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In VA procurements, veteran-owned businesses trump all other contractors

October 22, 2018 By Nancy Cleveland

On October 17, 2018, the Federal Circuit ruled that the Department of Veteran Affairs (“VA”) must give priority to veteran-owned small businesses (“VOSB”) when awarding contracts.  (PDS Consultants Inc. v. U.S., et al., Nos. 17-2379 and 17-2512, 2018 WL 5019735 – Fed. Cir. Oct. 17, 2018).

At first blush, no one would argue with the foregoing statement.

But, this mandate became less clear when the VA was faced with awarding a contract to a VOSB or following an otherwise mandatory requirement for all federal agencies to buy a specific list of items made by nonprofits employing the blind and significantly disabled.

Here is the source of confusion. More than 40 years ago, Congress enacted the Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act (“JWOD”), which required federal agencies to buy certain items and services from nonprofits that employ the blind or people with other significant disabilities. Today, this mandatory procurement policy is implemented through the AbilityOne program.

In 2006, Congress passed the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act (“VBA”). As the U.S. Supreme Court stated in Kingdomware, the VBA made it mandatory in almost every procurement for the VA to follow the “Rule of Two.” The “Rule of Two” requires the VA to award a contract to a VOSB whenever at least two VOSBs can perform the work at a reasonable price.

Keep reading this article at: https://governmentcontractsnavigator.com/2018/10/18/in-department-of-veterans-affairs-procurements-veteran-owned-businesses-trump-all-other-contractors

Filed Under: Contracting News Tagged With: AbilityOne, JWOD, Kingdomware, rule of two, SDVOSB, service disabled, small business, VA, veteran owned business, Veterans First

Another big win for vets: SDVOSBs trump AbilityOne at VA, court rules

June 15, 2017 By Nancy Cleveland

The VA cannot buy products or services using the AbilityOne List without first applying the “rule of two” and determining whether qualified SDVOSBs and VOSBs are available to bid.

The May 30, 2017 decision of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims in PDS Consultants, Inc. v. United States, No. 16-1063C (2017) resolves – in favor of veteran-owned businesses – an important question that has been lingering since Kingdomware was decided nearly one year ago.  The Court’s decision in PDS Consultants makes clear that at VA, SDVOSBs and VOSBs trump AbilityOne.

The Court’s decision involved an apparent conflict between two statutes: the Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act, or JWOD, and the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006, or VBA.

As SmallGovCon readers know, the VBA states that (with very limited exceptions), the VA must procure goods and services from SDVOSBs and VOSBs when the Contracting Officer has a reasonable expectation of receiving offers from two or more qualified veteran-owned companies at fair market prices.  Last year, the Supreme Court unanimously confirmed, in Kingdomware, that the statutory rule of two broadly applies.

The JWOD predates the VBA.  It provides that government agencies, including the VA, must purpose certain products and services from designated non-profits that employ blind and otherwise severely disabled people.  The products and services subject to the JWOD’s requirements appear on a list known as the “AbilityOne List.”  An entity called the “AbilityOne Commission” is responsible for placing goods and services on the AbilityOne list.

Keep reading this article at: http://smallgovcon.com/service-disabled-veteran-owned-small-businesses/another-big-win-for-vets-sdvosbs-trump-abilityone-at-va-court-rules/

Filed Under: Contracting News Tagged With: AbilityOne, applicability, COFC, Court of Federal Claims, JWOD, Kingdomware, SDVOSB, service disabled, VA, VBA, veteran owned business, VOSB

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