WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Senators John Kennedy (R-La.) and Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) have reintroduced bipartisan legislation aimed at boosting federal contracting opportunities for small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans.
The Service-Disabled Veteran Opportunities in Small Business Act was introduced as an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), the annual defense spending and policy bill.
“America owes a debt of gratitude to every veteran who sacrifices for our country. Our bill would do right by service-disabled veterans by making sure government agencies are giving their small businesses a fair shake,” said Sen. Kennedy.
“Service-disabled veterans have made huge sacrifices in our national defense. That’s why Senator Kennedy and I are introducing this bipartisan bill to support small businesses run by service-disabled veterans in Georgia and nationwide,” said Sen. Ossoff.
The bill is designed to strengthen accountability and improve access to federal contracts for veteran-owned businesses by:
- Requiring the Small Business Administration (SBA) to issue clearer guidance on how to meet federal contracting goals for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.
- Mandating training for federal agencies that fall short of meeting those goals.
- Compelling the SBA to report to Congress which agencies did not meet their goals.
A companion bill has also been introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives by Reps. Nick LaLota (R-N.Y.) and Morgan McGarvey (D-Ky.).
The measure seeks to ensure that service-disabled veterans receive fair opportunities in federal contracting, helping their businesses grow and compete more effectively.