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Regional groups can help guide business owners on how to score contracts with U.S. government
By Paula Schleis
Beacon Journal business writer
Published on Monday, Jun 29, 2009
So you want to be a government contractor?
All those billions of dollars issued by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 have a lot of small-business owners salivating.
''I have so many clients who know there's stimulus money out there and want to know how to get a piece of it,'' said Tom Serle, a Brimfield Township certified public accountant.
Serle and some 60 other business owners and professional types recently attended a three-hour primer on government contracting and stimulus act opportunities, hosted by the Kent Regional Business Alliance.
In 2008, the U.S. government purchased $425 billion in goods and services, making it the biggest consumer in the world, said John Renner of the Small Business Administration's Cleveland office.
For businesses that haven't entered this market yet, patience and determination are key.
It can take 18 months or more for the average business to have everything ready for the government bidding process, said Rich Delisio, director of the Kent Procurement Technical Assistance Center, which gives free assistance to businesses in Summit, Medina, Portage, Wayne and Stark counties.
As evidenced by an increased number of phone calls to PTAC in recent weeks, that's a commitment more businesses seem ready to make as their traditional markets shrink in the recession and the recovery act opens new doors, he said.
General awareness of PTAC and its offerings ''suffered from a lack of marketing,'' Delisio said, ''but the stimulus opportunity pretty much took care of that.''
Here's how much stimulus money will be circulating in Ohio, by category:
• Energy: $913 million.
• Work, opportunity and poverty: $941 million.
• Education: $2.7 billion.
• Infrastructure: $1.3 billion.
• Health care: $2.8 billion.
Paula Schleis can be reached at 330-996-3741 or pschleis@thebeaconjournal.com.
So you want to be a government contractor?
Get the full article here.
Comments
Click here to post your comments
Independence, OH
Posted 09:01 AM, 06/29/2009
$2.7 billion for education, $1.3 billion for infrastructure, and $941 million for jobs, but the governor's office can't see fit to provide school lunches to children or keep our public libraries from shuttering their doors? Atrocious.
Visit www.midcoastperspective.com or www.saveohiolibraries.com for information and resources on how to contact your elected representatives and tell them to support our children.
Columbus, OH
Posted 09:28 AM, 06/29/2009
not just libraries shutting their doors, get ready for the 4-6 prisons to shut their doors....means only one thing, more felons running the streets, causing more crime and stealing from people the little they have left. Thanks mr. obama and mr. strickland. job well done.
Posted 10:34 AM, 06/29/2009
TYDURDEN.... first of all criminals are created by the government. not every1 in prison is a criminal. every time a new law passes thousands of people become "criminals". and to top that off, many in prison are innocent. i know that to be a fact, because i was one of them. if you dont steal from anyone, and you dont cause physical harm or death to anyone, then you are not a criminal, but a money maker for pollititions.its that simple.
Posted 10:50 AM, 06/29/2009
You don't know "for a fact" that "many in prison are innocent" because you claim to have been innocent. All you know is that you were innocent (if you, in fact were).
Technically, you are correct, though. Criminals are defined by the government through law. However, these laws are in place to make society a safer, better place.
Closing prisons will mean early release for some felons. Hopefully, just the less violent ones.
Akron, OH
Posted 10:54 AM, 06/29/2009
@Lilhorse-Please explain how criminals are created by the government. Also i would love to know how many in jail are "innocent". hahaha you made me laugh
Akron, OH
Posted 12:02 PM, 06/29/2009
@dds18-it's easy, they told him they were lol
Make the world a better place... punch a Steeler fan in the face, .
Posted 12:38 PM, 06/29/2009
Ty,
I don't care about closing prisons. I would wager a guess that many of those given early release are non-violent drug offenders (personal use, not distribution). The prison industry is just another lobby that seeks to maximize their funding.
If you can prove that these are violent offenders that pose a risk to society, then I might care.
Ravenna, OH
Posted 12:46 PM, 06/29/2009
Yes, my yard needs a lot of work. Please send me $100,000 and I will contract out a landscape, cement, and patio company.
Akron, OH
Posted 12:53 PM, 06/29/2009
@bobby-it all makes sense now! lol
Akron, OH
Posted 02:16 PM, 06/29/2009
"If you can prove that these are violent offenders that pose a risk to society, then I might care."
They already have been proven to be a risk to society, or they wouldn't be in jail
Make the world a better place... punch a Steeler fan in the face, .
Posted 02:46 PM, 06/29/2009
dds18,
"Violent"
Risk to society vs. risk to self.
Make the world a better place... punch a Steeler fan in the face, .
Posted 02:58 PM, 06/29/2009
dds18,
http://www.drc.state.oh.us/web/Reports/Annual/Annual%20Report%202008.pdf
Page 39
2008 commitments = 27,315
Drug.....7,889
Crimes Against Persons....6,415
Property Offenses.....4,319
Against Public Peace....2,219
Burglary.....2,122
Sex Offenses.....1,811
Firearm....1,212
Fraud....791
Motor Vehicle....465
Other.....72
Like I said, I could care less if they let out someone caught with drugs. There are plenty of adult ways to deal with those offenders rather than bleed taxpayers dry through incarceration.
Akron, OH
Posted 03:21 PM, 06/29/2009
@TOJ-I will agree with that last paragraph, i was just saying that most people in jail for any "long" period of time most likely did something violent
Akron, OH
Posted 08:49 PM, 06/29/2009
Hey, even if they weren't criminals before they went in, they will be when they come out. That's where they learn how to do it even better.
Mogadore, OH
Posted 04:17 AM, 06/30/2009
And Bush spent $830 billion in Iraq, it's not over?
Posted 07:44 AM, 06/30/2009
What a waste of time
