SmallGovCon Week In Review: May 2-6, 2016

Posted on by

We’d like to wish all of the mothers out there who read the SmallGovCon blog an early, but very happy, Mother’s Day.  Our early gift to you is this week’s SmallGovCon Week In Review.  (Don’t get too jealous, fathers–we’ll have a similar gift for you in June).

This week brings an announcement that small businesses received over 25% of federal contracting dollars–but those statistics are under fire in a new lawsuit.  Also, we take a look at why some lawmakers are worried about small businesses being negatively impacted by category management, a pair of whistleblowers cash in with nearly $3 million dollars to settle claims of fraud, and much more.

  • According to the SBA, federal agencies exceeded their mandatory goal and steered 25.75 percent of federal contract dollars to eligible small businesses. [Government Executive]
  • Not everyone is excited about the SBA’s goaling announcement.  A small business advocacy group is suing the SBA for what it calls “creative accounting” and misrepresentation of federal contracting goals. [Federal News Radio]
  • Lawmakers are concerned that category management could negatively impact small business participation. I’m with the lawmakers on this one. [Fierce Government]
  • It’s not just the big behemoths that are making deals in the government market; many small and mid-tier players are active as well. [Washington Technology]
  • Health agency procurement officers will be required to use GSA governmentwide acquisition contracts and schedules for “previously unsolicited and follow-on contracts/task orders” for all IT and health care systems, effective immediately. [Federal Times]
  • Two whistleblowers were awarded nearly $3 million to settle claims of fraud against the Pentagon. [The Sacramento Bee]
  • The General Services Administration’s new playbook will offer best practices for agencies to take advantage of shared services. [FedScoop]
  • Rep. Don Young is trying to make a small (but potentially controversial) change to federal law that he says will have a big impact on many Alaska Native Corporations doing business with the federal government. [Alaska Journal]