Unsolicited Proposal Tips!

Responses from this week's Summit Insight Mailbag Q's

"How can I prepare an unsolicited proposal?"

The Federal Acquisition Regulations tell you what you can and can’t do here:
http://www.acquisition.gov/far/current/html/Subpart%2015_6.html

Here’s an article from ONVIA that summarizes the process and includes other useful regulatory links: http://gov.onvia.com/unsolicited-proposals-and-bids/

But if you’re going to send an unsolicited proposal, wouldn’t you want to know how someone is going to evaluate it? In the order retrieved by Google,

• The Army tells you, here: www.aca.army.mil/docs/Community/unsolicited_proposal.pdf
• And the US Geological Survey gives you their take, at http://www.usgs.gov/contracts/grants/unsolbk.html
• NAVAIR’S view: http://www.navair.navy.mil/index.cfm?fuseaction=doing_business.guide
• The Marine Corps: www.logcom.usmc.mil/.../Unsolicited%20Proposals%20Fact%20Sheet%20012006.pdf
• Customs and Border Protection: http://www.cbp.gov/xp/cgov/toolbox/contacts/contracting/con_opp.xml
• NASA Ames Research Center: http://server-mpo.arc.nasa.gov/Services/Grants/Includes/Unsolicited.tml
• Drug Enforcement Agency: www.usdoj.gov/dea/policydocs/deaunsolicitedproposals.pdf
• USAID: www.usaid.gov/business/small.../5_Subcontracting_Unsolicited.pdf
• USDOT Pipeline and Hazardous Materials: http://twurl.nl/hm5yb0
• USDA Research Education & Economics: www.afm.ars.usda.gov/ppweb/PDF/212-17.pdf
• Department Of Education: www.ed.gov/policy/gen/leg/foia/acsocfo2104.pdf
• National Security Agency: www.nsa.gov/business/_files/unsolicited_proposals_guide.pdf
• Internal Revenue Service: www.irs.gov/pub/irs-procure/guide-unsolicited-proposals.pdf
• Veteran Affairs: www.1.va.gov/oamm/oa/ars/policyreg/vaar/vaar815.cfm
• State Department: www.state.gov/documents/organization/89056.pdf

And the hits just keep on coming. SO...if you’re thinking of sending an unsolicited proposal to a federal agency, remember :

• “unsolicited” doesn’t mean “free form”
• Read the FARS on unsolicited proposals!
• Then look up any rules your target agency may have published about unsolicited proposals. Compliance with those give you keys to successful consideration
• Remember to protect your proprietary or sensitive information, as suggested by the FARS.
• Is there anything you want to be sure DOESN’T happen to your proposal? Find out if you’re allowed to place limitations on what the recipient may do with the content of your proposal.