Mary-Louise Hoffman
The Professional Services Council, which represents more than 400 U.S. federal contractors, has responded to the Office of Management and Budget’s request for information on what equity assessment practices the government could implement in agency procurement and contracting processes.
PSC said Wednesday the agency should develop baseline measurements, clarify acquisition goals and collect aggregate performance data in efforts to determine how contracts affect underserved businesses.
“Tracking information and data about who is performing work under contracts can serve as a method of accountability, which is needed for successful outcomes,” said Stephanie Kostro, PSC’s executive vice president for policy.
Kostro added that the council fully supports the Biden administration’s move to apply procurement and contracting approaches to diversity, equity and inclusion goals.
Specifically, the trade association called on OMB to compare prime contract dollars with the number of vendors that participate in federal procurement efforts, small business set-aside contracting employment opportunities and subcontracting requirements.
