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Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Business — a 3% State Spending Benchmark

The Commonwealth sets a 3% participation benchmark for service-disabled veteran-owned businesses on commodities and services contracts and on each design services contract. Status runs off federal VA verification rather than a state ownership test.

Verified August 22, 2026

What this benefit is

The Commonwealth sets a 3% participation benchmark for service-disabled veteran-owned businesses on commodities and services contracts and on each design services contract. Status runs off federal VA verification rather than a state ownership test.

What it's worth: A 3% participation benchmark on state commodities and services contracts and on each design services contract

  • A benchmark is an annual participation goal placed on awarding agencies, not a set-aside and not a payment. What it is worth to any one firm depends on the contracts you pursue.
  • For commodities and services the 3% is expressed as an overall annual participation goal; for design services it attaches to each contract.

Who is entitled to it

  • You have a service-connected disability, which is what this programme turns on.
  • Your home is in Massachusetts.

Not sure whether that describes you?

Answer a few questions about this benefit specifically — we only ask what this one actually depends on, and we stop as soon as we know.

How to claim it

  1. 1Get federally verified first. Status here means a small business concern owned and controlled by service-disabled veterans as defined in 15 USC §632, verified through the federal vendor information and verification programme — the awarding agency verifies that status before you can participate on a contract.
  2. 2Note where the certification actually happens: the supplier diversity office certifies minority, women, Portuguese and veteran businesses in house, but service-disabled veteran businesses are certified through third-party organisations with which it has agreements.
  3. 3Use the "apply or verify for recognition as a third-party certified business" route rather than the in-house application if you hold a third-party certification already.
  4. 4Aim at the right contract types. The benchmark covers commodities and services contracts, design services contracts and public construction contracts.
Form
Third-party certification, then recognition by the supplier diversity office
File with
The Supplier Diversity Office
Documents you will need
va benefit summary letter · dd214
Periodic recertification
Confirmed at intervals rather than annually.
CorrectionThe Commonwealth does not run its own ownership test for this status. It adopts the federal definition and the federal verification — so a firm that has not been verified federally cannot be counted toward the benchmark here, however clearly it is owned by a disabled veteran.
Worth knowingVeteran-owned and service-disabled veteran-owned are two different lanes. The supplier diversity office certifies veteran businesses itself; service-disabled veteran businesses come through third-party certifiers. Applying to the wrong one costs weeks.
Worth knowingFor commodities and services the 3% is an overall annual figure across an agency’s spending, so a single contract missing it is not a breach. For design services it is expressed per contract.

Sources

This finder provides an informational match, not a government eligibility determination. The responsible agency decides your application.