Beyond set-aside procurements, the government bolsters small businesses by encouraging their participation in federally-funded research. Two key programs exist: the Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program and the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) Program. Ultimately, the government hopes that participating small businesses will commercialize technologies developed with federal research dollars. While the two programs are similar, a key feature distinguishes them: the STTR Progr
SBA has been hard at work this past year updating its 8(a) Business Development Program rules and policies. And we have been doing our best here at SmallGovCon to keep you posted. Many of our blog posts focused on SBA’s monumental November 2020 “rule overhaul,” which implemented several 8(a) rule changes. But given the sheer magnitude of information in that final rule, it is pretty easy to lose track of which updates might affect you, as a potential 8(a) applicant or current 8(a) participant. Th
SBA’s regulations say that in order to qualify as a small business under a set-aside or sole-source contract seeking manufactured products or supply items, an offeror ordinarily must either be the manufacturer of the end item or qualify under the nonmanufacturer rule.
This post will discuss five things your small business should know about qualifying as a manufacturer under the SBA’s rules; in a future post, I’ll walk through the nonmanufacturer rule.
Let’s get to it: here are 5 Things You Sho
If you’re a small business owner interested in government contracts, you’ve probably heard about the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program. The 8(a) Program itself is complex, but its potential benefits are tremendous. In this post, I’ll break down some of the very basics about the 8(a) Program, leaving some of its complexities for upcoming posts.
Let’s get to it: here are five things you should know about the 8(a) Program.
What is the 8(a) Program?
Like SBA’s other contracting programs
If a contracting officer determines that a small business offeror is not qualified to perform under a solicitation, that usually means the offeror’s proposal will be rejected. In some instances, however, the offeror gets a second chance through the SBA’s Certificate of Competency (“COC”) program.
Here are five things you should know about the COC program.
1. What rules govern the COC program?
The Small Business Act, specifically 15 U.S.C. § 637(b)(7), introduces us to the COC p
Small businesses often search for ways to increase their competitiveness for federal government contracts. A sometimes overlooked method is to try to better define the procurement’s requirements in a manner that improves a firm’s chances of being awarded the contract, through a pre-award bid protest.
Here are five things you should know about pre-award protests:
1. What is a pre-award protest?
A pre-award protest is a protest
that challenges the terms of a specific solicitation.
NAICS code appeals are a useful tool in any small business
government contractor’s toolbox. If successful, an appeal can dramatically
change a procurement’s competitive landscape—either by limiting the pool of eligible
offerors, or expanding it.
Even still, NAICS code appeals are underutilized among contractors. So I wanted to take just a few minutes to walk through the basics of NAICS codes appeals, in case your business ever needs to file one.
Here are 5 Things You Should Know about N
In the age of consolidated contracts and increased competition, small business federal contractors are searching for a way to improve their odds of winning the next opportunity. One of the most important tools for doing so is to form a joint venture.
Here are five things you should know about small business joint ventures:
1. What is a joint venture?
A joint venture is an association of two or more
businesses to jointly bid on and perform work (for profit), through their
combined
5 Things has previously discussed 8(a) Program basics and eligibility requirements. But the 8(a) Program isn’t the only socioeconomic program benefiting small businesses. In this post, we’ll begin exploring another crucial program for small businesses: the Historically Underutilized Business Zone—or HUBZone—program.
Here are five things you should know about the HUBZone program.
What is the HUBZone program?
At its most basic, the HUBZone program is designed to provide economic assistance
The 2018 Hurricane Season is now in full swing and the damage cost totals continue to rise for our friends on the East Coast. Disasters, like hurricanes, often arise quickly and without much warning, requiring quick responses from the Government and government contractors.
If your small business has been impacted by a natural disaster, or is interested in participating in the rebuilding and relief efforts that follow cataclysmic events by acquiring government contracts, here are five things you
Debriefings are a fundamental part of many government competitions. So it’s important for government contractors to understand what debriefings are, what they are not, and why they’re important. Here are five things you should know about debriefings:
Debriefings are sometimes required (but sometimes not).
After spending a lot of time (and money) on a bid, it’s only natural that a contractor would want to know why its proposal was evaluated the way it was. But agencies aren’t always requir
As a contractor, you strive to do the best job for the fairest price and to develop a good working relationship with the government. But in government contracts—like in any other—disputes sometimes arise. So what’s the best way to protect your interests under the contract?
Here are five things you should know about the basics of claims:
What is a claim?
A claim is a written demand to the agency requesting some type of relief under a contract. Unlike other means of resolving disputes, the
CMMC has been a hot topic for federal government contractors of late, for good reason: once CMMC is rolled out, contractors under a particular Defense Department procurement must meet the applicable cybersecurity level, or they’ll be considered ineligible.
But in case you’re still wondering what CMMC is and why it matters, let’s take a closer look. Here are five things you should know about the Department of Defense’s new Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (“CMMC”).
1. What i
You’ve poured precious time and resources into a proposal, only to lose out on the award. Making matters worse, the agency’s explanation of the award shows that it didn’t reasonably evaluate your proposal. What can you do?
Here are five things you should know about bid protests.
A bid protest can win a contract—or lose one.
A protest can help you win an award. In a pre-award protest, you can challenge any unclear or unfair terms in a solicitation. In a post-award protest, you can challeng
In late 2016, the SBA rolled out a fantastic tool to help small business grow in the marketplace.
Here are five things you should know about the SBA All Small Mentor-Protégé Program:
It’s a business development program.
I’m often asked by small business owners, What is the new mentor-protégé program? My answer is simple: it’s a business development program aimed at increasing small business capabilities. Under the All Small Mentor-Protege Program, a mentor provides its protégé with variou
Affiliation might be one of the scariest words to small business government contractors. But why?
Here are five things you should know about affiliation:
It can make a small business large.
To qualify as a small business for purposes of a government contract, a business has to be small under the size standard associated with the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code assigned to the solicitation. In addition to considering the firm’s own revenues or employee count, the
For federal construction projects in the United States exceeding $2,000, the Davis-Bacon Act requires contractors to pay their “laborers and mechanics” the “prevailing wage.” Typically, a federal construction contract will incorporate a wage determination which outlines the prevailing wages for the workers expected for the project. But what if you discover that you need another type of worker not listed on the wage determination?
Here are five things you should know about adding wage rates to a
In a recent post, I discussed the basics about SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program. This follow-up posts discusses 8(a) eligibility requirements in greater detail.
To qualify for the 8(a) Program, a firm must be a small business that is unconditionally owned and controlled by one or more socially- and economically-disadvantaged individuals who are of good character and citizens of the United States and that demonstrates a potential for success.
What does this really mean? Here are five thi
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
It’s early October, which means that the federal government’s end-of-fiscal-year contracting binge has drawn to an end. With the spate of contract awards, this time of year typically sees an increase in the number of bid protests being filed, or at least contemplated.
If you’re considering filing a bid protest, here are five (more) things to keep in mind:
1. Debriefings are helpful guides.
The most useful piece of information when considering a bid protest is, unsurprisingly, th
The GAO estimates that 27 percent of DoD mentor-protege agreements are deficient.
In a comprehensive new report, the GAO says that many active DoD mentor-protege agreements are missing basic (and necessary) information, like the protege’s primary NAICS code. Also missing, in some cases: the parties’ signatures
The GAO’s report, titled “Small Business Contracting: DOD Should Take Actions to Ensure That Its Pilot Mentor-Protege Program Enhances the Capabilities of Protege Firms,” begins with
The 2024 NDAA is directing quite a change in past performance evaluations for offerors in Department of Defense acquisitions. Historically, an offeror’s affiliate’s past performance is not automatically considered along with the offeror’s proposal, although an agency could consider it. The 2024 NDAA, though, has actually mandated a change within the DFARS that will up-end this long-held tenet for Department of Defense contracts.
Some background is probably warranted before discussing th
One of our favorite fall traditions is back. No, not gorging on stuffing after a turkey trot. Rather, it’s time for GAO’s annual bid protest report. This report is GAO’s summary of bid protests for the previous fiscal year. It contains some key insights for how the protest numbers have changed from prior years.
Here are some key points from this year: (1) the key effectiveness metric, showing numbers of sustains and corrective actions at GAO, was up even higher to 57% for the 2023 fiscal ye
If, as the result of a size protest or appeal, the SBA makes a final determination that a company is not a small business, the company will be required to update SAM within two days to reflect that it is no longer small. And if the company doesn’t recertify within two days, the SBA will do the honors and update the company’s SAM profile.
This tough new requirement is part of the compromise version 2022 National Defense Authorization Act, which is likely to be signed into law in the coming we
GAO’s annual bid protest report is a fall tradition for federal contracting attorneys. It’s perhaps not quite as tasty as stuffing in my book, but always interesting. In it, GAO summarizes its slate of bid protests for the previous fiscal year, and we can glean insights from how the protest numbers have changed from prior years.
Here are some key points from this year: (1) the key effectiveness metric, showing numbers of sustains and corrective actions at GAO, was up again to 51% for the 20
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