# SBA Proposes Higher Contractor Size Standards

The Small Business Administration (SBA) has proposed substantial increases to size-standard thresholds in some industries, including raising the threshold for IT services from $34 million to $531 million and for consulting services from $24.5 million to $295 million. The proposal could change which firms qualify as small businesses and affect competition for small-business set-asides. The discussion also covers the non-manufacturer rule and a proposed General Services Administration (GSA) AI clause; no comment deadline or specific procurement opportunity is provided.

- Contractors should assess how the proposed thresholds could change their small-business eligibility, teaming strategies, and positioning in IT services and consulting procurements.
- Agencies and industry stakeholders may see changes to the pool of firms eligible to compete for small-business opportunities if the thresholds are adopted.
- The signal also identifies the non-manufacturer rule and GSA’s proposed AI clause as related procurement issues, but provides no specific terms or implementation details.

**Jurisdictions:** federal
**Industries:** Information Technology, Professional Services
**Topics:** Policy, Regulatory Compliance
**Published:** September 04, 2026

### Government Entities
- Small Business Administration (SBA)
- General Services Administration (GSA)

### Sources
- [
        A look at SBA’s proposed size standards rule - Federal News Network](https://federalnewsnetwork.com/podcast/off-the-shelf-podcast/a-look-at-sbas-proposed-size-standards-rule) - Federal News Network