Notice to Vendors Regarding Sequestration
On March 1st, as required by law, the President issued a sequestration order canceling approximately $85 billion in budgetary resources across the Federal government for the remainder of Fiscal Year 2013. Within the Department of Justice, sequestration will result in a reduction of over $1.6 billion from the Fiscal Year 2013 funding level. Vendors should be aware that the budget cuts imposed by sequestration may impact existing contracts/orders and will likely affect the award of new contracts/orders.
The Department is taking every step to mitigate the effects of these cuts; however, based on our initial analysis, reductions to expenditures under certain contracts/orders may be necessary. New awards will not be made or options exercised unless they are absolutely necessary to protect our mission-critical operations. Vendors with existing contracts with the Department will be notified by their contracting officer as soon as we determine the specific contracts/orders subject to reduction as well as the extent of the reduction. Please note that reductions to expenditures could be accomplished in a variety of ways, including, but not limited to: price reduction, scope reduction, reduced level of effort, determination to not exercise an option; delay or cancellation of new work, or partial or complete termination for convenience.
Your patience and understanding is appreciated as we work through these challenges.
Management and oversight of acquisition in the Department of Justice is the responsibility of the Chief Acquisition Officer. The Justice Management Division's Services and Initiatives page provides information to help the contractor navigate the contracting process.
You may also find agency-specific information on the following procurement sites:
- Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives: Acquisition and Business Opportunities
- Drug Enforcement Administration: Office of Acquisition Management
- Federal Bureau of Investigation: Business Opportunities
- Federal Bureau of Prisons: Doing Business
- Federal Prison Industries/UNICOR: Procurement
- Justice Management Division, Procurement Services Staff
- Office of the Federal Detention Trustee: Procurement
- Office of the Inspector General: Contracting Opportunities
- United States Marshals Service: Doing Business
The DOJ agencies listed below also have sites that provide grant information specific to that agency. Examples of what can be found on these sites are programs, funding opportunities, application assistance, and other useful information.
- Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA)
- Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)
- National Criminal Justice Reference Service (NCJRS)
- National Institute of Justice (NIJ)
- Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP)
- Office of Sex Offender Sentencing, Monitoring, Apprehending, Registering, and Tracking (SMART)
- Office for Victims of Crime (OVC)
The Department of Justice posts all of its open market solicitations for requirements over $25,000 in value on the Federal Business Opportunities web site – FedBizOpps.gov. FedBizOpps.gov has been designated as the single source for Federal government procurement opportunities exceeding $25,000. It provides the public with access to procurement policies, solicitations, drawings, and amendments. Vendors can browse the listings and can also register to receive automatic e-mail notification of business opportunities.
The Department of Justice sales include the National Sellers List, offering property for sale to the public and the UNICOR Sales Catalog, offering goods and services for sale to the Federal Government.
The Department of Justice's Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) is focused on increasing contracting opportunities for small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses, women-owned small businesses, and service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses as prime contractors and subcontractors.
Department of Justice Non-Retaliation Policy
The Office of the National Ombudsman of the U.S. Small Business Administration has asked all Federal agencies to make clear that, if a small business entity requests Ombudsman assistance on a matter or otherwise questions or complains about a Federal agency action, the agency will not retaliate in response. The Department of Justice is committed to fair regulatory enforcement practices, supports the right of the regulated community to raise concerns about regulatory enforcement actions without the fear of retaliation, and will investigate any allegations of retaliation and take appropriate corrective action to ensure it is not repeated. However, while the Department will investigate any allegation of retaliation, a complaint to the Ombudsman will not stop or delay investigations and legal or administrative proceedings as part of the Department's ongoing responsibility to enforce Federal laws. Small businesses regulated by the Department may direct comments regarding regulatory enforcement actions to the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act (SBREFA) point-of-contact. The list of agency SBREFA contacts may be found on the Small Business Administration’s Office of the National Ombudsman’s (SBA/ONO) website.
Alternatively, small businesses may choose to contact the SBA/ONO directly by calling 1-888-REG-FAIR (1-888-734-3247), or visiting the Ombudsman’s website.
