1. Small Business Set-Aside Policies & Procedures National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Acquisition and Grants Office Oversight and Compliance Branch

2. Agenda General Requirements Small Business Set-Aside At/Below and Above Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) Distinguishing SB Set-Aside Rules At/Below and Above SAT Helpful Hints for SB Set-Aside Actions Cooperation with Small Business Programs Socioeconomic Firms 2

3. General Requirements Contracting Officers shall set aside an individual acquisition or class of acquisitions for competition among small businesses when assuring that a fair proportion of Government contracts in each industry category is placed with small businesses concerns; and circumstances described in FAR 19.502-2 or 19.502- 3(a) exist. 3

4. Small Business Set-Aside At or Below SAT The contracting officer shall set aside acquisitions at or below the SAT ($150,000) for exclusively small business participation where there is reasonable expectation. FAR 19.502-2(a) states – “Offers will be obtained from at least two or more responsible small business concerns that are competitive in terms of market prices, quality, and delivery.” 4

5. Small Business Set-Aside Above SAT The contracting officer shall set aside any acquisition above the SAT ($150,000) for small business participation when there is a reasonable expectation. FAR 19.502(b) states -- 1.Offers will be obtained from at least two responsible small business concerns; and 2.Award will be made at fair market prices. If the acquisition is for a product (manufactured item), the small business must be offering the products of a small business manufacturer unless the SBA has granted either a waiver or exception to the non-manufacturer rule. (Ref FAR 19.502(c) ) 5

6. Distinguishing SB Set-Aside Rules At/Below and Above SAT Acquisitions below the SAT are automatically reserved exclusively for small business unless the contracting officer determines there is not a reasonable expectation of obtaining offers from two or more. Acquisitions at or above the SAT are set-aside, if the rule of two is met. The rule of two is met when there are two or more responsible small businesses that can provide the products of U.S. small firms. 6

7. Helpful Hints What happens if the contracting officer receives only one offer from a responsible small business concern? The contracting officer should make an award to that business. (FAR 19.502-2(a)) What happens if the contracting officer receives no acceptable offers from a responsible small business concern? The set-aside shall be withdrawn and re- solicited on an unrestricted basis. (FAR 19.502- 2(a)) 7

8. Helpful Hints Below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold – Always Set Aside for SB Unless -- Delivery Orders under indefinite delivery contracts (FAR 16.5); or Requirements currently being performed by an 8(a) participant or requirements SBA has accepted for performance under the authority of the 8(a) Program, unless SBA has consented to release the requirements from the 8(a) Program. 8

9. Small Business Programs The FAR requires the contracting officer to provide for maximum practicable opportunities in its acquisitions to small business, veteran small business, service-disable veteran- owned small business, HUBZone small business, small disadvantage business, and woman-owned small business concerns. (FAR 19.201(a)) The FAR states there is no order of precedence among the 8(a) Program (FAR Subpart 19.8), HUBZone Program, Service Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Procurement Program, or the Women-Owned Small Business Program. (Ref FAR 19.203(a)) 9

10. Cooperation with Small Business Administration The determination to make a small business set-aside may be unilateral or joint. A unilateral determination is one that is made by the contracting officer. A joint determination is one that is recommended by the Small Business Administration (SBA) procurement center representative (or, if a procurement center representative is not assigned, see FAR 19.402(a)) and concurred in by the contracting officer. FAR 19.501(b) 10

11. Socioeconomic Firms In determining which socioeconomic program to use for an acquisition, the contracting officer should be considering, at a minimum: Results of market research that was done to determine if there are socioeconomic firms capable of satisfying the agency’s requirements; and Agency progress in fulfilling its small business goals. 11

12. Questions?? 12