SmallGovCon Week In Review: May 24-28

Posted on May 28, 2021 by Shane McCall

As we prepare for a long Memorial Day weekend, let us not forget to honor and thank all those that have served and continue to serve our country. Memorial Day is a day of reflection for those that have come before us and paved the way for our sacred freedoms that are often taken for granted. A big thank you to all of our veterans and active duty military. We see you, we honor you and we appreciate you greatly. Thank you for your service.

“As we express our gratitude we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter the words, but to live by them.” -John F. Kennedy

We hope you a have a wonderful and reflective Memorial Day weekend. Here are a few noteworthy happenings in federal government contracting this week, including an upcoming SBA update on the pending SDVOSB governmentwide certification, the launch of the new SAM website, a timeline for CMMC assessor training, and more.

Debriefing Exception to Protest Timeliness Rule Doesn’t Apply to SBIR Procurements, Period

Posted on May 27, 2021 by John Holtz

Equitus Corporation was sure it was following the right procedures when it requested a debriefing after receiving a letter stating its proposal under an Air Force Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) solicitation had been rejected. The Air Force even provided the debriefing as requested, and Equitus filed a protest less than 10 days later. However, they made an easy-to-miss but crucial error that resulted in dismissal of their protest.

The “Three-in-Two” SBA Joint Venture Rule is Partly Gone–Now It’s Time to Get Rid of the Rest

Posted on May 25, 2021 by Steven Koprince

Last year, SBA made joint venturing a little easier by relaxing the so-called “three-in-two” rule. But the “two-year” portion of the rule still exists–and in my view, the rule continues to unfairly elevate form over substance.

SBA, it’s time to take the plunge, and get rid of the rest of the three-in-two joint venture rule.

New HUBZone Program Guidance Sheds Light on Principal Office Long-Term Investment Rules

Posted on May 24, 2021 by Shane McCall

The HUBZone Program has released updated FAQs that provide guidance on important HUBZone rules and how SBA will be interpreting them. While these don’t have the authority of a regulation, the new guidance shows how SBA will come down on certain HUBZone questions that aren’t answered in the regulations. These include the details on long-term investment in a principal office as well as a few other rules. Read on for how SBA will interpret these rules.

SmallGovCon Week in Review: May 17-21

Posted on May 21, 2021 by Shane McCall

It’s been a very soggy week in the Midwest and we are looking forward to our normal sunny weather here in Lawrence, Kansas. We hope you are staying dry and the sun is shining bright in your neck of the woods.

There has been a lot of activity in federal government contracting news this week including more big announcements for small businesses and federal government contractors concerning the latest executive orders on cybersecurity requirements. The SBA made an announcement about expanding HUBZone opportunities and supplements on DFARS regulations were released concerning past performance of subcontractors and joint venture partners, as well as information about post award debriefings.

We hope you enjoy your weekend and catching up on the federal government contracting news in the articles listed below.

Agency Not Required to Hunt Down and Investigate Bad Publicity, Says GAO

Posted on May 20, 2021 by Nicole Pottroff

In a recent decision, GAO said that it is not the contracting agency’s job to play investigator when it comes to publicly available negative past performance information. GAO acknowledged that there may be certain situations where the agency is required to consider such information that it is aware of during its evaluation. But according to GAO, this denied protest involved no such situation.

$15 Minimum Wage Coming to Federal Contracting in 2022

Posted on May 19, 2021 by SmallGovCon Contributor

Beginning January 30, 2022, all prime contractors and subcontractors doing work on a government contract will be required to pay workers at least $15 per hour, based on a recent executive order.

The executive order does not stop there, beginning in 2023 the wage will go up annually. When can we expect formal guidance to come out, and what other items are found in the text?