Monbo, a Maryland-based Federal Contractor and Economically Disadvantaged Women Small Owned Business (WOSB), is taking on the government in a bold legal challenge. Monbo is protesting a recent decision by the Defense Health Agency’s Medical & Education Training Campus (METC) to flip a contract traditionally set aside for WOSBs to one exclusively for 8(a) firms—a move they say lacks a rational basis and contravenes procurement law.
For over a decade, this contract for advisory and program management support has been reserved for WOSBs, providing critical opportunities for women entrepreneurs. But just days before Thanksgiving 2024, METC issued a new solicitation that shuts WOSBs out, restricting eligibility to 8(a) firms who are General Services Administration (GSA) schedule holders.
Monbo argues the government’s move violates federal statutes and risks displacing their team of skilled professionals. With this legal protest, this WOSB not just fighting for their business but for fair access to federal contracts for all women entrepreneurs.
This case, now before the U.S. Court of Federal Claims, could set a precedent for how agencies balance equity in procurement policies. No award has ben made yet – Monbo is calling on the government to revisit this requirement and to reinstate the WOSB set-aside.
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