Since September, Pennsylvania small businesses have been granted the chance to compete for state government contracts, according to a staff report from TribLIVE.

The executive order, signed by Josh Shapiro, increases the amount of money Pennsylvania spends on contracts with small diverse businesses. It builds on similar efforts by former Gov. Tom Wolf which more than doubled that spending during his time in office from 4.9 percent in 2015 to 11.3 percent last year.

The latest executive order increases the revenue limit placed on small businesses to qualify for state contracts to $47 million, as opposed to the previous $38.5 million.

Shapiro also called on the General Assembly to adjust the small business definition from having up to 100 employees to a cap of 500 employees.

Prior to this legislation, small businesses in Pennsylvania only got $42 million in prime government contracts. Meanwhile, Maryland sets aside $448 million in these types of contracts for small businesses.

Read more about this groundbreaking move and how it compares to legislation from other states in TribLIVE.