Small Business Ombudsman

Program Area: Information Exchange / Outreach Goal: Compliance and Environmental Stewardship

Objective(s): Improve Environmental Performance through Pollution Prevention and Innovation

The Small Business Ombudsman (SBO) serves as EPA's gateway and leading advocate for small business issues. The SBO partners with state Small Business Assistance Programs (SBAP's) nationwide, and hundreds of small business trade associations, to reach out to the small business community. These partnerships provide the information and perspective EPA needs to help small businesses achieve their environmental goals. This is a comprehensive program that provides networks, resources, tools, and forums for education and advocacy on behalf of small businesses.

FY 2007 Activities and Performance Plan:

The core SBO functions include participating in the regulatory development process, operating the Small Business Ombudsman Hotline, participating in program and regional office small business related meetings, and supporting internal and external small business activities. The SBO outreach and communication services help small businesses learn about new EPA actions

provides a service to Agency program and regional offices, and other agencies by disseminating information, and providing tools and information that SBAP's need to assist small businesses. SBO supports partnerships with, and provides training to, state SBAP's, in order to reach an ever-increasing number of small businesses and to assist them with updated and new approaches for improving their environmental performance. SBO provides technical assistance in the form

of tools, workshops, conferences and training forums designed to help small businesses become better environmental performers, and also helps our partners to provide the assistance they need.

In FY 2007, the Small Business Ombudsman will:

Continue to serve as EPA's gateway and leading advocate for small business issues.

Promote EPA's Small Business Strategy and coordinate the Agency's Strategy
Implementation Plan activities.

Strengthen and support partnerships with state SBAP's and trade associations.

Support and promote a state-lead multimedia initiative and coordinate efforts within the
Agency.

Serve as the Agency's Point of Contact for the Small Business Paperwork Relief Act (SBPRA), through work with an established Agency-wide workgroup addressing the requirement to "make efforts to further reduce the information collection burden for small business concerns with fewer than 25 employees."

Implement EPA's Small Business Awards Program to recognize state SBAPS, small businesses, and trade associations that have directly impacted the improved environmental performance of small businesses.

Support and promote the President's Management Agenda by encouraging small businesses, states, and trade associations to comment on EPA rulemaking through the Erulemaking initiative, as well as providing updates on the Agency's rulemaking activities in the semi-annual Small Business Ombudsman Update.

Participate with the Small Business Administration and other Federal agencies in Business Gateway "one-stop" activities which help improve services and reduce the burden on small businesses by guiding them through government rules and regulations.

Performance Targets:

Work under this program supports multiple objectives. Currently, there are no performance measures for this specific program project.

FY 2007 Change from FY 2006 Enacted Budget (Dollars in Thousands):

(-$243.3) This decrease is the net effect of increases to payroll and cost of living increases for existing FTE, combined with a reduction based on the recalculation of base workforce costs.

(+$402.0) This reflects an increase for additional work with the Small Business Administration on Business Gateway one stop activities.

Statutory Authority:

CAA of 1990, section 507.

Small Minority Business Assistance Program Area: Information Exchange / Outreach

Goal: Provide Agency-wide support for multiple goals to achieve their objectives. This support involves Agency-wide activities primarily provided by EPA's six (6) support offices - the Office of Administration and Resources Management (OARM), Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO), Office of Environmental Information (OEI), Office of General Counsel (OGC), Office of the Administrator (OA), and the Office of Inspector General (OIG).

This program provides technical assistance to Headquarters and regional employees to ensure that small, disadvantaged, women-owned, Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone), and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses receive a fair share of EPA's procurement dollars. This program enhances the ability of these businesses to participate in the protection of public health and the environment. The functions assigned to this area involve ultimate accountability for evaluating and monitoring contracts, grants and cooperative agreements entered into on behalf of EPA's Headquarters and regional offices. This will ensure that the Agency's contract and procurement practices further the Federal laws and regulations regarding utilization of small and disadvantaged businesses in direct procurement acquisitions and indirect procurement assistance.

FY 2007 Activities and Performance Plan:

Small and disadvantaged business procurement experts will provide assistance to Headquarters and regional program office personnel, as well as small business owners, to ensure that small, disadvantaged, women-owned, HUBZone, and Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses receive a fair share of EPA's procurement dollars. This fair share may be received either directly or indirectly through contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or interagency agreements. EPA has a number of national goals that it negotiates with the Small Business Administration (SBA) every two years. EPA's proposed goals for FY 2006/2007 were based on estimated contract obligations of $1.2 billion for prime contracts and $200 million for subcontracts. (See chart below)

Contract bundling reviews of an increased number of Agency contracts will emphasize ways to: 1) eliminate unnecessary contract bundling; and 2) mitigate the effects of bundling on America's small business community. In FY 2007, special emphasis will continue to be placed on working with Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses, as mandated by the White House's October 21, 2004 Executive Order, which requires increased Federal contracting opportunities for this group of entrepreneurs. Outreach and in-reach efforts will help EPA meet its 3 percent procurement goal for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses that was established by the new Executive Order and SBA Regulation (F.R. Vol. 69, No. 87, May 5, 2004), its 5.5 percent goal for women-owned small businesses, and 3 percent goal for HUBZones.

Under its Indirect Procurement Program, EPA has a statutory goal of 10 percent utilization of Minority Business Enterprises/Women-Owned Business Enterprises for research conducted under the Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990, as well as a statutory 8 percent goal for all other programs. The Small Minority Business Assistance program encourages the Agency to meet these direct and indirect procurement goals. These efforts will enhance the ability of America's small and disadvantaged businesses to help the Agency protect human health and the environment and, at the same time, create more jobs. As a result of the Supreme Court's decision in Adarand v. Pena, 115 S. Ct. 2097 (1995), EPA will finalize a rule for the participation of Disadvantaged Business Enterprises in procurements funded through EPA's assistance agreements in early 2006. The Agency will also begin implementing the certification requirements of the final rule. In 2007, the rule will be in full implementation.

Performance Targets:

Work under this program supports multiple performance objectives. Currently, there are no performance measures specific to this program project.