Congress Requires Large Primes to Provide Past Performance Reviews to Small Subcontractors–And Agencies to Consider Them

Posted on December 23, 2020 by Steven Koprince

Breaking into the federal government contracting marketplace can be challenging, and many small businesses choose to start as subcontractors. But when those companies later bid on prime contracts, they sometimes find that they cannot get past performance reviews for their subcontract work, or that the government won’t consider such reviews.

Now, Congress has stepped in. A provision in the 2021 National Defense Authorization Act will require large prime contractors to provide small businesses with past performance reviews in certain cases, and will require agencies to consider them.

Event: Small Business Contracting at Pub K’s Annual Review

Posted on December 23, 2020 by Shane McCall

As you make your plans for 2021, be sure to mark down Pub K’s Annual Year In Review. I’m excited to be part of a panel on small business contracting! There are other helpful panels on items ranging from claims to cybersecurity from January 25 through 28, so take a look at the entire schedule.

I’ll be speaking at 3 pm eastern on January 27. The event is free to the public. Check the site for details on how to register.

8(a) Participants to Receive One-Year Extension Through COVID-19 Bill

Posted on December 22, 2020 by SmallGovCon Contributor

Update: The Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 was passed on December 27, 2020. The NDAA was passed on January 1, 2021.

Congress has included in the new COVID-19 relief bill a one-year extension of the term for participation in the 8(a) Program. Under the provision, any small business concern participating in the 8(a) program on or before September 9, 2020 may “elect to extend such participation by a period of 1 year”. This is good news, especially for those concerns in their last year of viability in the 8(a) program who may have felt shortchanged from COVID’s effects on the economy.

New DoD Rule Requires Formal Certification for WOSB and EDWOSB Contracts

Posted on December 22, 2020 by SmallGovCon Contributor

The DoD has issued a new class deviation, effective immediately, which implements the SBA’s requirement that women-owned small businesses be formally certified to receive WOSB set-aside contracts. The class deviation contains a “priority review” procedure to allow companies with pending WOSB or EDWOSB certification applications to be considered for award.

Exceeding Solicitation’s Page Limit Renders Offer Technically Unacceptable, Even if It’s the Cover Page

Posted on December 21, 2020 by SmallGovConContributor

In a recent decision, the GAO laid down a stark reminder of its unwavering demand that offers be meticulously compliant with the instructions of a solicitation. In the decision, GAO denied a protest challenging the agency’s evaluation of a proposal as technically unacceptable where certain required proposal information was in pages that exceeded the solicitation’s page limits. The agency’s decision to ignore that information was reasonable and consistent with the solicitation’s terms.

Event: SDVOSB Programs Webinar, Hosted by Govology

Posted on December 21, 2020 by Steven Koprince

The federal government spends more than $20 billion annually on contracts with service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. But the rules governing SDVOSB eligibility can be complex and confusing – starting with the fact that the government runs not one, but two SDVOSB programs.

On January 14, join me for a webinar, hosted by our friends at Govology, covering the ins-and-outs of Uncle Sam’s SDVOSB programs. In this session, I will demystify the key SDVOSB eligibility requirements in plain English and provide an update on some major pending changes to the SDVOSB programs. It’s easy to register: just follow this link. I hope to see you (virtually, anyway) on January 14!

SmallGovCon Week in Review: Dec. 14 – Dec. 18, 2020

Posted on December 18, 2020 by Shane McCall

Monday December 21 will be the shortest day of the year in United States. But guess what–that means we’ll be seeing more daylight starting Tuesday! While you are burning the midnight oil and preparing for the holidays, check out some of these recent federal contracting updates.

These include the federal government averting a shut down, details on a cyber attack involving multiple federal agencies, and a GAO report that agencies must enhance supply chain risk management.