DOT DBE Recertification Process Streamlined

Beginning January 1, 2008, DOT DBE participants will no longer be required to complete the lengthy recertification application. In the past, every 3 years the applicant was required to complete a recertification application which essentially required the same documentation as the original application. Under new DBE regulations passed in 1999, this was no longer required, and therefore AK DOT streamlined its recertification process and eliminated the paperwork burden for DOT DBE participants.

The new process annually involves completion of the "No Change" affidavit and paperwork that is sent out about 30 days prior to the applicant's anniversary date. The DBE is also required to submit a current employee list designating on-site representatives for the company, current equipment list, and most recent personal and business taxes.

Even though the process has been simplified, applicants need to make sure they submit the required documentation by the deadline or they will have to wait one year from the date of the denial letter to reapply. Meaning, the DBE firm would have to start over and go through the entire certification process again.

ANC 8(a) Applications – Approval Changes

SBA Alaska District appointed Katherine Anderson as the point of contact for review of all new ANC-owned 8(a) applications. The approval process now involves review by Katherine Anderson locally, district review in San Francisco, California, and then headquarters review in Washington D.C.

According to the regulatory timeframe for processing, SBA has 90 days from "receipt of a substantially complete application" to complete all analysis and approvals. Once the initial application review is completed in the Alaska office, generally a 5-7 day review process takes place at each of the subsequent levels for San Francisco and Headquarters. With the addition of a dedicated resource to review new ANC 8(a) applications, the SBA approval process has been accelerated, with some approvals taking as little as 4 months for processing.

INSIGHT: Guide to the 8(a) Business Development Program

SBA has designed a 16-minute, self-paced, online course/presentation that will provide business owners with an overview of the SBA 8(a) business development program. It provides a summary of the program along with links to details of the program. To access this free training course, click here to enter your registration information. Once you register for the online course, the 16-minute audio presentation will begin. Slides are presented that enable you to follow along with the narration.

SBA 8(a) Business Development Self-Assessment Tool

SBA has designed a self-assessment tool that enables business owners to evaluate their suitability for the 8(a) program. While many business owners may be eligible for the program, not all business goals and expectations are compatible with the 8(a) program. This online tool will help you to best determine if you should pursue 8(a) certification. It is designed as a series of yes/no questions regarding your business. Based on your answers, the tool will help you determine if you are eligible and if so, what steps you will need to complete. To access this Self-Assessment Tool, click here.

Alaska Native Corps and Tribes count towards SB and SDB goals regardless of size

Effective as of September 17, 2007, federal regulation, FAR 19.703(c) was implemented so that subcontracts that are awarded to ANCs or Indian tribes will be counted towards small business and small disadvantaged business goals regardless if they are small in that NAICS code. This will be a great marketing tool for ANCs or tribes to offer prime contractors and agencies that may otherwise struggle to meet their small business subcontracting goals.

Indian Incentive Program Update

Appropriations for FY2007 were $8 million with the same amount being predicted for FY2008. Currently, per David Pisano, Policy Analyst for the Indian Incentive Program, the program has become extremely popular.

• All of the monies for FY2008 and FY2009 appropriations will be spent based on pending IIP requests.
• Approximately $2.4 million of FY2010 is already accounted for also.

Future years are pending authorization of appropriations. Various interest groups have lobbied to increase the annual amount from $8 million; but as of date, no increased amounts have been authorized.

Federal Contracting & Database Registrations

Several of the government databases are now becoming mandatory for both contract bidding and award.  These changes have been ongoing since January 2005 with several data fields now being linked between the databases.

• Business Partner Network (BPN) - The new "master" network of data, linking several of the major federal databases.  This network ties together CCR, SBA, ORCA (online reps/certs) and past performance data.  All of the common fields between these databases are supposed to have the same data; however, numerous clients have found errors that occurred during the data merge.  This database is accessed using your MPIN, Marketing Partner ID number.  Read more at http://www.bpn.gov/.
• Central Contractor Registration (CCR) - Registration in this database is required of ALL federal contractors.  Access requires your DUNS # and TPIN (Trading Partner Identification Number, a confidential password) to access and update your profile.  Changes to the CCR profile may not appear for 24 hours.  A new mandatory field created recently is the MPIN, Marketing Partner ID number, which requires users to establish a password.  Read more at http://www.ccr.gov/.
• SBA Database (formerly ProNet) - This is a subset of fields now located within CCR.  These profiles are only required of 8(a)/Hubzone/Small business contractors.  This subset of data is now accessed by clicking the lower left button titled “Dynamic Small Business Search” from the CCR home page.
  • Changes to this profile may take up to 72 hours to appear.
  • Changes are made to area by accessing the CCR profile --- at the end of any updates to your CCR profile, the user will be prompted with a blue SBA logo to go to their SBA profile for updates.
  • To do a Dynamic Small Business Search, click here.
• Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA) - This registration provides federal contractors online representations and certifications replacing the former paper process for federal solicitations and bids. To apply, go to http://orca.bpn.gov/.