Dept of Veterans Affairs Proposes Using SBA Regulations on Business ownership and control for its Veteran-Owned Small Business Verification Program

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is proposing to amend its regulations governing VA’s Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) Verification Program. The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (“the NDAA”), Public Law 114-840, placed the responsibility for issuing regulations relating to ownership and control for the verification of VOSBs with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). This proposed regulation seeks to remove all references to ownership and control in VA’s existing verification regulations and to add and clarify certain terms and references that are currently part of the verification process. The NDAA also provides that in certain circumstances a firm can qualify as VOSB or Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) when there is a surviving spouse or an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP).