Government Contracting Glossary

8(a) Business Development Program

An SBA program that helps socially and economically disadvantaged small businesses compete for federal contracts through mentorship, training, and sole-source contract access.

Broad Agency Announcement

A competitive solicitation used by federal agencies to fund basic and applied research proposals, allowing more flexibility than traditional government contracts.

Commercial and Government Entity Code

A five-character alphanumeric identifier assigned to entities that do business with the federal government, used to track facilities and support procurement.

Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification

A Department of Defense framework that requires defense contractors to meet specific cybersecurity standards to protect Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) in their systems.

Defense Contract Audit Agency

The federal agency responsible for auditing defense contractors’ accounting systems, incurred costs, and contract pricing to ensure proper use of taxpayer funds.

Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement

The supplement to the Federal Acquisition Regulation that contains acquisition policies and procedures specific to the Department of Defense.

Defense Innovation Unit

A Department of Defense organization that accelerates the adoption of commercial technology by the military, using Other Transaction Authorities to engage non-traditional defense companies.

Technology that has both commercial and military or government applications, enabling companies to serve multiple markets with a single core innovation.

Data Universal Numbering System Number

A nine-digit identifier formerly required for federal contracting, now replaced by the SAM.gov-issued Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) as of April 2022.

Federal Acquisition Regulation

The primary set of rules governing the federal government’s acquisition of goods and services, establishing uniform policies and procedures for all executive agencies.

FATHOMWERX Innovation Lab

A public-private innovation lab at the Port of Hueneme, California, where government, academia, and industry collaborate to solve challenges in military, port, and maritime domains.

Historically Underutilized Business Zone

An SBA program that provides contracting preferences to small businesses located in and hiring from economically distressed areas to stimulate local economic development.

North American Industry Classification System Code

A standardized numerical code used to classify businesses by industry type, which determines eligibility for small business set-aside contracts based on SBA size standards.

Other Transaction Authority

A flexible contracting mechanism used by the Department of Defense and other agencies to fund prototype and research projects outside the standard FAR-based procurement process.

Request for Information

A pre-solicitation document used by government agencies to gather market information, capabilities, and feedback from industry before issuing a formal solicitation.

Request for Proposal

A formal solicitation document issued by a government agency that describes requirements in detail and invites companies to submit competitive proposals for a contract.

System for Award Management

The official U.S. government system where businesses register to do business with the federal government and where federal contract opportunities are posted.

Small Business Innovation Research

A competitive federal program that provides non-dilutive funding to small businesses for research and development with commercial and government applications.

The three-phase structure of SBIR and STTR programs: Phase I (feasibility), Phase II (development), and Phase III (commercialization).

Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business

A federal contracting designation for small businesses owned and controlled by veterans with service-connected disabilities, providing access to set-aside contracts.

Federal contracting programs that reserve certain contracts exclusively for small businesses or specific socioeconomic categories, ensuring they receive a fair share of government spending.

Statement of Work

A contract document that describes the specific tasks, deliverables, timelines, and performance standards a contractor must meet to fulfill a government contract.

Small Business Technology Transfer

A federal program similar to SBIR that requires small businesses to formally partner with a nonprofit research institution, such as a university, for collaborative R&D.

Technology Readiness Level

A 1-9 scale used by government agencies to assess the maturity of a technology, from basic research (TRL 1) to proven operational deployment (TRL 9).

Unique Entity Identifier

A 12-character alphanumeric identifier assigned by SAM.gov to uniquely identify entities doing business with the federal government, replacing the DUNS number.