Monday, October 1, 2012

Nspiregreen Supports DC Small Businesses

 On Friday September 28th, the DC Council Committee on Small Business held a small business summit. It was an opportunity to for small businesses to meet with DC agencies, such as the Department of Small and Local Business Development. During the session with the Office of Contracting and Procurement, Nspiregreen co-owner, Veronica O. Davis, P.E. asked a question that was quoted in this morning’s Washington Examiner.

Excerpt:
Small business owners in D.C. say they are being yanked around by a city that's taking months -- and in some cases years -- to pay for contracted work.

The complaint came as news to the head of the D.C. Office of Contracting and Procurement James Staton, now in his second year after coming to the District from North Carolina.

"We call it the 'okey doke,' where you could perform work in November and you don't actually get a check until July the next year," Veronica Davis, owner of environmental consulting firm Nspiregreen, told Staton at a small business roundtable Friday. 

We believe it is important to put some context around Veronica’s statement to Director Staton. At the end of the panel discussion with the Office of Contracting and Procurement, Veronica asked if there were vehicles in the contracting process to ensure that businesses, especially small businesses, are paid in a timely manner per the contract terms. Specifically, she cited the term “30 days from an approved invoice” as a common term in DC government contracts. She explained that invoices are often rejected for minor reasons, which resets the 30 days clock. We have had invoices rejected over a penny.

Other small businesses in the room shook their head in agreement, and cited personal examples of waiting 120 days and even years to be paid for services rendered. The sentiment in the room was if DC wants to be a world-class business friendly city, we all need to work together to improve the contracting, invoicing, and payment processes.

 Nspiregreen felt that it was important to address the comment, as we were not complaining via a statement; we were asking a question regarding a solution. This is am important distinction for us as the word “complain” is not in our corporate vocabulary. We strive to be a solutions-oriented company. We have testified at several hearings related to small business, such as the Committee on Tax and Revenue and the Committee on Small and Local Business. In all of our testimony we have provided recommendations and solutions to streamline processes that make it easier for businesses to operate in DC, contract with DC government, and employ DC residents.

As a company built on the foundation of advocacy for community improvement, we will continue to be vocal on the challenges facing small businesses in DC. As with many other business, we have rooted ourselves in DC and are committed to helping DC achieve the goal of being the most business friendly city in the country.

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