Rep. Brian Fitzpatrick (Pa), along with Rep. Stephanie Murphy (Fl.) and Steve Knight (CA), introduced a bill to the House Small Business Committee with bi-partisan support to amend the Small Business Act to provide interim partial payment to small business contractors that request an equitable adjustment due to a change order in terms of a construction contract, and for other purposes.
The Small Business Payment for Performance Act, according to Fitzpatrick’s website, aims to stand “up for small businesses by requiring federal agencies to make interim partial payment to contractors, allowing them to pay their own bills without being delayed until the end of the project. It’s common sense.”
Representative Murphy was also quoted as saying, “small businesses are expected to meet deadlines whenever they work with the government, and they deserve the same courtesy from federal agencies. Too often, this slow approval process for change orders has resulted in small businesses having to bear significant financial burdens. Our bipartisan bill is a commonsense solution to address this problem by ensuring that small businesses are paid in a fair and timely manner so they can meet their obligations without compromising their financial future.”
The text of the bill is not yet available. Here is the link to the Government’s website to track the bill: https://www.govtrack.us/congress/bills/115/hr2594