WASHINGTON– The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) received a grade of “A+” on the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Fiscal Year (FY) 2022 Small Business Procurement Scorecard. This is the fourteenth consecutive year DHS has earned a grade of “A” and the seventh consecutive year DHS has earned an “A+” grade –– the highest score possible. This accomplishment fulfills a goal set in June 2022 by Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas to “surpass the DHS Fiscal Year 2022 small, disadvantaged business goal of 17%”.
The annual Scorecard is an assessment tool that (1) measures how well federal agencies reach their small business and socioeconomic prime contracting and subcontracting goals, (2) provides accurate and transparent contracting data, and (3) reports agency-specific small business program progress. DHS is the largest federal agency to achieve such a high-scoring record since the SBA implemented the letter grade format in FY 2009.
“At DHS, we value America’s small businesses, and we know that their partnership is critical to enabling our missions. We’re proud to have a procurement culture that focuses on maximizing opportunities for small businesses on DHS contracts and we’re glad to be recognized for our longstanding commitment and partnership with American small businesses,” said Paul Courtney, DHS Chief Procurement Officer.
President Biden issued Executive Order 13985 “Advancing Racial Equity and Support for Underserved Communities Through the Federal Government” on January 20, 2021 and charged the Office of Management and Budget with identifying effective methods for assessing whether agency policies equitably serve all eligible individuals and communities, particularly those that are historically and currently underserved. As a result, the government-wide FY 2022 small disadvantaged business (SDB) prime goal increased from five percent to 11 percent. DHS was surpassed this goal with an SDB achievement of 17.66% – the highest achievement ever for the Department.
“Through outreach, education, small business advocacy, and interagency collaboration, DHS obligated $9.1 billion to American small businesses in FY 2022, over $1 billion more than in FY 2021,” said E. Darlene Bullock, Executive Director of DHS’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. “The Department’s ability to exceed its increased small, disadvantaged business goal of 17.0% with an achievement of 17.66% is a testament to our committed partnership with small businesses and underserved communities.”
Last fiscal year, DHS awarded 39.51% of total eligible contracting dollars to small businesses, which greatly exceeded the government-wide goal of 23% and the DHS goal of 34.5%. Additionally, for the 11th fiscal year in a row, DHS exceeded its Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) goal, achieving 5.2% compared to the government-wide goal of 3%. These outstanding records further solidify DHS’s standing as a leader in federal procurement and small business contracting.
For more information about the Department’s small business program, visit www.dhs.gov/small-business-assistance.
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