Happy Friday, All. We hope you had a productive week (or if you were on vacation, hope you were able to just tune out). Here are some highlights in federal government contracting including news on the contracting dollars in the 2020 fiscal year , a bill aimed at enhancing small business participation in the federal marketplace passing in the Senate, and an announcement to nominate former HUD appointee to lead federal procurement. Enjoy your weekend!
Continue reading…SBA Issues 2020 Small Business Scorecard, Small Business Contracting Over $145 Billion!
The SBA released its annual Small Business Procurement Scorecard for fiscal year 2020 of how federal agencies are doing in meeting their small business goals. The SBA, in announcing the Scorecard, highlighted that small businesses received $145.7 billion in federal contracts , a $13 billion increase from the previous fiscal year. But looking beyond the headlines, not all of the trends are positive for small businesses. Let’s take a look at the numbers.
Continue reading…Koprince Law is Now Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC!
It is with great pleasure that we announce that the firm you have known as Koprince Law LLC has a new name:
Koprince McCall Pottroff LLC
The firm, a boutique federal government contracts firm in Lawrence, KS, will continue to focus on providing services to federal contractors throughout the United States and beyond, with a special focus on those issues unique to small business federal contractors.
Continue reading…CIO-SP4 Amendment 9, a Last Minute Stay
With less than 24 hours left until proposals were due, NIH released Amendment 9, staying the proposal deadline until August 20, 2021 at Noon Eastern. Amendment 9 says it changes very little, but the innocuous cover letter belies a major change to evaluations for Other Than Small and Emerging Large Businesses (OTSBs and ELBs).
Continue reading…CBCA Cannot Waive Its Own Filing Deadlines
4 C.F.R. 21.2(b) states that, for GAO protests, GAO has the option to dismiss or not dismiss a protest that is filed late if there is good cause or it is an important issue. In other words, if there’s a good reason, GAO can accept an untimely protest. (Please note that this is not suggesting the filing deadline does not matter, GAO treats it very strictly most of the time and you should treat it as a “drop-dead” deadline).
For this reason, some think this same discretion applies in other protests and appeals regarding government contracts. For the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA), it very much does not.
Continue reading…SmallGovCon Week in Review: July 26-30, 2021
Happy Friday, Readers. We have been in the midst of a heatwave here in Kansas with temperatures at 100 degrees and the humidity at 91%. Whew! We are very grateful for air conditioning during the dog days of summer. Here’s an interesting fact. The ancient Romans called the hottest, most humid days of summer “diēs caniculārēs” or “dog days.” The name came about because they associated the hottest days of summer with the star Sirius. Sirius was known as the “Dog Star” because it was the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (Large Dog).
There was a lot of news and announcements in Federal government contracting this week such as several executive orders and proposed rules impacting federal government contractors related to the Buy American Act and boosting federal competition, and the U.S. Small Business Administration has an update on successfully awarding over $7.5 billion in Shuttered Venue Operators Grants (SVOGs) as well as announcing the opening of the paycheck protection program direct forgiveness portal.
Here’s hoping that the weather is cooler in your neck of the woods. Stay cool and have a great weekend!
Continue reading…Event: Top 21 Legal Mistakes in Federal Government Contracting
The federal government contracting rulebook is notoriously complex and confusing–but not all confusion is created equally. As attorneys serving federal contractors (many of them small businesses), my colleagues and I often see contractors making the same common legal mistakes or holding the same common legal misconceptions.
On August 12, please join me and Nicole Pottroff as we cover our top 21 legal mistakes in federal government contracting–with an emphasis on small business issues–and explain how to avoid them. This webinar is hosted by our friends at Govology and it is easy to register: just click here. See you on August 12!