The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC), a new set of cybersecurity standards the Department of Defense (DoD) will be implementing on all their contracts, is included in the General Service Administration’s (GSA) $50 billion 8(a) STARS III Request for Proposal (RFP). 8(a) STARS III (Streamlined Technology Acquisition Resource for Services) is a multiple-award IDIQ contract set aside for small businesses that will give the federal government access to a wide range of information technology (IT) services-based solutions. Although STARS III isn’t a contract vehicle specific to the DoD, the DoD was one of the biggest buyers of STARS II, the predecessor to STARS III.

Our world can seem fairly daunting at the moment— high unemployment rates, increased teleworking, and near unprecedented government stimulus proposals. However, though COVID-19 has forced multiple changes worldwide, some industries are able to adapt faster than others. Government contractors have seen their business grow as the need for Coronavirus aid and relief has increased. The government is indeed buying on an extremely elevated level. The GSA Multiple Award Schedules (MAS) Program can offer great benefits to potential contractors, but not everything is smooth sailing. To better understand the GSA Schedules Program and how it fits in with your business plan, we are going to dive into some of the pros and cons of getting on a GSA Schedule contract.

On July 1, 2020, The General Services Administration (GSA) issued Refresh #3 to its MAS Solicitation 47QSMD20R0001, which may affect your Office Management or Human Capital contracts. Based on feedback from customers, GSA is changing the Special Item Numbers (SINS) in the Office Management and Human Capital large categories on the new consolidated Multiple Award Schedule (MAS). What will these changes look like and what do they mean for your contracts in the future?

After years in the making, the General Services Administration (GSA) announced in late June that it has awarded contracts to three major e-marketplace platform providers to support implementation efforts for the Commercial Platforms program and Section 846 of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The chosen providers—Amazon Business, Fisher Scientific, and Overstock.com, Inc.—were selected for a three-year pilot program where GSA will test the use of commercial e-commerce portals for purchases below the Micro-Purchase Threshold (MPT) of $10,000. (Note: This is a different Micro-Purchase Threshold than the recent update regarding the COVID-19 response that we discussed in an earlier blog.) What does this mean for GSA contractors in the future? Let’s dive in to better understand GSA’s upcoming E-Marketplace Platform.

If you’re a GSA Contractor, you may already know some of the benefits of a Small Business Set Aside. 8a certification is a certification given to specific Small Business contractors that allows contractors a wide breadth of opportunities for socially or economically disadvantaged businesses. A new opportunity — the 8(a) Streamlined Technology Acquisition Resource for Services (STARS) III Governmentwide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) is on the horizon for your company. The 8(a) STARS III Request for Proposal (RFP) was released in July of 2020. Here is what you and your company should know if you want to pursue this huge 8(a) opportunity.

The Woman-Owned Small Business Federal Contract Program will adopt a new certification process on July 15, 2020. In 2019, the Small Business Administration (SBA) proposed an amendment to the current Women-Owned Small Business Program that would implement a statutory requirement to certify them as Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs) or Economically Disadvantaged Women-Owned Small Businesses (EDWOSBs). This new regulation will allow WOSB and EDWOSBs to be eligible for set-aside and sole source awards, but what does this change mean for eligible contractors?