When it comes to “best value” evaluations, agencies ordinarily have broad discretion to accept higher-rated, higher-priced proposals.
How broad is that discretion? Well, in one recent case, the GAO held that an agency reasonably accepted the awardee’s higher-rated proposal, despite a whopping 91% price premium.
Continue reading…The last few months have seen a whirlwind of changes in the government contracting rules for small businesses–everything from rules governing joint ventures to WOSB certification to the requirement for government-wide SDVOSB verification, and much more.
If your head is spinning trying to keep up with all the recent changes, I’m here to help! On March 11, I’ll present a plain-English overview of some of the most important small business changes as part of the Alliance Northwest Conference.
Alliance is one of my favorite annual events, and it’s all-virtual this year–so even if you aren’t located in the Pacific Northwest, you should check it out. Hope to “see” you there!
Well folks, the wait is finally over! The Second Edition of our popular GovCon Handbook on the SBA’s 8(a) Program is live, and it’s available here. In this revised, updated, and expanded Handbook, Steven Koprince and I give you the run-down on all things 8(a) (and as always, we do so in plain English).
Whether you are considering applying to the 8(a) Program, in the midst of the application process, already years into your 8(a) Program term, or a recent graduate/non-8(a) entity hoping to team with an 8(a) company one of these days–this book is for you. It covers everything under the 8(a) sun, including:
Continue reading…Lowest price technically acceptable (LPTA) source selection has been on the decline lately. A recent final rule from the FAR Council, effective February 16, 2021, continues this trend. In the rule, the FAR Council implemented additional restrictions on the use of LPTA for non-DoD contracts.
Continue reading…The 8(a) Program is tremendously powerful and can be a springboard to massive success in the government contracts marketplace. But the many (many!) rules surrounding the 8(a) Program are complex, and even savvy 8(a) contractors–not to mention first-time applicants–easily can become confused.
I am pleased to announce that next week, Koprince Law LLC will publish a Second Edition of our popular GovCon Handbook on the 8(a) Program. In this revised, updated and expanded Handbook, my colleague Nicole Pottroff and I will cover the 8(a) Program’s rules in detail, including:
Continue reading…It looks like the cold snap over most of the country has finally thawed and spring is right around the corner. Hope everyone is recovering from the effects of the cold. The recent Mars rover landing reminded me of the important and exciting work that the government and contractors are doing for the country.
This week saw important updates about CMMC integration by GSA, a reminder that the feds are still looking into procurement fraud, and threats to GSA cyber security.
Continue reading…The VA Rule of Two, while a powerful motivator for setting procurements aside for service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, does have its limits.
One of those exceptions was discussed in a recent ruling from the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. The court confirmed that the VA may convert a service-disabled veteran-owned small business set-aside solicitation to a small business set-aside if the SDVOSB bids it receives are too high in price.
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