Subcontractor Protection Act

Subcontractor Protection Act - Amends the Small Business Act to require a Federal agency to include in contracts awarded pursuant to a subcontracting plan calling for the maximum practicable opportunity for participation by small businesses owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals (qualified small businesses) a clause providing for the withholding of a specified amount or percentage of the total contract if the contractor does not achieve the percentage goal for the utilization of the qualified small businesses. Directs the awarding agency to require the contractor to provide written justification for not entering into a subcontract as required under the plan. Directs the Small Business Administration (SBA) to establish a telephone line or other electronic means of communication through which a qualified small business may inform the SBA of any concerns regarding major deviations by prime contractors from the use of such qualified small businesses.

Requires the consideration of the use of such qualified small businesses as subcontractors when determining a contractor's past compliance with other subcontracting plans.

[Congressional Bills 108th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 1217 Introduced in House (IH)]






108th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 1217

To amend the Small Business Act to provide a penalty for the failure by 
a Federal contractor to subcontract with small businesses as described 
          in its subcontracting plan, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                             March 11, 2003

   Mr. Wynn introduced the following bill; which was referred to the 
                      Committee on Small Business

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To amend the Small Business Act to provide a penalty for the failure by 
a Federal contractor to subcontract with small businesses as described 
          in its subcontracting plan, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

     This Act may be cited as the ``Subcontractor Protection Act''.

SEC. 2. IMPLEMENTATION OF SUBCONTRACTING PLANS.

     Section 8(d) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)) is 
amended by adding at the end the following new paragraphs:
    ``(12) In the case of any contract containing a subcontracting plan 
included pursuant to paragraph (4) or (5), the following provisions 
apply:
    ``(A) The Federal agency awarding the contract shall include in the 
contract a clause providing for the withholding of not less than (i) 
$5,000 in the case of a contract in the amount of $100,000 or less, 
(ii) 3 percent of the contract amount in the case of a contract in an 
amount of more than $100,000 and less than $5,000,000, and (iii) 5 
percent of the contract amount in the case of a contract in an amount 
of $5,000,000 or more, if the contractor does not achieve the 
percentage goal for the utilization of small business concerns owned 
and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals 
as set forth in the subcontracting plan.
    ``(B) The Federal agency awarding the contract shall require the 
contractor to provide written justification to the agency whenever the 
contractor, in performing the contract, does not enter into a 
subcontract with, or substitutes another subcontractor for, a specific 
small business concern identified in the subcontracting plan.
    ``(13) The Administration shall establish a telephone line or other 
electronic means of communication through which any small business 
concern identified in a subcontracting plan by an offeror or bidder may 
communicate to the Administration any concerns regarding major 
deviations by prime contractors from the use of small business concerns 
as subcontractors under the prime contract as described in 
subcontracting plans.''.

SEC. 3. REQUIREMENT TO CONSIDER USE OF SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS OWNED 
              AND CONTROLLED BY SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED 
              INDIVIDUALS WHEN CONSIDERING PAST COMPLIANCE WITH 
              SUBCONTRACTING PLANS.

     Paragraphs (4)(C) and (5)(B) of section 8(d) of the Small Business 
Act (15 U.S.C. 637(d)) are each amended in the second sentence by 
inserting ``, especially compliance with the goal set forth in such 
plans for the utilization of small business concerns owned and 
controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals,'' 
after ``other such subcontracting plans''.
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