As you move into the weekend, be on the lookout for the Pink Moon. It’s not really pink though, the name comes from the herb moss pink, also known as creeping phlox, so NASA tells me. This is one of the earliest flowers of spring. So even if you don’t actually see a pink moon, it still means spring is here.
Along with the moon, be sure to check out these government contracting updates, including a report on SBA review of PPP loans, changes to beta.SAM, and calls for emerging technologies fo
Many small business clients of mine have been approached by or considered acquisition by a larger firm. Well, if this sort of sale or merger would turn a small business into a large business, the small business should pay close attention to a little-publicized change stemming from SBA’s Mentor-Protégé Consolidation rule that came out last fall. The new rule could result in a company losing out on an otherwise successful bid.
It’s fairly common for a small business to be purchased by a la
In January 2022, the rules regarding calculating small business size status for federal procurements will change dramatically. Companies operating under receipts-based size standards will be required to use their last five completed fiscal years–not three. And businesses operating under employee-based size standards will be made to use their last 24 months of payroll, instead of 12.
These changes will benefit growing businesses, allowing stay small longer by including older numbers in their
Lately, I’ve been enjoying attending my daughter’s soccer games on the weekend. It’s nice getting out into the fresh air. Hope you are able to enjoy some fresh air this weekend as well. But before you do, check out the latest updates in government contracting.
This week saw some important updates in the federal contracting world. These included new details about the GSA administrator, a potential increased emphasis on evaluation of past performance, and DOD’s innovation ecosystem.
An agency’s past performance evaluation may consider whether the prime contractor and a proposed subcontractor have worked together previously–even if the solicitation is silent about such consideration.
In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO held that there was nothing improper about an agency’s determination that the awardee’s prior working history with its subcontractor decreased performance risk.
The GAO’s decision in VxL Enterprises, Inc., B-419467.2 (Mar. 8, 2021) involved a
Eligibility to bid for construction contracts in the 8(a) program can be a maze to navigate for small businesses. The lifeblood for these companies is identifying and becoming eligible to bid for these prized solicitations. As a new 8(a) entity, or one looking to branch out, you may be wondering how to establish a bona fide place of business.
In order to qualify for construction contracts in the 8(a) program, offerors are required to have a bona fide place of business (or BFPOB) within the
SBA guidance on Certify.SBA.Gov suggests that an 8(a) Program applicant’s social disadvantage narrative should be “three pages or less.” While we are definitely in the habit of recommending small business contractors to follow SBA’s guidance most of the time, we simply cannot climb aboard the “three-page” ship. In fact, we have significant concerns that submitting a one to three page narrative could potential “sink” your 8(a) application (at a minimum, requiring you to make extensive and time-co
For small and large businesses alike, joint venturing and prime/subcontractor teaming on federal contracts can bring powerful benefits. But the rules governing teaming and JVs can be complex, and in focusing on compliance, sometimes best practices can get lost in the shuffle.
On April 20 through 22, please join me and Nicole Pottroff for a special, three-part course on joint ventures and prime/subcontractor teaming, hosted by Govology. We’ll cover the key compliance rules in plain English,
As I drove into work today, the redbuds are in full bloom. The purple flowers are the first to appear, after a long, cold winter and it’s a pretty sight and a sure sign that spring is here. Hope you are able to enjoy some nice spring weather this weekend and immerse yourself in the beauty in your part of the world.
But before you start the weekend, catch up on some key news in the federal contracting world. This included contractors anticipating the next big spending bill, new picks for lea
SBA has issued its regulatory agenda for what rules it plans to roll out later this year. Here is a rundown of the key rules.
SBA recently released its semiannual Regulatory Agenda, which is a summary of current and projected regulatory actions, and invited the public to comment. Below, I summarize some of the key proposals.
Alternative Size Standards for Loans. SBA has proposed “an alternative size standard for loan applicants that do not meet the small business size standards for
My colleague Steven Koprince and I will be providing a Government Contracts Legal Update 2021 in cooperation with The University of Texas at San Antonio Institute for Economic Development PTAC. We will provide a comprehensive update on the most important government contracting legal changes of late 2020 and the first months of 2021.
The event will take place on April 13 from 1:00 PM – 2:30 PM (CDT). Be sure to check out the registration link if you are interested!
The post Event: Government
Hard to believe it, but March has come and gone and now we’re one quarter of the way through 2021! As you try and figure out where the year has gone this weekend, peruse these government contracting updates that reflect on what has occurred and what could happen during the rest of 2021.
Some of the key stories this week included a DOD review of CMMC, the PPP Extension Act, and an extension on for expiring SAM.gov registrations.
NEW: GSA Providing Automatic 180-Day Extension of Expir
For companies trying to break into the government market for the first time, past performance can seem a bit like the old chicken-and-egg conundrum. Sometimes it can appear like a company can’t win a government contract without a strong record of past performance–but can’t build a past performance record without contracts! And with the government’s continued movement away from lowest-price, technically acceptable evaluations, past performance seems increasingly important.
But that doesn’t
Our hometown Jayhawks basketball team didn’t fare so well in the NCAA tournament. That’s alright; spring is right around the corner. And with it some nice weather across the country. Hope you are able to enjoy the outdoors this weekend.
But before the weekend arrives, this week brought some interesting updates in government contracting, including the details on the regulatory freeze from the Biden administration, IT modernization developments, and preparing for a CMMC assessment.
Ti
The ostensible subcontractor rule says that, for a small business or socioeconomic set-aside such as 8(a), the small business prime contractor must perform the primary and vital parts of the contract and can’t be unduly reliant on a subcontractor. If the small business is found to violate the rule, the size of the small prime contractor and the large subcontractor are grouped for size purposes, which can result in loss of award. But the ostensible subcontractor rule is different from SBA’s joint
Live Govology Webinar: April 8, 2021, 1:00-2:30pm EDT Instructors: Steven Koprince & Shane McCall
In late 2019, the SBA issued a final rule, making several changes to the HUBZone program. Join us as we discuss these changes as well as SBA’s related guidance and provide an overview of the HUBZone program’s requirements, including:
Ownership, control, and other HUBZone eligibility criteria.
Benefits: HUBZone set-asides, sole-source contracts, and price preference.
The principal of
GSA has recently announced that the long anticipated DUNS Number transition to the new Unique Entity ID (UEI) Standard has been pushed back to April 2022.
We first blogged on GSA’s intention to swap out the DUNS numbering system for the UEI Standard in July 2019. We also “demystified” the DUNS-to-UEI-transition in a later blog, getting into a few of the details released in GSA’s Q&A on the topic. As we explained, GSA initially anticipated a transition date of December 2020. But clea
If you are part of a joint venture between a small protege and its large mentor under the SBA’s Mentor-Protege Program, heads up: the SBA recently amended its list of mandatory requirements for joint venture agreements to cover what happens to funds left over in the joint venture bank account at the end of a project.
Like the revised recordkeeping rules I discussed in an earlier post, the new required provision only applies to mentor-protege joint ventures pursuing small business set-aside c
March Madness begins today and as residents of a city where basketball reigns supreme (Lawrence, Kansas) I can tell you that we are all beyond excited about the NCAA tournament. We have our brackets completed and locked in so let the games begin!
We are also seeing signs of Spring as the temperatures are warming, the rain is falling and the plants are starting to look green and bright after a long, cold winter. It’s a season of change which is also true in the world of government contracting
You won’t want to miss this free event on Thursday, March 25, 2-4:00pm EDT, hosted by Michelle Gardner-Ince, Director of the Women-Owned Veteran Small Business Initiative (WVOSBI). This session will include a panel discussion by seasoned legal and successful business professionals Jackie Lopez, Sharon Athas Cote, John Devore, and our very own Koprince Law LLC, Managing Partner, Shane McCall.
This panel discussion will allow women business owners the opportunity to address operational, relat
Mention Jackie Robinson-Burnette to anyone who participated in the 8(a) Program between 2014 and 2017, and you’re sure to get a big smile. As the SBA’s Associate Administrator of 8(a) Business Development, and then the Deputy Associate Administrator for Government Contracting and Business Development, Ms. Robinson-Burnette quickly became well-known for working tirelessly on behalf of small businesses, assisting them with a rare blend of knowledge, savvy and empathy.
That is why I am so exci
For small businesses, the SBA’s Certificate of Competency process can offer a powerful “second bite at the apple,” essentially allowing a small business to appeal to the SBA if a procuring agency finds the small business non-responsible.
But the SBA CoC process is limited to findings of non-responsibility under FAR Part 9. As GAO recently held, there is no right to appeal to SBA if the proposal was rejected for failing to adequately explain the small business’s technical approach.
G
I’m excited to announce that I am featured on the Contracting Officer Podcast, hosted by Kevin Jans and Paul Schauer! The episode is available here and, in it, I discuss three common forms of contractor relationships: Teaming Agreements, Joint Venture Agreements, and the federal Mentor-Protégé Program. Be sure to check out this episode and the plethora of other podcast topics, helpful to both beginning and experienced federal contractors.
The post Koprince Law Discusses Teaming for Federal Con
Happy Friday, SmallGovCon readers. The new movie Yes Day comes out today: a day where parents let kids be in charge for a day. And yes, we may be doing a similar thing at our house. For federal contractors, it may feel like it is always Yes Day when responding to government requests. But it can help to know just when you have to say yes to the government, and when you don’t have to.
Staying up to date with the latest in federal contracting can help when responding to the government. The upda
The SBA’s joint venture rules can be strict. Mistakes like failing to update a joint venture agreement, inserting ambiguous provisions in a joint venture agreement, or relying on an expired mentor-protege agreement can be costly.
Good faith mistakes are one thing–the joint venture may lose out on a contract, but probably won’t face other penalties. But when the government believes that a contractor knowingly violated the joint venture rules, the repercussions can be much more serious–as se
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