Government Contracting Blog

Another contract vehicle is on the horizon for government contractors—GSA is creating a new services Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) to replace OASIS. Formerly named Services Multi-Agency Contract (MAC) and more recently dubbed as OASIS+, this contract vehicle will support GSA’s Federal Acquisition (FAS) Office of Professional Services and Human Capital Categories (PSHC), and will include small business set-asides. GSA has announced the final Request for Proposal (RFP) will be released on or about March 30, 2023, so here’s what we know about the contract vehicle so far, including the reasoning behind its creation, its scope, and anticipated release dates.

Getting a GSA Schedule can be very rewarding, but where do you start? Before your company makes the decision to go through the process of acquiring a GSA Schedule contract, we highly recommend that you take the time to review all of the necessary qualification requirements to make sure it’s right for your company. This is done through a careful review of the MAS Solicitation document, which provides guidance for both prospective and existing contractors for obtaining and maintaining a GSA MAS contract. Within these instructions you will find the specifics on the types of documents you’ll be composing, forms that you’ll be signing, as well as the necessary steps to take to submit the offer to GSA. The solicitation not only provides guidance, but it also provides regulations you need to be mindful of as you go through the process.

As a government contractor, you have likely become familiar with SAM.gov. There are a number of features in SAM, but arguably the most important is the entity registration feature. Since registering your entity in SAM.gov is required in order to do things like apply for contracts or receive grants from the federal government, this creates a database of thousands of companies. Not only that, but these registrations require resubmission every year in order to remain active.

The global economy has taken a hit recently—from disrupted supply chains to an ongoing pandemic, there have been severe supply shortages and a sharp increase in prices. This inflation has caused a significant increase in the number of Economic Price Adjustment (EPA) modifications among GSA contractors. However, even with raising their prices, some contractors have not been able to heighten them enough keep up with inflation due to GSA pricing regulations. Recognizing this critical issue, GSA jointly issued a GSA acquisition letter in March 2022 placing a temporary moratorium on a number of limitations in certain GSA EPA clauses. GSA has now updated and extended the moratorium to September 30, 2023, in a supplement letter. 

Selling products and services to the U.S. government means adhering to several established rules and regulations. For potential and current GSA Schedule holders, complying with regulations outlined in the Trade Agreements Act (TAA) is one of the many requirements. While preparing an initial GSA Schedule proposal, most schedule holders become vaguely familiar with required trade laws and regulations. However, after their contract is awarded many make the mistake of not broadening their understanding and fail to regularly monitor their contract to maintain TAA compliant. In this blog, we will define what TAA compliance means and discuss 5 ways to stay TAA compliant.

A GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) provides prospective contractors with unique access government buyers that they wouldn’t have otherwise. A GSA Schedule holder can offer products and services to government agencies such as the Department of Defense, executive and federal agencies, state and local agencies under certain conditions, and countless others. However, the greatest benefit of a GSA Schedule may be the ease that it allows contractors to have when negotiating terms, conditions, and price with potential buyers.