The House Small Business Committee passed six bills on Wednesday (3/7/2012) through a voice vote to promote small business contracting.
The 2012 Government Efficiency through Small Business Contracting Act imposes a quota that agencies must use small businesses for 25 percent of their contracting work.
It also aims to expand the varieties of contracts by using the Small Business Administration’s formula in comparing agency performance against small business goals and endorses increased liability for senior agency officials by withholding bonuses.
The 2012 Small Business Advocate Act gives the Offices of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization more authority.
The act also requires officers within the offices to review and revise agency resolutions and insource work performed by a small business.
The 2012 Subcontracting Transparency and Reliability Act modifies subcontracting provisions that guarantee small businesses will be designated a majority of the work and receive succeeding income.
Restrictions in subcontracting will not be measured by the amount given to the small business or the cost of the whole project.
Decisions must also be made public to give small businesses the chance to challenge resolutions in court.
The 2012 Small Business Opportunity Act encourages small business advocates within federal government to participate in federal procurement and acquisition planning proposal request announcements.
The 2012 Small Business Procurement Act extends an agency’s small business contracting goals to commission orders against multiple contract awards, including those with the General Services Administration’s Federal Supply Schedule Program.
Finally, the 2012 Early Stage Small Business Contracting Act launches an independent project to stimulate contract awards given to early-stage small businesses.
Early-stage small businesses have a maximum of 15 employees and report annual revenue of less than $1 million.
In February the Small Business Administration issued a ruling outlining revenue guidelines for small business consideration.
The ruling increased 37 small businesses standards for 34 industries and three sub-industries.
— by Gino Troiani, published ExecutiveGov on Mar. 8, 2012 at http://www.executivegov.com/2012/03/house-passes-6-bills-to-promote-small-business-contracting-2/.
