SBA, GSA preparing 2018 regulations

      While President Donald Trump and his Cabinet say they have already blocked thousands of new regulations, nonetheless dozens of regulations are in the works this year affecting small business federal contractors.

      The Small Business Administration and the General Services Administration outlined their regulatory agendas for 2018 in several notices posted in the Federal Register.

SBA regulatory agenda

      The SBA released a schedule for regulatory actions in 2018 including:

• Ownership and control proposed rule for veteran-owned (including the service-disabled) small businesses (released Jan. 12, 2018);
• Certification for women-owned small businesses proposed rule was scheduled for January, but it has not been released yet;
• Rule on removing authority for SBA’s Office of Hearing and Appeals to adjudicate suspensions and debarments. Rule was withdrawn in September 2017.
• Women’s Business Centers final rule expected in March;
• Small Business Development Centers proposed rule expected in March covering new hosts, disputes, procedures, requirements and other factors;
• “Comprehensive revision” of HUBZone regulations due in June;
• Small business size standard revisions - four new proposed rules coming in September.

GSA regulatory agenda

      The GSA, on its own, and also as part of the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council with the Defense Dept. and NASA, has proposed more than two dozen FAR changes, including several directly related to small business federal contractors in 2018, including:

• New proposed rule on determination of fair and reasonable prices on orders under the Multiple-Award GSA Schedules coming in May;
• Implementing SBA’s rules on applicability of small business regulations outside the U.S. this month;
• Implementing an internal administrative change to automatically update clauses for acquisitions of commercial items and acquisitions that do not exceed the simplified acquisition threshold, scheduled for April;
• Implementing changes in pricing evaluation factors for multiple-award contracts is due in April;
• Implementing SBA’s clarifications on 8(a) joint ventures, coming in June;
• Implementing SBA’s final rule on credit for lower-tier small business contracting, to be done by April;
• Final rule implementing GAO’s clarification of requirements for justifying 8(a) sole-source contracts, in June.

More Information: SBA Regulatory Agenda: http://goo.gl/ECHnxg
Federal Regulatory Plan and Unified Agenda: http://goo.gl/q8ge43
FAR Council Regulatory Agenda: http://goo.gl/GbAE6Q

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