About SCOOP FAQ

SCOOP firms receive:

• Notification of upcoming contract opportunities
• Contact from prime contractors conducting outreach as part of their good faith effort to subcontract or joint venture on Water Authority projects
• Information on county-wide small business outreach events, including Paths to Partnerships
• Access to cost-effective, project-specific insurance
• Training opportunities:
  • Classroom training
  • Online training
  • Mentor-Protégé Program

SCOOP firms are:

1) Firms that meet the size standards or have been certified as small businesses by the Small Business Administration (SBA), Department of General Services (DGS), Caltrans, or any other public agency using the size standards specified in 13 CFR 121;

2) Small businesses that have submitted an application to the Network

The Network is the Water Authority’s collaborative, online vendor registration, solicitation, and notification system. Registration is for both small and large businesses. The system is FREE of charge. To register, visit: http://www.govbids.com/scripts/TheNetwork/public/info/regoptions.asp.To learn how to register with the Network, please access the free training here.

• To be recognized as a SCOOP firm, complete the small business certification portion of The Network registration form. Upon approval, a certification letter will be emailed to you.
• The Network small business certification is recognized by the Water Authority’s SCOOP and all other public agencies currently participating on The Network.

• When subcontracting opportunities are available, the Water Authority requires that prime bidders/proposers conduct outreach to small businesses via the Network
• Firms registered with the Network can generate lists of industry-specific SCOOP firms using the “Search the Small Business Database” feature. For technical assistance, please contact the Network support line at 1-800-677-1997, ext. 214.

In addition to the Network, the Water Authority's collaborative online vendor registration system, there are several resources available to find small businesses. Your firm can outreach to small businesses using the community-based organizations, and other small business registry resources listed below:

• Community Based Organizations
• Other Registry Resources

No. However, if specified in the solicitation document that a good faith effort is required, each prime bidder/proposer must conduct outreach.

Yes.  Regardless of whether your business is considered small or not, the Water Authority requires that all businesses seeking to bid on construction and services projects conduct good faith outreach efforts.

PAC is a committed partnership of San Diego regional public agencies focused on increasing bidding opportunities and the likelihood of success of small businesses on public agency contracts. This partnership includes:

• City of San Diego
• San Diego City Schools
• Centre City Development Corporation (CCDC)
• San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG)
• County of San Diego
• San Diego County Water Authority
• San Diego County Regional Airport Authority
• Unified Port District of San Diego

How will PAC do this?
PAC will work together to make it easier for small firms to do business with local public agencies through these objectives:

• Provide access for small firms to a larger pool of available business opportunities. PAC will be "one-stop shopping" for procurement opportunities
• Consolidate agencies' training and networking activities, such as the Creating Paths to Partnerships Networking Forum

Yes, the Water Authority’s Board of Directors has established an overall SCOOP goal of 20 percent small business dollars as a percentage of the Water Authority’s total dollars awarded. However, there are no specific goals on individual solicitation. Instead, businesses seeking to bid on construction and service projects conduct good faith outreach to reach small businesses interested in subcontracting opportunities.

General Information Number: (858) 522-6515
Fax Number: (858) 522-6564
scoop@sdcwa.org

Emily Yanushka, SCOOP Manager
(858) 522-6621
eyanushka@sdcwa.org

Lorise W. Maynard, SCOOP Representative
(858) 522-6622
lmaynard@sdcwa.org

Craig Balben, SCOOP Training Administrator
(858) 522-6908
cbalben@sdcwa.org