Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

Reducing the costs of procurement regulation – A step in the right direction

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The Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) is around 180,000 pages and is growing at about 2,000 pages a year.

In 2008, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Small Business Administration estimated the regulatory compliance costs to be approximately $1.752 trillion.

These figures were cited in 2015 testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee by the Honorable Jacque S. Gansler, Ph.D., currently professor emeritus at the University of Maryland’s School of Public Policy. He cited these figures in making the case for reducing regulations, policies, and procedures to reduce barriers to entry to the federal market and to increase the Defense  Department’s access to commercial innovation, which is needed desperately to ensure technological superiority on the battlefield.

That is why the Jan. 30, 2017 executive order Reducing Regulation and Controlling Regulatory Costs, is a step in the right direction in reducing regulatory burdens.  The EO provides, in part, that for fiscal year 2017, the heads of agencies are directed that the total incremental cost of all new regulations to be finalized this year, including repealed regulations, shall be no greater than zero.  The EO further provides that any new incremental costs associated with the new regulations shall be offset by the elimination of existing costs of at least two prior regulations.

Keep reading this article at: http://federalnewsradio.com/commentary/2017/02/reducing-the-costs-of-procurement-regulation-a-step-in-the-right-direction/

U.S. pushes cybersecurity acquisition tools as contracts flow

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Vendors of cybersecurity offerings are finding that the U.S. government is serious about improving the protection of federal IT assets.  A steady stream of data protection contracts has been flowing to providers, including some notable high-value transactions during the last half of 2016.

One example is a Department of Homeland Security contract, with a potential value of $395 million, for various cybersecurity protection services designed to prevent, detect, contain and eradicate cyberthreats.  While DHS went through the process of selecting a vendor last year, a final award is pending due to a legal challenge. Still, the magnitude of the DHS project indicates the significant level of potential federal investments in cybersecurity.

Federal contracting is never easy, of course, and the providers who have received cybersecurity contracts have had to meet all the requirements of doing business with the government. While those requirements remain in force, federal agencies, especially the General Services Administration (GSA), are trying to improve the processing of cyberprotection acquisitions through expansions or enhancements to various federal procurement vehicles.

GSA logoGSA’s recently selected Adobe as a provider of data protection capabilities for federal agencies. The administration last month revealed it had engaged Adobe for a “new, government-wide enterprise software acquisition agreement for best-in-class, data-centric security and electronic signature solutions.”

The agreement will help agencies “comply with current information security and electronic government policy recommendations and requirements,” including the Cybersecurity National Action Plan, the Cybersecurity Strategy and Implementation Plan, the Cybersecurity Act of 2015, the Government Paperwork Elimination Act, and the E-Sign Act of 2000, according to GSA.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.technewsworld.com/story/84231.html

SBA and GSA, OFPP not seeing eye-to-eye on ‘rule of two’ application

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SBA logoA major dispute is brewing in the small business community. Just four months after the Supreme Court’s June 16, 2016 unanimous decision on the Kingdomware case, the Small Business Administration (SBA) is taking a stand on the “rule of two” that is stressing out industry and agencies alike.

As a quick reminder, the nation’s highest court ruled in the Kingdomware case that the Veterans Affairs Department (VA) must continue to apply the “rule of two” for veteran-owned small businesses even if the agency surpassed its annual prime contracting goal. The “rule of two” states if an agency can find two or more qualified small businesses during market research of a contract under the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) — between $3,500 and $150,000 — it must set aside the solicitation.

Now the SBA is expanding that Supreme Court ruling to apply to all task and delivery orders under SAT if the request for proposals comes under the General Services Administration’s Schedules.

Keep reading this article at: http://federalnewsradio.com/reporters-notebook-jason-miller/2016/12/sba-gsa-ofpp-not-seeing-eye-eye-rule-two-application/

Here is a copy of the SBA’s memo telling its PCRs that the should apply small business preferences to all task orders and all delivery orders because they are considered contracts pursuant to the Kingdomware decision: http://www.wifcon.com/dgc_memo.pdf

GSA wants transaction-level purchasing data from contractors

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The General Services Administration (GSA) is changing the reporting requirements for federal contractors.

GSA Schedule ContractThe agency has formalized a new rule that requires vendors to report transaction-level data from orders on Federal Supply Schedule and governmentwide acquisition contracts, as well as indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity agreements.

Information gathered under the Transactional Data Reporting rule might include detailed descriptions, quantities and prices for items bought, according to a Federal Register notice.

The rule, which began with a pilot for FSS contracts over the summer, aims to help GSA analyze government spending patterns more broadly, according to the agency.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2016/11/gsa-wants-transaction-level-purchasing-data/133235

Set-aside decision need not consider compliance with limitation on subcontracting

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GAO-GovernmentAccountabilityOffice-SealBefore deciding whether to set-aside a solicitation for small businesses under FAR 19.502-2, should the contracting officer first determine whether those small business will be able to provide the needed services while, at the same time, complying with the limitation on subcontracting?

No, according to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) bid protest decision. Instead, an agency’s determination whether a small business will comply with the limitation on subcontracting should be made as part of its award decision (following the evaluation of proposals), not during its initial set-aside determination.

Under FAR 19.502-2(b), a procurement with an anticipated dollar amount greater than $150,000 must be set-aside for small businesses where there is a reasonable expectation that offers will be received from at least two responsible small businesses and that award will be made at fair market prices. Though orders under Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) contracts (issued under FAR part 8.4) are exempt from these small business programs, a contracting officer nonetheless has discretion to set-aside FSS orders for small businesses.

Keep reading this article at: http://smallgovcon.com/gaobidprotests/set-aside-decision-need-not-consider-compliance-with-limitation-on-subcontracting/

What vendors need to know about GSA’s new cyber offerings

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GSA Schedule ContractThe General Service Administration is introducing an additional step to evaluate cybersecurity vendors: an oral exam.

The agency last week posted a draft solicitation for Highly Adaptive Cybersecurity Services, four new IT Schedule 70 Special Item Numbers designed to offer agencies quick access for cyberattack prevention and remediation. The SINs include penetration testing, incident response, cyber hunt and risk and vulnerability assessment services, and the agency is on the hunt for “high-quality cybersecurity vendors.”

That’s where the oral technical evaluation comes in.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.nextgov.com/cybersecurity/2016/08/what-vendors-need-know-about-gsas-new-cyber-offerings/131016/

GSA seeks input from Schedule-holders on contract modification process

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GSA logoThe U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) is asking for feedback from GSA Schedule contractors on the contract modification process.

GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) will use the industry input it receives to improve the GSA Multiple Award Schedules’ (MAS) modification process.

GSA explained that its industry outreach is part of its recently-launched Making it Easier Initiative which includes “improving the Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) modification process in order to make it easier for you, our MAS industry partners, to do business with the government.  We’ve heard your concerns, and want to make sure that your feedback on how to enhance the process is captured and taken into account.”

GSA Schedule contractors can provide comments by responding to the survey questionnaire at: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1i0RX9FmMz56I1OY73k5VaxONDX7yiqQVHlVKlPV1kGw/viewform.

Top takeaways concerning GSA’s final rule on transactional data reporting

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GSA logoBy now the entire government contracting community is well aware that one of the most significant changes in Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) contracting in years occurred just a few weeks ago, as the General Services Administration (GSA) issued its Final Rule on transactional data reporting.

The Final Rule amends the GSA Federal Acquisition Regulation supplement (GSAR) to require FSS contractors and others with certain GSA Government-wide Acquisition Contracts (GWACs), and Government-wide Indefinite-Delivery, Indefinite-Quantity (IDIQ) contracts to report transactional data related to orders placed under those contracts.

As indicated over a year ago in a prior client alert, both the contracting community and the GSA Office of Inspector General had concerns with the draft transactional data reporting rule.  GSA has addressed some, but not all, of these concerns.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.mondaq.com/article.asp?articleid=507342

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