Am I eligible for DBE certification?

A firm must be at least 51 percent owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals who possess the power to direct or cause the direction of the management and policies of the firm and to make day-to-day, as well as long-term, decisions on matters of management, policy and operations.

To meet the size requirements of the DBE program, a firm, including its affiliates, must have average annual gross receipts, over the firm's previous three fiscal years, that do not exceed the following size standards:

• For general construction firms; e.g., highway, street and bridge construction, the size standard is $22.41 million;
• For specialty trades; e.g., electrical, plumbing and site preparation, the size standard is $14 million;
• For landscaping services, the size standard is $7 million;
• For professional, scientific and technical services; e.g., engineering, drafting, geophysical surveying and mapping, surveying and mapping (except geophysical), and environmental consulting, the size standards are as follows:
  • Engineering Services - $19 million
  • Drafting Services - $7 million
  • Geophysical Surveying and Mapping Services - $14 million
  • Surveying and Mapping (except Geophysical) Services - $14 million
  • Environmental Consulting Services - $14 million

You will need to obtain your North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code number to determine your work category(ies). Go to www.census.gov/eos/www/naics.

Also go to the U.S. Small Business Administration's website to determine your size standard. These standards represent the largest size that a business (including its subsidiaries and affiliates) may be to remain classified as a small business for SBA and federal contracting programs. All federal agencies must use SBA's size standards for government contracts identified as small business and for other programs and regulations, unless authorized by federal statute to another measure.