Tools · CLIN 0004 Market research & small business

Small Business Set-Aside Guide

Planned

See which set-aside programs you may qualify for and what each one requires.

This tool is planned. There is nothing to open yet. What follows is the plan, and it can change before the tool ships. The guide below covers the same job by hand in the meantime. Jump to the full specification.

What it will do

Answer questions about your company’s ownership, location, size and industry. The tool lists the set-aside programs you may be eligible for, what each one requires and how the status is established, with the regulation for each.

You bring

Your NAICS codes and your size under each
Who owns and controls the company
Where the principal office is

You get

The programs that may fit, and what each requires
Whether each status is self-represented or needs certification

Built from

Only material the government has officially released to the public. Where the rules live shows how to find and cite each one.

Do it by hand today

Codes, registration and small business status · The programsSAM registration, NAICS and PSC codes, size standards, the set-aside programs and what it means to be a nontraditional defense contractor.

True of every tool

Free and open source.: No paid tier, no ads, and the code is public.
Runs in your browser.: What you type or open is not sent anywhere.
No tracking.: No accounts, cookies or analytics.
Shows its sources.: Each result names the rule it rests on, so you can check it.
Says what it does not do.: It is an aid for your own work, not professional advice.

What happens to what you type shows how to confirm this yourself, and Check a tool’s answer is the method for verifying a result.

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Requests decide what is built first. Say what you would use it for, and what you do by hand today.

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Specification · draft

How it is meant to work, in detail

The inputs, the logic, the checks the tool has to pass and the worked examples it is tested against. It is a draft, and the tool is built from it, so it can change until the tool ships.

5 min readLast revised November 2026Source of this specification

Overview & Role#

set-aside-guide (CLIN 0004, category: "market", slug: set-aside-guide) is a static, browser-only eligibility screener and reference guide in the ClearedStack catalog. It helps businesses determine which federal small business set-aside programs they may qualify for, whether self-representation or formal Small Business Administration (SBA) certification is required, how solicitation dollar thresholds route competitions, and whether a proposed teaming split complies with limitations on subcontracting.

As noted in Codes, registration and small business status, claiming an unconfirmed socioeconomic status in SAM.gov or on an offer is a false statement to the government. set-aside-guide surfaces the exact regulatory prerequisites before a user relies on any program.

Governing Regulations & Sources#

Citation	Scope	Rule Applied in Tool
13 CFR Part 121	Size standards & affiliation	Every set-aside program requires the business (including affiliates under `13 CFR 121.103`) to be small under the solicitation's assigned NAICS code.
FAR Part 19 & FAR 2.101	Acquisition dollar thresholds & Rule of Two	As of October 2025: Micro-purchase threshold = `$15,000` (generally bought without competition); Simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) = `$350,000` (above `$15,000` up to `$350,000`, reserved for small businesses unless two capable ones cannot be expected); Above `$350,000` = set aside when the Rule of Two (`FAR 19.502-2(b)`) is met.
FAR 19.301	Small Business (SB)	Self-representation in SAM.gov under the relevant NAICS size standard.
13 CFR Part 124 / FAR 19.8	8(a) Business Development	Requires SBA certification; small business >= 51% owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (subject to 2025–2026 program revisions).
13 CFR Part 126 / FAR 19.13	HUBZone	Requires SBA certification; principal office in a Historically Underutilized Business Zone and required share (35%) of employees residing in a HUBZone.
13 CFR Part 127 / FAR 19.15	WOSB / EDWOSB	Requires SBA certification; >= 51% owned and controlled by women, for work in designated eligible NAICS industries.
13 CFR Part 128 / FAR 19.14	SDVOSB	Requires SBA certification (VetCert); >= 51% owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans. Self-certification is not sufficient for set-asides.
13 CFR 125.6 / FAR 52.219-14	Limitations on subcontracting	Caps the share of government-paid contract value a small prime may pay to non-similarly situated entities (non-SSEs): `<= 50%` for Services and Supplies (non-materials), `<= 85%` for General Construction, `<= 75%` for Special Trade Construction.

Inputs, Processing Logic & Outputs#

Inputs

Field	Type	Notes
`is_small_under_naics`	Boolean	Whether the firm (including affiliates) is under the solicitation's NAICS size standard.
`program_flags`	Object of booleans	Underlying eligibility flags (51% ownership/control, HUBZone office/residency, designated industry) and active SBA certification flags (`8(a)`, `HUBZone`, `WOSB/EDWOSB`, `SDVOSB`).
`estimated_value_usd`	Number (optional, `>= 0`)	Anticipated contract dollar value for threshold routing.
`contract_type`	Enum (`services` \| `supplies` \| `general_construction` \| `special_trade_construction`)	Optional contract category for subcontracting cap check.
`non_sse_subcontract_pct`	Number (optional, `0`–`100`)	Optional percentage of government-paid amount planned for subcontractors that are not similarly situated entities.

Deterministic Processing Logic

Size Gate: If is_small_under_naics === false, mark all 5 set-aside programs as Not eligible (small status under the solicitation's NAICS is mandatory for every program).
Per-Program Evaluation: For each program (Small Business, 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB/EDWOSB, SDVOSB):
- Small Business: Eligible now if is_small_under_naics === true (via SAM.gov self-representation).
- Socioeconomic programs (8(a), HUBZone, WOSB/EDWOSB, SDVOSB):
  - Criteria met + active SBA certification -> Eligible now
  - Criteria met + no SBA certification -> Potentially eligible — SBA certification required before bidding set-asides
  - Criteria not met -> Not eligible
Dollar Threshold Routing (when estimated_value_usd is provided):
- <= 15000 -> Micro-purchase threshold (up to $15,000)
- > 15000 and <= 350000 -> Simplified acquisition threshold (reserved for small businesses)
- > 350000 -> Above SAT (Rule of Two applies)
Limitations on Subcontracting Check (when contract_type and non_sse_subcontract_pct are provided):
- Lookup cap: 50% (services / supplies), 85% (general_construction), 75% (special_trade_construction).
- non_sse_subcontract_pct <= cap -> Compliant (<= cap%).
- non_sse_subcontract_pct > cap -> Exceeds statutory cap (> cap%).

Outputs

Program eligibility matrix: Status, establishment method (SAM self-representation vs. SBA certification), governing CFR/FAR citation, and required next step for all 5 programs.
Threshold routing card: Acquisition tier and default small-business reservation rule.
Subcontracting compliance result: Maximum allowed non-SSE percentage and pass/exceed indicator.
Exportable summary: Plain-text, Markdown, or JSON report for capture planning.

Clean-Room & 5-Condition QA Requirements#

To pass Shakedown and ship to live:

Browser-only & offline execution: Runs 100% client-side with all thresholds ($15,000 MPT, $350,000 SAT), CFR citations, and subcontracting caps bundled inside the repository; operates with no network connection.
Strict Content Security Policy: Enforces default-src 'self', connect-src 'self', and form-action 'none'. No ownership or teaming data leaves the browser.
Zero tracking or accounts: No login walls, cookies, analytics, or beacons. Any optional local reset/save state is disclosed with a clear-data control.
Worked-example assertions: Automated tests verify all 5 program branches, threshold boundary values ($15,000 vs $15,001, $350,000 vs $350,001), and subcontracting cap boundaries (50% vs 50.1%).
Citations, scope limits & MIT license: Cites 13 CFR Part 121, 13 CFR Parts 124–128, 13 CFR 125.6, FAR Part 19, and FAR 52.219-14 with revision date (2026-11), displays a non-advice and SAM false-statement warning, and includes an MIT LICENSE. Built clean-room from public regulations without user CUI.

Worked Example & Verification#

Worked Example

Scenario: A small IT services firm (is_small_under_naics = true) is 51% owned and controlled by a service-disabled veteran, does not yet hold SBA VetCert certification (sba_sdvosb_certified = false), is targeting a $250,000 services solicitation (contract_type = "services"), and plans to subcontract 45% of the government-paid amount to a large business (non_sse_subcontract_pct = 45).
Deterministic Output:
- Small Business: Eligible now (self-representation in SAM.gov under FAR 19.301).
- SDVOSB: Potentially eligible — SBA certification required (13 CFR Part 128; cannot bid SDVOSB set-asides on self-certification alone).
- 8(a), HUBZone, WOSB/EDWOSB: Not eligible (criteria not met).
- Threshold Routing: $250,000 falls in the Simplified acquisition threshold ($15,000 < $250,000 <= $350,000) -> reserved for small businesses unless two capable ones cannot be expected.
- Limitations on Subcontracting: 45% <= 50% -> Compliant under 13 CFR 125.6 / FAR 52.219-14.

Boundary & Verification Cases

Test Case	Input	Expected Deterministic Output
Not small under NAICS	`is_small_under_naics = false`, `sba_sdvosb_certified = true`	All 5 programs -> `Not eligible` (size gate fails).
Threshold boundary (SAT)	`estimated_value_usd = 350000` vs `350001`	`350000` -> `Simplified acquisition threshold`; `350001` -> `Above SAT (Rule of Two applies)`.
Subcontracting boundary	`contract_type = "services"`, `non_sse_subcontract_pct = 50` vs `50.1`	`50` -> `Compliant`; `50.1` -> `Exceeds statutory cap (50%)`.