Businesses in 26 Iowa counties can now apply to take part in a federal contracting program that aims to stimulate growth in the economy and jobs.Businesses in certain “hub zones” would get the benefit of a 10-percent bidpreference on government contracts. Small Business Administration spokesmanKeith McBride says there are a couple of ways businesses can qualify:McBride says the program’s goal in the first year is to funnel at leastone-percent of all federal contracts through hub zone small businesses.That’d equate to roughly two-billion dollars. He says counties earmarked ashub zones have a different economic standing from the others.For more information, see the S-B-A website at: www.sba.gov/hubzoneThe following metro counties are considered hub zones: Black Hawk, Dubuque,Johnson, Linn, Polk, Pottawattamie, Scott, Story, Webster and Woodbury.Rural counties: Adams, Appanoose, Cass, Chickasaw, Clayton, Decatur,Delaware, Floyd, Jackson, Lee, Louisa, Montgomery, Taylor, Van Buren,Wapello and Wayne.
