Mills leaving in August

Karen Mills, administrator of the Small Business Administration, has told SBA staffers she is leaving the agency at the end of August, according to a news report in the Washington Post.

That was an apparent change of plans from her statement in February when she announced her pending resignation. At that time, Mills said she would stay on until a replacement was named.

To date, no replacement has been named for Mills.

More information: Washington Post article http://goo.gl/qRBEza

Anti-GSA bias?

Federal agencies’ reluctance to use the General Services Administration’s centralized purchasing contracts is a “behavioral issue,” Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Tom Sharpe said at a recent industry event.

In 2012, GSA had a 12.3% share of federal commercial procurements; Sharpe said he hopes to raise it to 17% this year.

"There are too many procurement stops and too much duplication," Sharpe said at the event, according to FierceGovernment. Not using GSA as a centralizing procurement source is a "behavioral issue," Sharpe said.

More information: FierceGovern-ment article: http://goo.gl/SFo3ga

Cloud spending rising

The federal government is expected to quadruple its spending on private cloud-based solutions to $7.7 billion by fiscal 2017, according to a new report from IDC Government Insights.

There are bumps in the near term, followed by expanded activity. After a flat fiscal 2014, “growth potential looks bright,” IDC said.

Federal private cloud solutions are forecasted at $1.7 billion in fiscal 2014, a drop of 6% from the previous year, IDC said. Federal public cloud spending is projected to hit $118 million, an increase of 33%.

More information: IDC report summary http://goo.gl/JynN2G

SUSPEND Act worries

The “SUSPEND Act” legislation to centralize the federal contractor suspension and debarment is raising concerns among contractors.

TechAmerica and the George Washington University law school brought together about 100 industry members at a forum focusing on the bill, which is being advanced by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-CA.

Under the proposed law, suspension and debarment programs for dozens of civilian agencies would be combined into one, under a centralized review board, within the General Services Administration. The Defense Department programs would remain separate.

Industry members said the centralized process would greatly expand the risk of negative impacts on businesses from allegations of misconduct, according to an article by FCW. Currently, agency suspensions and debarments do not directly affect vendor status with other agencies.

More information: FCW article: http://goo.gl/ZgAz3