U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Procurement and Grants Management, 409 3rd Street, Suite 5000, 5th Floor, Washington, D.C. 20416

R -- SMALL DISADVANTAGED BUSINESS (SDB) CERTIFICATION DUE 052798 POC Deborah M. Woods, Contracting Officer (202) 205-7051 E-MAIL: Deborah.Woods@sba.gov, Deborah.Woods@sba.gov. SOURCES SOUGHT: The U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Minority Enterprise Development (MED) is seeking qualified sources that would be interested in screening and processing applications from firms wanting to be certified as a Small Disadvantaged Business (SDB). OVERVIEW: SBA will approve entities as Private Certifiers to process SDB applications in a timely manner. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR COMPETITIVE PROPOSALS. The purpose of this notice is to develop a list of qualified firms to fulfill the Government's minimum requirements. The SBA desires to enter into a contractual arrangement with an entity which is knowledgeable about and proficient in the evaluation of firms for ownership and control criteria, and knowledgeable of social and economic disadvantage. The Private Certifier's ownership and control determination and case files will be forwarded to the SBA for final determination and certification decision. QUALIFICATIONS: The entity should demonstrate significant experience in several related areas, including reviewing an application for completeness and suitability for processing, organizing an application case file, and determining ownership and control eligibility based on the application and supporting documents. The entity and its key personnel must have a minimum of 3 years' experience in processing applications for social and economic disadvantage and ownership and control criteria; can process a fluctuating volume of applications; use the internet and electronic mail for internal and external communications; have strong customer service skills; and be familiar with federal regulations governing SDB programs. SUBMISSION: Organizations having the required expertise and capabilities are invited to submit (1) complete information describing such capabilities; (2) an outline of specific related experience; (3) business size; and (4) indicate if women-owned, social/economically disadvantaged owned, or certified under SBA's 8(a) program. The information provided will pertain to this synopsis only. Any interested organization must submit the requested information in two copies by 4:00pm on May 27, 1998. The applicable Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Code is 8741, with a size standard of $5 million. The Government does not intend to pay for any information solicited or received. Respondents will not be notified of any conclusions related to the source data received, nor will a source list be provided. No telephone or facsimile responses to this Sources Sought will be accepted. (0128)

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