Tag Archives: SBA mentor-protege program

Free Webinar! SBA Mentor-Protégé Programs, September 16, hosted by El Paso APEX Accelerators

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Touted as a “game-changer” when it was first introduced in 2016, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s All Small Mentor-Protégé Program isn’t new anymore. Known now as simply the “SBA Mentor-Protégé Program,” it is still extremely useful for large and small contractors alike.

Government contracts attorney and SmallGovCon contributor, Gregory Weber, will explain the ins and outs of the SBA Mentor-Protégé Program, covering the program’s eligibility requirements, its various benefits (including the ability to form special mentor-protégé joint ventures), the application process, and common misconceptions and pitfalls. Additionally, he will provide an introduction to the even older DoD Mentor-Protégé Program, which set the stage for the SBA’s program, and compare the two programs.

Register here.

Counting the Hours: SBA Adding More MPA Requirements

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The SBA’s Mentor-Protege Program (MPP) continues to be one of the most popular programs at the SBA. The MPP is a great way for federal contractors to grow and learn from more experienced contractors, in a way that is shielded from size affiliation risks. Historically, the Mentor-Protege Agreement (MPA) between a mentor and protege was a flexible document that allowed the parties to make sure their participation in the program truly fit their processes and aims in their own words. However, in recent years the SBA’s MPA reviews have seemingly taken stricter stances on the format and content of the MPA, leading to confusion among contractors on what they are supposed to draft in their MPA. Recently, we have become aware of the SBA implementing more requirements on MPAs that contractors are not warned about prior to applying to the MPP.

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Webinar Announcement: The SBA Mentor Protégé Program, May 5, 2026 hosted by Washington DC APEX Accelerators

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Touted as a “game-changer” when it was first introduced in 2016, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s All Small Mentor-Protégé Program isn’t new anymore. Known now as simply the “SBA Mentor-Protege Program, it is still extremely powerful for large and small contractors alike. In this webinar, I will explain the ins and out of the SBA Mentor-Protégé Program, covering the program’s eligibility requirements, its potential benefits (including the ability to form special mentor-protege Joint Ventures), the application process, and common misconceptions and pitfalls.

Target Audience: Small Businesses (SDVOSB, WOSB, HUBZone, 8(a), SDB) and large businesses interest in doing business with the federal government. Register here!

No More HUBZone Price Preference for Most Mentor-Protege Joint Ventures

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An advantage of being a HUBZone Program contractor is the aptly-named HUBZone price evaluation preference. The possibility of utilizing that price preference has been a great reason for contractors to form joint ventures with HUBZone businesses. However, contractors need to be aware that SBA has effectively eliminated the usage of price preference within certain joint ventures.

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Webinar Event! February 26, 2025, The SBA Mentor Protege Program in Collaboration with Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC, 10:30-12:30pm EST

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Touted as a “game-changer” when it was first introduced in 2016, the U.S. Small Business Administration’s All Small Mentor-Protege Program isn’t new anymore. Known now as simply the “SBA Mentor-Protege Program, it is still extremely powerful for large and small contractors alike. In this webinar, seasoned government contracts attorneys, Shane McCall & Gregory Weber from Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC, will explain the ins and out of the SBA Mentor-Protege Program, covering the program’s eligibility requirements, its potent benefits (including the ability to form special mentor-protege Joint Ventures), the application process, and common misconceptions and pitfalls.

Target Audience: Small Businesses (SDVOSB, WOSB, HUBZone, 8(a), SDB) and large businesses interest in doing business with the federal government. Register here

GovCon FAQs: Do I need an SBA MPA for a JV?

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We at SmallGovCon are excited to announce this first in a new line of blogs we call GovCon FAQs. Our firm handles a wide variety of federal procurement and contract matters, from bid protests, size protests, joint ventures, socio-economic certifications, to everything in between. Often, when talking to blog readers and contractors we hear the same sort of questions pop up. Of course, we can only provide direct legal advice to our clients. But many of these questions hit on issues that face contractors as a whole, or are items that are commonly misunderstood. So, we decided contractors needed an FAQ page for those common general questions. This blog will kick off that FAQ page for contractors. The first big frequently asked question:

Do I need an SBA Mentor-Protege Agreement to form a joint venture and perform on federal contracts as a joint venture?

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SBA Proposed Rule Clarifies Mentor-Protégé Misunderstandings

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In August, the Small Business Administration issued a proposed rule that was packed to the brim with changes to many of the SBA’s small business contracting programs. We’ve mentioned a few of the changes in prior blog posts. Gregory Weber, discussed potential changes to the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program that may result in more relaxed requirements. While Shane McCall, recently took a deep dive into proposed changes to past performance requirements for joint ventures. Today, we will focus on two additional proposed changes to the SBA’s Small Business Mentor-Protégé Program.

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