Set-aside
A set-aside restricts a government competition to a class of businesses — small businesses generally, or specific programs like 8(a), HUBZone, women-owned, or service-disabled-veteran-owned firms — reserving the award for eligible bidders only.
Set-asides implement federal small-business goals by carving competitions out of full-and-open. Eligibility runs through the solicitation's NAICS size standard plus program-specific certification, and it is policed: misrepresentation carries real liability, and affiliation rules can aggregate a 'small' firm with partners into large-ness. For eligible firms, set-asides are the classic market entry: thinner competitive fields and agencies motivated by goals. Structure still matters after award — limitations-on-subcontracting rules require the set-aside awardee to self-perform defined shares, constraining how much a large teammate may do. Reading a solicitation's set-aside status is step one of any federal go/no-go.
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