Set-aside

8(a) Business Development Program

The SBA 8(a) Business Development Program is a nine-year program for small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. Participation includes sole-source authority up to certain thresholds and competitive 8(a) set-asides.

Certification & eligibility

8(a) certification is granted by the SBA and renewed during the nine-year participation window. Sole-source 8(a) thresholds and the rules of the program are governed by 13 CFR 124.

Capture-relevant notes

Sole-source authority — up to certain thresholds — is one of the strongest tools in the program.
Joint ventures with non-8(a) firms require an SBA-approved JV agreement.
Mentor-protégé relationships under the SBA program are common.

Common ground

DoD, GSA, VA, USDA, and most civilian agencies
Many small to mid-sized professional-services contracts
Sole-source 8(a) awards within program thresholds

How SourceDeck helps

SourceDeck’s qualification stage scores set-aside eligibility against the solicitation’s set-aside requirement. If you are not eligible, the bid score caps low and the rationale is written into the deck. See the set-aside eligibility guide and the sample SourceDeck.

Run a SourceDeck on a set-aside opportunity.

Send us a SAM.gov URL or solicitation PDF in this category. We’ll produce a SourceDeck on it: source-backed summary, bid/no-bid score with rationale, compliance matrix, capture actions, draft sections.

Analyze one opportunity → See the sample SourceDeck →