Veteran Initiative

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FAQs Veteran Initiative

Helps veteran-owned and service-connected disabled veteran-owned small businesses gain greater access to purchasing and contracting opportunities at the state level.

Apply Now (opens external page in a new window) Gain greater access to purchasing and contracting opportunities with the State

Louisiana’s Veteran Initiative is a certification program that is designed to help eligible Louisiana Veteran-owned and Service-Connected Disabled-Veteran-owned small businesses gain greater access to purchasing and contracting opportunities that are available at the state government level.

Your business and contact information will be accessible to state purchasing officials and prime contractors who are looking for subcontractors. State agencies are encouraged to get quotes from and use qualified, certified companies whenever possible. For small purchases (less than $25,000), state agencies can waive the required additional quotes if a certified company submits a quote that is reasonable. 12% of the total evaluation points can be added to your bid on a Request for Proposal (RFP). Prime contractors who use your business as a subcontractor on a bid for an RFP are also eligible to receive additional percentage points on their bid. Eligibility

The program is open to all Louisiana businesses that meet the following eligibility requirements for a Small Entrepreneurship (SE) under the Veteran Initiative. Once certified, business owners are required to submit annual updates through www.ledsmallbiz.com (opens external page in a new window). Failure to submit the required information before your anniversary date each year will result in termination of your certification.

What are the eligibility requirements? Veteran Ownership, At least 51% of the business must be owned by a veteran Principal Place of Business, The company must have its principal place of business in Louisiana Employees, The company must have fewer than 50 full-time employees Average Annual Gross Receipts, Average annual gross receipts must not exceed $6 million for non-construction and $10 million for construction companies Independently Owned and Operated, The business must be independently owned and operated Not Dominant, The business must not be dominant in its professional field Louisiana Residency, Must be owned by persons domiciled in Louisiana Citizenship, Must be owned by and have officers who are U.S. citizens or legal residents

Service-Connected Disabled Veteran, This is an additional distinction available within the Veteran Initiative for Service-Connected Disabled-Veteran-owned businesses. To qualify, the business must meet all of the requirements above, as well as the following: Service-Connected Disabled-Veteran-Owned, At least 51% of the business must be owned by a Service-Connected Disabled Veteran

Program Statutes & Rules:

All incentive program rules are in the Louisiana Administrative Code maintained by the Office of the State Register. View the Veteran Initiative Statutes (opens external page in a new window) View the Titles of the Louisiana Administrative Code (opens external page in a new window) Rules for the Veteran Initiative can be found in Part IX Executive Order (opens external page in a new window)

Begin the Process (opens external page in a new window) The Process

To take advantage of Louisiana’s Veteran Initiative and to gain greater access to purchasing and contracting opportunities with the state government, complete the online application at www.ledsmallbiz.com (opens external page in a new window).

Begin the process arrow-small (opens external page in a new window) 1

Complete the application online. 2

LED reviews the online application. LED will review completed applications within two business days of submission. 3

Certification status is emailed to applicant. 4

Register as a vendor with the Office of State Procurement (opens external page in a new window) to begin receiving email…

Topic areas: Workforce Development, Public Policy and Governance, Social Innovation and Community Development.

Funding amount

This other provides Varies in funding.

Deadline

Applications are accepted on a rolling basis; there is no single fixed deadline.

Who can apply

This opportunity is open to the following applicant types:

• Not specified by the program.

Eligibility

The program did not publish a separate eligibility statement. See the official opportunity page for the full eligibility criteria.

Agency

Veteran Initiative is administered by Louisiana Economic Development (LED), listed via Louisiana Economic Development.