SBA’s recently proposed rule seeks to officially broaden the reach of its “Rule of Two”–a government contracting requirement fundamental to supporting our nation’s small business infrastructure, policies, and goals. I emphasize “officially” because, even though this is technically a proposed change to SBA’s rules, it is really more of a “regulatory implementation” of judicial law than anything (don’t worry, we will go into more detail on this point later). Specially, SBA’s proposed rule would require the Rule of Two’s application to task orders and delivery orders under most standard multiple award contracts (MAC). This Part I blog will briefly explain what the Rule of Two is and detail SBA’s proposed update to it. But keep your eyes out for the soon-to-follow Part II blog on this topic. There, we will dig in deeper to the relevant history of (including the court case linked above), the sources and policies behind, and the potential implications for SBA’s proposed Rule of Two update.
Continue readingTag Archives: delivery orders
GAO: Small Business Rule of Two Doesn’t Require Set-Aside for Task Order
Generally, the small business Rule of Two requires an agency to set aside contracts for small business, assuming that there are at least two small businesses with competitive prices who will bid on the contract. But does the small business Rule of Two apply to orders under a multiple award contract? In a recent decision, GAO affirmed the answer is no–application of the small business Rule of Two for orders under a multiple-award contract is discretionary.
Continue readingCOFC: No Jurisdiction Over Bundling of Contracts into Task Order
When considering where to file a bid protest, you have options at the agency level, Government Accountability Office, and Court of Federal Claims. But not all options are available for protests of task and delivery order awards. The Court of Federal Claims recently reminded a protester that it lacks jurisdiction over task and delivery orders, even where an agency is proposing to bundle multiple separate contracts into one task order.
Continue readingSBA Proposes to Change When Companies Need to Recertify Size and Status for Orders
SBA recently proposed changes to a number of its small business rules, as we’ve written about in earlier posts. The same proposed rule includes a small but significant change to when a business has to recertify its size and status for orders under multiple award contracts.
Based on the number of times we’ve written about size and status protests for orders under multiple award contracts (see the related content at the bottom of this post for a sampling), this is an area in need of clarity.
Continue readingCost/Price Evaluation To Be Discretionary For Some DoD IDIQs
Under the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, the DoD has the discretion to forego a price or cost evaluation in connection with the award of certain multiple-award contracts.
The 2017 NDAA includes some important changes that are sure to impact federal procurements. Section 825 of the NDAA, which allows DoD contracting officers to forego price or cost evaluations in certain circumstances, is one of these changes.
GAO’s Jurisdiction Over Most Civilian Task Order Protests Has Expired
The GAO’s jurisdiction to hear most protests in connection with task and delivery order awards under civilian multiple award IDIQs has expired.
In a recent bid protest decision, the GAO confirmed that it no longer has jurisdiction to hear protests in connection with civilian task and delivery order awards valued over $10 million because the underlying statutory authority expired on September 30, 2016.
GAO: Agency’s Order Exceeded BPA Scope
An agency’s attempt to order under a Federal Supply Schedule blanket purchase agreement was improper because the order exceeded the scope of the underlying BPA.
In a recent bid protest decision, GAO held that the agency had erred by attempting to issue a sole-source delivery order for cloud-based email service when the underlying BPA did not envision cloud services.