Subpoenas for Four Agencies

House Small Business Committee Chairman Sam Graves, R-Mo., late Thursday sent subpoenas to four agencies he views as being out of compliance with the Small Business Act's provisions on structuring their Offices of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization.

The Agriculture, Justice, Treasury and State departments were sent the subpoenas asking them to testify at a hearing in late October or early November.

The bone of contention is whether the law's provisions to give clout to offices that help small minority contractors win federal business are being followed if the officials running the OSDBUs do not report directly to the agency chief or deputy.

Following a GAO report, letters and a hearing in September, the four agencies now being subpoened offered varying arguments why their special reporting structures are fully compliant with the law.