SBA announced a virtual public forum to hear public testimony on the massive proposed increases to SBA size standards—a proposal that has so far received overwhelming public opposition. The proposed size standards would allow businesses up to $1 billion in annual revenue to receive small business benefits in some industries. In many others, businesses with revenues exceeding $100 million would be able to compete for small business set-aside contracts.
The public forum is being held virtually on Thursday, September 17 at 10 a.m. ET. It is scheduled to last two hours. Members of the public can register at https://legacy.sba.gov/event/85035 to speak at the forum or listen to the testimony.
The public forum is required by the same law, the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, that requires SBA to review size standards every five years. Thursday’s forum covers both the proposed size standards and SBA’s underlying methodology.
SBA is using the Microsoft Teams platform for the virtual forum. Prior size-standards forums in 2022 and 2025 also were held via Microsoft Teams.
Comments oppose SBA’s proposal 8-to-1
SBA is scheduling the forum as public comments are cutting against the agency’s proposal by a margin of 8-to-1. Most public comments are filed in the last few days. With 10 days still to go, SBA already has received 875 comments.
A GovCon Intelligence analysis of the comments found that over 85% oppose SBA’s stated increases. That figures breaks down to 59% that are opposed entirely, and 27% that oppose the changes but support some sort of updates to the size standards, just not the huge increases SBA has proposed.
Regulations.gov reports over 66,000 comments, but the website allows comments to purport to represent multiple members of the public. The bulk of that total likely reflects a single comment claiming to represent the approximately 65,000 small businesses that participate in prime government contracting.
Most comments are filed in the last few days of the comment period. This one ends on September 21. So this size-standard proposal is on pace to attract many more comments than SBA’s last round of proposed size standards in 2020, when the agency received over 1,100 comments.
Many of the current comments address specific industries. SBA proposed to reduce the number of size standards from about 1,000 to 338. The two industries with the most comments are Engineering Services (NAICS code 541330) and Computer Systems Design & Related Services (NAICS group 5415, a group that includes four separate codes). Thirty-four industries or industry groups have received at least five comments.
What people are saying
The comments filed already include 650 comments from small business Federal contractors. Many of those are in professional services, IT, engineering and construction. Several trade groups, including the Native American Contractors Association, also have already chimed in.
Regarding engineering services firms, one commenter asked, “If out of approximately 136,000 firms that fall under the NAICS Code 541330, 377 of the top 500 of these firms qualify as small businesses, who exactly remains large?”
The president of a construction firm opposed the change from a dollar-based $45 million size standard to a 600-employee cap. “Most prime contractors of this size are doing $500 million to $1 billion in revenue each year,” the commenter wrote.
A commenter from a dredging firm opposed SBA’s removal of a special standard for dredgers: “The proposed employee standard does not separate small dredgers from dominant ones,” wrote the Florida business.
A mid-size IT firm in Maryland commented in support of the rule, but still advised caution. It commented, “Expanding the definition of small without expanding the dollars available to small businesses would help firms like ours at the expense of firms smaller than ours.”
A janitorial business with nearly 100 employees opposed the doubling of the size standard in its industry. It wrote: “A much larger firm can accept those losses to win work or establish a position in the market. We cannot.”
What to expect from the public forum
As SBA’s director of policy, planning, and liaison, I kicked off the public forums in 2022. I attended the 2025 forums as a member of the public. Those size-standards proceedings were comparatively non-controversial, so there were few attendees at the forums. Also, SBA held two forums each time, so attendees were split across the two days. The number of speakers was not enough at any of the forums to fill the time. We ended early.
This time, with so many comments already filed, expect many more attendees and speakers. SBA has blocked off two hours to listen to testimony on its proposed size standards.
Based on my experience at the prior forums, here are some tips:
Attend even if you don’t plan to speak. It’s worthwhile to hear what others are saying about the proposal. At the very least, you will hear SBA’s introductory remarks.
Be succinct, as there are speakers waiting.
Introduce yourself and, if you have one, your business. It’s meaningful for SBA—as the agency tasked with assisting and protecting small businesses—to hear directly from those businesses.
Expect SBA to refer to your remarks as “testimony,” but don’t expect SBA to respond live. In 2025, there were some acknowledgements by the SBA officials. But more likely, SBA will just move on to the next speaker.
Explain the effect of the proposal on your business. If you can, provide numbers, estimates, or predictions.
Refer to your written comment, if you’ve already submitted one, or submit a written comment for the record afterward. SBA likely will transcribe the forum, but it’s easier for the agency to refer back to a written comment than the transcription.
Don’t be afraid to refer to other testimony from earlier in the forum. That is one of the best aspects of the event—you can hear what others are thinking and respond.
If time permits, you can speak more than once.
Test your video and audio for Teams ahead of time. There’s always someone that isn’t able to participate because of tech problems. In the past, SBA has used the raise-hands function to identify attendees waiting to speak.
The link to register for Thursday’s forum is https://legacy.sba.gov/event/85035.
With over 20 years of Federal legal experience, Sam Le counsels small businesses through government contracting matters, including bid protests, contract compliance, small business certifications, and procurement disputes. His website is www.samlelaw.com. This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.
Excellent article and analysis. This is the best take I’ve seen on why 65,000+ comments supposedly have been filed. I said before and I will repeat that while I hope and expect that this rule will receive many, many comments, that number seems absurdly high as it essentially implies that every small business that received a contract last year has already commented, plus some extra comments thrown in. That can’t be right. Small businesses, make your voices heard!
Thank you, Sam and Steve, for keeping us informed. I’ve filed to testify and will do so on behalf of 15,000+ small businesses that participated and 100,000+ individuals who attended our training sessions in the SBA E2G program. Their voices matter, and I intend to ensure they’re heard.