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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
While agencies missed their overall small business goal in 2012, they did meet the governmentwide goals for small disadvantaged businesses and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses. House Small Business Committee Chairman Sam Graves (R-Mo.) said the results are "unacceptable."
The SBA updated regulations governing how small businesses represent their size and status in order to guard against businesses falsely representing themselves as "small" to garner government contracts.
The Internal Revenue Service said Wednesday it is seeking to cut its business relationship with a firm that may have had inside access to the agency's procurement decisions. Lawmakers also questioned agency decisions to award the company special status as veteran-owned and serving economically-disadvantaged areas.
The Justice Department successfully prosecuted executives in companies for obtaining contracts under SBA's 8(a) program worth more than $153 million. The court found two of the executives guilty on Friday and six others pleaded guilty.
Nick Nayak, Kevin Boshears, and Peter Ko from the Department of Homeland Security will discuss how strategic sourcing has helped the agency achieve its small business goals. May 14, 2013
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. May 1, 2013
Karen Mills, the head of the Small Business Administration, is resigning. Mills says she will stay on until a successor is confirmed.