House Panel Favors Annual Recertification, 30% Goal The House Small Business Committee has approved legislation that would require annual recertification of size status. The Small Business Fairness in Contracting Act, H.R. 1873, would require companies to update their listings in the Central Contractor Registration, including size status, every year in order to be eligible for small business contracts. The bill would increase the government’s goal for contracting with small firms to 30%, from the current 23%. It would expand the definition of a bundled contract, require agencies to justify bundling and establish a new appeal process for SBA to fight bundled contracts. Committee Chair Nydia Velazquez of New York said, “Federal agencies are not taking small business requirements seriously.” The committee unanimously approved the bill April 24. It is sponsored by Iowa Democrat Bruce Braley, Velazquez and the committee’s ranking Republican, Ohio Rep. Steve Chabot. A committee spokeswoman said the House Democratic leadership has agreed to bring the bill to the floor for a vote this month, after it is considered by the Oversight and Government Reform Committee, which handles procurement issues. SBA has issued a final rule requiring companies to recertify their small business eligibility every five years on long-term contracts, or when the company is acquired or merged. The rule is scheduled to take effect June 30 unless Congress overrides it. (SAA, 11/24/06) Velazquez and some other members of Congress favor annual recertification because of widespread evidence that large corporations are being awarded contracts intended for small firms. The Senate voted to require annual recertification last year. Senate Small Business Committee Chairman John Kerry has said he opposes SBA’s five-year rule. The bill defines a bundled contract as any consolidation of two or more contracts above a certain dollar threshold. Current law says a contract is considered bundled only if part of the work was previously performed by a small business. The bill would include construction and other new requirements in the definition of bundling. The Bush administration opposes changing the definition of bundling. “The issue is enforcement, and the president, the Office of Procurement Policy and we, at the SBA, are all focused on addressing this issue,” Paul Hsu, SBA associate administrator for government contracting and business development, told the House committee April 19. Velazquez said SBA has contested only four bundled contracts over the past two years, and was not able to persuade the procuring agency to unbundle any of them. Hsu said SBA tries to resolve disputes over bundling through negotiations with agencies without a formal protest. “Many of our successes occur at this level,” he said.