The action follows by about a month the administration’s announcement that it had completed a rewrite and overhaul of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Image: Postmodern Studio/Shutterstock.com
By: FEDweek StaffOMB, the SBA and the FAR Council have jointly released guidance on what they called “streamlined regulatory coverage on small business contracting.”
“The release simplifies coverage and reduces the burden on small businesses seeking contracts while preserving important policies requiring agencies to set aside new contracts when there are two or more competitive small businesses capable of performing the work. The FAR coverage also promotes greater competition in the 8(a)-business development program so that small and disadvantaged businesses are better prepared to win work when they graduate from the program,” said a statement.
The action follows by about a month the administration’s announcement that it had completed a rewrite and overhaul of the Federal Acquisition Regulation—what it calls the “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul”—which it said “is returning the FAR to its statutory roots, rewritten in plain language, while removing non-statutory rules when they are not essential to sound procurement.” The Office of Federal Procurement Policy meanwhile at the time directed agencies to use government-wide contracts rather than maintaining their own contracts.
The latest announcement said the guidance is expected to increase small business awards under GSA contracts including the OASIS+ government-wide contracts for professional, technical and support services, and to strengthen the contractor base across HubZone small businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, women-owned small businesses, and small disadvantaged businesses.
It added that the SBA will coordinate with the FAR Council “to ensure consistency between updates to its own government-wide rules on small business contracting programs.”
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