Members of the House Small Business Committee have introduced four new bills as part of a contracting reform package being pushed by Chairman Sam Graves, R-MO.

The Small Business Opportunity Act, H.R.3980, introduced by Reps. Jaime Herrera Beutler, R-WA, and Rep. Kurt Shrader, D-OR.

The bill requires agencies to include OSDBU directors and SBA procurement center representatives in acquisition planning, inviting them to meetings and providing them with copies of planning documents. Sponsors said it would increase opportunities for small businesses by involving their advocates in the planning stages.

The Building Better Business Partnerships Act, H.R. 3985, introduced by Reps. Bobby Schilling, R-IL, and Judy Chu, D-CA.

The bill gives the SBA administrator authority to approve mentor-protégé programs established by all agencies except the Defense Department. Some agencies currently operate mentor-protégé programs that do not follow SBA rules, such as rules governing affiliation.

Sponsors say having a common set of rules will make mentor-protégé programs portable, with agencies recognizing one another’s mentor-protégé arrangements.

The Small Business Protection Act, H.R. 3987, introduced by Reps. Joe Walsh, R-IL, and Gerry Connolly, D-VA.

The bill would change SBA’s practice of grouping several industries together under a single size standard. It requires that SBA determine that the standard is appropriate for each industry in a common group.

The Contractor Opportunity Protection (COP) Act, introduced by committee chairman Graves and Rep. Allen West, R-FL.

The bill aims to strengthen protections against unjustified contract bundling. It applies anti-bundling rules to new contracts as well as existing ones that are combined into a single solicitation, including construction contracts and task orders. It would apply to contracts worth more than $2 million, or $5 million for construction.

The bill would allow appeals of bundling decisions to a third party outside the procuring agency. SBA could appeal to the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals or the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals. A small business could protest a bundled contract to the Government Accountability Office or a trade association could file a protest without identifying the business involved, to protect the business from retaliation.

Congress and the Office of Federal Procurement Policy have adopted a number of measures over the years aiming to stop unjustified bundling. However, because the legal definition of a bundled contract does not apply to all consolidated contracts, agencies historically have seldom acknowledged that a contract is bundled.

Committee members previously introduced more contracting legislation, including one bill to withhold annual bonuses from senior executives in any agencies that failed to meet its small business procurement goal. (SAA, 2/10)

For details of the bills, go to http://smallbusiness.house.gov/Legislation/contractingreform.htm..