When a small government contractor gets its hand caught in the “affiliation” cookie jar, the natural reaction is to scramble to fix the problem, even if it means contradicting the contractor’s own proposal. But don’t expect post hoc efforts at fixing a problem with the SBA affiliation rules to pan out. The SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals has held that where a contractor’s after-the-fact statements regarding affiliation contradict its proposal, the language of the proposal governs.
Tag Archives: ostensible subcontractor rule
SBA OHA: Ostensible Subcontractor Rule Shouldn’t “Close the Door” to New Businesses
A small business’s relative inexperience should not be the primary basis for a determination that the small business is affiliated with its subcontractor under the “ostensible subcontractor” rule, according to the SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals. SBA OHA’s decision in Size Appeal of Fischer Business Solutions, LLC, SBA No. SIZ-5075 (2009), held that the SBA’s Area Office improperly relied upon a small business’s lack of experience in a particular field to find it affiliated with its subcontractor.