LaLota and Thanedar Introduce Bipartisan Bill to Simplify Federal Contracts and Increase Opportunities for Small Businesses

WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today, Rep. Nick LaLota (R-NY), the Chair of the Small Business Subcommittee on Contracting and Infrastructure, and Rep. Shri Thanedar (D-MI) introduced the bipartisan Plain Language in Contracting Act. This bill aims to ensure that federal contracting opportunities are written in plain language, making it easier for small businesses to secure government contracts.

“Government bureaucracy and red tape have held back countless small businesses nationwide for too long. Small businesses should have the same opportunities as large businesses with access to high-price lawyers,” said LaLota. “By simplifying the contracting process, we can provide more opportunities to mom-and-pop shops across the United States. Small businesses are the backbone of this nation’s economy, and we should be doing everything we can to support them.”

To read the full text of this legislation, click HERE.

Background:

Earlier this year, LaLota and Thanedar’s DOE and SBA Research Act unanimously passed the House. The bill would support increased joint research and development activities between the Department of Energy (DOE), National Laboratories, including Brookhaven National Laboratory, and the Small Business Administration.

Small businesses generally do not have access to the armies of lawyers and specialists that large companies employ when seeking federal contracts. The number of small businesses winning government contracts continues to decrease. The burdensome contracting process discourages many successful small businesses from even bidding on one. The smaller number of small businesses participating in contracting is, in part, exacerbated by the extremely difficult-to-understand language in government contract solicitations. While existing contractors have been forced to become accustomed to this language, the barrier it creates significantly hurts small businesses deciding to compete for a government contract for the very first time.

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