The House yesterday passed its version of the 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The Senate is working on its version which is expected to easily pass. Then the bills are off to a joint committee to reconcile or resolve the differences.
Over the past few days, we have been writing about some of the procurement related provisions in the House version. We'll continue that today and for a few more days until we've covered the major procurement provisions. Today we will discuss funding of the Procurement Technical Assistance Centers (PTACs).
The Procurement Technical Assistance program was established to expand the number of businesses capable of participating in Government contracts. It is administered by DLA (Defense Logistics Agency) Office of Small Business in cooperation with states, local governments and nonprofit organizations.
Under the program, Procurement Technical Assistance Centeres (PTACs) help businesses pursue and perform under contracts with the Department of Defense, other federal agencies, state and local governments and with government prime contracts. The services provided by PTACs are free and include registration in SAM (System for Award Management), identification of contract opportunities, help in understanding requirements and in preparing and submitting bids.
Section 859 of the House version of the fiscal year 2019 NDAA would provide PTACs additional resources necessary to conduct greater outreach and provide expanded support to small businesses. It would increase the topline budget for the PTAC program to $50 million. It would increase the funding caps for PTACs operating on a statewide, less than statewide, and eligible tribal locations to $1 million, $750,000, and $450,000 thousand respectively, substantial increases in all categories.
Section 859 would also adjust the percentage of Federal funding for PTACs to 75 percent from 65 percent, and would adjust the community contribution to 25 percent from 35 percent.
For firms unfamiliar with the PTAC program, click here to find your local PTAC. Every state is covered.
No comments:
Post a Comment