April 6, 2023
This premier annual conference provides education and supplier diversity networking for small businesses. This year’s event was held at the Hyatt Regency New Orleans from February 13 through 15 and was sold-out. Clearly, many small businesses are ready to travel again for in-person events!
In addition to making introductions to federal agencies and prime contractors, event attendees were particularly concerned with understanding and maintaining compliance with the SBA’s revenue reporting requirements. GRF’s experts Paul Calabrese and Steve Lyons hosted a “Meet the Experts Roundtable” on this topic.
Key trends from the conference include:
Delays in Financial Reporting to the SBA
Participants of the SBA’s 8(a) program are required to provide financial information to the SBA to maintain eligibility. However, many program participants reported that they’re often delayed in getting their required reporting financials together and many had to request extensions.
Challenges with 8(a) Financial Compliance Requirements
Program participants expressed a need in ongoing education on the different revenue requirements for their required financial reporting, which can be different for Tribes, Alaska Native corporations, Tribal-owned Native Hawaiian organizations, and Community Development Corporations. Reporting can be particularly onerous for smaller organizations with limited resources.
CPA Relationships and Specialties are Key to Compliance
Participants noted that it was beneficial to seek long term relationships with their CPA through the tenure of the 8(a) program for consistency and efficiency. Given the complexity of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) requirements, a specialization in government contracting was particularly helpful.
GRF Can Help
Contact us! Our government contracting and 8(a) small business specialists can help you with a wide range of issues. Reach out to us at the contact information below.
