Beta.SAM.gov: Check Early & Check Often!

If we’ve said it once, we’ve said it a thousand times: when it comes to submitting your GAO protest, meeting GAO’s strict timeliness requirements is a must. So is watching out for notices on contract awards posted online. In Prudential Protective Services, LLC, B-418869 (Aug. 13, 2020), the protest was dismissed as untimely because it was filed more than 10 days after notice of the award was posted to beta.SAM.gov.

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Persistence Pays: GAO Sustains After Fourth Protest Due to Unreasonably Narrow Corrective Action

In its recent decision, Peraton, Inc., B-416916.8, et al. (Aug. 3, 2020), GAO ultimately sustained a protest that the Department of State’s corrective action was unreasonably limited—recommending the protester be reimbursed its protest costs in the process.

For more on how it reached this result, buckle up! Because it was a long road for the protester to reach the GAO sustain.

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GAO: Work Must Remain Set Aside for 8(a) Participants Because Not a “New Requirement”

In a recent decision, Eminent IT, LLC, B-418570 (June 23, 2020), GAO held that the Department of State improperly removed a requirement from the SBA’s 8(a) program where the solicitation did not create a “new requirement.”  

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Back to Basics: SBA’s OHA Reminds SBA Area Offices How to Apply the Ostensible Subcontractor Rule

We’ve discussed the “ostensible subcontractor rule” quite a few times on the blog (including most recently here and here) because it is one of the most frequent grounds for size protests. It’s also frequently misunderstood. A recent SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals decision, Contego Environmental, LLC, SBA No. SIZ-6054 (May 19, 2020), demonstrates how even SBA Area Offices can misapply the rule and provides useful reminders to contractor looking to avoid violating it.

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UPDATE: Too Little, Too Late? SBA Updates Guidance on PPP Safe Harbor the Day Before May 14 Deadline

**UPDATE 5/14/20: Since publication of this post, the SBA has now updated the PPP Safe Harbor deadline to May 18. This post has been updated to include this additional information.

Just hours before the first extended May 14 deadline for businesses to return “unnecessary” Paycheck Protection Program loans without penalties, the SBA has published new guidance on how it will review borrowers’ required good-faith certifications.

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PPP Update: New $20 Million PPP Loan Limit for Corporate Groups

On Monday, May 4, the SBA will issue another Interim Final Rule updating the Paycheck Protection Program—this time limiting the “aggregate amount of PPP loans that any single corporate group may receive.”

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This Just In! SBA Provides Updates on WOSB Certification Changes

Last May, we reported on proposed changes to the SBA’s Women Owned Small Business Program Certification Process. Now, the SBA’s website includes updated information about what those changes may mean for existing and new WOSBs.

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