99 -- SBA proposes to increase size standards for Heating Oil Dealers and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Bottled Gas) Dealers industries.

The U.S. Small Business Administration is proposing to revise the size standards for two specific industries: Heating Oil Dealers and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Bottled Gas) Dealers. Currently, the size standard for Heating Oil Dealers is set at $11.5 million in average annual receipts, and for Liquefied Petroleum Gas Dealers, it is $6.5 million. The proposal seeks to change these standards to a more stable and consistent measure of company size based on the number of employees, setting the standard at 50 employees for each industry instead of a revenue-based threshold. This change is motivated by the significant and unstable fluctuations in the prices of heating oil and propane in recent years, which have affected the reliability of using receipts as a firm size metric. Comments on this proposed rule must be submitted by November 30, 2007. The SBA has made it accessible for stakeholders to provide feedback through the regulations.gov website using the identifier "3245-AF67." The point of contact for further information is Carl G Jordan, Program Analyst in the Office of Size Standards, reachable by phone or email. This adjustment aims to ensure a more accurate representation of business size that better reflects operational scale in these industries.