In our line of work, we regularly litigate protests, appeals, claims, etc., against the Government. But often, procuring and contracting issues can be resolved without the need for litigation–via a little-known method we like to call “talking things out with your CO.” There are also opportunities to communicate with your contracting officers for networking and marketing purposes that many contractors (often unnecessarily) shy away from. This article is the first of three articles that will provide you with some tips for when and how to communicate with your contracting officer at different steps of the procurement process. This article will focus on pre-solicitation and solicitation communications; the next will focus on proposal submission communications; and the third will focus on contract performance communications.
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SBA Proposed Rule Relaxes Change of 8(a) Program Ownership, Allows Limited Populated Joint Ventures
The SBA has issued new proposed rules relating to the 8(a) Program. The rules clarify some aspects of ownership and control requirements for the 8(a) Program, including making change of ownership a little easier and cleaning up some 8(a) set-aside processes. The rule would also allow for populated joint ventures between similarly situated joint venture members.
Continue readingCongress Directs SBA to Take Stab at COVID-19 Loan Fraud
President Biden signed two bills aimed at preventing fraud by participants within the Small Business Association on August 2, 2022. H.R. 7334 is titled the COVID-19 EIDL Fraud Statute of Limitations Act of 2022 (EIDL Act). H.R. 7352 is titled the PPP and Bank Fraud Enforcement Harmonization Act of 2022 (PPP Act). Both Acts establish a ten-year statute of limitations for fraud by borrowers under their respective programs. The head of the U.S. Small Business Administration, Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman credited the Acts with a renewed ability to investigate and prosecute borrowers who committed fraud in SBA lending programs created to assist small businesses during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
For both programs, the main purpose is to put in place a a ten-year statute of limitations for fraud.
Continue readingReading the Tea Leaves from SBA’s Regulatory Agenda
We’re back with another edition of looking for interesting tidbits from SBA’s semiannual regulatory agenda. SBA (along with other agencies) provide a guide to upcoming regulations. This schedule can help contractors determine when SBA is likely to update certain rules. Here are a few key updates.
Continue readingBack to Basics: Types of Affiliation
This is a the second article of two taking you back to the basics of affiliation. The first, giving you a general overview of affiliation, can be found here. This follow-on article goes through the different bases for affiliation, as set forth in SBA’s affiliation regulations. Keep in mind though, this is still affiliation “basics” and does not go into a detailed analysis of each type of affiliation, as that would be a novel–not a blog.
Continue readingSBA Final Rule Eases Use of Small Business Joint Venture and Subcontractor Past Performance
SBA has issued a final rule that should help small businesses demonstrate their past performance more easily. Perhaps most importantly, the rule will allow for a small business to receive a written performance record, similar to CPARS, showing its performance as a subcontractor to a large business prime. The new rule will also allow a small business to better utilize its past performance that it carried out as a member of a joint venture.
Continue readingFAR Proposed Rule: Incumbent Service Workers Need to be Hired
Once again, the incumbent service worker rule has had its pendulum swing back to the hiring of incumbent workers, reflecting a “general policy of the Federal Government that service contracts which succeed contracts for the same or similar services, and solicitations for such contracts, shall include a non-displacement clause.” This proposed rule would insert a contract clause requiring contractors who are awarded a service contract with an incumbent on it, to offer employment to the incumbent contractor employees, for performance of the contract. This is of course quite the shift from current regulations, but it also places many new contract compliance requirements on contractors awarded a new contract as they try and stand up performance.
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