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house Bill H.R. 190

Should the Feds Award More Contracts to Small Businesses?

Argument in favor

Small businesses, like any other business, have much to gain from federal contracts. Allowing small businesses to receive more federal contracts benefits them, their employees, the economy, and taxpayers who get better value in return for their hard-earned dollars.

Jonathan's Opinion
···
01/14/2019
Unless I’m missing something, this is a great way to open up competition for sole-source contracts to those who aren’t allowed to compete right now. It also seems like this would aid the SBA in a similar project it is already engaged in, which has to do with certification of small businesses, allowing the government to collect more data on those small businesses. All of these feel like good things.
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Scott 's Opinion
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01/16/2019
Campaign contributions/donations should be prohibited for any company to receive a government contract.
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KansasTamale's Opinion
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01/16/2019
Voting Yes, BUT ONLY IF THE SMALL BUSINESSES ARE VETTED TO FIND THEIR ABILITIES AND CAPABILITIES TO FULFILL THE PROJECT COMPLETELY. **There must be no Cronyism like when Trump hired an electrical company with no experience at large jobs & only 1 employee to get the electricity up & running in Puerto Rico They did not know where to start or how to do a big job like that & worse they had already received millions of dollars for doing nothing
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Argument opposed

If the SBA is already developing its own program to check small business’ eligibility for sole-source contracts and the federal government already has a goal of allocating 23 percent of its funds to small businesses, there isn’t much need for this bill.

Larry's Opinion
···
01/16/2019
I have voted no on this, but only because there wasn't a maybe. The feds should award contracts based on cost and performance. The lowest bid that will produce the results with reasonable quality and on time should get the work. No other criteria should be considered. Politics should not be involved.
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SirRobert's Opinion
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01/16/2019
Should the feds award more business to small contractors? You mean like the one man operation contractor they hired to restore the electricity in Puerto Rico? Not a good idea!
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Scott's Opinion
···
01/16/2019
The feds should award contracts to the company that provides the best service/product for the price regardless of size, connections, or how much money was donated to a particular party or politician.
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What is House Bill H.R. 190?

This bill would amend the Small Business Act to eliminate the inclusion of option years in the award price for sole source contracts. This would bring the dollar amount of sole-source awards in line with the size of current contracts.

This bill would raise the threshold amount that federal contracting officers may award in sole-source contracts to certain types of small business from $4 million for the life of the contract to up to $7 million per year. It’d additionally require the Small Business Administration (SBA) to individually certify small business’ eligibility to receive such contracts upon request from a federal contracting officer.

Eventually, the SBA would be responsible for developing a program to determine small business’ eligibility to receive sole-source contracts. Additionally, this bill would create an SBA check for women-owned small businesses (WOSBs) and service-disabled veteran owned small businesses (SDVOBs).

Further, the bill would require the Government Accountability Office (GAO) to evaluate federal policies and practices regarding classifying and awarding sole source contracts and to report to Congress on its findings.

Impact

Small businesses; women-owned small businesses; service-disabled veteran owned small businesses; SBA; and the GAO.

Cost of House Bill H.R. 190

$1.00 Million
Using information from the SBA, the CBO estimates that developing the certification program would cost less than $500,000, as the agency is already developing a similar program. Based on the costs of similar tasks, the CBO estimates that it would cost GAO less than $500,000 to complete the required evaluation and report. Thus, the implementation of this bill would cost less than $1 million overall.

More Information

In-Depth: Rep. Roger Marshall (R-KS) reintroduced this bill from the 115th Congress to modernize sole source contracts to small businesses:

“Small businesses employ nearly 58 million Americans, that’s 48 percent of our labor force. This bill expands sole-source contracts available to service-disabled veteran owned small businesses, women-owned small businesses, and HUBZone-certified small businesses. It also contains important taxpayer protections by establishing a verification process to ensure only eligible businesses participate in these procurements.  By making these changes, we’re providing necessary oversight of taxpayer resources, and ensuring that qualified small businesses have opportunities to contract with the federal government.”

In a floor speech supporting this bill, Rep. Steve Chabot (R-OH) argued it’s needed to give agencies the means by which to achieve their small business goals:

“The Small Business Act currently allows Federal agencies to award sole-source contracts to women-owned; service-disabled veteran-owned; HUBZone; and socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses. However, these awards can only be made in the narrowest of circumstances, rightly protecting the ability of small businesses to compete against each other. Even though Federal contracting officers have this procurement tool in their toolbox, the reality is that small business sole-source contracting is rare and may be underutilized. This can, in part, be attributed to the fact that the maximum dollar threshold for Federal sole-source contracts designated in statute has fallen far behind the typical size of contract awards made today. As contracts increase in size and scope, the usefulness of small business sole-source contracts diminishes, to the detriment of small contractors eligible to receive such awards. [This bill] adjusts the dollar threshold to actually reflect the size of contracts that are commonly used across the government today. This modest change will provide agencies with an accessible pathway to achieving their small business goals in categories they have historically been unable to meet.”

In the 116th Congress, this bill has the support of one cosponsor, a Democrat. When it was previously introduced in the 115th Congress, it passed the House on a 392-5 vote with the support of two bipartisan cosponsors (one Democrat and one Republican), but never received a vote in the Senate.


Of Note: It’s already the federal government’s goal to allocate 23 percent of its annual $500 budget to small businesses.


Media:

Summary by Lorelei Yang
(Photo Credit: iStockphoto.com / shapechange)

AKA

Expanding Contracting Opportunities for Small Businesses Act of 2019

Official Title

To amend the Small Business Act to eliminate the inclusion of option years in the award price for sole source contracts, and for other purposes.

bill Progress

  • Not enacted
    The President has not signed this bill
  • The senate has not voted
      senate Committees
      Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship
  • The house Passed January 16th, 2019
    Roll Call Vote 415 Yea / 6 Nay
      house Committees
      Committee on Small Business
    IntroducedJanuary 3rd, 2019
Log in or create an account to see how your Reps voted!
    Jonathan's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/14/2019
    Unless I’m missing something, this is a great way to open up competition for sole-source contracts to those who aren’t allowed to compete right now. It also seems like this would aid the SBA in a similar project it is already engaged in, which has to do with certification of small businesses, allowing the government to collect more data on those small businesses. All of these feel like good things.
    Like (52)
    Follow
    Share
    Larry's Opinion Against
    ···
    01/16/2019
    I have voted no on this, but only because there wasn't a maybe. The feds should award contracts based on cost and performance. The lowest bid that will produce the results with reasonable quality and on time should get the work. No other criteria should be considered. Politics should not be involved.
    Like (36)
    Follow
    Share
    Scott 's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Campaign contributions/donations should be prohibited for any company to receive a government contract.
    Like (26)
    Follow
    Share
    KansasTamale's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Voting Yes, BUT ONLY IF THE SMALL BUSINESSES ARE VETTED TO FIND THEIR ABILITIES AND CAPABILITIES TO FULFILL THE PROJECT COMPLETELY. **There must be no Cronyism like when Trump hired an electrical company with no experience at large jobs & only 1 employee to get the electricity up & running in Puerto Rico They did not know where to start or how to do a big job like that & worse they had already received millions of dollars for doing nothing
    Like (25)
    Follow
    Share
    SirRobert's Opinion Against
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Should the feds award more business to small contractors? You mean like the one man operation contractor they hired to restore the electricity in Puerto Rico? Not a good idea!
    Like (22)
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    SneakyPete's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Of Course We Need Seeing More Small Contracts Being Granted. Small businesses, like any other business, have much to gain from federal contracts. Allowing small businesses to receive more federal contracts benefits them, their employees, the economy, and taxpayers who get better value in return for their hard-earned dollars. The granting of Federal Contracts would help small businesses to expand while increasing employment opportunities to occur while spreading economic activity across the nation. SneakyPete..... 🤔😁😁😁🤔. 1*15*19.........
    Like (14)
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    Scott's Opinion Against
    ···
    01/16/2019
    The feds should award contracts to the company that provides the best service/product for the price regardless of size, connections, or how much money was donated to a particular party or politician.
    Like (11)
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    Tinee's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Small business help build a solid foundation for communities to stand on. Small businesses tend to care more about their employees & impact they make then big businesses do.
    Like (9)
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    Joseph's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Small business is the stabilizing backbone of our nation's economy as long as the contract awarded can be fulfilled on time/budget small businesses should always be considered.
    Like (7)
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    Mary's Opinion Against
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    01/16/2019
    This is just another republican attempt to destroy good paying jobs , union jobs
    Like (7)
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    Henry's Opinion In Favor
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    01/14/2019
    There really is reason for this bill . We should help small business based on merit rather than obligation.
    Like (6)
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    Forestdog's Opinion Against
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    01/16/2019
    Why should the federal government give money to any businesses? I am a small business owner and I want all government out of my business.
    Like (6)
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    Steven's Opinion Against
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    01/14/2019
    Best bid. Free market government should not pick winners and losers.
    Like (4)
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    Doug's Opinion Against
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    01/14/2019
    Contracts should be awarded on a best value basis, not as a set aside for any reason.
    Like (4)
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    Ira's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    It’s necessary that more money is available to assist the small entrepreneurs of our country. The more the banks and other lending institutions contribute to the small business person, the better our futures will be for more than the top 3% of the country.
    Like (3)
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    Riley's Opinion In Favor
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    01/16/2019
    Yes as long as it makes sense.
    Like (3)
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    1958FRO's Opinion In Favor
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    01/16/2019
    This will be a benefit to small business, as long as there's no political contributions involved.
    Like (3)
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    Leslie's Opinion In Favor
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Yes, as long as there is a thorough background check to make sure that someone involved in the business has NO TIES TO ANYONE IN "OUR GOVERNMENT" No more get rich off the backs of "We the People"
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    SabrinaM's Opinion Against
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Small business doesn’t necessarily mean mom & pop. A hedge fund could be a small business... I agree with other commenters, jobs should be awarded based on merit and cost efficiency, not number of employees.
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    Art's Public Comment
    ···
    01/16/2019
    Not if they are owned by the cartels or Chinese on Visas!
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