SBA suspends 1,000+ contractors from 8(a) program used widely by Native enterprises
TBN Jan 25, 2026: … Contracting data reviewed Saturday morning by Tribal Business News showed 1,135 companies currently listed as suspended across federal procurement systems, though the data does not specify whether the listings stem from the December audit, earlier enforcement actions or other administrative issues.
Within that total, the data includes about 212 suspension records tied to about 104 unique businesses that self-identify as Native-owned or Native-affiliated, according to market intelligence firm HigherGov. Among those records, 195 involve American Indian enterprises, including tribally owned companies, Indian Economic Enterprises and Indian Small Businesses. The data also shows six Alaska Native Corporation-owned firms and 11 Native Hawaiian Organization-owned firms listed as suspended. Some firms appear more than once due to multiple unique entity identifiers.
SBA did not provide a demographic breakdown of the suspended firms ….
L: The SBA has stated it will release further information on the suspensions in the coming days, but as of late January 2026, no comprehensive list has appeared.
read … SBA suspends 1,000+ contractors from 8(a) program used widely by Native enterprises
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SBA Moves to Terminate Over 620 Firms in 8(a) Federal Contracting Program That Refused to Turn Over Financial Data
Nearly 20% of all 8(a) contractors removed for non-compliance after dramatic expansion under Biden-era DEI push
News Release 26-34 from US SBA, March 4, 2026
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) initiated termination proceedings to remove 628 firms from the 8(a) Business Development Program after they refused to comply with SBA’s order to turn over three years’ worth of financial documents for review. Last year, the SBA requested basic documents from all 4,300 8(a) contractors as part of the agency’s ongoing effort to root out DEI and small business pass-through contracting abuse that proliferated across the federal government during the Biden Administration.
“After decades without oversight and amid the Biden-era DEI agenda, the 8(a) federal contracting program became rife with so-called ‘socially and economically disadvantaged’ firms who abused sole-source and set-aside contracts to enrich themselves with pass-through schemes,” said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. “Last year, we required those contractors to show us their books – and today, we’re beginning the process of terminating over 620 firms who refused to comply. The message is clear: if you have something to hide, you cannot do business with the federal government. We are ending abuse and DEI discrimination in federal contracting and removing every fraudulent participant that took opportunity away from legitimate and eligible small business owners at taxpayers’ expense. Our audit continues and will have more results to report, including potential investigations.”
The 628 8(a) firms SBA is moving to terminate today are among the 1,091 that were initially suspended last month for refusal to comply with the agency’s document request. Collectively, these firms received nearly $850 million in 8(a) contracts during the Biden Administration from Fiscal Year 2021 to 2024, including $637 million in 8(a) set-aside contracts.
Since the beginning of the Administration, the Trump SBA has worked to end discrimination and crack down on fraud within the 8(a) Program for “socially and economically disadvantaged” small businesses, which dramatically expanded during the Biden Administration as a vehicle for DEI favoritism in the federal contracting marketplace. Following last month’s action moving to terminate 154 8(a) firms in the Washington, D.C. area, the SBA has now initiated termination proceedings against nearly 800 firms, or about 20% of the total 8(a) Program participants.
Under Administrator Loeffler’s leadership, the SBA is working to restore integrity to the federal contracting marketplace. On Day One, the agency reduced the “Small Disadvantaged Business” contracting goal for the federal government from 15% to its statutory 5%. The Trump SBA also ended the practice of accepting firms into the 8(a) Program based solely on unsubstantiated claims and Biden-era narratives of racial discrimination. Additionally, the agency has also taken unprecedented action to crack down on fraud and abuse – launching the first audit of the 8(a) Program in its nearly 50-year history and issuing numerous suspensions and termination notices to noncompliant contractors.
The Trump SBA has taken the following actions to end DEI discrimination within the 8(a) Program and crack down on fraud and abuse:
In February 2025, on the first day of Administrator Loeffler’s term, the Trump SBA cut the Small Disadvantaged Business contracting goal back to its statutory 5% and ended the practice of approving firms based solely on unsubstantiated claims of racial discrimination.
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Today, SBA initiated termination proceedings against 628 8(a) firms that refused to produce three years' worth of financial documents for review by the agency.
Additionally, the U.S. Department of War (DOW) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury have also each launched their own independent audits of the 8(a) Program.
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SBA Moves to Terminate Over 150 8(a) Firms in Washington, D.C. Following Eligibility Review
Firms Received Nearly $1.3 Billion in Federal Contracts During Biden Administration
News release 26-30 from US SBA, February 11, 2026
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) sent a letter to 154 Washington, D.C.-based 8(a) firms initiating termination proceedings after an internal review revealed that the firms failed to meet “economic disadvantage” eligibility requirements in the 8(a) Business Development Program. The firms – which will be suspended for at least 30 days before final termination from the 8(a) Program – exceeded statutory net worth limits, adjusted gross income caps, or total asset limits. Collectively, these firms received nearly $1.3 billion in 8(a) set-aside and sole-source contracts during the Biden Administration, from Fiscal Year 2021 to 2024.
"Under President Trump, the SBA is restoring integrity to federal contracting programs that promoted both discriminatory DEI and rampant abuse during the Biden Administration,” said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. “Today, we are taking action to terminate 154 D.C. firms that received $1.3 billion in federal contracts, all of whom were allowed to stay in the 8(a) Program even when they were not economically disadvantaged. This Administration is enforcing the law – which means we’re ending DEI discrimination, rooting out abuse, and removing big companies that unfairly dominated the federal contracting marketplace to the detriment of eligible, honest small business owners.”
The termination proceedings come after a program integrity review by SBA’s Office of Government Contracting and Business Development (GCBD), which routinely verifies that all 8(a) firms meet program eligibility requirements, including those for economic disadvantage.
The SBA’s internal review found that one Washington, D.C. 8(a) firm reported total assets of more than $35 million – over 5 times the statutory eligibility limit – while the firm continued pursuing set-aside contracting opportunities that were reserved for economically disadvantaged businesses. Another firm reported a net worth of at least $24 million and submitted financial statements in September 2021 showing that they exceeded the total asset limit – yet the Biden Administration kept them in the program. Of the $1.3 billion that the 154 8(a) firms received, nearly $1 billion was awarded by the Biden Administration through noncompetitive and nontransparent sole source contracts.
Under Administrator Loeffler’s leadership, the SBA is scrutinizing every 8(a) participant to restore integrity to federal small business contracting. In 2025, the agency initiated the first-ever audit of the program in its nearly 50-year history. Late last year, the SBA ordered all 4,300 8(a) firms to turn over 3 years’ worth of financial documents for review and subsequently suspended 1,091 8(a) firms that refused to comply.
The agency has also implemented measures to ensure that the program no longer accepts 8(a) applicants solely on the basis of race. While the Biden Administration accepted over 2,200 new 8(a) firms over its four-year term, the Trump SBA accepted just 65 last year. Recently, SBA clarified that no American, including white Americans, can be denied government services based on race.
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SBA Suspends Over 1,000 8(a) Firms from Program Following December Document Request
Action is Latest in Sweeping Effort to Dismantle DEI, Expose Fraud, and Restore Integrity to Federal Contracting
News Release 26-26 from US SBA, January 28, 2026
WASHINGTON — Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the suspension of 1,091 firms from the 8(a) Business Development Program – representing about 25% of all firms registered to participate in the federal government contracting program. The suspension comes after the firms failed to meet the agency’s January 19th deadline to submit three years’ worth of financial documents. In December, the SBA ordered all 4,300 firms to submit basic documentation to prove their legitimacy as part of the Trump SBA’s longstanding effort to root out small business contracting abuse by pass-through and shell companies that proliferated across the program during the Biden Administration.
Of the 1,091 suspended firms, about half have received some form of payment for contracted work with the federal government since 2021. Collectively, they have received payments of over $5 billion in the last four years.
"The 8(a) Program was abused during the Biden Administration to benefit favored minority groups at the expense of every other legitimate small business owner in America, including white Americans,” said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. “The Trump Administration has acted from Day One to dismantle the discriminatory agenda that put white small business owners at a disadvantage, and to crack down on the fraud and corruption that proliferates within DEI programs. Today, we are suspending over 1,000 8(a) firms who have refused to provide basic documents that every legitimate business should have on-hand. As we continue to eliminate bad actors from this program, we also look forward to introducing robust reforms in the coming weeks to bring total integrity back to federal contracting.”
Since January of last year, the Trump SBA has worked to end discrimination and crack down on fraud within the 8(a) Program for “socially and economically disadvantaged” small businesses, which dramatically expanded under the Biden Administration as a vehicle for DEI favoritism in the federal contracting marketplace. While the Biden Administration accepted over 2,200 new 8(a) firms into the Program over its four-year term, the Trump SBA accepted just 65 last year.
On Day One, the agency reduced the “Small Disadvantaged Business” contracting goal for the federal government from 15% to its statutory 5%. The Trump SBA also ended the practice of accepting firms into the 8(a) Program based solely on unsubstantiated claims and Biden-era narratives of racial discrimination. As the agency reiterated last week, it does not deny applicants admission to the 8(a) Program simply because they are white – and will not consider any applicant to be “socially disadvantaged” simply because they are a member of a minority group.
In addition to the SBA’s work to end unlawful discrimination within the 8(a) Program, the agency has also taken unprecedented action to crack down on fraud and abuse. In 2025, the Trump SBA launched the first audit of the 8(a) Program in its nearly 50-year history and issued numerous suspensions.
The Trump SBA has taken the following actions to scale back the 8(a) Program and crack down on widespread fraud and abuse:
In February 2025, on the first day of Administrator Loeffler’s term, the Trump SBA cut the Small Disadvantaged Business contracting goal back to its statutory 5% and ended the practice of approving firms based solely on unsubstantiated claims of racial discrimination.
In June 2025, SBA launched the first-ever audit of the 8(a) Program in its nearly 50-year history – initiating an investigation into all high-dollar and limited-competition contracts going back over a period of fifteen years.
In July 2025, the agency rescinded the independent 8(a) contracting authority of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) after a DOJ investigation uncovered a $550 million bribery scheme involving several 8(a) contractors.
That same month, SBA issued a letter of warning to all federal contracting officers, outlining the penalties for failing to report suspected fraud, waste, and abuse within the 8(a) Program.
In October 2025, SBA suspended numerous 8(a) contractors following allegations of fraud involving more than $253 million in previously issued contract awards.
In November 2025, SBA cleared the Biden-era backlog of 2,700 Veteran Small Business Certification (VetCert) applications, which accumulated after the prior Administration diverted all resources away from VetCert to increase certification approvals for the 8(a) Program.
In December 2025, SBA ordered all 4,300 8(a) contractors to produce three years' worth of financial documents for review by the agency in the effort to root out pass-through abuse and fraud by shell companies.
In January 2026, SBA suspended over 1,000 contractors from participation in the 8(a) Program after they failed to submit the documents SBA requested in December.
Additionally, the U.S. Department of War (DOW) and the U.S. Department of the Treasury have also each launched their own independent audits of the 8(a) Program.
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About the 8(a) Business Development Program
The SBA certifies small businesses considered to be socially and economically disadvantaged under its nine-year 8(a) Business Development Program. The 8(a) program helps these firms develop and grow their businesses through one-to-one counseling, training workshops and management and technical guidance. It also provides access to government contracting opportunities, allowing them to become solid competitors in the federal marketplace.
About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of entrepreneurship. As the leading voice for small businesses within the federal government, the SBA empowers job creators with the resources and support they need to start, grow, and expand their businesses or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.