Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

Meeting the definition of a small business concern — A checklist

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This is a  Checklist for existing or prospective federal government contractors to determine whether they can meet the definition of a small business concern (SBC) under the Small Business Act (SBA).

This Checklist includes the definitional thresholds and size standards for SBCs.

This Checklist can also be used to determine if an SBC can qualify under a specific small business category, including:

  • the 8(a) Business Development Program,
  • a Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB),
  • a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB),
  • a Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB),
  • an Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Business (EDWOSB), and
  • a Historically Underutilized Business Zone (HUBZone) SBC.

See the Checklist and related details at: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/meeting-the-definition-of-a-small-42284/ 

U.S. Attorney for Southern District of GA announces results of recent procurement fraud prosecutions

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As part of a new emphasis on procurement fraud enforcement within the Southern District of Georgia, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia has announced the results of a series of recent procurement fraud prosecutions.

Over the past several months, the strike force’s efforts resulted in five guilty pleas and twelve civil settlements, including the following publically available actions:

  1. United States of America v. Dwayne Fulton (1:17-CR-35)
  2. United States of America v. Calvin Lawyer (1:17-CR-35)
  3. United States of America v. Anthony Roper (1:17-CR-35)
  4. United States of America v. Audra Roper (1:17-CR-35)
  5. United States ex rel. Major Contracting Services, Inc. v. Military Training Solutions, LLC and ADCO Holdings, Inc., et al. (4:16-cv-115)
  6. United States of America v. Robert Obradovich (4:18-CR-47)

These prosecutions and civil settlements with the named individuals and entities, as well as others, stemmed from a wide variety of fraudulent conduct, including bribery of public officials, illegal kickbacks, illegal arrangements between large contracting companies and certified small or 8(a) businesses acting as “front” companies, and billing for services not rendered.  Each of the individuals who has pled guilty awaits sentencing.  The total financial recovery for the United States thus far has exceeded $7.4 million.  Several of these investigations remain ongoing.

“The Southern District of Georgia is the proud home of several major military installations that serve a vital role both in our national defense and the district’s local economy,” said United States Attorney Bobby L. Christine.  “Those who do business with these installations should be on notice – ripping off the United States will not be tolerated! This office will bring to bear the full weight of our resources to hold fraudsters accountable.”

The joint strike force that led to these convictions and settlements involved agents, investigators, and auditors from the Department of Justice, Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Army Criminal Investigation Command (Major Procurement Fraud Unit), Naval Criminal Investigative Service, the Small Business Administration Office of Inspector General.  Significant and critical assistance was also provided by civilian and military personnel from the Army, Navy, and Air Force stationed at affected military installations.

“The American public expects the Department of Defense (DoD) to spend limited taxpayer funds efficiently and economically.  Bribery and other corrupt behavior by public officials and defense contractors diverts and wastes precious dollars intended to provide critical products and services for our Warfighters.  These results demonstrate the effectiveness of investigative efforts by the Defense Criminal Investigative Service to protect the integrity of all DoD programs,” said Special Agent in Charge John F. Khin, Southeast Field Office.

“These settlements stand as proof of the tenacity of our special agents,” said Frank Robey, director of the U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command’s Major Procurement Fraud Unit. “It is important for those who conspired to profit from illegal payments take responsibility for their actions. The settlements hold the defendants accountable and send a message to others that these violations will be taken seriously.”

“Our partnership with the joint procurement fraud strike force ensures fair and open competition for U.S. Government contracts which support the training and readiness of Marine Corps personnel,” said H. Andrew Goodridge, Special Agent in Charge, NCIS Carolinas Field Office.

“SBA OIG will aggressively investigate allegations of fraud involving SBA’s preferential contracting programs, to include false statements made to gain access to contracting opportunities set aside for small businesses,” said SBA OIG Eastern Region Special Agent-in-Charge Kevin Kupperbusch.  “SBA’s preferential contracting programs are intended to promote the economy and grow and develop small businesses across the nation.  I want to thank the U.S Attorney’s Office and our law enforcement partners for their dedication and hard work throughout these investigations.”

SBA’s General Counsel, Christopher Pilkerton said, “These successful prosecutions demonstrate the tremendous results achieved through the combined efforts of federal agencies to uncover and forcefully respond to procurement fraud.  SBA is strongly committed to identifying and aggressively pursuing instances of fraud perpetrated by those participating in SBA’s procurement programs.”

The United States was represented by Assistant United States Attorneys Brian T. Rafferty, Shannon H. Statkus, J. Thomas Clarkson, Matthew A. Josephson, and Jonathan A. Porter.  Any claims resolved by the civil settlement agreements are allegations only and there has been no determination of liability.

Each of the civil settlements resolved potential liability under the False Claims Act.  Under the False Claims Act, whistleblowers can be entitled to a portion of the amount recovered by the United States.  The United States Attorney’s Office also reminds contractors that businesses and individuals that self-disclose potential violations can be eligible for significantly reduced penalties.

If you have any information regarding potential procurement fraud, please contact Assistant United States Attorney J. Thomas Clarkson at (912) 201-2601.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdga/pr/southern-district-georgia-announces-results-recent-criminal-and-civil-procurement-fraud

Federal contracting conference to be held in Orlando May 30-31

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The Florida 8(a) Alliance is hosting its annual federal contracting conference on May 30 and 31, 2018 in Orlando, Florida.

Additional information is available on this flyer: Florida 8(a) Alliance’s 7th Annual Federal Contracting Conference Flyer

Registration details may be found on the Alliance’s website at: http://www.florida8a.org/2018-conference.html.

The labor shortage: How military veterans can help fill the gap

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Approximately 250,000 people leave military service each year and begin the often bumpy process of re-entering civilian life, a large part of which is finding a suitable career. As construction continues to grapple with a chronic workforce shortage, the numbers of new veterans alone represent enormous potential for the construction industry.

Transitioning military members and veterans are a natural fit for construction, which demands problem-solving, loyalty and onsite decision making — all of which are skills the military instills in its servicemembers. Veteran-specific organizations and construction companies alike recognize the opportunity for this demographic in the industry.

Military members undergo training like few other people do. Following rules and procedures, working as a team and placing absolute trust in colleagues can mean the difference between life and death.

Small business fraud leads to large monetary liability in recent cases

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Two Washington, D.C. area government contractors have agreed to pay the government for their respective roles in defrauding the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) in schemes to fraudulently obtain government contracts set aside for small businesses.  These two cases highlight the importance of small business compliance and the submission of accurate and complete certifications.

the first company had to pay $16 million for violating the False Claims Act (FCA).

In the second instance, company owners paid $1.25 million — and got prison time — for 8(a) set-aside contract fraud.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/small-business-fraud-leads-to-large-36348/

 

Moving to the cloud for DoD becoming a complex acquisition affair

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The Defense Department’s more aggressive move to the cloud will not be without some ups and downs.

Feb. 7th was the perfect example of those trials and tribulations. Within a matter of hours, DoD’s Defense Innovation Unit — Experimental (DIUx), expanded a third pilot into a full-fledged effort to make it easier for services and agencies to obtain cloud computing services.

DIUx awarded a contract that could be worth up to $950 million to REAN Cloud. The five-year deal will let DoD buy cloud services from REAN through a new streamlined process. Under the contract, REAN will provide access to Amazon Web Services using an automatic pricing and procurement model.

While at the same time, the Pentagon learned its $6.7 million contract for support services for its Cloud Executive Steering Group came under protest at the Government Accountability Office.  DoD launched the steering group in September and then reshuffled its members in January.

Keep reading this article at: https://federalnewsradio.com/defense/2018/02/moving-to-the-cloud-for-dod-becoming-a-complex-acquisition-affair/

November 2017 bid protest roundup

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This roundup of interesting bid protest decisions issued in November 2017 highlights two decisions, both at the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”).

The first reminds contractors that competitors can work together when failing to do so will result in bad procurement precedence that will cause them future competitive harm.

The second reminds contractors that it may be ill advised to rely on industry day materials, especially if marked that they are subject to change.  This decision also shows that, between an original contract and a bridge contract, the original contract is more important in the Small Business Administration’s analysis of whether the award of an 8(a) contract will harm a small business.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=654514

SBA considering changes in 8(a) and HUBZone programs

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The SBA is considering making changes to improve its socioeconomic programs–particularly the 8(a) and HUBZone Programs.

The author of this article is Steve Koprince.  He is an attorney specializing in government contracting issues and is the author of a book entitled “The Small-Business Guide to Government Contracts.”

In a talk on Aug. 22nd at the 2017 Navy Gold Coast Procurement Conference, Robb Wong, the SBA’s recently-appointed Associate Administrator, Office of Government Contracting and Business Development, discussed some of the big changes the SBA is considering.  And to my ears, at least, a lot of what Mr. Wong said makes good sense.

Mr. Wong made clear that few decisions have been made at this point; most of the potential changes are only in the discussion phase for now.  That said, here are some of the changes the SBA is considering – and why.

First, SBA is considering how to better focus on what the VA would call “procurement readiness.”  Mr. Wong pointed out that many small businesses think that getting a socioeconomic certification is the hard part, and that the contracts come easily once a company is certified.

Of course, that’s not the case.  Many certified companies aren’t truly ready to do business with the government.  That, in turn, can hurt the reputations of the socioeconomic certifications themselves.  It may be unfair, but some procuring officials can become gun shy about using a socioeconomic class after a bad experience with an unready company.

Keep reading this article at: http://smallgovcon.com/events/sba-considering-8a-hubzone-changes/

Defense contractor to pay $16 million to settle false claims allegations over small business contracts

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Virginia-based contractor ADS Inc. and its subsidiaries have agreed to pay $16 million to settle allegations that they violated the False Claims Act by knowingly conspiring with and causing purported small businesses to submit false claims for payment in connection with fraudulently obtained small business contracts, the Department of Justice announced last week.

The settlement also resolves allegations that ADS engaged in improper bid rigging relating to certain of the fraudulently obtained contracts. The settlement with ADS ranks as one of the largest recoveries involving alleged fraud in connection with small business contracting eligibility.

In order to qualify as a small business, companies must meet defined eligibility criteria, including requirements concerning size, ownership, and operational control.  The settlement with ADS resolves allegations that ADS, together with several purported small businesses that it controlled, fraudulently induced the government to award certain small business set-aside contracts by misrepresenting eligibility requirements. The purported small businesses affiliated with ADS include Mythics Inc., London Bridge Trading Co. Ltd., as well as MJL Enterprises LLC, which falsely claimed to be an eligible service-disabled veteran-owned company, and SEK Solutions LLC and Karda Systems LLC, both of which falsely claimed to qualify as socially or economically disadvantaged businesses under the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program. ADS and its affiliates allegedly concealed the companies’ affiliations with ADS and knowingly made misrepresentations concerning the size of the businesses and their eligibility as service-disabled or 8(a) qualified businesses. Finally, the settlement resolves allegations that ADS engaged in illegal bid rigging schemes that inflated or distorted prices charged to the government under certain contracts.

The settlement with ADS resolves a lawsuit filed under the whistleblower provision of the False Claims Act, which permits private parties to file suit on behalf of the United States for false claims and share in a portion of the government’s recovery. The civil lawsuit was filed in federal district court in the District of Columbia by Ameliorate Partners LLP. As part of today’s resolution, the whistleblower will receive approximately $2.9 million.

The settlement is the result of a coordinated effort among the Civil Division’s Commercial Litigation Branch, the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices for the District of Columbia and the Eastern District of Virginia, the Small Business Administration’s Office of Inspector General, and the General Services Administration’s Office of Inspector General.  The claims resolved by the settlement are allegations only, and there has been no determination of liability.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/opa/pr/defense-contractor-ads-inc-agrees-pay-16-million-settle-false-claims-act-allegations

Auditors criticize SBA’s management of small business programs

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In a report released on June 30, 2017, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) reaffirmed “long-standing management challenges” within the Small Business Administration’s operation of several small business contracting activities “resulting in inefficient program operations.”

The programs impacted include small businesses in the socioeconomic categories of small disadvantaged businesses (SDB), women-owned small businesses (WOSB), service disabled veteran-owned small businesses (SDVOSB), and historically underutilized business zone (HUBZone) small businesses.

For three of the small business programs, GAO specifically found:

HUBZone Program
  • There is no specific guidance or criteria for making requests for supporting documentation in connection with applications made as a part of the HUBZone certification process.
  • Because of shortcomings in the recertification process, there is not reasonable assurance that only qualified firms are allowed to continue in the HUBZone program.
  • Despite some automation put in place by the SBA, there is a backlog of firms in the recertification pipeline, required within a three-year time frame.
8(a) Program
  • There is an open issue involving the need to “clearly document [SBA’s] justification for approving or denying applicants into the 8(a) program, particularly when those decisions differed from lower-level recommendations.”  The SBA’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) intends to continue to flag this issue “until this practice is documented in an SOP or desk guide for the program.”
  • The OIG reports that it has received documentation on thirty 8(a)-certified firms that it earlier found did not meet all of the eligibility requirements, and plans to issue an analysis of that documentation in a forthcoming report.
WOSB Program
  • SBA validated an earlier OIG report by agreeing that 40 percent of the WOSB concerns that the OIG questioned were not, in fact, eligible to receive contracts under the WOSB program at the time of award.
  • While the FY15 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) eliminated SBA’s self-certification process for the WOSB program, the SBA has not yet implemented a process to eliminate self-certification.
  • “As a result of inadequate monitoring and controls, such as not implementing a full certification program, potentially ineligible businesses may continue to incorrectly certify themselves as WOSBs, increasing the risk that they may receive contracts for which they are not eligible.”
  • Until a new certification program required by the FY15 NDAA is implemented, “oversight of third-party certifiers and enhancing examinations of WOSB firms are needed to help ensure that only eligible businesses participate in the WOSB program.”

GAO’s complete report can be seen at: http://www.gao.gov/assets/690/685569.pdf.

Here is a list of earlier GAO audits of SBA’s small business programs, linked to the full reports:

 

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