[Congressional Bills 114th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 958 Reported in Senate (RS)]
Calendar No. 106
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 958
To amend the Small Business Act to provide for team and joint venture
offers for certain contracts.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
April 15, 2015
Mr. Enzi (for himself and Mr. Casey) introduced the following bill;
which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Small Business
and Entrepreneurship
June 10, 2015
Reported by Mr. Vitter, with an amendment
[Strike out all after the enacting clause and insert the part printed
in italic]
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Small Business Act to provide for team and joint venture
offers for certain contracts.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
<DELETED>SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.</DELETED>
<DELETED> This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Fairness
Act''.</DELETED>
<DELETED>SEC. 2. JOINT VENTURING AND TEAMING.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (a) Joint Venture Offers for Bundled or Consolidated
Contracts.--Section 15(e)(4) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
644(e)(4)) is amended to read as follows:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(4) Contract teaming.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--In the case of a
solicitation of offers for a bundled or consolidated
contract that is issued by the head of an agency, a
small business concern may submit an offer that
provides for use of a particular team of subcontractors
or a joint venture of small business concerns for the
performance of the contract.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Evaluation of offers.--The head of
an agency shall evaluate the offer of a team or a joint
venture of small business concerns submitted under
subparagraph (A) in the same manner as other offers,
with due consideration to the capabilities of all of
the proposed subcontractors or members of the joint
venture.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) Teams.--When evaluating an
offer of a small business prime contractor that
includes a proposed team of subcontractors, the
head of the agency shall consider the
capabilities and past performance of each first
tier subcontractor that is part of the team as
the capabilities and past performance of the
team.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) Joint ventures.--When
evaluating an offer of a joint venture of small
business concerns, if the joint venture does
not have sufficient capabilities or past
performance to be considered for award of a
contract opportunity, the head of the agency
shall consider the capabilities and past
performance of each member of the joint venture
as the capabilities and past performance of the
joint venture.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(C) Status as a small business
concern.--Participation of a small business concern in
a team or a joint venture under this paragraph shall
not affect the status of that concern as a small
business concern with respect to the performance of a
contract described in subparagraph (A).''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (b) Team and Joint Venture Offers for Multiple Award
Contracts.--Section 15(q)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C.
644(q)(1)) is amended--</DELETED>
<DELETED> (1) in the heading, by inserting ``and joint
venture'' before ``requirements'';</DELETED>
<DELETED> (2) by striking ``Each Federal agency'' and
inserting the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(A) In general.--Each Federal agency'';
and</DELETED>
<DELETED> (3) by adding at the end the following:</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(B) Teams.--When evaluating an offer of
a small business prime contractor that includes a
proposed team of subcontractors for any multiple award
contract above the substantial bundling threshold of
the Federal agency, the head of the Federal agency
shall consider the capabilities and past performance of
each first tier subcontractor that is part of the team
as the capabilities and past performance of the
offeror.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(C) Joint ventures.--When evaluating an
offer of a joint venture of small business concerns for
any multiple award contract above the substantial
bundling threshold of the Federal agency, if the joint
venture does not have sufficient capabilities or past
performance to be considered for award of a contract
opportunity, the head of the Federal agency shall
consider the capabilities and past performance of each
member of the joint venture as the capabilities and
past performance of the joint venture.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(D) Use of small business teams or joint
ventures.--</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(i) In general.--For contracts
awarded under section 8(a), 8(m), 15(a), 15(j),
31, or 36 to a team of small business prime
contractors and subcontractors or a joint
venture of small business concerns, the
contracting officer shall certify annually to
the Administration, for each year the contract
is in effect, that each small business concern
member of the team or joint venture has the
same status of a small business concern, small
business concern owned and controlled by
service-disabled veterans, qualified HUBZone
small business concern, small business concern
owned and controlled by socially and
economically disadvantaged individuals, or
small business concern owned and controlled by
women, as applicable, that such concern had at
the time the contract was awarded.</DELETED>
<DELETED> ``(ii) Exception.--The
requirements of clause (i) shall not apply to a
contract awarded to a joint venture of small
business concerns that is a protege under a
mentor-protege program approved pursuant to
section 45.''.</DELETED>
<DELETED> (c) Rulemaking.--Not later than 1 year after the date of
enactment of this section, the Administrator of the Small Business
Administration shall issue any regulations necessary to carry out the
amendments made by this section.</DELETED>
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Small Business Fairness Act''.
SEC. 2. JOINT VENTURING AND TEAMING.
(a) Joint Venture Offers for Bundled or Consolidated Contracts.--
Section 15(e)(4) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(e)(4)) is
amended to read as follows:
``(4) Contract teaming.--
``(A) In general.--In the case of a solicitation of
offers for a bundled or consolidated contract that is
issued by the head of an agency, a small business
concern may submit an offer that provides for use of a
particular team of subcontractors or a joint venture of
small business concerns for the performance of the
contract.
``(B) Evaluation of offers.--
``(i) In general.--The head of an agency
shall evaluate the offer of a team or a joint
venture of small business concerns submitted
under subparagraph (A) in the same manner as
other offers, with due consideration to the
capabilities of all of the proposed
subcontractors or members of the joint venture.
``(ii) Teams.--When evaluating an offer of
a small business prime contractor that includes
a proposed team of subcontractors, the head of
the agency shall consider the capabilities,
prior experience, and past performance of the
prime contractor and each first tier
subcontractor that is part of the team as the
capabilities, prior experience, and past
performance of the team.
``(iii) Joint ventures.--When evaluating an
offer of a joint venture of small business
concerns, if the joint venture does not have
sufficient capabilities, prior experience, or
past performance to be considered for award of
a contract opportunity, the head of the agency
shall consider the capabilities, prior
experience, and past performance of each member
of the joint venture as the capabilities, prior
experience, and past performance of the joint
venture.
``(C) Status as a small business concern.--
Participation of a small business concern in a team or
a joint venture under this paragraph shall not affect
the status of that concern as a small business concern
with respect to the performance of a contract described
in subparagraph (A).''.
(b) Team and Joint Venture Offers for Multiple Award Contracts.--
Section 15(q)(1) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644(q)(1)) is
amended--
(1) in the heading, by inserting ``and joint venture''
before ``requirements'';
(2) by striking ``Each Federal agency'' and inserting the
following:
``(A) In general.--Each Federal agency''; and
(3) by adding at the end the following:
``(B) Teams.--When evaluating an offer of a small
business prime contractor that includes a proposed team
of subcontractors for any multiple award contract above
the substantial bundling threshold of the Federal
agency, the head of the Federal agency shall consider
the capabilities, prior experience, and past
performance of the prime contractor and each first tier
subcontractor that is part of the team as the
capabilities, prior experience, and past performance of
the team.
``(C) Joint ventures.--When evaluating an offer of
a joint venture of small business concerns for any
multiple award contract above the substantial bundling
threshold of the Federal agency, if the joint venture
does not have sufficient capabilities, prior
experience, or past performance to be considered for
award of a contract opportunity, the head of the
Federal agency shall consider the capabilities, prior
experience, and past performance of each member of the
joint venture as the capabilities, prior experience,
and past performance of the joint venture.
``(D) Use of small business teams or joint
ventures.--
``(i) In general.--For contracts awarded
under section 8(a), 8(m), 15(a), 15(j), 31, or
36 to a team of small business prime
contractors and subcontractors or a joint
venture of small business concerns, the
contracting officer shall certify annually to
the Administration, for each year the contract
is in effect, that each small business concern
member of the team or joint venture has the
same status of a small business concern, small
business concern owned and controlled by
service-disabled veterans, qualified HUBZone
small business concern, small business concern
owned and controlled by socially and
economically disadvantaged individuals, or
small business concern owned and controlled by
women, as applicable, that such concern had at
the time the contract was awarded.
``(ii) Exception.--The requirements of
clause (i) shall not apply to a contract
awarded to a joint venture of small business
concerns that is a protege under a mentor-
protege program approved pursuant to section
45.''.
(c) Rulemaking.--Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment
of this Act, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration
shall issue any regulations necessary to carry out the amendments made
by this section.
Calendar No. 106
114th CONGRESS
1st Session
S. 958
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To amend the Small Business Act to provide for team and joint venture
offers for certain contracts.
_______________________________________________________________________
June 10, 2015
Reported with an amendment