Affiliation is a notorious term in the world of federal procurement, especially when it comes to SBA size determinations. And affiliation analyses can be even more confusing when it comes to joint ventures. A recent SBA OHA decision, however, answered some common questions regarding joint ventures and affiliation. It also reiterated some fundamental standards of a size determination and OHA size determination appeal.
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Includes decisions of the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals, including size appeal decisions, service-disabled veteran-owned small business appeal decisions, NAICS code appeal decisions, and women-owned small business appeal decisions.
Not Quite Tribally Owned: A Lesson on Tribally-Owned Entities and the 8(a) Program
Not every participant in the 8(a) Business Development Program is owned by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. There are also a sizable number of entities that are owned by Native American tribes, Native Alaskan entities, Native Hawaiian organizations, either directly or through other entities (collectively, we’ll call them Tribally-Owned Entities). While the presumption of social disadvantage for 8(a) eligibility for members of certain ethnic and racial minorities was found unconstitutional (and is formally being removed), Tribally-Owned Entities go by a different set of rules that makes admission into the 8(a) Program easier. That does not, however, mean that these rules apply to any and all entities owned by a Native American or even where actions are supposedly taken on behalf of a Native American tribe. A company learned this the hard way in a recent SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) decision that we’ll explore today.
Continue readingTiming is Everything: The Key to Timely SDVOSB Status Protests
When filing a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Business (SDVOSB) status protest, timing is critical. A single missed deadline may be the difference between a successful protest and a protest that is never heard. Missing established filing deadlines can result in your protest being dismissed, regardless of how compelling your arguments are. The Small Business Administration (SBA) will enforce these timing rules strictly. In particular, can a contractor ask the agency to simply investigate a company for SDVOSB compliance? And does such a request need to meet the timing requirements? A recent OHA decision answers these questions.
Continue readingBack to the Drawing Board: SBA OHA Overturns Suspension of 8(a) Contractor
In October 2025, the SBA suspended an 8(a) Program contractor called ATI Government Solutions, LLC (ATI) after suspension under the FAR. ATI appealed the 8(a) suspension, and the decision shows that SBA must still support its actions with adequate evidence, and reasonable argument linked to that evidence. OHA remanded the suspension matter for more documentation from SBA.
Continue readingA Reversal in Course? SBA Rescinds Several 8(a) Suspension Notices
As you may recall, this past December, SBA launched a massive audit of the 8(a) Program, in which 8(a) participants were required to submit a long list of financial documents for review. Many feared it was the beginning of the end of the 8(a) Program when several 8(a) Participants were hit with suspension notifications earlier this year. Most of these suspensions were a result of SBA’s review of the documents collected during the December data call. The basis was often a claimed failure of these participants to submit all the data asked for. However, as provided for in 13 C.F.R. § 124.305(c), these participants had the opportunity to appeal these suspensions, and many of them took that opportunity. In several cases, it turns out that SBA itself decided that its suspension was unnecessary, and rescinded those actions. Today, we’ll look at this development.
Continue readingSkin of its Teeth: Mentor-Protégé Joint Venture Survives SDVOSB Status Protest Despite Missing Required Provisions in Joint Venture
For the most part, the rules on joint ventures under SBA are very similar. the various regulations for small business, 8(a), SDVOSB, WOSB, and HUBzone joint ventures are so similar in fact that they are almost identical. But they are not perfectly identical. There are a few quirks that distinguish the regulations from the others, and one such quirk can cost contractors dearly if they are not careful. In today’s post, we will review an SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) case in which one SDVOSB nearly fell victim to this quirk to show what this quirk is, and how you can avoid the same.
Continue readingOHA Reminder: Compliance with SBA Joint Venture Requirements is Determined at Final Proposal Revisions
In most size and status protests, SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) will determine an offeror’s eligibility for a procurement as of the date of initial offer including price for that procurement. Indeed, with regards to SDVOSBs and VOSBs specifically, 13 C.F.R § 134.1003(e)(1) states that “[i]f the VOSB or SDVOSB status protest pertains to a procurement, the Judge will determine a protested concern’s eligibility as a VOSB or SDVOSB as of the date of its initial offer or response which includes price for a competitively awarded VOSB/SDVOSB contract, order, or agreement, and as of the date of award for any sole source VOSB or SDVOSB award.” But there is an important exception to this rule (something another company found out regarding its mentor-protégé joint venture recently) in that very clause, and, recently, OHA pointed this out in a GSA-led protest of an SDVOSB joint venture (VSBC-459-P, January 15, 2026). Today, we’ll look at that decision.
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