Tag Archives: SBA size appeals

Govology Webinar Announcement! Small Business Size Standards and Affiliation: Lessons for Every Federal Contractor, May 15, 2025, 1:00pm EDT

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For small business set-aside contracts, including socioeconomic set-asides like the 8(a) program, a federal contractor must meet the SBA’s size standards. These size standards vary by industry and solicitation and are based on either average annual receipts or the number of employees. But size alone doesn’t tell the whole story. Many small businesses are surprised to learn that they could be deemed affiliated with other entities based on factors such as ownership, management, family relationships, or subcontracting. If the SBA finds companies affiliated, it will combine the receipts or employees of the various companies, which can disqualify a company from small business programs.

In this training, you will learn:

  • How the SBA determines business size using receipts or employee counts
  • When and how size standards apply in federal contracting
  • Common size determination pitfalls small businesses face
  • The SBA’s concept of affiliation and why it matters (and doesn’t always match up with common sense)
  • The various SBA rules governing affiliation, and what does not trigger affiliation
  • How sharing resources, including subcontracts, in certain contexts could trigger affiliation
  • Examples of affiliation inspired by actual situations
  • Tips for avoiding unintended affiliation and staying compliant
  • What happens if you’re found “other than small”—and how to respond

Whether you’re new to federal contracting or looking to grow your small business through set-aside opportunities or partnering with small businesses, this session will give you the tools to know about small business size standards, affiliation, and positioning your company to play by these rules. 

Hope you can join us! Register here.

Spell it Out for Me: OHA Finds Joint Venture Agreement Compliant When Reviewed with Operating Agreement

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When an SBA approved mentor and protégé create a joint venture to pursue contracts set-aside for small businesses, SBA requires the mentor-protégé joint venture agreement to contain the requirements found in 13 C.F.R. § 125.8(b)(2). But how closely does the joint venture agreement have to match the language of these required provisions in order to be found complaint?

In DecisionPoint-Agile Defense JV, LLC, OHA considered whether the language in a joint venture’s operating agreement (OA) can be considered alongside the joint venture agreement (JVA) when determining if a JVA meets all the regulatory requirements.

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Confusion About the Nonmanufacturer Rule: When Does it Apply?

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One of the rules we get asked about the most as government contracts attorneys is what’s known as the nonmanufacturer rule, 13 C.F.R. § 121.406 (So much so that we felt it wise to go over the rule in one of our “Back to Basics” posts to help clear some things up). It’s pretty understandable why: It has numerous provisions, exceptions, and requirements that can make it pretty difficult to follow. It also shows up in two different regulations: 13 C.F.R. § 121.406 as mentioned above, as well as FAR 19.505. Unfortunately, this often leads to contractors getting tripped up by the rule, either not realizing it applies where it does or, as we’ll explore here, thinking it applies where it doesn’t. Recently, SBA addressed a size protest that asserted the awardee didn’t meet the requirements of the nonmanufacturer rule, and noted to the unfortunate protestor that the rule didn’t apply for the procurement anyways.

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Shopping for a New Small Business: How Acquisitions Affect Size Status for Multiple-Award Contracts

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As federal contracts attorneys, we often get questions about what happens in the event of an acquisition of a small business. Reporting requirements, whether before or after an acquisition, tend to vary from one type of small business socioeconomic program to another. And there are other considerations such as whether the small business in question is the one being acquired or the one acquiring another small business and the timing with regard to proposal submission, contract performance, task orders,  and other variables. Taking those together, and it can be, well, confusing, to say the least. In the case of Forward Slope, Inc., SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) took a look at some of these variables to determine how an acquisition can affect the size of a concern awarded a multiple award contract.

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Free Webinar Event: Mastering Size Calculations for SBA Size Determinations hosted by LeftBrain, December 12, 2023, 1:00pm EST

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If your small business status hangs in the balance, you can’t afford mistakes in your next SBA size determination. Join us for an in-depth look at key accounting strategies and lessons from recent SBA size appeal decisions involving affiliation issues, joint ventures, and receipts calculation. Learn how to properly account for inter-affiliate transactions, raise strong arguments, and avoid missteps that could lead to an adverse size determination. Register now to demystify SBA rules and gain the knowledge needed to respond to size protests and succeed in appeals.

If you are interested, please register here.

Technically Unacceptable Offeror Cannot Protest Awardee’s Size, Says OHA

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In a recent size determination appeal, OHA confirmed that an offeror found technically unacceptable does not have standing to protest an awardee’s size under SBA’s regulations. As such, OHA denied the appeal and affirmed the Area Office’s size determination dismissing the size protest on such grounds.

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The Dog Ate my Addendum: Don’t Neglect your Joint Venture Addendum, says OHA

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Spring is upon us, and for many of us, it evokes thoughts of friendly weather, and new life. In the world of federal contracting, new life is often seen through the forming of new joint ventures. As most contractors and readers of this blog know, there are many requirements placed on a joint venture that intends to bid on set-asides, and most deal with the content of a joint venture agreement between the joint venture members. In a recent case, the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) reviewed a joint venture agreement and addendums. Through its decision, OHA sent a clear warning to the industry to complete and sign both the joint venture agreement and any addendums, and make sure to have all items completed and signed prior to proposal submission deadlines, at the latest, the date of final proposal revisions.

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