The June 16 Supreme Court decision requiring the Veterans Affairs Department to expand set-asides for veteran-owned small businesses could affect broader procurement regulations across government, says the Small Business Administration’s John Shoraka, associate administrator of SBA’s Office of Government Contracting and Business Development. He recently told Government Executive at a contractors networking event that “the path forward is that we have to interpret how the decision impacts the Small Business Act.”
The court’s decision in Kingdomware Technologies Inc. v. the United States determined that the so-called “rule of two” requirement that the VA consider at least two bidding contractor firms (and apply a set-aside to the one that qualifies) must apply to supply orders as well as contracts.
“There was a perception that a [pre-existing GSA Schedule] order was not a contract, so the rule didn’t apply,” Shoraka told the audience. “But the Supreme Court says it is a contract, so now we know,” and the department must pick the veteran-owned small business assuming it offers a reasonable price.
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