The federal fiscal year begins on October 1st and ends on September 30th. The fourth quarter spans July, August, and September.
During fiscal year 2023, $758.6 billion was awarded to businesses, including federal contracts, with $246.4 billion occurring in the fourth quarter. This represents 32.4% of all spending. Ideally, each quarter should account for 25% of the annual spending. However, the fourth quarter presents the greatest opportunity to government contracts. The question is, are you ready to take advantage of the fourth quarter and secure your share of this spending?
Quite naturally on a team of majority men, I was volun-told to write the article for Women’s History Month. I am certain any of the men could have written a compelling article for the month, but I wanted the privilege to address the intersection of Women’s History and Government Contracting.
Subcontracting is an excellent pathway for businesses to enter the government contracting arena. Did you know that when a large prime contractor wins a contract over $750,000, or $1.5 million in construction, they are required to award 35% of that contract to small businesses? This
70% increase in eligible industries will expand contract opportunities for certified women owned businesses.
As we wrap up National Women’s Month, let’s review the program designed to level the playing field for women business owners. The government limits competition for certain contracts to businesses that participate in the Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) Federal Contracting program. This program facilitates contracts for specific industries where WOSBs are underrepresented. Some contracts are restricted further to economically disadvantaged women-owned small businesses (EDWOSBs).
We are now in the period during which agencies become sharply aware that they need to deploy any remaining budget before the end of the fiscal year or risk losing that funding in the following year. During this period, Federal agencies have historically committed approximately 31% of all contracting dollars. Government contracting officers will be looking for qualified contractors to provide needed products and services.
The Biden administration has announced a new initiative of "increasing the share of contracts going to small disadvantaged businesses by 50 percent by 2026 - translating to an additional $100 billion to small disadvantaged businesses (SDBs) over the 5 year period." These plans were announced on June 1, 2021, the 100 year anniversary of the Black Wall Street massacre in Tulsa, Ok.
Join the GCA Family
Only 22% of federal contracting dollars are awarded to small businesses. Our goal is to be an agent of change by helping businesses owned by women, minorities, and veterans to get their fair share of the opportunities in the government market.
