VIENNA, Va.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Small Business Acquisition Reform Commission (SBARC), formed and executed by WashingtonExec, Inc., commends the work of the United States House of Representatives for the passage of the FY2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) on May 18, with a vote of 299-120. The bill (H.R. 4310), which among other reforms requires the Secretary of Defense to establish a pilot program to assist in the growth and development of “advanced” small business concerns (title XVI, Section 1611), represents a necessary step towards maintaining competition, a strong industrial base, and sustainable employment within the small business federal contracting community.
The pilot program, sponsored by Congressman Howard “Buck” McKeon (R-CA), will assist in creating and retaining sustainable jobs nation-wide, encourage competitive efficiencies for lean and effective Federal acquisition, and foster the agility and innovation of small business enterprises as they mature.
The legislation provides that a three-year pilot program will be created within the Department of Defense for “advanced” small businesses. The bill applies to all contracts exceeding $25 million and acknowledges that an “advanced” small business may not necessarily meet current United States Small Business Administration (SBA) size standards.
Greg Baroni, founder, Chairman and CEO of Attain, LLC, said the pilot program, “Presents a viable opportunity for enabling small businesses to positively impact the industrial base, creating sustainable jobs and fueling the engine of American innovation. Passage of the FY2013 NDAA and the DoD pilot is a real win for all stakeholders in the Federal market.”
Shiv Krishnan, founder, President and CEO of INDUS Corp. and former Chairman of the Small and Emerging Contract Advisory Forum (SECAF), said, “Acknowledgement that the current $25 million threshold is impractical is a step in the right direction. I applaud the House of Representatives and the Small Business Committee’s bipartisan leadership for taking action to support the successful and innovative small businesses in America to continue to grow and create jobs. This program will highlight and support all the good that can happen when Federal leaders continue to support small businesses and ‘advanced’ small businesses to help deal with the fiscal challenges that our Government is faced with.”
SBARC previously supported the examination and guidance of small business training for Contracting Officer Representatives (CORs) and Contracting Officer Technical Representatives (COTRs) across all Federal agencies.
Debra Stouffer, Executive Vice President at BRMi, Inc., said, “SBARC is excited to be a strong voice in the continuing effort with United States Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Federal Community to foster greater understanding of Small Businesses and Small Business Programs such as those identified in H.R. 4310.”
The WashingtonExec SBARC encourages United States Senate passage of the H.R. 4310 (S. 3254) and the implementation of the Department of Defense Small Business Pilot Program.
SBARC members include:
Greg Baroni (Chairman), Attain,
LLC
Shiv Krishnan (Vice Chairman), INDUS
Corp.
Debra Stouffer (Chairman, Initiative 1), BRMi,
Inc.
Sid Chowdary, Credence
Management Solutions, LLC
JD Kathuria, WashingtonExec,
Inc.
Roja Kolachina, Synerteq,
Inc.
Veeral Majmudar, Savan
Group, LLC
Manish Malhotra, Unissant,
Inc.
Lisa Martin, LeapFrog
Solutions, Inc.
Sumeet Shrivastava, Array
Information Technology, Inc.
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About SBARC: The Small Business Acquisition Reform Commission (SBARC) was established in 2011 as a results-based and outcome-oriented initiative of the WashingtonExec Federal Business Council (FBC). The volunteer organization was created to ensure small business contractors not only survive, but also thrive in a highly competitive and dynamic government marketplace. SBARC operates in partnership with the Small and Emerging Contractors Advisory Forum (SECAF).