#Middlebury #Veterans
VETERANS POST
By Freddy Groves
If you hope to set up a business as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business (SDVOSB) or a veteran-owned small business (VOSB), your verification will no longer be done by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Instead, as of the beginning of 2023, the Small Business Administration (SBA) will be in charge.
No new applications will be accepted after Oct. 24, 2022, for either verification or reverification, due to the transition to the Small Business Administration. If you currently have a business and wonder about your next steps, go to vetbiz.va.gov and click on “See frequently asked questions concerning this change.”
The Vets First Verification Program, using the Center for Verification and Evaluation (CVE), will be your go-to for all types of assistance, including working through the initial steps: Intake, Assessment, Federal Review and Decision.
The benefits are worth the trouble to become VA-verified, if only for the set asides that are at the heart of how the VA helps small businesses – competition is limited, which helps veterans compete for federal contracts. At least 3% of those contracts are held for service-disabled veterans who own their businesses.
To be a SDVOSB or VOSB, a business must be owned 51% or more by a veteran who did not receive a bad conduct or dishonorable discharge and be controlled on a daily basis by a veteran who has the managerial experience to run the business. In addition, the veteran has to be the highest paid person in the company, working full time and holding the highest position in the company. To qualify as a service-disabled business, the veteran must meet all of the above qualifications and also have a disability rating letter from the VA confirming a service-connected disability.
If you’re ready to start a business, check out www.va.gov/osdbu/verification/index.asp and scroll to the guides and forms.
If you’re still at the thinking stage and need direction and help in becoming an entrepreneur, go to www.va.gov/OSDBU/entrepreneur/index.asp for information on finding financial backing, growing your business or doing business with federal agencies and more.
© 2022 King Features Synd. Inc.
