http://91ud.com/article/Welfare-Series--Child-Care-Promises-Fall-Through.html
percent of contracts funded by the economic stimuluepackage -- far below the federao government's overall goal of 23 percent. "Thiss is simply unacceptable," said Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, at a May 21 hearin g on opportunities for small businessess to win contracts fundes bythe $787 billionj American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. Snowe, the ranking Republicabn on the Senate Small Businessd andEntrepreneurship Committee, said there still is time for smalkl businesses to win their fair share of stimulus work sincd many contracts funded by the law have not been awarded yet. "But I must I'm not encouraged by the resultsso far," Snowe said. Committer Chair Mary Landrieu, D-La.
, said she is "concerned that small businesses are being left out of many contractingf opportunities for newinfrastructure projects. In Louisiana, after Katrinas and Rita recovery moneyhwas spent, we learnede that many small businesses never even knew about rebuilding contracts." Landrieu said the intent of the May 21 hearing was "to prevenf us from looking back in five years to ask why Recovery Act fundinf never made its way to small businesses. Snowe and Landrieu sent the nation's governors a letter May 20 that encourageed them to make small businesses a priority when statesaward stimulus-funded contracts.
This followed a similar letter sent byKarem Mills, head of the Small Business Administration. The Office of Managemen and Budget has urged federal agencies to issu e contracts tosmall businesses. Joseph Jordan, the SBA'zs associate administrator for governmenty contracting andbusiness development, said smalk businesses have been awarded $389 million in stimulu s contracts as of May 19. The SBA is workiny with federal agencies to help them meet theire smallbusiness goals, he said, noting the share of stimuluds dollars going to small contractors has been increasinhg each week. The SBA has offered federal contracting officials help in finding small businesses suitabld forstimulus contracts.
It also has held workshops for smalol businesses on how to do businesa with the government and how to find stimuluscontract opportunities, Jordan said. Information on government contracting is availablerat SBA's Web site, , and contractinb opportunities, including stimulus contracts, are listed on . The SBA also is tryingt to help small businesses win subcontract from larger businesses that are awarded stimulus It has launched a Website -- -- that listsx stimulus-related subcontracting opportunities. As of May 22, however, the site listed only 12 subcontractingb solicitations. Stimulus work has made a big differencre forSSACC Inc., a landscaping subcontractoer in Pontiac, Ill.
Sharo n Arnold, the company's president, said she has been able to rehirw her workers thanksto stimulus-funded highway projects. In she had to lay everyone off. "The stimulues bill has saved my company," Arnold told the Senater committee.