Most agency small business advocates view their roles as
similar, the General Accounting Office has found.
It said 80 percent of the small business utilization offices
that agencies with procurement authority are required to
have, view five of the eight required functions under the
Small Business Act as their duties. Those functions are
intended to advocate for small business in the $200 billion
(fiscal 2002) federal procurement market.
Most directors viewed responsibilities not listed in the
Small Business Act as their duty, such as outreach activities,
holding meetings and hosting conferences for small businesses
and trade associations, and reviewing plans for how prime
contractors would use small businesses as subcontractors.
A small number of directors said participating in their
agencies’ procurement process was part of their duties,
said GAO.
It said directors who did not view all of the functions as
responsibilities of their offices provided explanations,
such as directors at the Departments of the Army and Navy
who explained that their role is to develop policy for small
business programs at their agencies.
