Image: Twitter DOGE report of savings allegedly made by cutting DEI programs
Truth Versus Fact; Government Contracting
by Stephen Munford
As a Current Nevada Native Owner of a government contracting company I wanted make sure our native people, especially in Nevada understand the the truth verses the continued spreading misleading information about federal government contracting, and it’s crucial to set the record straight.
Here’s the reality: Nellis Air Force Base alone procures over $3 billion annually, and when you include Creech Air Force Base (40 miles north of Las Vegas), that number climbs to nearly $5 billion in federal purchases each year. The claim that federal contracting DEI programs (such as DBE, SBA HUBZone, and SBA 8A) are somehow unnecessary or wasteful is deliberately dishonest—or at best, wildly uninformed.
Under FARs (Federal Acquisition Regulations), Nellis AFB is supposed to allocate at least one-third of its contract dollars to small, disadvantaged businesses, including:
• DBEs (Disadvantaged Business Enterprises)
• SBA HUBZone Businesses (businesses located in historically low-income areas)
• SBA 8A Certified Businesses (federally certified small businesses owned by socially or economically disadvantaged individuals)
But here’s the problem:
• Nellis likely hasn’t even come close to meeting its goal of awarding one-third of its contracts to these businesses.
• Nevada, as a whole, has fewer than 100 federally certified businesses qualified to compete for these contracts—despite the fact that many Nevada Native American tribes could qualify for SBA 8A and HUBZone certification, yet none currently do.
• The claim that these DEI programs are somehow taking money away from the government is pure nonsense—because the federal government spends trillions annually, and these programs exist precisely to give small businesses and historically disadvantaged companies a fair shot at competing.
The Real Agenda Behind These Attacks
People like Donald Trump, Bob Beers, and Kevin Child want you to believe that DEI contracting programs are some sort of handout—as if small, minority-owned, veteran-owned, and women-owned businesses aren’t earning these contracts through competitive bids. That’s a lie.
The reality is that these attacks on federal contracting programs are just another way to consolidate wealth and power among large corporations while shutting out small businesses, including:
• Minority-owned and women-owned businesses
• Veteran-owned businesses (including disabled veterans)
• White-owned small businesses that qualify under SBA DEI programs
By dismantling these programs, they’re actively blocking opportunities for new and small businesses to compete—all while funneling even more taxpayer money into the hands of huge defense contractors and corporate monopolies.
So next time you hear people like Trump, Beers, or Child lie about federal contracting, ask yourself: Who actually benefits when small businesses get cut out of the process? Because it’s not taxpayers, and it’s certainly not small businesses of ANY race, gender, or background.
Don’t fall for their BS. Follow the money.
