Big change in CIO-SP4 RFP

      National Institutes of Health officials on June 22 made a major change to their “CIO-SP4” IT solutions and services solicitation that is likely to be detrimental to many small businesses, according to PilieroMazza PLLC attorneys Isaias “Cy” Alba and Meghan F. Leemon.

      NIH’s IT Acquisition and Assessment Center (NITAAC), in its third modification to the RFP, made a substantial change that will have severe impacts on small business offerers, the attorneys added.

      “The RFP appears to disallow the use of any subcontractor experience, past performance, or other qualifications, including from small businesses, and it severely limits the use of mentor experience,” Alba and Leemon wrote in a client alert.

      Calling it a “180-degree turn,” they said many teams preparing to bid are in upheaval: “All of those prime /subcontractor teaming relationships are effectively rendered useless, sending small businesses scrambling to reform joint ventures or give up pursuit of CIO-SP4 altogether.”

      Furthermore, the new restriction was made “without any legitimate justification,” and “arguably violates the law,” the attorneys wrote, adding that there are other “unduly restrictive” clauses for small firms in the RFP as well. NITAAC officials were not immediately available.

More information:
PilieroMazza client alert:https://bit.ly/3xYX9Mf

(URLs in Set-Aside Alert have been shortened by the bit.ly URL shortener)

Biden OKs $1.2T bipartisan infrastructure bill with senators

SCOTUS rules for ANCs

Number of small biz federal vendors has shrunk since 2017

Big change in CIO-SP4 RFP

HUBZone rules to apply at or below the SAT

USWCC blasts Category Mgt

NASA RFI on racial equity

Army posts RFP forecasts

Small biz gets big share of GSA GWACs

Column: Use USASpending to Get Ahead of the Game

Washington Insider:

Coronavirus Update