60 terms, alphabetically. Jump to: # · A · B · C · E · F · G · I · M · N · P · Q · R · S · T · U
#
- 1122 Program
- A federal program that lets state and local governments buy certain equipment through federal sources for counterdrug, homeland security and emergency response activities, coordinated through a state point of contact.
A
- Appropriation
- Legal authority, granted by a legislature or Congress, to spend public money for specific purposes within a set period.
- ARFF
- Aircraft rescue and firefighting — the specialized fire and rescue service at airports.
- Award
- The decision to give a contract to a vendor at the end of a solicitation.
B
- B2G
- Business-to-government: selling products or services to government agencies.
- BDR
- Business development representative — a salesperson focused on outbound prospecting and setting meetings. Often used interchangeably with SDR.
- Bid board
- A website or portal where agencies post solicitations and notices.
- Biennial budget
- A budget that covers two fiscal years.
- Blanket purchase agreement (BPA)
- A simplified way for federal agencies to fill repetitive needs by setting up charge accounts with qualified vendors.
- Budget cycle
- The recurring process of preparing, proposing, adopting and carrying out a government budget.
- Buying committee
- The group of people who influence a purchase — typically the program owner, end users, IT, finance, procurement and approvers.
C
- CAGE code
- Commercial and Government Entity code: a five-character identifier assigned to companies that do business with the federal government.
- Capital improvement plan (CIP)
- A multi-year plan listing major projects — infrastructure, facilities, vehicles and technology — with estimated costs and timing.
- Capture management
- The work of positioning to win a specific opportunity before and during a solicitation.
- CJIS Security Policy
- The FBI's security requirements for systems that access criminal justice information.
- Cone of silence
- Rules that restrict vendor contact with officials during an active solicitation, except through the designated procurement contact. Also called a quiet period.
- Consent agenda
- Routine items that a council or board approves together, without individual discussion.
- Continuing resolution (CR)
- Temporary legislation that funds federal agencies when full-year appropriations haven't been enacted.
- Cooperative purchasing contract
- A contract competitively solicited by one public entity or cooperative that other eligible agencies can use.
- Council of governments (COG)
- A regional association of local governments that plans and coordinates services; some run cooperative purchasing programs.
E
- E-Rate
- The FCC's Schools and Libraries Program, which helps eligible schools and libraries pay for broadband and internal connections.
- Encumbrance
- Funds set aside for a specific purchase or contract before payment is made.
F
- FedRAMP
- The federal program that standardizes security assessment and authorization for cloud products and services used by federal agencies.
- Fiscal year (FY)
- A government's 12-month budget and accounting period. The federal fiscal year runs October 1 to September 30.
G
- GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS)
- Long-term governmentwide contracts with commercial companies for products and services, managed by the U.S. General Services Administration.
- Governmentwide acquisition contract (GWAC)
- A pre-competed, multiple-award contract for IT solutions that agencies across the federal government can use.
I
- IDIQ
- Indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity contract: a contract for an unspecified quantity of goods or services, within set limits, over a fixed period.
- Invitation for bid (IFB)
- A solicitation for sealed bids, typically awarded to the lowest responsive and responsible bidder. Also called an invitation to bid (ITB).
- Industry day
- An event where an agency briefs potential vendors on an upcoming requirement.
M
- Metropolitan planning organization (MPO)
- The federally required transportation planning body for an urbanized area.
- Micro-purchase
- A small purchase that can be made with minimal procedures, often with a purchasing card.
N
- NAICS code
- A North American Industry Classification System code that classifies a business by industry; used in registrations and solicitations.
- Notice to proceed
- Formal authorization for a contractor to begin work.
P
- Piggybacking
- Buying from a contract that another agency or a cooperative already competed, instead of running a new solicitation.
- Pre-award
- Everything that happens before a contract is awarded — relationship building, capture, requirements shaping and proposals.
- Prime contractor
- The company that holds a contract directly with the government.
- Procurement
- The process a government uses to buy goods and services, governed by law and policy.
- Protest
- A formal challenge by a vendor to a solicitation or contract award.
- PSAP
- Public safety answering point — a 911 call center.
- Public power
- Community-owned, not-for-profit electric utilities run by cities, counties or public utility districts.
- Purchase order (PO)
- A document an agency issues to authorize a purchase from a vendor.
- Purchasing card (P-card)
- A government-issued card used for small purchases.
Q
- Qualified meeting
- A meeting with the right person at a target organization who has confirmed interest, with enough context on timing and budget for a productive first conversation.
R
- Rate case
- The formal process in which a regulated utility asks its state public utility commission to approve the rates it charges.
- Request for information (RFI)
- A document agencies use to gather information from vendors before deciding how to buy.
- Request for proposal (RFP)
- A solicitation in which proposals are evaluated on several criteria, such as technical approach, experience and price.
- Request for quotation (RFQ)
- A solicitation asking vendors for prices on clearly defined goods or services.
S
- SAM.gov
- The federal System for Award Management, where businesses register to work with the government and agencies post contract opportunities.
- SDR
- Sales development representative — a salesperson who prospects, qualifies and books meetings for account executives.
- Set-aside
- A contract reserved for a category of businesses, such as small businesses.
- SLED
- State, local and education — the non-federal public sector. SLG refers to state and local government.
- Sole source
- A purchase from a single vendor without competition, justified because only that vendor can meet the need.
- Statement of work (SOW)
- The part of a solicitation or contract that describes the work to be performed, the deliverables and the requirements.
- Sources-sought notice
- A federal notice that asks capable vendors to identify themselves before an agency decides how to buy.
- Special district
- An independent, single-purpose local government — such as a water, fire, transit, airport or parks district — with its own board and budget.
- Special Item Number (SIN)
- A category of products or services within a GSA Schedule.
- State revolving fund (SRF)
- State-run loan programs, capitalized with federal funds, that finance water and wastewater infrastructure.
- Subcontractor
- A company that works for a prime contractor rather than directly for the government.
T
- Teaming agreement
- An arrangement between companies to pursue a government contract together.
U
- Unique Entity ID (UEI)
- The identifier assigned to entities registered in SAM.gov.