With so much going around lately, the pandemic, President Biden’s second year, and a plan to strengthen the business, you must follow the trends. Likewise, with all the buzz going around, if you’re someone directly or indirectly related to Government contracting, you must know how the Federal Government plans to allocate its funding in 2022. So, here are all the details about what to look for in Government contracting in 2022 – top trends.
What to Look for in Government Contracting in 2022 – Top Trends
Here are the top trends you can expect this year:
Cybersecurity
In 2021, the Government spent $6.82 trillion in Government contracting which is a whopping number. The federal contractors, SBA, and other bodies are sure about making IT infrastructure strong. As a result, the Executive Order (EO) to improve the nation’s cybersecurity and a proposed 2022 IT budget of $109 billion are great.
In addition, the Executive Order is very important for contractors as it requires contractors to improve cybersecurity and software supply chain integrity. A new instruction from NIST and CISA will be needed to enhance the contract language. Some of the trends which we will see in the year are:
- Updating Federal IT Systems
- Strengthening Federal Cybersecurity
- Enhancing the Federal IT Workforce
Allocated budgets for all these areas have been assigned, and cybersecurity and IT will witness huge modifications this year to strengthen it.
Prioritizing Small Businesses
Prioritizing small businesses through several aids and policies has been on the trend for a year. One Fine example is SBA opening 5 new women’s business centers across America. Also, Biden announces an additional $100 billion to SDBs over the next five years. To meet this target, Biden Harris policies are practicing:
- Small Disadvantaged Business set-aside percentages will increase from 10% to 15% by 2025.
- They’re requesting government agencies to push the current statutory goal of 5% of contracting dollars going to SDBs to 11% by the end of FY 2022.
- Altering the federal Government’s use of category management to increase contracting opportunities for underserved small businesses.
Federal Contracting Formalities
The year 2021 had some federal contracting requirements, like the vaccine mandate. This year there’s an executive order on “Ensuring the Future of America is Made in America by All of America’s Workers.” Its emphasis is on homegrown products and services, which will strengthen the American economy. It will directly affect the GSA schedule. So you must keep in touch with these continuously updated guidelines and requirements to avoid penalties.
Infrastructure Bill
The infrastructure bill was quite a buzz last year, and it will affect so many areas of industry, inducing Government contracting. So, in November 2021, Biden announced the $1.2 trillion bipartisan Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act into law. It’s one of the largest bills and will transform many sectors. Along with many infrastructure programs, it also aims to establish:
- Cyber Response and Recovery Fund
- Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA)
- Office of Multimodal Freight Infrastructure and Policy
Linda Rawson, who is the founder of DynaGrace Enterprises (dynagrace.com), an 8(a) graduate and EDWOSB, contributed to the content of this blog. She is the founder of GovCon-Biz. 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.
