After all, improving the GSA Schedule and empowering more small firms to grow with the government as a customer can be vital to not only the small business sector but to our economy overall. 

Thank you and I yield back the balance of my time.