Indictment Issued In Government Contracts Surety Bonding Case

Posted on August 15, 2013 by Steven Koprince

Small government construction contractors often have difficulty obtaining required bonding–which sometimes causes them to turn to their subcontractors for bonding assistance.

But what if a subcontractor cannot (or will not) provide the necessary bonding assistance? According to a recent federal grand jury indictment, one California man took advantage of these situations by offering fraudulent bonds–at higher premiums–to government contractors. The man now faces the possibility of more than 30 years in prison.

Agency Misreads Proposal; Contractor Wins GAO Bid Protest

Posted on August 13, 2013 by Steven Koprince

“Everyone is entitled to his own opinion, but not his own facts,” said the late Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.

In a recently published bid protest decision, the GAO held that a procuring agency was not entitled to its own facts when it came to the contents of the protester’s proposal. Because the proposal contained the very items the agency claimed were missing, the GAO sustained the protest.

Position To Win: Policies, Protests, And The Pursuit Of Opportunities

Posted on August 12, 2013 by Steven Koprince

I am pleased to announce that I have joined with Guy Timberlake of the American Small Business Coalition and Larry Allen of Allen Federal Business Partners to produce a new Internet-based radio show called Position To Win: Policies, Protests and the Pursuit of Opportunities.

Every two weeks, Guy, Larry and I will offer our take on policy, legislative, and legal matters affecting small government contractors. In today’s segment, Guy discussed small business set-aside contracting dollars, Larry weighed in on the potential small business impacts of the pre-award protests of the GSA OASIS vehicle, and I talked about the recent bill to move SDVOSB verification from the VA to the SBA.

Guy and Larry are two of the most knowledgeable voices in the industry, and I’m happy to join them on Position To Win. I hope you’ll tune in.

Limitations on Subcontracting and GAO Bid Protests

Posted on August 9, 2013 by Steven Koprince

GAO bid protests regarding a competitor’s compliance with the applicable limitation on subcontracting can be difficult to win.

As the GAO held in a recent bid protest decision, unless the competitor’s proposal “on its face” should have led the procuring agency to recognize that the limitation on subcontracting would be violated, the agency is free to assume that the offeror intends to comply. Of course, as was the case in the recent decision, it doesn’t hurt the protested company to specifically state that it will comply with the limitation on subcontracting.

VA CVE: SDVOSBs Must Remove “Large” NAICS Codes From VetBiz Within 30 Days

Posted on August 2, 2013 by Steven Koprince

The VA CVE has instructed verified SDVOSBs to remove so-called “large NAICS codes” from their VetBiz Vendor Information Pages profiles within 30 days–or else.

According to a recent email from the VA CVE (which was kindly shared with me), SDVOSBs must remove any NAICS codes for which they do not qualify as a small business. Failing to remove these “large NAICS codes” may result in potentially harsh penalties, including debarment.

GSA Schedule: “Brand Name Only” Restriction Not Justified

Posted on August 1, 2013 by Steven Koprince

A GSA Schedule solicitation restricted to a particular brand item was improper because the procuring agency failed to properly justify the restriction, according to a recent GAO bid protest decision.

The GAO’s decision is an important reminder that “brand name only” restrictions are disfavored and that procuring agencies bear the burden of reasonably justifying such restrictions–even when they buy off the GSA Schedule.

Bill Introduced To Transfer SDVOSB Verification To SBA

Posted on July 31, 2013 by Steven Koprince

Today, Congressman Mike Coffman introduced the Improving Opportunities for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses Act of 2013.

The bill would standardize the requirements for SDVOSB eligibility, eliminating the current differences between the SBA’s and VA’s regulations. In addition, the bill would transfer responsibility for verifying SDVOSB status to the SBA (the VA would retain authority for determining whether an individual is a service-disabled veteran).

Hardy Stone’s website, VetLikeMe, has a more detailed summary of the bill. I will be closely tracking this legislation and will post updates if and when it moves forward.