Flowers to Flooring – the government buys it all. KEDA’s PTAC can help you find your niche.

Kathy Cocus, KEDA Business Development Director and PTAC Program Manager

If you are a minority-owned, woman-owned, and/or service-disabled veteran owned small Kitsap business that provides a product or service, you may have an advantage in government contracting.

Both the federal government and WA state have certifications that can lead to lower competition levels for the products and services you sell. Kitsap County based companies have multiple contracting opportunities with Navy Base Kitsap, Joint Base Lewis-McChord, the Veterans Administration, GSA, NOAA, Army Corps of Engineers, Coast Guard, and many other agencies accessible by ferry or within driving distance. Agencies like Defense Logistics Agency purchases supplies for land, maritime and aviation federal commands that can be shipped from Kitsap to anywhere. If you have a product than can be shipped, you can sell and send it anywhere the government needs it. For those providing services, many of those can be provided remotely, making your delivery opportunities much wider as well.

In 2020, nearly half of the $967M DOD contracts awarded in Kitsap were performed by firms located in Kitsap! Over the past five years, $6.8M in DOD contracts and subcontracts have been awarded to KEDA PTAC clients.

While the DoD and Naval Base Kitsap are responsible for the bulk or our local government contracting opportunities there are numerous other government entities (county, city, port districts, school districts, transit authorities, non-DOD federal, etc.) with business opportunities worth pursuing. In 2020, KEDA PTAC clients were awarded over $80 million in contracts with non-DOD and non-federal agencies. Those new to the business of working with the government do well to start with small works projects or in a subcontracting role. Prime (large) contractors have staff dedicated to ensuring that they meet subcontracting goals.

For those Kitsap companies that are minority-owned, woman-owned, qualify for disadvantages status and/or are service-disabled veteran owned, KEDA’s PTAC program can help you obtain the certifications that decrease the competition in the government marketplace.  Each federal agency has goals in these categories, as do the prime contract holders.

KEDA is partnering with the City of Bremerton’s REAC (Race Equity Advisory Committee) for the September 9th Kitsap BIPOC Business Forum.  This virtual event will feature KEDA PTAC counselors, the WA Office of Minority and Women Business Enterprises and local BIPOC firms doing business with the government.  You can find more details on the KEDA website and calendar for no cost registration. We will talk about the following certifications:

• MBE – Minority Business Enterprise (state)
• WBE – Woman Business Enterprise (state)
• DBE – Disadvantaged Business Enterprise (state)
• WOSB – Woman Owned Small Business (federal)
• 8a – Disadvantaged Small Business (federal)
• SDVOSB – Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (federal)

KEDA’s classes and counseling are provide at NO COST and we offer a variety of government contracting subjects and monthly networking and Q&A Contracting Coffee Hour meetings designed to help novice and experts alike. Currently, KEDA’s PTAC classes are offered virtually. They are posted on the KEDA calendar.  You can also find them on the Washington PTAC calendar.  You can learn more about the PTAC program and access upcoming training, forecasts, and resources at washingtonptac.org . Contact Kathy Cocus 360-377-0180 cocus@kitsapeda.org for more information.

In closing, there are opportunities in government contracting.

• Join KEDA’s PTAC team on September 9th for the Kitsap BIPOC Business Forum
• Register as a WA PTAC client to obtain one-on-one assistance
• Be part of the nearly $7B in contracts won by Kitsap firms in the past year

Hope to “see” you on September 9th!

Procurement Technical Assistance Center is funded in part through a cooperative agreement from the Department of Defense (DOD) through a program that is administered by the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA). The content of any written materials or verbal communications of the PTAC does not necessarily reflect the official views or imply endorsement by DOD or DLA. KEDA is a Washington State PTAC sub-center.