Senators John Kennedy (R-La) and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga) have brought back the Service-Disabled Veteran Opportunities in Small Business Act, presently linked as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), with the intent to deepen the support for small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans.

The bill would instruct the Small Business Administration (SBA) to provide federal agencies with better directions on how to achieve contracting goals for these businesses, offer training to those agencies that are lacking, and deliver yearly compliance reports to Congress. 

Kennedy and Ossoff expressed that the purpose of the bill is to make sure that service-disabled veterans have a fair chance of getting federal contracts, first of all, acknowledging their sacrifices and second, their help in the economy. A companion bill has also been introduced in the House to broaden bipartisan support for the initiative.

The issue of veteran inclusion and small businesses in government procurement underlies this effort. Contractor News has given a viewpoint on the growing number of resources for disabled veteran contractors, while states like Maryland are pushing forward with equity-focused initiatives such as the proposal to establish a Department of Social and Economic Mobility.

Interestingly, while politicians often promote veteran issues on the federal level, very few states have disabled veteran programs that require state contracts to utilize disabled veteran contractors and suppliers for state-funded construction projects. Contractor News has covered this issue in depth.

If the Kennedy-Ossoff amendment passes, service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses could benefit from improved accountability and access on a federal level at least, and it will increase their visibility in the federal procurement system.