FAR 19.705-3—Preparing the solicitation.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 19.705-3 addresses the pre-issuance review process for solicitations that will require a subcontracting plan. It requires the contracting officer to give the Small Business Administration’s procurement center representative (PCR), or another SBA representative if no PCR is assigned under FAR 19.402(a), a reasonable period of time to review the solicitation and provide advisory findings before the solicitation is released. The section is about early coordination, not approval authority: the SBA representative’s role is to review and advise, while the contracting officer remains responsible for issuing the solicitation. In practice, this rule helps ensure that subcontracting plan requirements are properly included, that small business considerations are identified early, and that avoidable errors are caught before the procurement is public. It also supports compliance with small business subcontracting policy by building SBA input into the solicitation development timeline.
Key Rules
Pre-issuance SBA review
Before issuing any solicitation that requires a subcontracting plan, the contracting officer must allow SBA’s procurement center representative to review the solicitation. This review happens before release so SBA can identify issues while changes are still easy to make.
Reasonable review time
The contracting officer must provide a reasonable period of time for the SBA representative to complete the review and submit advisory findings. The rule does not set a fixed number of days, so the timing must be sufficient in context to permit meaningful review.
Use alternate SBA contact if needed
If no procurement center representative is assigned, the contracting officer must follow FAR 19.402(a) to determine the appropriate SBA point of contact. The obligation to seek SBA input still applies even when a PCR is not available.
Advisory, not binding, findings
The SBA representative submits advisory findings, which means the input is consultative rather than controlling. The contracting officer must consider the findings, but the section does not transfer final solicitation authority away from the agency.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Provide the SBA PCR, or alternate SBA representative if no PCR is assigned, a reasonable period to review the solicitation before issuance; ensure the solicitation is not released prematurely; and consider any advisory findings received.
SBA Procurement Center Representative
Review solicitations that require a subcontracting plan and submit advisory findings before the solicitation is issued, identifying any concerns or recommendations related to small business subcontracting.
SBA (when no PCR is assigned)
Serve as the appropriate SBA point of contact under FAR 19.402(a) so the contracting officer can obtain the required pre-issuance review and advisory input.
Practical Implications
This rule affects acquisition planning schedules because the solicitation cannot be finalized and issued until SBA has had a fair chance to review it.
A common pitfall is treating the review as optional or waiting until the last minute, which can delay issuance or force rushed, incomplete SBA coordination.
Contracting officers should build the SBA review window into the acquisition timeline early, especially for large procurements likely to require subcontracting plans.
The main day-to-day value is catching subcontracting-plan issues before release, reducing the risk of protest, corrective action, or post-award compliance problems.
Because the rule uses the flexible standard of a “reasonable period,” agencies should document their timing and coordination to show the SBA had a meaningful opportunity to comment.
Official Regulatory Text
The contracting officer shall provide the Small Business Administration's (SBA’s) procurement center representative (or, if a procurement center representative is not assigned, see 19.402 (a)) a reasonable period of time to review any solicitation requiring submission of a subcontracting plan and to submit advisory findings before the solicitation is issued.