SEC. 2. PROVIDING SMALL BUSINESS SUBCONTRACTORS 
RATINGS FOR PAST PERFORMANCE ON A 
CONTRACT. 
Section 8(d) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
637(d)) is amended by adding at the end the following 
new paragraph: 
‘‘(17) PILOT PROGRAM PROVIDING PAST PER-
FORMANCE RATINGS FOR OTHER SMALL BUSINESS 
SUBCONTRACTORS.— 
‘‘(A) 
ESTABLISHMENT.—The 
Adminis-
trator shall establish a pilot program for a 
small business concern performing as a first 
tier subcontractor for a covered contract (as de-
fined in subparagraph 13(A)) to request a past 
performance rating in the system used by the 
Federal Government to monitor or record con-
tractor past performance. 
‘‘(B) APPLICATION.—A small business con-
cern described in subparagraph (A) shall sub-
mit an application to the appropriate official for 
a past performance rating. Such application 
shall include written evidence of the past per-
formance factors for which the small business 
concern seeks a rating and a suggested rating. 
‘‘(C) DETERMINATION.—The appropriate 
official shall submit the application from the 
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small business concern to the contracting officer 
(or a designee of such officer) for the covered 
contract and to the prime contractor for review. 
The contracting officer (or designee) and the 
prime contractor shall, not later than 30 days 
after receipt of the application, submit to the 
appropriate official a response regarding the 
application. 
‘‘(i) AGREEMENT ON RATING.—If the 
contracting officer (or designee) and the 
prime contractor agree on a past perform-
ance rating, or if either the contracting of-
ficer (or designee) or the prime contractor 
fail to respond and the responding indi-
vidual agrees with the rating of the appli-
cant small business concern, the appro-
priate official shall enter the agreed-upon 
past performance rating in the system de-
scribed in subparagraph (A). 
‘‘(ii) DISAGREEMENT ON RATING.—If 
the contracting officer (or designee) and 
the prime contractor fail to respond within 
30 days or if they disagree about the rat-
ing, or if either the contracting officer (or 
designee) or the prime contractor fail to 
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respond and the responding individual dis-
agrees with the rating of the applicant 
small business concern, the contracting of-
ficer (or designee) or the prime contractor 
shall submit a notice contesting the appli-
cation to appropriate official. The appro-
priate official shall follow the requirements 
of subparagraph (D). 
‘‘(D) PROCEDURE FOR RATING.—Not later 
than 14 calendar days after receipt of a notice 
under subparagraph (C)(ii), the appropriate of-
ficial shall submit such notice to the applicant 
small business concern. Such concern may sub-
mit comments, rebuttals, or additional informa-
tion relating to the past performance of such 
concern not later 14 calendar days after receipt 
of such notice. The appropriate official shall 
enter the into the system described in subpara-
graph (A) a rating that is neither favorable nor 
unfavorable along with the initial application 
from the small business concern, the responses 
of the contracting officer (or designee) and the 
prime contractor, and any additional informa-
tion provided by the small business concern. 
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‘‘(E) USE
OF
INFORMATION.—A small 
business subcontractor may use a past perform-
ance rating given under this paragraph to es-
tablish its past performance for a prime con-
tract. 
‘‘(F) DURATION.—The pilot program es-
tablished under this paragraph shall terminate 
3 years after the date on which the first small 
business concern receives a past performance 
rating for performance as a first tier subcon-
tractor. 
‘‘(G) REPORT.—The Comptroller General 
of the United States shall begin an assessment 
of the pilot program 1 year after the establish-
ment of such program. Not later than 6 months 
after beginning such assessment, the Comp-
troller General shall submit a report to the 
Committee on Small Business and Entrepre-
neurship of the Senate and the Committee on 
Small Business of the House of Representa-
tives, which shall include— 
‘‘(i) the number of small business con-
cerns that have received past performance 
ratings under the pilot program; 
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‘‘(ii) the number of applications in 
which the contracting officer (or designee) 
or the prime contractor contested the ap-
plication of the small business concern; 
‘‘(iii) any suggestions or recommenda-
tions the Comptroller General or the small 
business concerns participating in the pro-
gram have to address disputes between the 
small business concern, the contracting of-
ficer (or designee), and the prime con-
tractor on past performance ratings; and 
‘‘(iv) any suggestions or recommenda-
tion the Comptroller General has to im-
prove the operation of the pilot program. 
‘‘(H) APPROPRIATE OFFICIAL DEFINED.— 
In this paragraph, the term ‘appropriate offi-
cial’ means a Commercial Market Representa-
tive or other individual designated by the senior 
official appointed by the Administrator with re-
sponsibilities under sections 8, 15, 31 and 36.’’. 
Æ 
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