California SB-PW Program

The program summary on this page was last updated on 02/02/2023. If any of the information or links are out-of-date, please contact us.

The Office of Small Business and DVBE Services (OSDS) for the State of California offers a Small Business for the purpose of Public Works (SB-PW) certification. To be eligible, a business must, among other criteria, be not dominant in its field of operation, average $37 million or less per year over the past three years of operation, and have 200 or fewer employees. These caps are higher than the current caps for a normal Small Business certification, meaning that firms with an SB-PW certification may be considered as small businesses (with attendant usage in public contracting, such as for participation goals) for the purpose of public works contracts.

Does this certification expire? The certification is valid for a period of two years.

Does this program require bidders attempt to make a good-faith effort to meet participation goals? Bidders must make a good faith effort to reach participation goals if such a goal is specified.