The IRS has awarded Total Information Processing Support Services-3 contracts to 21 vendors, including six small firms. TIPSS-3 is an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract for systems support, security and business services for the Treasury Department. It is worth up to $3 billion over five years.

Small business awardees are:
ActioNet Inc. of Fairfax, VA;
Avineon Inc. of Alexandria, VA;
Catapult Technology Ltd. of Bethesda, MD;
InSysCo Inc. of Fredericksburg, VA;
Inter Image Inc. of Arlington, VA; and
Pragmatics Inc. of McLean, VA.

A House-Senate conference committee has dropped a subsidy for SBA’s 7(a) loan program from the agency’s 2006 appropriation. The House had voted to subsidize the loan program in order to reduce fees paid by borrowers and lenders.

The Bush administration persuaded Congress to end the subsidies last year, and SBA said the volume of loans has increased in spite of the higher fees.

SBA officials will participate in a live interactive webcast that will provide training and raise awareness of federal contract assistance for veteran and service-disabled veteran business owners. The Dec. 14 event is cosponsored by the Veterans Task Force and USVets.TV. For details, go to www.usvets.tv.

The Defense Department is sponsoring a forum on the new policy requiring unique identification on all items bought by the department costing more than $5,000. The forum will be held Nov. 30-Dec. 1 in Chantilly, VA. For details, go to www.uidforum.com/.

Ramona Jones has announced her retirement as director of the Transportation Security Administration’s OSDBU.

She has spent 32 years in federal service, including stints with the Commerce Department, VA and the Navy.

Donald C. Williams is resigning after four years as administrator for GSA’s National Capital Region. He leaves on Dec. 9.

SBA is considering waiving the nonmanufacturer rule for office supplies, paper and toner, under NAICS codes 424120, 339940, 325132, 325992, 322231 and 453210.

The agency is also considering a waiver for forklifts manufacturing, NAICS 333924.

SBA has granted waivers for Commercial Refrigerator Equipment, NAICS 423740; Household Refrigerator Equipment, NAICS 423620; and Photographic Film, Paper, Plate, and Chemical Manufacturing, NAICS 325992.