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When the subprime mortgage crisis hit in 2007, Erik Esparza of LanPacific Inc. knew he鈥檇 have to look for opportunities outside of the private housing market that had been the bread and butter of his design-build engineering company since 2004.

He wanted to start pursuing public projects, but because LanPacific was a small, minority-owned business, he needed to get his foot in the door first. That鈥檚 why he spent the last year and a half pursuing the Small Business Administration鈥檚 8(a) Business Development Program to have better access to federal contracting opportunities. After a rigorous application process and four submittal attempts, LanPacific was 8(a) certified in April.

Joseph Loddo, associate administrator for business development with the Small Business Administration says he has seen an increase in the number of applicants for 8(a), which provides small businesses contracting offers within the federal government and puts certified firms on a short list for federal contracts. 8(a) refers to a section of the Small Business Act authorizing a program to aid small businesses that are owned and controlled by socially or economically disadvantaged individuals.

鈥淲e鈥檝e noticed a significant increase beginning in February of this year,鈥� Loddo said. 鈥淭hat time frame coincides with the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. There鈥檚 been a lot of interest in allowing disadvantaged businesses to participate in the federal marketplace.鈥�

But the application, which requires extensive company and personal financial information from business owners, has 8(a) applicant Marcela Alcantar of Alcantar and Associates wondering if there will be any federal money left by the time she gets through the application process.

鈥淟ike any other person, I鈥檓 looking for new opportunities,鈥� Alcantar said. 鈥淭here are no opportunities for minorities anywhere else except federally. But they put up all kinds of barriers. People are telling me, once I get certified, the money may be all spent. And you still have to compete for it.鈥�

Obtaining 8(a) certification means walking a fine line between demonstrating financial need for certification and proving that a company has the resources to complete million-dollar federal contracts, according to Esparza.

鈥淚t was a fine, double-edged sword between having economic or social disadvantages and having the stability to capture projects in the federal market,鈥� Esparza said. 鈥淭hey ask for all of your company and personal financials for the last three years, and all of your family history. The final document was 6.5 inches thick. It was a long and painful process.鈥�

But the hard work has paid off for Esparza and his business partners, Mark Ferris and Shaun Fidler. LanPacific has three jobs coming up with the General Services Administration, Army Corps of Engineers and the US Fish and Wildlife Service as a result of their certification.

鈥淚t鈥檚 a long-term investment,鈥� Esparza said. 鈥淏ut it鈥檚 also an opportunity to grow your business to the next level and establish relationships with the federal market, which right now has the funds to do projects. It is one of the only markets that has money for projects in the next two to four years.鈥�

The application process is actually faster now than at has been in prior years, according to Loddo. In July 2008, the SBA deployed a streamlined version of the program application and it now takes the SBA 70 days instead of 144 to process an application.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a lot of misinformation out there saying it will take a year,鈥� Loddo said. 鈥淏ut that鈥檚 inaccurate.鈥�

Most of the application can now be filled out online, but hard copies of certain financial information are still required.

Maurice Rahming鈥檚 company, O鈥橬eill Electric, has been 8(a) certified since 2003, and while the program has provided him many opportunities, he says it鈥檚 not for everyone.

鈥淭he key thing to be successful with 8(a) is you have to have no issues with doing paperwork,鈥� said Rahming. 鈥淚f you鈥檙e a small contractor that hates doing paperwork, you鈥檙e going to hate the program. With the application, they are trying to make sure there鈥檚 no fraud involved and that you aren鈥檛 a front for another business.鈥�

Rahming says the load of paperwork doesn鈥檛 lighten once you鈥檙e certified; 8(a) companies must be audited each year by an independent CPA, which can cost around $20,000.

But John Chassaing, operations manager of Cisneros Construction, says having 8(a) certification in your toolbox is worth the extra effort. It took his company four to six months to apply and their certification just expired last year.

鈥淲e wish we were still on it,鈥� Chassaing said. 鈥淲e applied because we were a small business and trying to grow and we did quite a bit of federal work while we were certified. I would absolutely encourage other small businesses to apply.鈥�

鈥淚t just takes patience, perseverance and paperwork,鈥� Esparza said. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 think it鈥檚 any more work than any small business owner goes through on a regular basis.鈥�

More information on the 8(a) Business Development program is available at the Small Business Administration’s .