DoD, GSA, and NASA to Issue Final Rule Conforming FAR to 2013 SBA Rule Regarding Multiple-Award Contracts and Small Businesses
DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a final rule, effective March 30, 2020, that will amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement regulatory changes made by the Small Business Administration (SBA). That SBA rule, made pursuant to section 1331 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, provides for partial set-asides and reserves,...
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SBA’s Office of Hearings And Appeals (OHA) Confirms: Affiliation Rules Are Not A Basis To Protest SDVOSB Status Notwithstanding New SBA Rules
On November 3, 2018, Alpha4 Solutions LLC (Protester) protested the Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) status of Veterans Medical Transcription Services, Inc. (VMTS) in connection with a U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Request for Quotations. CVE Protest of Alpha4 Solutions LLC d/b/a Alpha Transcription, SBA No. CVE-103-P (2019). Protester contended that VMTS is...
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Two Recent GAO Decisions Demonstrate the Importance of Knowing How an Agency Plans to Evaluate the Past Performance and Experience of the Contracting Team
GAO recently published two bid protest decisions that address the issue of when contractors may rely on the past performance or experience of a contractor’s teaming partners, and how agencies can restrict that reliance. These two decisions demonstrate the importance of thoroughly reviewing solicitations to see how an agency plans to evaluate past performance...
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Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit: Boards Have Jurisdiction to Hear Appeals Notwithstanding Nontechnical Defect in Certification
In DAI Global LLC v. Administrator of the US Agency for International Development, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit reversed a prior CBCA decision dismissing DAI’s appeals for lack of jurisdiction due to an allegedly defective CDA claim certification. In so doing, the Court upended a line of decisions holding that Boards...
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New Rule Issued by the Department of Defense to Restrict Use of the LPTA Selection Process
On September 26, 2019, the Department of Defense (DOD) issued a final rule amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to significantly restrict DOD's use of Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) source selection procedures. The new rule, which went into effect on October 1, 2019, should not come as a surprise to federal government...
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I’m a small business considering a bid protest. Should I file, and if so, where?
A glance at some relevant data may provide some initial orientation to the landscape. The congressionally mandated FY18 RAND Corporation study on bid protests of DoD procurements found that less than 0.3 % of contracts are actually protested. Of the protests that were filed, more than half of all bid protests were made by...
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