The Small Business Administration (SBA) and the Department of Commerce (DOC) had the largest number of management and technical assistance programs that we identified for fiscal year 1994. Other programs were in the Departments of Defense, Energy, Labor (DOL), Transportation, and the Treasury. In addition, government agencies that have procurement authority generally have an Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) that, in conjunction with SBA, is designed to assist in the development of small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. OSDBUS primarily focus on helping companies procure contracts with the federal government through various outreach efforts including conferences, procurement fairs, and business strategy sessions. The majority of the programs that we identified were targeted to small business. Page 1 GAO/GGD-95-3FS Business Aid B-258607 Scope and Proposed fiscal year 1994 funding levels for the programs varied widely, ranging from a high of $71 million for SBA's Small Business Development Centers to a low of $1.5 million for DOL's Micro-enterprise Grant Program. To determine which government agencies had management and technical assistance programs, we interviewed officials at SBA and at DOC's Economic Development Administration and its Minority Business Development Agency. These particular agencies were identified in the request that we conduct this review. In order to identify additional programs, we also searched government publications, such as the Federal Register and the Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance. We obtained documentation describing these programs from respective program officials, notifications in the Federal Register, and prior GAO studies. When possible, we obtained proposed fiscal year 1994 program funding levels from the federal budget; however, because not all programs were explicitly identified in the federal budget, we also consulted program officials for this information. We did our work between July 1994 and September 1994 in accordance with generally accepted government auditing standards. We are providing copies of this fact sheet to the agencies we identified in the appendix that have programs and to interested congressional committees. We will also make copies available to others upon request. Please contact me on (202) 512-4812 if you have any questions concerning Sincerely yours, Allan R. Mendelowitz Allan I. Mendelowitz, Managing Director International Trade, Finance, and Competitiveness |