This week FBO.gov moved to beta.SAM.gov and it has been a challenge to keep up with performance and lack of functionality.
The GSA integrates ten websites based on acquisitions into SAM.gov. Such sites include FedBizOpps, as well as the existing Award Management System (AMS), the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS), the grants site Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA), Wage Determinations Online (WDOL), the Electronic Subcontracting Reporting System (ESRS), the Federal Awardee Quality and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS); Contractor Performance Assessment Reports System, CPARS; and Past Performance Information Retrieval System, PPIRS; and the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, FFATA.
Upon completion of the upgrade, it will be a single sign-on website, a powerful search tool, a comprehensive reporting system, and a workspace where users can access the data and resources they need to create, collect and handle federal awards (SAM.gov).
What is FBO?
FBO (commonly known as FedBizOpps) is how federal government contracting agencies post notices on planned contract activities (valued at over $25,000). Such announcements or purchase opportunities contain applications, pre-requests, sole source justifications, and other notifications. Those involved in government business can use FBO (www.fbo.gov) to learn about the opportunities available.
The following information is provided for each contract opportunity found on the FBO:
- The original notice date and any amendments
- An overview of the notice and contracting agency
- Any related attachments or external links
- Instructions on how to submit a response, offer or proposal
- The date on which responses are due
FBO was your Federal Business Opportunities source for now and has fully transitioned, for all your contracting needs, you will be pointed directly to beta.SAM.gov.
Although slow, beta.SAM.gov is up and running.
You currently don’t need a user account to look at contract opportunities. However, you will be able to access additional features in future releases — such as saving searches, adding yourself to the Interested Vendors List of an event, and signing up for regular opportunities updates— when logged in. In the coming months, the ability to create user accounts will be available.
What is beta.SAM.gov?
The General Services Administration (GSA) merges the current legacy sites into a single system. In naming beta.SAM.gov, GSA chooses to use the word beta to differentiate it from the original SAM.gov legacy web. Although parts of the website are official, others are the only demonstration and continue to be supported on one of the original websites of GSA.
The most important thing that is missing until next year, is the ability to schedule saved searches to be emailed to you. This means….you have to log in every time to get the results of your saved search. Every time you login you need a code sent to your phone. Painful but change is inevitable.
This blog was written by Linda Rawson, who is the founder of DynaGrace Enterprises (dynagrace.com) and the inventor of WeatherEgg (weatheregg.com). She, along with her daughter, Jennifer Remund make up the mother-daughter duo of 2BizChicks (2Bizchicks.com). For further information, please connect with Linda on LinkedIn, or contact her at (800) 676-0058 ext 101.
Please reach out to us at GovCon-Biz should you have any questions.
