Pa. increasing contracting opportunities for small businesses

Pennsylvania has increased prime contracting opportunities for small businesses (SBs) during the first six months of the 2023-24 fiscal year, according to a recently released report from the Pennsylvania Department of General Services (DGS).

The DGS released its mid-year Small Business Reserve (SBR) Report revealed that the state spent more than $22 million on SB prime contracts during the first half of the 2023-24 fiscal year, completing 462 purchase orders (POs) with 158 SBs. That total is an increase from the 321 prime POs made with 131 SBs during the first six months of the previous fiscal year, according to the report prepared by DGS’s Bureau of Diversity, Inclusion and Small Business Opportunities (BDISBO).

SBR program POs focus exclusively on creating prime contracting opportunities for all classifications of small businesses, which, by definition, includes Small Diverse Businesses (SDBs) and Veteran Business Enterprises (VBEs).

“The growth of prime contracting opportunities outlined in the mid-year SBR report is a reflection of the Shapiro-Davis Administration’s commitment to creating opportunity for small businesses,” DGS Secretary Reggie McNeil said in a statement.

McNeil added that the DGS will continue to help small and small diverse businesses compete for state contracts and work in collaboration with the Pennsylvania Advisory Council for Inclusive Procurement (PACIP) interagency working group to “determine more creative solutions that will lead to even more positive outcomes toward this change in culture.”

DGS is working with state agencies and the PACIP to increase their total operational spend and participation in the SBR program per the Executive Order Gov. Josh Shapiro signed in September.

Lieutenant Governor Austin Davis said there is more work to be done, adding that “the PACIP will continue to work with DGS and commonwealth agencies to continue to increase prime contracting opportunities and create ladders of opportunity for every Pennsylvanian looking to do business with the commonwealth and build generational wealth.”

DGS announced in December that for the first time in Pennsylvania’s history, the state spent more than $1 billion with SBs, SDBs, and VBEs during the 2022-23 fiscal year. State contract payments to small businesses in 2022-23 supported more than 11,700 jobs, increasing from nearly 10,000 jobs in 2021-22.

“This administration recognizes that small businesses are the engine that drives the Pennsylvania economy,” said DGS Deputy Secretary for BDISBO Kerry Kirkland. “Our goal is to expand opportunities for these businesses through commonwealth contracting to help them grow, prosper, and flourish.”