SBA raises revenue limits for small business certifications

Effective Aug. 19, the Small Business Administration (SBA) is raising its monetary-based small business size standards for inflation by an average of 8.4%, an adjustment that the administration expects will allow 90,000 additional companies to participate in its loan and contracting programs. The SBA said that this increase could result in $750 million more total contracts awarded to small businesses and as much as $65 million more in small business loans. In order to be considered a small business under current SBA guidelines, most general, heavy and civil construction companies cannot have more than $36.5 million of average annual sales receipts. The SBA's interim final rule raises that threshold about 8.2% to $39.5 million. The current threshold of $15 million for specialty contractors — i.e. electrical, concrete, plumbing, HVAC, painting — and those companies that provide engineering services will increase 10% to $16.5 million. The cap on average annual receipts for architects is increasing by about 6.7% to $7.5 million.