Many federal contractors know of and participate in the SBA’s Mentor-Protégé Program. However, there are many agency specific Mentor-Protégé Programs, including the oldest continuous program, the Department of Defense’s Mentor-Protégé Program. The DoD’s program has been operating since around the First Gulf War, and like any good machine that is a few decades old, regularly needs some updates. Just in the past week, the DoD released the newest proposed changes to its program.
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No Work No Play: SBA Reminds Contractors of HUBZone Employment Requirements
One of the pillars of the SBA’s HUBZone program is the location of a company’s employees. In August of this year, SBA released an Information Notice emphasizing important points about where employees reside, and HUBZone entity’s efforts to employ the necessary amount of employees residing in HUBZone areas. While SBA’s HUBZone policies don’t have the weight of law as compared to a regulation, the HUBZone office will generally enforce this sort of guidance quite strictly. So don’t think it’s just a suggestion. As these are crucial elements of eligibility, it is important for all HUBZone businesses to be aware and reminded of SBA’s expectations.
Continue readingDavis-Bacon Act Resurrects Old Prevailing Wage Methodology
There is a saying that sometimes to go forward, you have to go back first. In August, the Department of Labor (“DOL”) published a final rule that will update the Davis-Bacon Act, with some methodologies previously abandoned. Unsurprisingly, this final rule focused on enforcement of labor standards, and was quite lengthy (numbering in the hundreds of pages). Despite it’s voluminous size, there was one major change that federal contractors will find of interest, a change to the method of determining prevailing wage. That is the focus of this post.
Continue readingSBA Webinar Clarifies New Expectations for 8(a) Social Disadvantage Narrative
As you likely know if you have been anywhere around federal government contracting lately, the SBA’s 8(a) Program is in a little bit of an upheaval. Due to a court case we have blogged on, SBA is subject to a court order with how it administers certain aspects of the 8(a) Program and has temporarily suspended new 8(a) Program applications. However, there are many contractors already in the 8(a) Program that SBA is now asking to complete social disadvantage narratives to allow for continued eligibility. SBA held a webinar on August 24, 2023 to discuss what they expect from social disadvantage narratives submitted by these current 8(a) Program participants. What SBA expressed represents a change to how SBA has reviewed social disadvantage in the past. But we are here to walk you through some of these changes.
Continue readingSenate-Passed 2024 NDAA set to Raise DoD Set-Aside Sole-Source Contract Threshold Limits
Through an amendment to the Senate-Passed 2024 NDAA, the Department of Defense (“DoD”) sole source threshold for many socioeconomic set-aside programs would be increased significantly under the Senate-passed version of the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act. Also a method to adjust DoD sole-source thresholds for inflation would be created.
Continue readingDoD Revises its Other Transactions Guide
Something we frequently hear, when talking to those involved in the federal contracting industry, is that just when you think you have a handle on all the different ways federal contracting is run, you find out about another new program, authority, protest, guidance, regulation, or any other possible wrinkle of federal contracting. One prime example of this is that many individuals getting into federal contracting will often be surprised that the FAR is not the only standard that may drive how a procurement activity is handled. As we have blogged about in the past, “Other Transaction Authority” can come into play on certain procurements. The Department of Defense (“DoD”) utilizes this unique type of procurement authority and releases an “Other Transaction Guide” to dictate how this authority will be used. But with all things, only change is guaranteed, and any contractor who thought they knew this unique procurement authority’s ins and outs will need to take another look, as the DoD has just released a revised “Other Transactions Guide” based on industry guidance and regulatory changes.
Continue readingGAO: Each JV Partner’s Experience Must Be Considered
A common path for many federal contractors to bid on and perform a federal contract is through a joint venture (“JV”). Utilizing a JV can provide some great opportunities for two (or sometimes more) businesses to share resources and boost each others’ performance on a contract. Additionally, it can be a great tool for contractors to utilize both JV partners’ experience and to jointly gain more experience. There are even widespread SBA regulations requiring agencies to “consider” both JV partners’ experience in an evaluation. However, there has still been quite a bit of back and forth regarding how agencies are supposed to evaluate a JV’s experience, and specifically what it means to “consider” each JV partners’ individual experience, particularly in situations where only one JV partner submits the experience. In May of 2023, GAO issued a decision that provided at least some clarification on how an agency should consider each JV partner’s experience, and the impact of not doing so.
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