NEWS | What Small Business Should Know on the Latest Federal Government Contracting Updates
- NSBA
- Sep 29
- 2 min read
Shifting rules and regulations can be costly to small business owners and their federal contracting - check out the latest, and stay ahead of big changes with NSBA's Regulatory Rundown.
The FAR Overhaul
On Friday, September 26, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council released its overhauled version of FAR Part 19, the regulatory framework for small business procurement and acquisition programs, as part of the Trump Administration's "Revolutionary FAR Overhaul" initiative. As the Administration contemplated the overhaul of FAR Part 19, NSBA was engaged in conversations on certain priority issues, two of which are outlined below.
"Rule of Two": The overhauled version of Part 19 retains the Rule of Two for contracts above the micro-purchase threshold (MPT) and simplified acquisition threshold (SAT). For orders, the overhauled Part 19 reaffirms that the Rule of Two does not apply, but authorizes contracting officers to, at their discretion, set aside orders placed under multiple-award contracts (MACs). It also clarifies that a contracting officer's decision to set aside (or not set aside) an order placed under a MAC is an exercise of discretion and not a basis for protest.
Key takeaway: The preservation of Rule of Two, the foundation for small business prime contracting, is a win.
Small Business Subcontracting: It appears that the overhauled version of Part 19 generally retains the statutory requirements for small business subcontracting plans that establish goals for small business subcontracting and describe how the contractor plans to achieve those goals. Additionally, the Small Business Subcontracting Plans sections of the overhauled Part 19 appear to retain provisions outlining what it means to be in compliance with subcontracting plans.
Furthermore, NSBA appreciates that the FAR Council highlighted that Part 19 "reinforces that it is the Government's policy to provide maximum practicable opportunities in its acquisition to small business, 8(a) participants, and other small business socioeconomic categories (i.e., Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (VOSBs), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs), HUBZone, Small Disadvantaged Businesses (SDBs), and Women-Owned Small Businesses (WOSBs)." The overhauled Part 19 appears to streamline the requirements associated with these procurement programs, and NSBA is monitoring how Part 19 will impact these categories.
A summary of the changes to Part 19 is available here.
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CMMC
On September 9, the Department of Defense (DoD) released the final Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) rule implementing the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Program. The purpose of CMMC is to ensure that defense contractors properly safeguard DoD federal contract information (FCI) and controlled unclassified information (CUI). The federal register notice is available here.
The final rule takes effect on November 10, which will launch a three-year rollout of cybersecurity requirements across DoD contracts. More information from the DoD Office of Small Business Programs is available here.
