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Congress turning its attention to acquisition, training challenges at VA
Now, lawmakers are beginning to turn their attention to some of the more nitty-gritty challenges facing the Veterans Affairs Department.
VA, however, doesn't see the need for new legislative fixes, or at least, not these particular suggestions related to the department's training and onboarding for acquisition professionals, as well as its procurement reporting standards.
But Congress, long frustrated by VA's lengthy contracting processes and the scheduling and cost overruns it's seen with
major construction projects in the past, isn't convinced the department can more effectively manage the procurement process and staff its offices properly without new legislation.
Continue reading at
www.federalnewsradio.com.
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7/19/17
Acquisition Hour: Market Research - Using the Federal Procurement Data (FPDS)
Webinar
8/2/17
Acquisition Hour: Government Property Management for Federal Contractors & Subcontractors
Webinar
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7/27/17
Small Business Workshop-"Doing Business with the Government"
Appleton
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8/2/17
How to Do Business with Department of Veteran Affairs
Iron Mountain, MI
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Acquisition Hour: Buy American - the Many Rules
April 18 the President issued Executive Order 13788, "Buy American and Hire American". Since April, there have been an increasing number of questions on the topic. In this session, we will take a look at four specific domestic sourcing preferences impacting Federal procurement.
- The Buy American Act
- The Trade Agreements Act
- Buy American Executive Order
- Berry Amendment
Join the Wisconsin Procurement Institute and guest speakers for the WPI ACQUISITION HOUR - a series of lunchtime FREE LIVE WEBINARS on a variety of Federal government contracting topics! You will need to register to have access and be able to interact with the guest speaker- the web link will be sent to you after registering for the WEBINAR. The schedule will be updated as speakers commit to participate. If you have any topics that are of interest to you - please send them to
benjaminb@wispro.org
Speaker: Emily A. Constantine, Attorney, Husch Blackwell LLP
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House panel votes to split Air Force, create new US Space Corps
As part of its version of the
2018 Defense authorization bill, the House Armed Services Committee voted late Wednesday night to create a sixth branch of the U.S. armed forces: the U.S. Space Corps, which would absorb the Air Force's current space missions.
You could be forgiven if you haven't been closely following the debate about creating the nation's first new military service since 1947. Several members of the panel said they themselves were blindsided by the proposal, and staged an unsuccessful effort to block the change until it could be studied further - or at least until the full committee had held at least one hearing on the subject.
Rep. Michael Turner (R-Ohio) said he only learned about the proposal last week, when it first came before the subcommittee on strategic forces.
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Small Business Administration: Government Contracting & Business Development Processes and Rule-Making Activities
What GAO Found
The Office of Government Contracting and Business Development (OGCBD) at Small Business Administration (SBA) headquarters sets policies for SBA's business development and government contracting programs, and SBA field office staff help to implement these programs at the local level. The reporting relationships between field staff and SBA headquarters vary depending on the program. For example, field staff who implement government contracting programs report to OGCBD, while most staff who implement the 8(a) business development program report to the Office of Field Operations (OFO), which oversees SBA's field offices. SBA officials told GAO that this reporting structure, in which some field staff implement OGCBD programs but report to OFO, offers some benefits-for example, it allows these staff to support the goals of OGCBD programs as well as those of the individual field offices. However, officials also said the reporting structure can result in inconsistent program delivery. They described recent steps to improve communication between OGCBD and field staff, but it is too soon to tell if these steps will be effective.
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What you need to know about the Rule of 2
The Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) in Part 19.502-2, says acquisitions under $150,000 are automatically reserved for small businesses providing there is a reasonable expectation of obtaining offers from two or more responsible small business concerns that are competitive in terms of market prices, quality, and delivery. Thus the Rule of 2. The FAR continues requiring the contracting officer to set aside procurements over $150,000 when they have a reasonable expectation that offers will be obtained from at least two responsible small business concerns offering the products of different small business concerns and award will be made at fair market prices.
The Rule of 2 is to provide competition for Government requirements. Two distributors for the same manufacturer do not meet the intent of the Rule of 2, as this provides for no competition.
Some contracting officers are aware of this and will not set aside a requirement over $150,000 when there is only one small business manufacturer, despite having multiple small business distributors. This would be a correct interpretation of the FAR and meeting the Rule of 2.
Other contracting officers may set aside a requirement over $150,000 anytime they locate two small businesses that may respond. This may or may not meet the Rule of 2 depending upon if the businesses represent different manufacturers and the size of those manufacturers.
All businesses need to understand that contracting officers interpret the FAR and that procurements for the same requirements may be completed differently based on the interpretation of the FAR. For more information on the Rule of 2 contact Carol Murphy at
carolm@wispro.org or 414-270-3600.
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Upcoming Announcements from DOD SBIR/STTR
SBIR
17.3
- SBIR Pre-Release Begins on August 25, 2017
- Announcement Opens on September 26, 2017
- Announcement Closes on October 25, 2017 at 8:00 p.m. ET
STTR
17.C
- STTR Pre-Release Begins on August 25, 2017
- Announcement Opens on September 26, 2017
- Announcement Closes on October 25, 2017 at 8:00 p.m. ET
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WPI 10437 Innovation Dr. Suite 320, Milwaukee, WI 53226 414-270-3600
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