Written by: Jon M. DeVore
The Native Hawaiian Organizations Association (NHOA) is sponsoring the 2019 Business Summit Conference on May 21-23, 2019, at the Prince Waikiki Hotel in Honolulu, Hawaii. The NHOA conference will focus on legislative, legal and business issues relevant to small businesses, including SBA 8(a) participants and small businesses owned by veterans, disabled veterans, and women engaged in the federal contracting industry. There are currently 66 Native Hawaiian Organizations that are 8(a) participants and joint ventures identified in the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) Profile that have offices and do business throughout the United States.
Jon DeVore, a shareholder in Birch Horton Bittner & Cherot’s Washington, D.C. office, will join other legal specialists and experts on a panel on May 23rd to discuss the Section 809 Panel’s recommendations related to federal procurement and specifically about how those recommendations might impact small business procurements. The Section 809 Panel was created by the U.S. Congress in a recent National Defense Authorization Act with the mission of reviewing and making recommendations on how federal procurement could be changed to be more efficient and cost effective. Subsequently, the Section 809 Panel has written three volumes of reports with sweeping proposals for change, including a recommendation that Congress eliminate most small business set-asides for Department of Defense acquisitions and replace the longstanding set-aside system with a meager five percent small business price preference.
Among those attending the Conference may be government representatives, large businesses, and representatives of Alaska Native Corporation and Tribe small business companies. Participants will gain valuable insights and hear about real life experiences of working with the federal government and other businesses engaged in similar services. The Conference provides a great opportunity to network with other people, businesses, contracting officers, government representatives and elected representatives in the local, State and Federal governments.