Archive for Uncategorized

ATTENTION: All Previously Certified 8(a) Firms

Posted by on
Share

Please be aware with the recent lower court ruling and resulting interim guidance issued by SBA regarding the 8(a) Business Development Program, it may be necessary to write a Social Disadvantage Narrative to respond to 8(a) Set-Aside Solicitations or receive a Sole Source award. You may need to provide this narrative to the Contracting Officer to be approved by the SBA before the award can be finalized. This appears to include upcoming option year modifications.

Please take advantage of this new resource guide provided by the SBA that firms can use when writing the social disadvantage narrative: https://sbaone.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/CHDB/pages/2768076819/Guide+for+Writing+a+Social+Disadvantage+Narrative

Register for our next live webinar on the topic of SBA’s 8(a) Certification Application Process on October 2nd: https://virginiaptac.ecenterdirect.com/events/4044 and follow us on LinkedIn to stay in the loop.

Tags: , ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

DoD Seeking Public Comment on Timeliness of Payments to Defense Subcontractors

Posted by on
Share

DoD is seeking public input on improving the timeliness of payments to defense subcontractors. The request for feedback published Friday July 14 in the Federal Register and stems from the Defense Contract Finance Study, which found that defense subcontractors and suppliers generally do not receive favorable cash flow benefits as consistently or to the same extent enjoyed by defense prime contractors. Input on this matter is solicited from interested parties, including current prime contractors, subcontractors, suppliers, or vendors, and potential new entrants. This is a great opportunity for small businesses in particular to have their voice heard.

Interested parties are encouraged to submit their comments within 60 days (by September 12) via the Federal eRulemaking Portal at https://www.regulations.gov/docket/DARS-2022-0012/document

Tags: ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

Introducing HIVE HUB: The 24/7 Industry Day for PEO DHMS

Posted by on
Share

The Program Executive Office, Defense Healthcare Management Systems (PEO DHMS) and the Federal Electronic Health Record Modernization (FEHRM) office have partnered to create the Health Innovation Vision Exchange (HIVE) as a space to promote innovation in the federal health space.

With the HIVE, PEO DHMS’s primary goal is to foster collaboration and introduce state-of-the-art healthcare solutions to the Federal marketplace. Serving as a centralized platform, HIVE HUB facilitates the cross-pollination of ideas between contractors and Federal agencies, creating an ecosystem that thrives on innovation and ingenuity. This real-time communication platform ensures that businesses have the opportunity to communicate directly with the government, and to join in the conversation themselves.

Help build a thriving community together at the forefront of healthcare innovation! Anyone can join by registering at https://connect.bidscale.com/register to create a free account. That’s all it takes to stay updated with the latest news, explore real contracting opportunities, discover upcoming events, communicate with federal health contracting officers, and gain valuable insights not available elsewhere.

Read the open letter to resource partners making us aware of this effort and encouraging APEX Accelerator clients interested in DHMS to register.

Tags: , , , , ,

Posted in: News Feed, Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

New HUBZone Map Effective July 2023

Posted by on
Share

The Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZone) Program run by the Small Business Administration (SBA) has an updated Map based on the most recent census data to ensure the program continues to serve the communities that are most in need of assistance. The new map is effective July 1, 2023. More information about these changes can be accessed here: https://maps.certify.sba.gov/hubzone/map/help

Changes you need to know: https://www.sba.gov/brand/assets/sba/resource-partners/HUBZone-MapChanges-Flyer-508.pdf

Tags: ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

SBA Now Allows Capabilities Statement in DSBS

Posted by on
Share

SBA launched a new feature in the Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS) tool that allows you to link your capabilities statement to help market your business to agencies.

This new field is now available in DSBS allowing small businesses to add a URL for their Capabilities Statements.

For 8(a) small businesses who have already uploaded a Capabilities Statement on Certify.SBA.gov as of 6/22/2023, the field will already be populated with the Capabilities Statement URL. For all other small businesses, add a Capabilities Statement Link by visiting the DSBS profile (also known as “Pronet supplemental pages”) to add a link.

Instructions on logging into the DSBS profile through SBA Connect and adding a Capabilities Statement Link are found here: https://sbaone.atlassian.net/wiki/spaces/DSBS/pages/2742910980/Add+a+Capabilities+Statement+Link

Tags: , , , , , ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

Annual Update Requirement for WOSB Repealed

Posted by on
Share

We received word that a message was distributed to WOSB firms – please check out the message and link below:

Dear Valued WOSBS,

Please note that the annual update requirement for approved WOSB firms has been repealed. Since May of 2022, the annual update has been in abeyance; it has now been removed entirely from the regulation. You will still need to recertify with the WOSB program every three years. No further action is needed at this time. Please see more information about the removal of the annual update requirement by visiting our Knowledge Base: Repeal of Annual Update Requirement for Approved WOSB Firms  · WOSB.Certify.sba.gov.

Thank you for your continued participation in our program.

Best,
The WOSB Team

Tags: ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

Tik Tok Ban – Small Businesses Not Exempt

Posted by on
Share

The new interim contracting rule: federalregister.gov/d/2023-11756 applies to devices regardless of whether they are owned by the government, the contractor, or the contractor’s employees, including phones used as part of a “bring your own device” program. It does not apply to a personally-owned phone that is not used in the performance of a contract.

Read more on the Federal Register here: https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2023/06/02/2023-11756/federal-acquisition-regulation-prohibition-on-a-bytedance-covered-application

Tags: , ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

SAM.gov problems as of 3/8/2023 Generating Bad Emails with “Someone updated the entity registration” Message

Posted by on
Share

Please note that many clients of Virginia PTAC are receiving messages from donotreply@sam.gov with the message that their SAM.gov entity registration was updated when no such update occurred.

A review of the current outages on the Federal Service Desk website reveals there is a SAM.gov outage AND that the cause of these emails are being investigated. The latest message on 3/8/2023 referenced “We believe the matter is related to a software issue” but we recommend checking for updates on the SAM.gov alerts page linked below.

Please do not click any links in those emails at this time and monitor the FSD.gov website for more information:

*As a friendly reminder, Virginia PTAC, an APEX Accelerator, is not connected to SAM.gov and is a separate resource provider. We help our clients navigate SAM.gov but do not have any control or access to the backend of the system.

https://sam.gov/alerts

Tags: , ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

Virginia PTAC, an APEX Accelerator

Posted by on
Share

The Procurement Technical Assistance Program (PTAP) is now under the management of the Department of Defense (DOD) Office of Small Business Programs (OSBP) and has changed its name to APEX Accelerators. The Virginia PTAC, hosted by George Mason University, will be transitioning to the new name in the coming months. Please note, our mission and assistance will not change. We are still here to serve businesses with Local, State and Federal Contracting assistance within our service area. This change will enhance our scope and resources in order to do more for the businesses we serve. So, whether we are called a Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) or an APEX Accelerator, we continue to be here for you, our clients, for all your government contracting needs. Note: APEX is not an acronym, it is a destination.

Tags: , ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →

New eVA Platform!

Posted by on
Share

Beginning at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 26, 2022, the Virginia Department of General Services brought the old eVA platform down and on Tuesday, Nov. 1, the new eVA platform will be live! Suppliers should get oriented by reviewing the resources on the new system including video overviews, infographics, and step-by-step guides: https://dgs.virginia.gov/procurement/eva—virginias-eprocurement-portal/eva-customer-care-forms/supplier-training-materials/

Tags: , ,

Posted in: Uncategorized

Leave a Comment (0) →
Page 1 of 5 12345