The Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) published a Pre-Solicitation Notice for the National Multiple Award Environmental Sampling and Remediation Services IDIQ Contract listing the NAICS code for this procurement as 562910 with a small business size standard of $25M. SEBAC sent a letter noting that we recognize that the application of the 562910 NAICS code is in this case inappropriate, as this proposed pre-solicitation is for environmental remediation services, and requested that BIA change the NAICS code for 562910 to classify as a small business by the employee count at 1,000.

USEPA RAF contracting under Region 5 solicited small businesses under an RFI for this site. Several SEBAC member companies responded to this RFI with clear evidence that the task order should be competed among only the small businesses holding the RES contract in CLIN 0002. When the solicitation was announced, EPA released it as an Unrestricted solicitation which included large business contract holders along with small businesses. SEBAC sent an email asking EPA to explain how, with the number of small businesses submitting qualifications that match the requirements, EPA still determined that the solicitation should be open to large businesses. EPA Region 5 responded stating that after going back and reviewing the responses to the RFI, this task order will now be set aside for small businesses and Amendment 0001 was issued to that effect. 

SEBAC letter was sent to express concern regarding the requirement threshold outlined in item (6) Types of Contracts. Click here for the letter. The Contracting Officer with the Omaha District responded in an email stating: “Thank you for the letter and for the informative response related to Small Business impacts. Much discussion has occurred related to the requirement posted in the Sources Sought. The information included was provided to us by the customer and PM who do expect several large dollar projects simultaneously. We understand the Small Business community within this field is very capable of performing work that may be considered under a future IDIQ resulting from this Market Research, and we will work with our Government Small Business teammates to ensure the requirements within any resulting RFP aren’t overly restrictive and are in line with future requirements expected”.

SEBAC letter was sent to express concern regarding the inclusion of Large Business contractors as Primes for the Architect-Engineering Services to Support the U.S. Air Force Mission and AFCEC Environmental Program Worldwide AEES2023 (follow on to AE13ES) and to request that the AEES2023 contract be set aside for eligible Small Businesses. We provided multiple Sources Sought responses to the recent AFCEC Market Research requests showing there is both sufficient capacity and capability within the Small Business community to perform all four Functional Areas in support of the AEES2023 contract. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC requested that GSA re-evaluate the minimum annual value for QPs submitted to the R&D SB domain and adjust this value to align with the other GSA SB domain minimum annual values and typical industry funding: suggested lowering the R&D SB QP minimum annual value to $250,000, which is more consistent with the current OASIS SB Pool 4 contract and with industry practices and this will promote competition from SBs and socioeconomic SBs in this domain and provide the government buyers with access to a qualified pool of contractors to support the comprehensive R&D opportunities for the OASIS+ MAC Program. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked that Attachment C “Contractor Evaluations”, which is requesting very specific project details that most large and small businesses likely do not have easily accessible, be removed from the response requirements, and asked that this IDIQ response date be extended to two weeks after the remaining responses to questions are posted. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked that the Tulsa District provide an extension to the proposal response date to allow the Tulsa District to answer the questions and align this RFP with the due date for the Unrestricted MEGA IDC MATOC for ERS which is currently due December 7, 2021, due to the fact that the RFP was issued on March 26, 2021, the current response date is November 16, 2021, and inquiries for this opportunity are collected via Bidder Inquiry in ProjNet, and to-date, there are more than 60 questions from the small business community that have gone unanswered since August 30, 2021 impacting the government’s ability to conduct a timely and equitable evaluation of proposals. Tulsa District responded by extending the due date to January 11, 2022! Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked this IDIQ remain a Small Business set-aside as it has been in the past, noting that: “Representing a number of small businesses that meet the requirements under NAICS 562211 and offer the skills necessary to successfully complete this work, we encourage DLA to allow this to remain within the small business community”. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC noted that this RFP is well suited for Small Businesses under 562910, but for 8(a) companies not in joint ventures, the criteria are misaligned with the SBA’s 8(a) Business Development program, such that the current 8(a) sole source maximum is only $4M, and to have two completed projects equal to or greater than $4M is the amount of two entire IDIQ sole source contracts for an 8(a) company. SEBAC asked the Omaha District that the experience requirements criteria be revisited and aligned with 8(a) firm capabilities, specifically, the $4M value on past experience should be revised to not more than $2M, and this request was granted! Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked that USAF/AFICA consider a total small business set-aside IDIQ under NAICS 562910 for Environmental Remediation and Fuels (broad scope which falls under the definitions used in the WERC 09 IDIQ SOW). Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked that the USACE Baltimore District revise the NAICS code specified for the subject solicitation, adding that SEBAC’s position is that this procurement should be classified under NAICS 562910, “Environmental Remediation Services” with a size standard of 750 employees, and this request was granted! Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked that the Army National Guard set this procurement aside for the small business community as a 100% Small Business set aside under the prescribed NAICS code. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC requested 100% Small Business set aside for this notice. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC voiced disagreement with some of the requirements of this solicitation. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC voiced disagreement with recent SBA interpretation of the Small Business Act and associated application to CFR 124.501(k). Click here for the letter.

SEBAC requested that the planned acquisition referenced above be fully set‐aside only for SB/SDB concerns, and that large business concerns be excluded from this acquisition. Click here for the letter.

From a SEBAC member

“I am following up on our call from a couple of months ago regarding the re-compete for the FUDSChem database management (EMSS II) procurement. After the sources sought which was put out solely under IT, the solicitation ultimately came out as a HUBZone set-aside split between two GSA schedules (IT and ENV). It was exactly what we were hoping for, and we were successful in our bid.  Thank you for your time and support, and for the support of SEBAC!”

SEBAC expressed support of changes to subparts 9.1 (Responsible Prospective Contractors), 15.3 (Source Selection), 19.3 (Determination of Small Business Status for Small Business Programs), and 19.8 (Contracting with Small Business). Click here for the Comments.

SEBAC requested USCE Huntsville Center to consider revising the requirements for the proposed solicitation to a total small business set aside under NAICS 562910 (750 employees) or 50% of the awards be reserved for small business if the acquisition strategy doesn’t support a total small business set aside. Click here for the letter. 

SEBAC requested USACE Baltimore to consider revising the proposal submittal requirements to take into account the significant restrictions on the environmental industry caused by the COVID-19 virus. Click here for the letter. 

SEBAC asked USACE Baltimore and SBA to consider setting aside two pending Air Force Optimized Remediation Contract (ORC)task orders for small businesses. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC requested the SBA to weigh in on the GSA MAS and support the small business community subject to the 562910 NAICS by providing guidance to GSA on the proper use and application of this size standard. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked EPA to review and revise the process employed during the solicitation for the Emergency and Rapid Response Services (ERRS) contracts. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC requested USACE Sacramento and SBA to reevaluate the need for designating the planned Sacramento $50M ERS contract as an unrestricted solicitation as per the Rule of Two. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked GSA to change the small business size standard basis of $20 million annual revenue for SIN 562910REM to the 750 employee-based size standard for environmental services, consistent with SBA’s definition. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC expressed concerns about an obvious change in support for Small Business participation in a solicitation circulated by the General Services Administration (GSA). The request for proposal (RFP) is for Unrestricted awards for the One Acquisition Solution for Integrated Services (OASIS) Open Season On-Ramp for Pools 1, 3 & 4. This is a Multiple Award (MA), Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Unrestricted opportunity under Solicitation Number GS00Q-13-DR-0001-P1P3P4. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC expressed concerns regarding the Past Performance Experience timeframe criteria when responding to USACE solicitations. Our primary concern is the use of a five-year window for presenting past experience in an industry where major projects of this nature fall off the five-year resume very quickly. Our goal is to expand the past experience timeframe to ten years, not unlike the recent solicitations put out by the Kansas City District for the Welsbach SATOC and the Unrestricted PRAC. Click here for the letter.

On September 18, 2019, a similar letter was sent to the Corps of Engineers, Omaha District. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC expressed concerns regarding the Air Force’s acquisition strategy for the OCONUS PBR Follow On contract for Galena Air Force Station and Kulis Air Base identified in the BRAC BECOS Update presented by Daniel Medina on 14 August 2019 as “Full and Open”. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC asked the SBA weigh in on the Navy’s deliberations relative to this procurement strategy, as this contract is ideally suited for a total Small Business Set-Aside under the SBA Rule of Two. A review of the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) NextGen, of recent and ongoing US Army Corps of Engineers, Department of Energy and NAVFAC contract awards and task orders issued under these contracts will demonstrate a capable pool of contractors to support this effort. Click here for the letter.

SEBAC requested USACE Kansas City and SBA reevaluate the need for two separate acquisitions (given the fact Federal Procurement Data System statistics for these contracts – Pre-Place Remedial Action Contracts (PRACs) – are substantially under-subscribed. We believe the right course of action is a single Small Business PRAC. Click here for the letter.

On March 7, 2019, SEBAC sent individual letters to members of the U.S. House and Senate Small Business Committees urging them to strike from the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) the Panel 809 recommendation to do away with small business set-asides in favor of a 5% price preference. Click here for an example of the letters that were sent. SEBAC members were urged to contact their senators and representatives on this important issue. For more information on the issue, click here for the Koprince Law LLC blog.

RIN 3245-AG86, National Defense Authorization Acts of 2016 and 2017, Recovery Improvements for Small Entities After Disaster Act of 2015, and Other Small Business Government Contracting
Click here for the letter.