SBA Program Offers Contracts

The Small Business Administration is accepting applications from businesses that want to participate in the agency’s HUBZone Empowerment Contracting program, which aims to channel federal contracting dollars to businesses located in historically disadvantaged areas.

Interested businesses can check an SBA Web site--https://www.sba.gov/hubzone--to determine whether they are located in one of the 7,000 urban census tracts that fall within the program. To qualify, 35% of the applicant’s work force must live in the zone.

The first-year goal of the program is to channel at least 1% of overall procurement dollars--about $2 billion in contracts--to businesses in the zones, which include 900 mostly rural counties and all Native American reservations. Federal officials hope to increase that by 2003 to a maximum of 3%--or about $6 billion.

Companies can apply electronically or submit a paper application. Applications can be downloaded or picked up from SBA district offices in Glendale and Santa Ana.

Eligible census tracts in Los Angeles roughly correspond to the federally designated “empowerment zone,” which includes parts of South and East Los Angeles, downtown and Pacoima.