Norton Names Department of Homeland Security Subcontractor DC Small Business of the Year

Norton Names Department of Homeland Security Subcontractor "D.C. Small Business of the Year" and Touts New Tax Breaks

WASHINGTON, DC - Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-DC) today named as the "D.C. Small Business of the Year" Regional Contracting Services, LLC, founded by Beverly Thomas. The minority and woman-owned D.C. company has won a significant subcontract at the new U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) headquarters construction site in Southeast, and has previously worked on the Children's National Medical Center, the Mandarin Hotel, the Washington National's Baseball Stadium, the National Museum of the American Indian, the WMATA Navy Yard Metro, and the Walter Washington Convention Center, where Norton presented the award today during her annual "Access to Capital Fair" for small businesses.

More than 200 businesses attended the Fair, where 18 bankers and two dozen federal agency procurement representatives offered advice and information on developing business plans, applying for small business loans, and working with the Small Business Administration to become eligible for government small business set-asides contracts in discussions, work-shops and one-on-one consultations.

This was the second year in a row that Norton has named a D.C. business that has won a competitive contract at the DHS project as "D.C. Small Business of the Year." Norton said that "there will be many, many opportunities for D.C. businesses, and, particularly, minority and women-owned businesses to successfully compete for contracts and subcontracts at the DHS headquarters site throughout the ten years of construction work, now underway. Although many of these contracts will be in various construction phases, much of the work will involve doing other things in the compound, such as furbishing and finishing the three buildings." In her opening remarks, the Congresswoman also encouraged D.C. small businesses to take advantage of the new Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act (HIRE), which provides a payroll tax exemption from Social Security payroll taxes for every worker hired in 2010 who has been unemployed for at least 60 days and an additional $1,000 income tax credit for every new employee retained for 52 weeks.

Norton alerted small business owners that significant savings also can be obtained now through the tax credits for small businesses available in the Health Care bill, signed by President Obama last month. The Congresswoman explained her unique tax benefits for D.C. businesses, particularly her $3,000 tax credit, as well as her $5,000 tax credit for first-time homebuyers. Her $3,000 small business tax credit extension will again enable businesses located within empowerment zones throughout the city to receive up to $3,000 tax credit off the first $15,000 paid to each D.C. resident employed. The tax credit extension for D.C. businesses passed in the House and the Senate.