Steven Koprince, Govology Legal Analyst and retired founder of Koprince McCall Pottroff (and all around cool dude) will be presenting this webinar providing a big-picture overview of small business certifications in the government marketplace. In this webinar, you will learn about various federal small business certification programs, including Small Business Self Certification, Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB) & 8(a), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB), Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone), Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB), and Economically Disadvantaged Woman-Owned Small Business (EDWOSB). Steve will also touch on state and local certification programs and provide information on additional training and resources you can use to develop a deeper understanding and get help with any federal, state, and small business certification program. If interested in this informative webinar, please register here.
Tag Archives: 8(a) program
Back to Basics: Status Protests
In the world of Federal Government Contracting, it often feels like there are 20 different ways that your business or your business’s awards can be protested. In addition to size protests and bid protests (at both GAO and the COFC), there is also what is commonly referred to as a “status protest.” A status protest, while certainly less common than size protests and bid protests, still presents its own unique factors, procedures, and corresponding risks that contractors should be aware of. In this next installment of our Back to Basics series, we will walk you through a status protest and what impact a status protest may have on a federal contractor’s business.
Continue readingSize Standards Applicable to SBA’s Socioeconomic Programs
If you are an avid SmallGovCon reader and a small business government contractor, you are probably no stranger to at least the basics of SBA’s size standards and its size and affiliation regulations (if not, check out some of our other blogs on the subject and keep an eye out for our upcoming new, second edition of the “SBA Small Business Size and Affiliation Rules” handbook). Additionally, most of our readers and most small business government contractors seem to understand at least the basics of SBA’s contract-based size requirements (i.e. that a small business–regardless of socioeconomic designation(s)–must be small under the size standard assigned to any set-aside contract it wants to bid). But did you know, if you are pursuing or participating in one of SBA’s other small business socioeconomic programs (8(a) Program, HUBZone, WOSB, SDVOSB, etc.), there may actually be some additional size requirements you must meet in order to be generally eligible for such small business socioeconomic statuses?
Continue readingSBA Final Rule Relaxes Change of 8(a) Program Ownership, Allows Limited Populated Joint Ventures
SBA has issued a final rule updating some of its rules relating to the 8(a) Program. The final rule will have an impact on some aspects of ownership and control requirements for the 8(a) Program, including providing some flexibility for change of ownership and making some 8(a) set-aside processes a little cleaner. The rule would also allow for populated joint ventures between similarly situated joint venture members.
We wrote about the proposed rule last year. Below are some of the key takeaways from the final rule and any changes from the proposed rule.
Continue reading8(a) Program and EDWOSB: Are they Economically Disadvantaged Twins or Siblings?
Two of the Small Business Administration’s programs require the applicant to demonstrate that they are economically disadvantaged: the 8(a) Business Development Program (8(a) Program) and the Economically Disadvantaged Woman-Owned Small Business Program (EDWOSB). The 8(a) Program requires applicants to be owned and controlled by both socially and economically disadvantaged individuals per 13 C.F.R. § 124.101. Applicants of the EDWOSB program must be owned and controlled by one or more economically disadvantaged women per 13 C.F.R. § 127.200(a)(2). But what exactly does it mean to be “economically disadvantaged,” and do both programs have the same requirements? Below I discuss the economically disadvantaged requirement contained in both programs. Read on to find out whether they are the same, and more.
Continue readingPay it Forward, or Pay the Price, Says SBA in Proposed Rules for 8(a) Tribal Entities
In a recent notice for Tribal consultation and request for comments, as well as a published proposed rule, the SBA seems to be signaling an increase in oversight of Native or Tribally-owned entities who are 8(a) Participants. SBA has an apparent goal of enforcing more stringent repercussions for not fully adhering to some stipulations that exclusively pertain to Native or Tribally-Owned participants in the 8(a) Business Development Program. While not final yet, the SBA has placed these potential consequences, the reasoning behind them, and the proposed rule out in the public for discussion. As these actions may present some rather drastic changes for some 8(a) Participants, I have done a quick breakdown of them here.
Continue readingSBA Proposed Rule Relaxes Change of 8(a) Program Ownership, Allows Limited Populated Joint Ventures
The SBA has issued new proposed rules relating to the 8(a) Program. The rules clarify some aspects of ownership and control requirements for the 8(a) Program, including making change of ownership a little easier and cleaning up some 8(a) set-aside processes. The rule would also allow for populated joint ventures between similarly situated joint venture members.
Continue reading