VA: Tiered Evaluations

Addresses ‘excessive pricing’ by veteran-owned

      The Veterans Affairs Dept. has instituted Tiered Evaluations as a new tool for contracting officers to address the problem of “excessive pricing” by veteran-owned small firms, Thomas J. Leney, executive director of the VA’s Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, said in a recent Town Hall meeting.

      But a veterans group is pushing back, saying the new process could make it easier to avoid set-asides for SDVOSBs and VOSBs.

New Tiered Process

      Leney said Tiered Evaluation, also known as Cascading, was instituted in February because the VA has experienced high prices in set-asides to small businesses owned by service-disabled veterans and veterans (SDVOSBs and VOSBs). Under a 2006 law, the VA must set aside procurements for SDVOSBs and VOSBs if there are at least two such firms likely to bid and able to do the work at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value. It is called the “Rule of Two.”

      “Complying with the Rule of Two, unfortunately, has resulted in some excessive pricing,” Leney said, adding that prices offered were 50% more, 75% more and 100% more than the Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE). Those high-price solicitations had to be redone, causing delays and extra expense, he added.

      To avoid those problems, the VA now has the option to set up a three-tiered evaluation. In the first tier, prices from SDVOSB and VOSB bidders only will be compared with the IGCE, to comply with the Rule of Two. If those prices are too high, the contracting officer can evaluate prices from additional small vendors in a second tier. A third tier, optional, includes large businesses. The tiers process avoids needing to start over to redo a procurement, he said.

Veterans group objections

      The National Veterans Small Business Coalition is raising questions about the new procedure, asking: “But what if the IGCE is out of date? What if the scope of work has changed? What if the SDVOSBs’ prices are 2% more?”

     Without answers, the new process may create a “loophole” allowing VA officials to skirt the Kingdomware mandate to give top priority to SDVOSBs and VOSBs, the group said in its July newsletter. VA officials were not immediately available.

More Information: VA Town Hall video link: https://bit.ly/2AaZZVf

House OKs latest NDAA

VA: Tiered Evaluations

Women- & minority-owned ads awards

Reverse Auctions less popular

Column: How to use a Black Hat Review Process to Craft Winning Bids for Government Contractors

Washington Insider: