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In this edition of Inside the Reporter's Notebook, Executive Editor Jason Miller shares news and buzz about the IT and acquisition communities. GSA and SBA continue their ongoing quarrel over the Office Supplies 3 contract, and April marks the three-year anniversary of NSTIC's release.
All signs are pointing to the fact that despite the government spending less overall on acquisition last year, agencies met the statutory goal of awarding at least 23 percent of all prime contracts to small businesses. Experts say contract consolidation and bundling will negatively impact small firms in the coming years.
Gerald Moore, Michigan district director for the Small Business Administration, will talk about the business climate in the city of Detroit and what the SBA is doing to help companies located there. April 18, 2014
The Small Business Administration is working with agencies across government to boost small business contracting numbers. One of the ways they're doing it is the 8a program. On Industry Chatter, Darryl Hairston, associate administrator for the 8(a) Business Development program at SBA and Lourdes Martin-Rosa, chief executive officer of GovBiz Solutions, discuss where the program is today and where it's going.
SBA said GSA's impact analysis failed on two main accounts. SBA said it disagreed on GSA's claim that OS3 is a follow-on contract to OS2 and therefore is not a consolidation of contract requirements subject to the provisions of the Small Business Act. SBA also said GSA's argument that it is "contrary to law" to provide an economic analysis on the consequences of small business on a consolidated contract is wrong.
Small businesses don't have to stay small to qualify for small business work, according to a decision from the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals. The decision sets a precedent for size rules for government contractors. Lee Dougherty, a partner at Fluet, Huber and Hoang, was a guest on In Depth with Francis Rose.
House Oversight and Government Reform Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-Calif.) says agency inspectors general are increasingly facing obstacles in their efforts to uncover waste and misconduct. The top watchdogs at both the Justice Department and the Peace Corps told lawmakers they've faced resistance from their agencies at times in turning over records in recent years. Lawmakers also expressed concern about the impact of across-the-board budget cuts on the operations agency IG operations.
SBA, OPM have new CIOs as the carousel in government IT spins once again.
The Veterans Affairs Department's decision comes as lawmakers are putting this acquisition concept under more scrutiny. House Veterans Affairs and Small Business Committee lawmakers question whether agencies are getting the best prices and whether they are sacrificing competition. GAO, other experts say OFPP needs to develop a governmentwide policy for reverse auctions.
In an interim final rule issued last week in the Federal Register, VA announced it would not cede the control of deciding on socio-economic status protests to the Small Business Administration. VA moved the decision authority to the director of the Center for Veterans Enterprise instead of the director of the Office of Small and Disadvantage Business Utilization (OSDBU).
The Small Business Administration names agency official Jeanne Hulit as its acting head. Current SBA Administrator Karen Mills will leave her position at the end of August.
House Small Business and Veterans Affairs committee members plan to introduce a bill Thursday to make the service-disabled veteran-owned small business program less cumbersome, confusing and more transparent.
The Small Business Administration issued a final rule to implement the Small Business Jobs Act. It requires prime contractors to report when they do not pay small business contractors on time. Contracting officers also must oversee small business subcontractor performance more closely.
Chase Garwood, the SBA acting CIO, said the agency is working with DHS and Justice to improve the security of its internal and external customer-facing systems. July 4, 2013