There is a whole world of terms and acronyms used in Government contracting you should become familiar with.
CAGE CODE - Commercial and Government Entity Code= A five character compilation of numbers and letters that is the approval of a company’s SAM registration, similar to what a Tax ID is to the IRS.
DBA – Doing Business As
DLA - Defense Logistics Agency = Agency that verifies validity of a SAM registrant and issues the CAGE CODE
DOD – Department of Defense.
DSBS - Dynamic Small Business Search= Data base used to search for small businesses to procure contracts under 25K, usually on a no bid basis
DUNS NUMBER – Number assigned by Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) that is no longer in use
EPLS – Excluded Parties List System = A list of parties that are excluded from receiving
Government contracts
FEMA - Federal Emergency Management Agency = Companies can register with FEMA to become eligible for contracts in the event of an emergency.
GSA - General Services Administration = Preferred contract vehicle used for procurement by Federal agencies that allows a business to get set up with a preferred vendor status.
LBN – Legal Business Name
NAICS CODES - North American Industry Classification System = Codes used to identify specific industries, products, and services
NRCS – Natural Resource Conservation Service
PROCUREMENT - Process used to fulfill and award contracts to outside vendors.
PSC – Product Service Codes
SAM- System for Award Management = Payment Portal for the Federal Government
SAWCD – Soil & Water Conservation District
SBA - Small Business Administration = Classifies qualifying companies as a Small Business and/or as a company that qualifies for other government set-a-side programs.
SET-ASIDE – Contracts reserved for qualified small businesses most require certification in:(WOSB) Women Owned, (VOSB) Veteran Owned, (SDVOSB) Service-Disabled Veteran Owned, 8(a) Minority Owned or HUBZone
TIN – Tax Identification Number (9 digits)
UEI NUMBER – Unique Entity ID = A 12-character unique number assigned to all entities who register to do business with the federal government in SAM
USDA – United States Department of Agriculture