Tag Archives: GAO reports

GAO: WOSB Self-Certification May Allow “Potentially Ineligible Businesses” To Get Contracts

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Woman-owned small business self-certifications (which the SBA still accepts more than 2 1/2 years after Congress eliminated it) may allow “potentially ineligible businesses” to win WOSB set-aside and sole source work, according to a fascinating new GAO report.

Among other things, the GAO report provides a comprehensive overview of the SBA’s progress addressing problems with the four major socioeconomic preference programs–8(a), SDVOSB, HUBZone and WOSB.  And to its credit, the SBA has fixed a number of previously-identified flaws.  But other problems remain, including the SBA’s now-longstanding failure to eliminate WOSB self-certification.

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27 Percent Of DoD Mentor-Protege Agreements Are Deficient, GAO Says

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The GAO estimates that 27 percent of DoD mentor-protege agreements are deficient.

In a comprehensive new report, the GAO says that many active DoD mentor-protege agreements are missing basic (and necessary) information, like the protege’s primary NAICS code.  Also missing, in some cases: the parties’ signatures.

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GAO Report Highlights Recent Trends In Government Contracting

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Earlier this month, the GAO  released a comprehensive report detailing the trends in government contracting over a five-year period (from fiscal year 2011 through 2015). The entire report is available here. If you have a few hours to spare, it’s worth a read; if not, this post will summarize a few of its most eye-catching nuggets.

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SmallGovCon Week In Review: March 13-17, 2017

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March Madness is here!  I hope your brackets are doing well.  So far, mine haven’t been “busted,” but Notre Dame looked mighty shaky in that opening-round win over Princeton.

While I get ready for tomorrow’s games with my Duke Blue Devils and Kansas Jayhawks, I’m keeping an eye on the latest and greatest (or not so great) in government contracting. In this week’s SmallGovCon Week In Review, the GAO releases a major report on the state of government contracting, an IT contractor will pay $45 million to resolve claims of overcharging the government, the SBA proposes to terminate a nonmanufacturer rule class waiver, and more.

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2017 NDAA Requires Report on Indefinite Delivery Contracts

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Congress is taking a hard look at how to promote increased competition in federal contracting.

Among the provisions in the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act is a requirement for the GAO to prepare a report on how the DoD enters into and uses indefinite delivery contracts–and recommendations for changes to promote competition with respect to indefinite delivery contracts.

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Large DoD 8(a) Sole Source Contracts Have Dropped By 86.5%

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The number of 8(a) sole source contracts over $20 million awarded by the DoD has been “steadily declining since 2011,” when a new requirement was adopted requiring agencies to prepare written justifications of such awards.

According to a recent GAO report, such awards have dropped more than 86% compared to the period before the justification requirement took effect.  The report states that much of the work that was previously awarded on a sole source basis has now been competed.

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Army Improperly Extended Contracts, GAO Says

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The Army improperly used FAR 52.217-8 (Option to Extend Services) to extend several contracts for periods much longer than the six-month maximum allowed by the clause.

This conclusion comes from a recent GAO study, in which the GAO determined that the Army improperly applied FAR 52.217-8 in three out of five contracts studied by the GAO.  And although the GAO’s report was narrowly focused on a handful of Army contracts, it leads me to wonder whether FAR 52.217-8 is being improperly used on a much broader scale.

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