Women- & Minority-Owned Business Certification Part 2: Hubzone, Veteran-Owned and Oregon State

Hubzone certification

The Hubzone Program:

“Fuels small business growth in historically underutilized business zones with a goal of awarding at least 3% of federal contract dollars to HUBZone-certified companies each year.”

Funds from the Hubzone program are “set aside” dollars, specifically earmarked for participant businesses. Every five (5) years, the map that determines eligibility for the Hubzone program changes, and this year (2023), the map will change July 1st. This means, in addition to the general qualifications of certification (see here) if the principal place of business plus 35%of employees are no longer in the Hubzone, the certification will lapse or the applicant business will be denied.

Be certain to check out the new map and also check if your business or business-clients are located inside a Hubzone.

Veteran-Owned Certification Programs

The SBA also has several veteran-own certification programs: (1) Veteran Small Business

Certification (VetCert) program (VOSB) and (2) Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small

Business (SDVOSB). Certified VOSBs can pursue sole-source and set-aside contracts at the

Veterans Administration (va), while certified SDVOSBs have the opportunity to pursue federal

sole-source and set-aside contracts across the federal government.

To be eligible, the business must meet certain requirements, including (a) be a small business, (b)

have no less than 51% of the business owned and controlled by one or more veterans; and (c) for

certification as a SDVOSB, have no less than 51% of the business owned and controlled by one

or more veterans rated as service-disabled by the VA. Though it is important to note that for

those veterans who are permanently and totally disabled and unable to manage the daily business

operations of their business, their business may still qualify if their spouse or appointed,

permanent caregiver is assisting in that management To see the complete list of eligibility

requirements, see the final rule published in the Federal Register.

If the company is not in a listed industry or only works in the private sector, state level

certification may be a better option with a more streamlined process.

OR STATE

For businesses located in Oregon, there are several more certification options. Which one to

pursue depends on the company’s specific business goals.

The Minority/Women Business Enterprise (MBE/ WBE) program through the Certification

Office for Business Inclusion and Diversity (COBID) is one of the most popular. Typically, a

business would consider this certification if it wanted to compete for state, county, and city

government contracts, as well as special jurisdictional contracts like hospitals, and universities,

etc. While the COBID programs are designed for companies competing for government

contracts, certifications received through these programs allow private companies looking to

meet diversity goals to satisfy their internal diversity and inclusion requirements, as well.

Business eligibility for MBE/ WBE certification is fairly general, including:

 Be for profit (OAR 123-200-1600(3)(a));

 Be registered with the Oregon Secretary of State (OAR 123-200-1600(3)(c));

 Have gross annual receipts (3-year average) not exceeding $23.98 million (OAR 123-

200-1100(16)); and

The business owner must:

• Be a U.S. citizen or lawfully admitted, permanent resident (49 CFR 26.67(a));

• Own and control 51 percent or more of the business (OAR 123-200-1220);

• Control and manage day-to-day operations (OAR 123-200-1240);

• Have proper licensing (e.g. engineer, plumber) (OAR 123-200-1240(8)(a)); and

• Have made a contribution of capital (OAR 123-200-1220(6)).

This last requirement is one that highlights the importance of maintaining corporate records and

capital accounts, a mistake many unrepresented new businesses miss.

Once certified, certified companies are listed in a directory with the state. Networking

opportunities and other resources are available to certified businesses, as well.

Under the COBID WBE Program, female owners must hold any professional licensing necessary

to operate the business. While for the WOSB and EDWOSB Programs, to qualify the applying

company must meet the applicable definition of small business. You can use this online quiz to

confirm a business meets the definition.

COBID offers additional certification programs including Service-Disabled Veteran (SDV) and

Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE). Eligibility requirements are similar to those of the

MBW/WBE certifications, except to be SDV certified the business must be at least 51% owned

by a service-disabled veteran and are race and gender neutral and to be DBE certified the

business owners must be certain financial criteria.

For more information about the requirements of COBID certifications programs, review the

Qualifications by Certification Program chart which categorizes the requirements of each

program.

Once the certification program is identified, and qualifications have been reviewed, it’s time to

organize application mat. You should set aside a block of time to just get this done. It may see

overwhelming at first, but each program has its own checklist to help applicants get organized.

You can find the WOSB and EDWOSB checklist here and the COBID Programs’ checklist here.

For more information about the VOSB and SDVOSB certifications go the SBA’s website.

Gather the following documents prior to beginning to certification process:

 A copy of your current U.S. birth certificate, driver’s license, or passport

 Your employer identification number (EIN)

 Profit and loss (P&L) statement and balance sheet

 Three years of federal income tax returns

 Proof of investment capital by women owners

 Your data universal numbering system (DUNS) number, recently replaced by the

SAM.gov number

 Any business registration or certificates

The eligibility requirements are similar to those of the

If have specific questions, the COBID office is extremely helpful and will promptly answer (by

phone (503-986-0075) or email (biz.cobid@biz.oregon.gov)) any questions about the WBE

program application.

Good luck!

And stay tuned for more information about third-party certifying organizations (“TPC’s”).