Set-Aside Alert analysis:

House NDAA 2019 cuts services

Also, changes to micro-purchase limits, A/E set-asides

      The House-approved version of the fiscal 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) likely would hit many small businesses providing building maintenance and other services.

      The NDAA includes a 25% cut in so-called “back office” services departmentwide, including logistics, human resources, facilities maintenance and property management.

      The bill would eliminate the Defense Dept.’s Washington Headquarters Services office at the Pentagon, which provides administration, building management, human resources, security, transportation and other services. The office currently employs about 2,300 military and civilian personnel and 1,700 contract workers.

      The DOD services cuts are likely to hit small businesses, which are active in providing building management, janitorial, landscaping, IT services, temporary staffing and other services to DOD.

      For example, small businesses received between 83% and 94% of the contract spending in five DOD accounts for building maintenance and alteration. The small business obligations in those accounts totaled $858 million last year, according to the DOD’s Section 809 panel’s recent report.

      Rep. Mac Thornberry, R-TX, chair of the House Armed Services Committee, has said the cuts are needed to reduce Pentagon bureaucracy.

      DOD would get a chief management officer for the first time to identify how to reach the reductions by 2021.

      Additional House NDAA provisions of note include:

• In Sec. 822, the micro-purchase threshold would be raised to $10,000, from $5,000;
• Sec. 831 would revise the definition of “commercial item” by creating separate definitions for a “commercial product” and a “commercial service”;
• Sec. 832 proposes a definition for “subcontract”;
• In Sec. 851, DOD is tasked with developing a small business strategy that is aligned with national defense goals;
• Sec. 884 would define Procurement Administrative Lead Time and set up procedures to track it. The definition would be the time from the date on which a solicitation is issued to the date of an initial award;
• Sec. 886 sets a policy for the government to avoid using Lowest Price Technically Acceptable criteria when it would “deny the government the benefits of cost and technical tradeoffs”;
• In Sect. 2803, DOD must consider set asides for small business architecture and engineering services and construction design if the award is less than $1 million, up from $300,000.

More Information: House NDAA text: https://bit.ly/2GHOWBb
Section 809 panel report: https://bit.ly/2GBvlni

Is reaching 23% enough?

House NDAA 2019 cuts services

Small biz subcontractor performance pilot program

EDWOSB wins $76M Army contract

Column: Big Changes Proposed to SBA’s Size Standard Methodology

Washington Insider: