New Opportunities For All: SBA Expands The Small Business Mentor Protégé Programs

On July 25, 2016, the Small Business Administration ("SBA") released a much-anticipated Small Business Mentor Protégé Programs Final Rule that created a new expanded mentor-protégé program, modeled on the existing 8(a) mentor-protégé program, open to all categories of small businesses. Contractors have been waiting for this change – one of the most significant in recent years – since Congress authorized the expansion of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 and the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013. The new program, which becomes effective on August 24, 2016, will provide significant benefits to potential protégés and mentors alike, and will likely lead to a groundswell of mentor-protégé joint ventures ("MPJVs") across all categories of small businesses.