The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) has issued fresh instructions on how the 8(a) Business Development Program should be used in light of the ongoing injunction in Ultima Services Corp. v. U.S. Department of Agriculture (No. 2:20-CV-00041-DCLC-CRW, 2023 WL 463348 – Eastern District of Tennessee, July 19, 2023). This case highlighted the SBA’s use of a “rebuttable presumption” of social disadvantage for certain groups in executing the administration of the 8(a) program, an issue that demanded a concerted response by the SBA.
The SBA’s 8(a) program is designed to help small disadvantaged businesses compete in the American marketplace. In this context, the agency has traditionally presumed some groups to be socially disadvantaged, hence their usage of the term “rebuttable presumption”. In other words, the agency had created a system whereby some groups could be fast-tracked through the application processes, unless there was contrary evidence to dispute their disadvantaged status.
In the ongoing case of Ultima Services Corp. vs the U.S. Department of Agriculture, this practice has come under scrutiny. The case has resulted in an injunction that restrains SBA from applying their “rebuttable presumption”, thereby necessitating new guidance from the agency concerning utilization of the 8(a) Program.
The SBA’s new guidance following this injunction is part of the agency’s efforts to clarify the current situation while navigating the complex legal terrain. This case may invariably shape the face of the 8(a) Business Development Program moving forward, and is thus of considerable interest to legal professionals working within the realms of business law and policy, as well as social justice.
More details regarding the injunction and the SBA’s latest guidance can be found in a recent article from Holland & Knight LLP.