H.R. 1586 — WOSB Certification Expansion and Opportunity Act

This section amends sec. 15(g) of the Small Business Act to exclude self-certified women-owned small business concerns (WOSBs) from governmentwide (5%) and agency contracting goals, counting only WOSBs certified under sec. 8(m)(2)(E) (effective first day after end of second fiscal year following issuance of required regulations). It deems self-certified WOSBs—as of the effective date that applied for certification beforehand and lack a prior determination—as certified for goal-calculation purposes until SBA or an approved entity decides. The section further requires the SBA Administrator to issue implementing regulations within one year of enactment and to provide quarterly briefings to the House and Senate small business committees (through the effective date) on certification applications, approvals, processing timelines, costs, outreach, and legislative needs. (Thus, the change promotes formal certification of WOSBs—eligible for set-aside federal contracts—over prior self-certification practices.)