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Alex Major, Franklin Turner, and Philip Lee co-authored the article “Surviving And Thriving In The Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Program: Maximizing Opportunities For NHOs, ANCs, And Tribes” for Briefing Papers. The article provides an overview of the Small Business Administration’s 8(a) Business Development Program, which provides socially and economically disadvantaged small business owners with federal…

On April 8, 2020, a final rule (the Rule) was issued amending the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) and implementing Section 852 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for FY 2019 to provide for accelerated payments to DoD’s small business prime contractors and subcontractors supporting DoD contracts. The Rule applies to contracts at or below the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) – currently $250,000 for DoD contracts – and to contracts for the acquisition of commercial items including commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) items. With an estimated 96% of DoD contracts valued at or under the SAT, the rule appears to reflect DoD’s recognition that it is in the best interests of the government and small business contractors alike to apply this Rule to contracts at or below the SAT and to accelerate payments to small business prime contractors and subcontractors.
Continue Reading DFARS Final Rule Establishes Goal of 15-Day Accelerated Payments for Small Business Contractors

On May 22nd, Practice Group Co-Leaders Franklin Turner and Alexander Major delivered a presentation on Effectively Prosecuting Contract Claims Against the Government to attendees at the annual Native Hawaiian Organizations Association Business Summit in Honolulu, Hawaii. After the presentation, Franklin and Alex also hosted a legal Q&A session for contractors of all sizes.

Section 8(a) of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958 authorizes the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) to enter into prime contracts with federal agencies and to subcontract the performance of the contract to qualified small businesses. As most are aware, the 8(a) program is designed to assist “socially and economically disadvantaged small business” concerns that are owned by one or more individuals who are from a socially and economically disadvantaged group and whose management and daily operations are controlled by such individuals. 15 U.S.C. § 637(a)(4)(A)-(B). Included in the definition of “socially and economically disadvantaged groups” are, among others, Indian tribes, Native Hawaiians, and Alaskan Natives, which allows each “maximum practical opportunities” to participate in the government contracting market. But in so doing, those companies must stomach the good with the bad, i.e., they must be prepared to (a) navigate the thicket of regulatory hurdles required to do business with the government and (b) combat potential allegations of fraud if there is a perception that one or more of those hurdles has not been cleared successfully.
Continue Reading Alutiiq False Claims Act Settlement Highlights Significant Government Contract Compliance Risks for Tribal, NHO, and ANC 8(a) Subsidiaries