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Federal Market Intelligence for Small Business |
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Q&A on campaign to boost vet-owned contracts at VAA national veterans group is continuing its advocacy of measures to increase opportunities for veteran-owned and service-disabled veteran-owned small business (VOSBs and SDVOSBs) at the Veterans Affairs Dept. (See “Veterans Group Hits VA Contracting” in Dec. 1, 2017 edition of Set-Aside Alert.) Jon Williams, partner at PilieroMazza PLLC, a law firm that is assisting the National Veteran Small Business Coalition with the effort, responded to questions on the campaign. Set-Aside Alert: What is PilieroMazza’s role in the advocacy campaign? Williams: The white paper was drafted by the concerned veterans we work with. We provided assistance in packaging it, and we drafted the cover letter to Sen. John Boozman, R-AR. We sent the white paper to several representatives and committees, including Rep. Phil Roe, R-TN, (House Veterans Affairs Committee Chair) and Rep. Steve Chabot, R-OH (House Small Business Committee Chair). Our role was to try to get the word out to as many potentially interested parties as possible, because we share the concerns expressed in the white paper and have seen many of the same issues in on our role as advocates for SDVOSBs. John Shoraka (managing director of PilieroMazza Advisory Services LLC, a consulting firm) is spearheading our Coalition to Defend Vets First. Set-Aside Alert: The white paper referred to the percentage of SDVOSB contracting at VA dropping. At the same time, the dollar amount of SDVOSBs contracting has increased in recent years. Williams: I think you have to focus on percentage of spending to meaningfully determine if SDVOSBs and VOSBs are getting the opportunities at VA that Congress intended when it passed the Vets First law. The spending goals that underlie the Vets First law and the Small Business Act are based on percentage of spending, not dollars. And if VA spending (in terms of dollars) is increasing, but at the same time the percentage of that spending on SDVOSBs and VOSBs is lower than it was in 2010, that signals a problem. The broader point is that if Vets First was working as Congress intended, VA would be setting and achieving much more aggressive and higher goals and the spending as a percentage (and dollars) on SDVOSBs and VOSBs would be higher and would be increasing. Set-Aside Alert: The white paper mentioned that VOSB contracting was falling at the VA as well, but there was no data presented. Do you have the data on that? Williams: If you look toward the bottom of the VA scorecards for 2015 and 2016 (the comments section), you will see that they started reporting VOSB percentages as well. In fiscal 2016, it was 19.1%. And, if you look at the attached VA OIG report, they said back in 2010 they had done 23% on VOSBs. So if you compare the 23% to what was reported for (fiscal) 2016, you see a decline in both SDVOSB and VOSB spending as a percentage of overall VA spending.
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