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Return to Article: SBA seeks comments on proposed women-owned business program

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  It's a terrible idea! You're either small or you're not. It shouldn't matter what physical attributes you have. Who cares if you're a woman (I am one) or a minority? If you prepare a good proposal, with good rates, you'll be considered for the job. No one cares what color your skin is or what body parts you have. If you can do the work for a great price, you'll get the job. Once we have a new set-aside in place, it's there forever. Try taking away any of the current set-asides and you'll start hearing about discrimination in the federal contracting arena. In the end, set-asides always come back to bite us.

  Taxpayer Posted October 3, 2006 8:41 AM
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  I would agree to a SBA women-owned business program only if measures were in place to ensure that this set-aside is not used to cover up who is really in charge. Oftentimes the profiteer (male) grabs a female, puts her name as the person in-charge, and takes advantage of contracts that he would not otherwise be able to obtain. Then, the real women owned businesses find it hard to compete.

  Martha Spicer Posted August 1, 2006 3:47 PM
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  Women-owned small businesses do not represent a recognized minority! The set aside is a quota system to assure some government business goes to protected minorities! It is not to handle everything someone at SBA can think up! It is highly questionable if the current program is of any use to minorities and to water it down with women is a step in a totally wrong direction! How about a set aside for gays! How about a set aside for illegal aliens? How about a set aside for rural businesses or is that handled by the department of agriculture?

  Come on SBA -- think outside the box and the legal limits on your programs! You are supposed to be creative!

  Here is a good example of why we should demand that Congress get rid of the SBA and stop its funding! Congress should establish a loan guarantee program for small and minority owned businesses and let the banking sector handle the evaluations and risk assessments to determine who gets the guarantee. This would be similar to the various forms of insurance and guarantees Congress offers everyone else and would remove the need for the SBA on any basis!

  Taxpayer Posted June 16, 2006 7:43 AM