74.1—What definitions are important for VetBiz Vendor Information Pages (VIP) Verification Program?

For the purposes of part 74, the following definitions apply.

Center for Veterans Enterprise (CVE) is an office within the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) and is a subdivision of VA's Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization. The CVE helps veterans interested in forming or expanding their own small businesses. It also helps VA contracting offices identify veteran-owned small businesses and works with the Small Business Administration's Veterans Business Development Officers and Small Business Development Centers nationwide regarding veterans' business financing, management, and technical assistance needs.

Days are calendar days. In computing any period of time described in part 74, the day from which the period begins to run is not counted, and when the last day of the period is a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday, the period extends to the next day that is not a Saturday, Sunday, or Federal holiday. Similarly, in circumstances where CVE is closed for all or part of the last day, the period extends to the next day on which the agency is open.

Day-to-day management means supervising the executive team, formulating sound policies and setting strategic direction.

Day-to-day operations mean the marketing, production, sales, and administrative functions of the firm.

Eligible individual means a veteran, service-disabled veteran or surviving spouse, as defined in this section.

Immediate family member means father, mother, husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, grandfather, grandmother, grandson, granddaughter, father-in-law, and mother-in-law.

Joint venture is an association of two or more small business concerns to engage in and carry out a single, specific business venture for joint profit, for which purpose they combine their efforts, property, money, skill, or knowledge, but not on a continuing or permanent basis for conducting business generally. For VA contracts, a joint venture must be in the form of a separate legal entity.

Negative control includes, but is not limited to, instances where a minority shareholder has the ability, under the concern's chapter, by-laws, or shareholder's agreement, to prevent a quorum or otherwise block action by the board of directors or shareholders.

Non-veteran means any individual who does not claim veteran status, or upon whose status an applicant or participant does not rely in qualifying for VetBiz Vendor Information Pages (VIP) Verification Program participation.

Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization is the office within the Department of Veterans Affairs that establishes and monitors small business program goals at the prime and subcontract levels and which functions as the ombudsman for veterans and service-disabled veterans seeking procurement opportunities with the Department.

Participant means a veteran-owned small business concern that has verified status in the VetBiz Vendor Information Pages database.

Primary industry classification means the six-digit North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code designation which best describes the primary business activity of the participant. The NAICS code designations are described in the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Manual published by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget.

Principal place of business means the business location where the individuals who manage the concern's day-to-day operations spend most working hours and where top management's current business records are kept. If the office from which management is directed and where the current business records are kept are in different locations, CVE will determine the principal place of business for program purposes.

Same or similar line of business means business activities within the same three-digit “Major Group” of the NAICS Manual as the primary industry classification of the applicant or participant. The phrase “same business area” is synonymous with this definition.

Service-disabled veteran is a veteran who possesses either a disability rating letter issued by the Department of Veterans Affairs, establishing a service-connected rating between 0 and 100 percent, or a disability determination from the Department of Defense.

Service-disabled veteran-owned small business concern is a business not less than 51 percent of which is owned by one or more service-disabled veterans, or in the case of any publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more service-disabled veterans; the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more service-disabled veterans, or in the case of a veteran with a permanent and severe disability, a spouse or permanent caregiver of such veteran. In addition, some businesses may be owned and operated by an eligible surviving spouse. Reservists or members of the National Guard disabled from a disease or injury incurred or aggravated in line of duty or while in training status also qualify.

Small business concern is—CVE applies the small business concern definition established by 48 CFR 2.101.

Surviving spouse is any individual identified as such by VA's Veterans Benefits Administration and listed in its database of veterans and family members. To be eligible for VetBiz VIP Verification, the following conditions must apply:

(1) If the death of the veteran causes the small business concern to be less than 51 percent owned by one or more veterans, the surviving spouse of such veteran who acquires ownership rights in such small business shall, for the period described in paragraph (2) of this definition, be treated as if the surviving spouse were that veteran for the purpose of maintaining the status of the small business concern as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business.

(2) The period referred to in paragraph (1) of this definition is the period beginning on the date on which the veteran dies and ending on the earliest of the following dates:

(i) The date on which the surviving spouse remarries;

(ii) The date on which the surviving spouse relinquishes an ownership interest in the small business concern;

(iii) The date that is 10 years after the date of the veteran's death; or

(iv) The date on which the business concern is no longer small under Federal small business size standards.

(3) The veteran must have had a 100 percent service-connected disability or died as a direct result of a service-connected disability.

Code of Federal Regulations

Note to definition of surviving spouse: For program eligibility purposes, the surviving spouse has the same rights and entitlements of the service-disabled veteran who transferred ownership upon his or her death.

Unconditional ownership means ownership that is not subject to conditions precedent, conditions subsequent, executory agreements, voting trusts, restrictions on or assignments of voting rights, or other arrangements causing or potentially causing ownership benefits to go to another (other than after death or incapacity). The pledge or encumbrance of stock or other ownership interest as collateral, including seller-financed transactions, does not affect the unconditional nature of ownership if the terms follow normal commercial practices and the owner retains control absent violations of the terms.

VA is the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

Vendor Information Pages (VIP) is a database of businesses eligible to participate in VA's Veteran-owned Small Business Program. The online database may be accessed at no charge via the Internet at http://www.VetBiz.gov.

Verification eligibility period is a 12-month period that begins on the date the Center for Veterans Enterprise issues the approval letter establishing verified status. The participant must submit a new application each year to continue eligibility.

VetBiz.gov (VetBiz) is a Web portal VA maintains at http://www.VetBiz.gov. It hosts the Vendor Information Pages database.

Veteran is a person who served on active duty with the U.S. Army, Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps or Coast Guard, for any length of time and at any place and who was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable. Reservists or members of the National Guard called to Federal active duty or disabled from a disease or injury incurred or aggravated in line of duty or while in training status also qualify as a veteran.

Veteran-owned small business concern (VOSB) is a small business concern that is not less than 51 percent owned by one or more veterans, or in the case of any publicly owned business, not less than 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more veterans; the management and daily business operations of which are controlled by one or more veterans and qualifies as “small” for Federal business size standard purposes. All service-disabled veteran-owned small business concerns (SDVOSBs) are also, by definition, veteran-owned small business concerns. When used in these guidelines, the term “VOSB” includes SDVOSBs.

Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulation (VAAR) is the set of rules that specifically govern requirements exclusive to the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) prime and subcontracting actions. The VAAR is chapter 8 of title 48, Code of Federal Regulations, and supplements the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), which contains guidance applicable to most Federal agencies.

Code of Federal Regulations

[75 FR 6101, Feb. 8, 2010, as amended at 76 FR 3022, Jan. 19, 2011]