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Tracking the Obama Stimulus Dollars

By passing the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA), the Administration and Congress have recognized that technology must play a key role in the revival of our economy. Technology will drive new solutions to the challenges we face in education, healthcare and energy that will create new jobs in the short term and assure economic growth and competitiveness for the long term. Following are a series of resources to help technology companies understand the implementation of this landmark legislation and to find opportunities to support federal, state and local government agencies in their efforts to realize recovery for America.

Resources

www.recovery.gov

The centerpiece of the Administration's Stimulus website features information on how the ARRA's progressing while providing current data on the expenditure of Recovery Act funds. Information on States includes State recovery and certification sites and progress report on State actions and resources.

The ARRA website features investments in key areas that will save or create jobs in the short-term, while also laying the groundwork for long-term economic growth. Among the investments being tracked: infrastructure and science; education and training; health care; energy; and, state and local fiscal relief.

• Public Law 111-5, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA)
• OMB's guidance for implementation of the ARRA
• OMB's additional guidance for implementation of the ARRA
• OMB Guidance on Allowing State Administrative Costs

ARRA Interim Regulatory Rules Effective March 31:

• Buy America Requirement for Construction Material
• Reporting Requirements
• GAO/IG Access
• Publicizing Contract Actions
• Whistleblower Protections
• TechAmerica/Hogan & Hartson analysis of ARRA Interim FAR Clauses
• TechAmerica/INPUT Economic Stimulus Package: Federal, State, Local Technology Opportunities Program - May 21 in Chicago, IL

www.fbo.gov

Federal Business Opportunities ("FedBizOpps") provides a single point of entry through which commercial vendors and Federal Government buyers post, search, monitor, and receive information on all Government opportunities solicited by the Federal contracting community. FedBizOpps maintains a comprehensive listing of all Government procurement opportunities, including those funded through the ARRA. This information is sorted by: agency and type or classification, NAICS code, and Recovery Act actions and awards. Federal agencies use this site to communicate their buying requirements to potential suppliers.

www.grants.gov

This website provides a list of Federal grant opportunities and provides information on registering, applying for, and tracking ARRA opportunities. The Grants.gov Quarterly Stakeholder Webcast is a quarterly meeting where applicants and grantors are provided information regarding the Grants.gov program. These grant programs serve as primary vehicles for disbursement of funds directly to state and local governments.

www.usaspending.gov

This website tracks all Federal contracts and grants and provides information about the work to be performed, the contractor, the location of the work and other demographic information about awards. Recovery funding will also be tracked on this website as it is awarded.

For partnering opportunities with large primes, the following link may be a helpful resource:

http://www.usaspending.gov/fpds/tables.php?tabtype=t2&subtype=t&year=2009

www.sba.gov/recovery

Small Business Administration programs and information related to the ARRA include: agency plans and reports, SBA online ARRA briefing, FAQs, and a podcast outlining how the ARRA helps small businesses.

http://dsbs.sba.gov

Small Business Administration programs and information related to the ARRA include: agency plans and reports, SBA online ARRA briefing, FAQs, and a podcast outlining how the ARRA helps small businesses.

http://dsbs.sba.gov

The Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS), a program administered by the Small Business Administration, is a self-certifying data base for small businesses wishing to do business with the Federal Government.

www.abilityone.gov

In order to maximize participation in federal government contracting by Americans who are blind or severely disabled, under OMB's implementing guidance, agencies are also encouraged to pursue additional authorities to award ARRA contracts to AbilityOne resources under the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act.

www.bpn.gov

The Business Partner Network is the single source for vendor data for the Federal Government. Its search mechanism provides views into several key data bases across Federal agencies.

www.ccr.gov

The Central Contractor Registration (CCR) is the primary contractor registrant database for the Federal Government. It collects, validates, stores, and disseminates data in support of agency acquisition missions. All vendors interested in doing business with the Government must be registered in CCR.

The Small Business Slice of the Stimulus Pie

Under the Small Business Reauthorization Act of 1997, the federal government has a goal of awarding at least 23% of contracting dollars to small businesses each fiscal year. As a result, this year the Federal government will award contracts to small businesses with an aggregate value of over $85 billion. There are very few other customers that are predisposed to small business in this way.
Within the 23% goal there are several smaller goals focused on different types of businesses as follows:

• Small Disadvantaged Businesses – 5%
• Women-Owned Businesses – 5%
• Disabled Veteran-Owned Businesses – 5%
• HUBZone Businesses – 3%

Added to that is the President’s stimulus plan for small businesses which has focused mainly on shoring up the Small Business Administration (SBA) loan guarantee programs, offering lenders direct incentives to unlock credit markets and temporarily eliminates loan fees on SBA 7(a) and Section 504 loans. It has been estimated that the Recovery Act will create or save roughly 1.6 million small business jobs.

It has been estimated that over the next few years, government spending will reach its highest levels since World War II, accounting for almost $1 out of every $4 spent in the U.S. Small businesses should already be targeting market opportunities, preparing proposals, and outlining their company’s special capabilities in targeted meetings with government representatives.
Any small to mid-sized business that’s not already working directly with the government needs to find an experienced, credentialed industry player and build a relationship. A good place to start this process is by looking at the current Top 100 government contractors (http://ethisphere.com/government-contractor-top-100/.) Opportunities to team with experienced larger companies that already provide their products or services to government is a viable avenue to entering the government market and is a valuable tool in a company’s market research toolbox. Potential teaming partners can be identified by utilizing the FedSpending website, maintained by OMB Watch, which lists contracts and grants.

Much of the stimulus spending will flow through the GSA Schedule – a highly-leveraged open contract that allows commercial companies to sell direct to the government. As a Schedule holder, companies are viewed as serious contenders by the government, which is required by the FAR (Federal Acquisition Regulation) to first look for the item desired on the GSA Schedule before seeking it on the open market. The GSA Schedule does NOT, however, guarantee any sales – it is only a ticket to the big dance.
Billions of stimulus dollars will find their way to state and local government agencies, primarily in the form of grants. Stimulus Watch is a user-friendly and useful website that provides a list of “shovel ready” Stimulus Package Projects around the U.S. The projects that are listed are taken directly from a report of the US Conference of Mayors that contains about 18,750 local infrastructure projects from 779 cities that are "ready to go."

A Sampling of Stimulus Opportunities

• Small Business: $54 billion. Helping small businesses through a variety of tax incentives and write-offs.
• Healthcare: $147.7 billion. Tackling Medicaid and improving Health IT = $86.6 billion for Medicaid; $19 billion for health IT; $10 billion for health research and construction of NIH facilities.
• Education: $90.9 billion. Improving U.S. schools = $44.5 billion for local school districts for teachers, modernization and repairs.
• Infrastructure: $80.9 billion. Funding for roads, bridges, and railway improvements = $51.2 billion for roads, bridges, railways, etc.; $29.5 billion for government facilities.
• Energy: $61.3 billion. Green energy, energy efficiency, and power grid upgrade = $11 billion for electric smart grid; $6.3 billion for state and local governments for energy efficiency; $6 billion for renewable energy and electric transmission loan guarantees; $6 billion for radioactive waste cleanup; $5 billion for weatherizing modest-income dwellings; $4.5 billion for state and local governments to increase energy efficiency in federal buildings.
• Housing: $12.7 billion. Repair/modernization of public housing = $4 billion; $2.25 billion in tax credits for financing low-income housing construction; $2 billion to help communities purchase and repair foreclosed housing.
• Environment: $7.2 billion. Wastewater infrastructure = $4 billion; $2 billion for drinking water infrastructure.
• Investing in Science Research & Technology: $18 billion. $10 billion for science facilities; $4 billion to increase broadband infrastructure; $4 billion for physics and science research.

Small Business Can Apply for ARC Loans Beginning June 15
Starting June 15, SBA will begin accepting loans for a temporary new program called America’s Recovery Capital. “ARC” loans of up to $35,000 are designed to provide a “bridge” for viable small businesses with immediate financial hardship – to keep their doors open until they get back on track.  See the full article for information on eligibility, how to apply and more.  For information on SBA’s other Recovery Act programs, visit http://www.sba.gov/recovery/index.html.

Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP)

http://www.ntia.doc.gov/broadbandgrants

This website also provides citizens with access to Government contract and grant award data related to broadband infrastructure.

Web sites that detail specific allocations to local governments include:

• www.hud.gov/recovery
• www.ojp.usdoj.gov/recovery
• www.fhwa.dot.gov/economicrecovery/index.htm

Health IT and Stimulus Bill

With the enactment of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA or Recovery Act), there is an unprecedented opportunity for healthcare providers to bring information to the center of care, through the adoption of electronic health records.

The HITECH Act for Healthcare, part of the Recovery Act, provides many opportunities designed to accelerate the delivery of information technology to improve performance and connectivity in healthcare, ultimately reducing costs and improving patient care. The Act, which strongly promotes electronic health records (EHRs), health information exchange, interoperability and quality, puts information at the center of driving real change in the health care industry.

With many details yet to be resolved, the broader stimulus bill includes a package of approximately $32 billion, which will be dedicated to research under the National Institutes of Health and to advancing healthcare IT and electronic medical records initiatives. At least $19.2 billion of the Recovery Act will go towards healthcare IT to encourage the adoption of electronic medical records which it is believed will reduce costs and increase quality care - funding that is essential to meet President Obama's goal of computerized health records for all Americans by 2014. The Act also includes a provision to make permanent the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology. The Office had been operating under a Presidential Executive Order since 2004.

The Recovery Act breakdown for health IT, and related spending, includes the following:

• $2B for HIT infrastructure, especially Health Information Exchange (HIE)
• $17.2B Medicare/Medicaid incentives to doctors and hospitals for "meaningful" use of certified Health Information Technology (HIT) (net after government projected savings)
• $4.7B for the National Telecommunications and Information Administration's Broadband Technology Opportunities Program
• $2.5B for the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Distance Learning, Telemedicine, and Broadband Program
• $1.1B for comparative effectiveness grants from AHRQ, NIH, and HHS- does automation improve care
• $1.5B for the community health centers through the Health Resources and Services Administration;
• $500M for the Social Security Administration;
• $85M for the Indian Health Service; and
• $50M for the Veterans Benefits Administration
• Assorted "pockets" of HIT funding in state and community funding allotments.

$29.6B in total (not counting local funding)

(Note: There is actually another $20B for Medicare Incentives before government calculations for savings. The real total for health IT is about $50 B.)

In the States

OMB Guidance on Allowing State Administrative Costs

www.ncsl.org/programs/fiscal/stimulusoversight.htm

The National Conference on State Legislatures has created a website that provides a brief summary of actions that States are proposing or taking to provide oversight and transparency of the ARRA. Also included are State websites that provide information on implementation and expenditures of ARRA funds. Other Web sites to review regularly include the following:

• National Association of State Auditors, Comptrollers and Treasurers
• National League of Cities
• United States Conference of Mayors
• Good Jobs First Report -- An Evaluation of State Government Recovery Act Websites (July 2009)
  

For partnering opportunities with large primes, the following link may be a helpful resource:

http://www.usaspending.gov/fpds/tables.php?tabtype=t2&subtype=t&year=2009

www.recovery.org

California

September 10, 2009: 5th Annual State of California Technology Executive Briefing (Sacramento, CA) with Keynotes by Teri Takai, Chief Information Officer, State of California; P.K. Agarwal, Chief Technology Officer, State of California; Jim Butler, Chief Procurement Officer, Department of General Services, State of California; and Mark Weatherford, Chief Information Security Officer, State of California.

July 9, 2009 -- TechAmerica hosted a seminar at our Commercial Development headquarters in Santa Clara that focused on federal, state, and local technology opportunities with the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.  The event included several speakers including Sunne McPeak, CEO and President of the California Emerging Technology Fund (CETF).  McPeak spoke about CETF’s role in helping to aggregate and distribute ARRA/NTIA broadband stimulus dollars coming into CA.  More information on thise funds at http://cetfund.org/node/317.

For additional information on stimulus funding, please contact TechAmerica's Public Sector.

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