# STATE OF SOCIAL PROCUREMENTCountry Profile: United States Scaling through Supplier Diversity Networks and "People and Planet First." **$1.4 trillion** total spend with diverse suppliers in 2023 **43** companies spending more than $1 billion with diverse suppliers **10** States with legislation that gives priority to social enterprises ## Overview The United States is one of the largest and most diverse markets for impact-driven procurement globally, with over 1.1 million impact-led enterprises spread across the country. While the sector lacks a unifying legal framework or identity (social entrepreneurs, diverse suppliers, etc.), robust supplier diversity networks and emerging initiatives like People & Planet First are driving the growth of social procurement. ## Environment and context The movement of impact-first organizations in the US is vast but scattered. It is the third-largest market for social enterprises in the world, but features more than 200 different networks for impact-driven procurement nationwide, all using different terminology.In general, the term social enterprise is not widely used in the US. Instead, "income-generating nonprofit" is by far the most commonly used term. This is driven by the fact that the 501c3 nonprofit legal structure allows for a stated mission and reinvestment of profit into that mission. No other legal entity structure allows for this, though work is underway to advocate for some changes to Benefit Corporation language in some states to allow them to prioritize, rather than just consider, stakeholders like community, workers and the environment in their operations and business decisions. The supplier diversity sector is well established within the US, with, for example, 43 businesses signed up to the Billion Dollar Roundtable, meaning they are spending US$1 billion with diverse suppliers every year. There will be significant overlap between the supplier base of those that are eligible for supplier diversity initiatives and social enterprises, given for example, global data shows at least 50% of social enterprises are led by women and significantly more likely to be run by people with disabilities than the general small business population. Social enterprises are also appealing to buying businesses who can access a new pool of suppliers, potentially not currently engaged in supplier diversity networks and supported by an additional narrative for impact. ## Current State of Social Procurement in the US Purchasing with Purpose’s 2025 Mapping the Movement report, which is the first truly national study of the size and make-up of the impact-led enterprise movement, found that the largest populations of impact-led enterprises can be found in California, Florida, New York, and Texas. The report also shows that the impact-led enterprise sector mirrors the broader business population with the majority of enterprises being small with 92% earning under $5m in revenue. Photo Credit: First Step Staffing [Read the full report](https://purchasingwithpurpose.org/mapping/) ### Diverse regulatory situation The system is very dynamic at the state and regional levels. Nine states (California, Massachusetts, Maryland, New York, Illinois, Minnesota, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Washington, Oregon) have legislation in place to give purchasing priorities to social enterprises. Maryland, for example, passed legislation in 2019 that created preferences for social enterprises, alongside other mission-driven organizations within certain state procurement processes. However, state legislation has generally not been supported by programs to provide support and outreach to social enterprises to tackle any perceived or identified barriers to bidding for contracts. ### Case Study: Ability:One Ability:One shows how impact-led procurement can work in practice. The program is a collective of 420 enterprises registered as 501c3 organizations that support people with disabilities to source employment through public procurement contracts. It has provided $4 billion in services to the federal government in 2023 alone. Notably, the program's providers describe themselves as nonprofits but have self-sustaining revenue models and are likely to meet the verification requirements of People and Planet First. ### Diverse national networks There are large number of networks across the country providing support to enterprises through capacity building, network development, and impact investing or funding. Currently, procurement is not targeted as a key leverage point. To address this gap, Purchasing with Purpose was formed in 2024 to drive the necessary collaboration across networks to deliver scalable solutions for business and government procurement teams. # Outlook on Social Procurement in the US Photo Credit: Cara Collective ### Federal level The changing political landscape, most notably the One Big Beautiful Bill, has changed the way that businesses and public institutions engage in social impact work, as well as impacting how businesses engage with public contracts in the US. Social procurement is an opportunity for US-based businesses to buy local, align impact goals with corporate strategy and improve supply resilience. However, ‘fragmentation across the 50 states and municipal and county-level jurisdictions results in inconsistent regulatory requirements and definitions, creating barriers for both buyers and suppliers.’ (CGM & SAP, 2025). This has created an environment in which momentum is building, but there remains a need for systems and policy to catch up to support growth. ### Local and regional level At the local and regional level, Purchasing with Purpose has launched place-based purchasing initiatives in Oregon, Chicago and New York in 2025, with plans to expand to eight additional cities in 2026. These initiatives bring together local enterprises, government, businesses and anchor institutions to strengthen local economies through impact-led purchasing. Local decision-making ensures investment responds to community priorities, while shared purchasing programmes enable social enterprises to access essential services at reduced cost.Research by the Watson Institute highlights a strong business case for procurement from young, impact-driven entrepreneurs, identifying missed opportunities for innovation and revenue generation. Access to corporate procurement remains the main barrier, particularly navigating complex organisations. Where contracts are secured, average revenue growth exceeds $170,000, despite limited understanding among corporate leaders of the full value proposition.Within a shifting policy and procurement landscape, social procurement offers businesses a practical route to increase local sourcing and community impact without additional corporate social responsibility spend. Scaling will depend on identifying low-risk entry points and quick-win categories that build confidence as organisations adapt to market change. ## Key programs and initiatives Regional programs and initiatives offer opportunities for companies to get engaged in social procurement in this country. ## Frequently Asked Questions *Common questions and answers* ## Regional case studies The United States features several inspiring case studies on social procurement ## Frequently Asked Questions *Common questions and answers* ### National Partners This country profile has been prepared by Purchasing with Purpose. *Partner organizations and sponsors* Last update was made on 13 January 2026.