Author Archives: Steven Koprince

Bias And Bid Protests: GAO Rejects Gender Bias Allegation

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A woman-owned firm’s introduction of generalized evidence of discrimination against women in the fields of architecture and engineering was insufficient to demonstrate that the Navy discriminated against the woman-owned business with respect to a particular federal opportunity.

A recent GAO bid protest decision highlights how difficult it is to successfully demonstrate bias by government officials–even in a case where statistical evidence suggests that bias may be prevalent in a specific industry.

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Family Members’ Joint Involvement In Third Company Created Affiliation, Says SBA OHA

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A self-certified small business was found affiliated with a company owned by the business owner’s father, even though the son’s company had no meaningful business relationship with the father’s company.

In a recent size appeal decision, the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals found that the self-certified small business had not rebutted the presumption of affiliation with the father’s company because the father and son were jointly involved in a third business, and thus could not establish that their personal business interests were separate.

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Thank You, APTAC!

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I am about to leave St. Louis, where I have been since Sunday for the APTAC Spring Conference.  My presentation yesterday focused on common misunderstandings about the SBA’s size and socioeconomic rules (for example, a state WBE certification doesn’t mean that a contractor is a federally-certified WOSB).  Thank you to all of the “PTACers” who attended my presentation and asked such great questions.

But for me, the highlight of the trip was yesterday’s luncheon, where the APTAC membership surprised me with a special “Friend of APTAC” award.  I am incredibly grateful and humbled to be honored by APTAC in this way.  Thank you very much to Terri Bennett, Jason Porch, Becky Peterson, and all of APTAC for this great honor.

I’ve said it once (actually, I’ve said it many times), but if you are a small business in government contracting, you owe it to yourself to see what your local PTAC can do for you.  Visit the ATPAC website to get started.

SmallGovCon Week In Review: March 28 – April 1, 2016

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While it may be April Fools’ Day, we promise not to play any pranks on you–not that I didn’t think about a headline trumpeting a major change in the 8(a) program, linked to a video of Rick Astley.

Instead of pranks, it’s time for our weekly dose of government contracting news and notes from around the country. In this edition of SmallGovCon Week In Review, you will find articles covering a potential shift in GSA schedules, the State Department’s audit findings on procurement waste,  a billion dollar award is split between 21 vendors to tackle the short and long term needs of the VA’s IT department, the second part of my interview with GovBizConnect, and much more.

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SBA Doubles Down On WOSB Self-Certification With New Website

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The SBA has launched a new WOSB portal to help women-owned businesses better manage the WOSB self-certification process–even though Congress eliminated the statutory authority for self-certification more than a year ago.

The SBA apparently was caught off guard by Congress’s action, but I don’t understand why the SBA is spending time and resources to improve a prohibited self-certification mechanism.  While the SBA continues to state that WOSB self-certification remains valid indefinitely, the SBA has yet to answer what should be a simple question: what the heck is the legal justification for continuing to promote a self-certification mechanism that Congress has explicitly eliminated?

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Thank You, Idaho!

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I am back in Lawrence after a great trip to Idaho for the Idaho Small Business Symposium.  My presentation at the ISBS focused on big legal changes on the horizon in small business contracting, including the SBA’s proposed universal mentor-protege program.

Thank you to all of the small business owners, government officials, and others who attended my session or stopped by to visit me at the Koprince Law booth.  And a special thanks to Lee Velten and Gary Moore of the Idaho PTAC, who put together this fantastic event.

Next up for me: the APTAC Spring Conference in St. Louis, where I look forward to seeing a lot of familiar faces–including my friend Guy Timberlake of the American Small Business Coalition, who will also be speaking at APTAC.  If you are a “PTACer,” I look forward to seeing you in St. Louis!

SmallGovCon Week In Review: March 21-25, 2016

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As a Duke alum living in Kansas, March Madness is particularly exciting for me.  Last night, my defending champion Blue Devils got bounced from the tourney, but KU’s journey continues to the Elite Eight.  The win was especially sweet for me because it came against Maryland–a team whose fans (back when the Terps were in the ACC) kept insisting that Duke was their arch-rival.  I lost count of how many times I had to remind a Maryland fan that Duke already has an arch-rival.

While I await Saturday’s basketball excitement, it’s time for our weekly roundup of what’s new in the world of government contracts.  In this week’s SmallGovCon Week In Review, the Navy has been rocked by a bribery scheme, the DoD enlists a supercomputer to untangle its procurement system, some insightful commentary on recent changes to the WOSB program, and much more.

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