Press Releases

The U.S. House unanimously passed Rep. Jack Bergman's bipartisan legislation aimed at protecting Veteran-owned small businesses. Rep. Bergman introduced H.R. 561, the Protecting Business Opportunities for Veterans Act of 2019, to safeguard small businesses in the Veterans First Program, which gives preference to Veteran-owned small businesses in awarding VA contracts. The legislation cracks down on abusers within the system that waste tax-payer dollars, cut into the profits intended for Veterans, and sideline law-abiding Veteran business owners who want to perform the work.

"I'm thankful the House came together in a bipartisan manner to pass this legislation to prevent further waste and misuse of VA funds. The Protecting Business Opportunities for Veterans Act will prevent bad actors who obtain VA contracts and collect profit while improperly ‘passing through’ all the work to large companies," said Rep. Bergman. "With this corrective action, Veteran-owned small businesses working hard for their families and communities will be able to receive the treatment from the VA they deserve. We cannot tolerate those who abuse the system and disadvantage our Veterans."

“I was proud to support this important bill today which will give VA and the Inspector General the tools they need to stop companies that exploit contracting loopholes to take work away from legitimate veteran-owned small businesses. It is imperative that federal procurement be fair and that veteran entrepreneurs actually receive the business opportunities that the law creates for them. This bill is a smart fix for a difficult problem, and I thank General Bergman for his work to address this issue,” said Ranking Member Phil Roe.

Rep. Bergman spoke in support of H.R. 561 on the House Floor. Watch HERE.

Background Information:

The Protecting Business Opportunities for Veterans Act prevents “improper pass-throughs,” a practice in which small businesses leverage Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business or Veteran-Owned Small Business status to obtain contracts, yet subcontract out all or substantially all of the work to a large company and nonetheless collect the profit. This practice is already illegal but in reality, the VA lacks the tools to detect them and enforce the rules.  The VA Inspector General has noted numerous instances of such procurement fraud.

This bill requires every bidder in the Vets First Program to certify that they will perform the agreed percentage of work required by law.  Additionally, the VA must refer suspected violators to the Office of the Inspector General for investigation, as well as consider a more effective way to find, stop, and where appropriate, punish these improper pass-throughs.