The Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (DBE) Program is in the midst of a major overhaul that would update, streamline, and clarify existing rules, strengthen implementation, and increase reporting requirements. The DOT’s DBE Program allows small businesses owned …

A rule going into effect Oct. 25 will increase a requirement for U.S.-made content in the hundreds of billions of dollars of goods and services the federal government procures each year. The requirement, handed down by the White House via …

EPA’s Superfund Program cleans up the most serious uncontrolled or abandoned releases of contamination at polluted sites. There have been many hazardous commercial and industrial wastes that have been mismanaged across the country which has resulted in thousands of contaminated …

Effective January 1, the VA certification application process will be transferred to the SBA.  Here is what you need to know. Action Needed. Generally, SDVOSBs and VOSBs listed as verified in VIP will not need to take action for SBA …

As many contractors know all too well, the System for Award Management (SAM) has had a rocky 2022 driven by the transition from the Data Universal Numbering System to the assignment of Unique Entity IDs through SAM. PilieroMazza previously wrote …

 Low-interest federal disaster loans are now available to Alaska businesses and residents as a result of President Biden’s major disaster declaration, U.S. Small Business Administration’s Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman announced. The declaration covers the Bering Strait, Kashunamiut, Lower Kuskokwim and Lower Yukon …

September 21, 2022 Today is National PTAC Day, a collective campaign to celebrate the contracting successes of small businesses that have benefited from assistance provided by their local Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC).  The Alaska PTAC provides businesses throughout the …

On September 9, 2022, the Small Business Administration (SBA) published a proposed rule that would make many significant changes to SBA’s 8(a) program requirements, the Women-Owned Small Business (WOSB) and HUBZone programs, subcontracting, protests, and more. Public comments on SBA’s proposals are …

On August 22, 2022, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) will implement a final rule that provides two new methods by which small businesses can obtain past performance credit when competing for federal prime contracts. First, the rule allows certain small business …

To ensure entities are in control of who has permission to edit and maintain their information, individuals assigned a SAM.gov Entity Administrator role must hold a position within the entity (e.g., employees, officers, board members), and cannot be a third party acting on …

If you’re a small business owner looking into government contracting, you’ve probably seen the well-meaning advice: Just go to SAM.gov and search for contracts. If you find one that seems like a fit, bid on it. If you’re the best applicant, you’ll …

While many industries have existed since time immemorial, new industries are created and old industries fade all the time. A mere twenty-five years ago, there was no such thing as social media and video rental stores were all the rage. …

The President believes that when we spend American taxpayers’ dollars, it should support American workers and businesses. In his first week in office, President Biden signed Executive Order 14005, Ensuring the Future is Made in America by All of America’s …

The House on June 8 approved five bills aimed at assisting small businesses and two bills that would strengthen rules to identify small business fraud.  The bills, which go before the Senate next, include: –HR 7670: Establishes reporting for the …

The Veterans Affairs Department launched its new Pathfinder website on June 7 to help new and existing vendors find a path into VA procurements. The website is located at https://www.pathfinder.va.gov/. Upon entering the website, users are asked whether they want …

On June 8, 2022, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a bill, referred to as H.R. 7694, “Strengthening Subcontracting for Small Businesses Act of 2022” (the Bill). The Bill seeks to amend the Small Business Act by requiring federal agencies to …

Let’s review a few basics about the new entity validation process in SAM.gov:  If you want to register in SAM.gov or even just get a Unique Entity ID, you must validate your  entity information with our new Entity Validation Service …

The General Services Administration (GSA) announced progress in its ongoing efforts to strengthen the federal supply chain and reduce supply chain risk by using its Verified Products Portal (VPP) to monitor and remove products from unauthorized suppliers. Launched in 2020, …

The Department of Defense has created a new framework of cybersecurity requirements and certifications contractors must achieve under the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC). But what about the DOD contractors that mostly outsource their IT and cybersecurity to managed service providers? The Pentagon’s CMMC …

The Labor Dept.’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs launched a new online Contractor Portal in February allowing certain federal contractors to certify compliance with Affirmative Action Program (AAP) requirements. The deadline is June 30. Federal supply and service contractors …