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It can be very confusing. In fact, in doing the research for this article, I spent several hours doing research, and I came away a little confused from it all. (Which of course, led to more research! I was determined to figure out how to make the process simple and painless for you!) Now, rather than give you all the government information and risk you getting confused – or worse, bored ;-), I’ve put together the most important information into an easy-to-understand format! However, there’s a lot of it, so stay tuned to the next couple of Digital Women newsletters to get find out exactly how you can become successful in bidding – and landing – a contract with the government! (By the way, if you really LIKE reading all the government pages, you can start here: http://pro-net.sba.gov/ And if you want to know “just
the facts” here we go:
A vendor (that’s you) must fill out a one-time registration that provides basic information about your business and financial transactions. (This doesn’t mean they want to know how much money you’ve got in the bank, or get your credit card numbers, by the way). But, before you can be awarded a contract; basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchase agreement; you must be registered. Then, you have to update or renew your registration every year, to maintain an active status. CCR validates your information, and then shares it electronically with the federal agencies’ finance officers. (By the way, all of your information is encrypted, so it’s safe). In case you were wondering what happens to your information, once you’ve registered, the information is shared with government procurement and electronic business systems and other authorized government offices – because they use a paperless payment system – electronic funds transfer. Special Note: Registration alone does not guarantee that your business will be chosen. You will still have to go through the process. (More about the process and how to write winning proposals in upcoming newsletters!) By the way, if you’re registering as a “Prime Contractor” and you’re going to be using subcontractors, you don’t have to have them register in CCR. If you’re a subcontractor, and you want to bid directly for contracts, then you should be register your business. Not ALL government grant programs are advertised. That's why some of the grant
packages and programs are very valuable. They have found those resources
that you will have a hard time finding on your own. The grant packages
listed below have done all the work for you.
Although billions of dollars are given away annually by Government Agencies and 30,000 + grant-making Foundations in the United States, Most Americans do not even know these Agencies and Foundations exist, or how to contact them! How to Register:
So, in a nutshell, here’s
what you’re going to need, and I’ve also included the basic instructions
for filling out the application line by line:
3. *CAGE Code - The Commercial And Government Entity (CAGE) Code is a five character ID number used extensively within the Department of Defense and NASA. Vendors with a U.S. address may submit the application without a CAGE Code if they do not have one. If you don’t have one, they’ll assign one to you. You must have a separate CAGE Code for each physical location and separate division at the same physical location. Each separate CCR registration must have its own CAGE Code. (Part of the registration process verifies existing CAGE Codes, to make sure there are no duplications, in case you’ve lost or forgotten it.) But, if you’ve got one already, it will speed up the process if you include it. If you think you have a CAGE Code, but can’t find it, you can search the DLIS CAGE web at http://www.dlis.dla.mil/cage_welcome.asp Foreign vendors must include an NCAGE Code on the registration or it will be considered incomplete. 4. *Legal Business Name and Doing Business As (DBA) - Enter the legal name by which you are incorporated and pay taxes. If you commonly use another name, such as a franchise or licensee name, then include that in the DBA space below the Legal Business Name. Your legal business name as entered on the CCR registration MUST match the legal business name at Dun & Bradstreet. If the information does not match, your registration may be rejected during processing. Special Note: Do not type “same” or “as shown above” in the DBA field. 5. *US Federal TIN – The Tax Identification Number (TIN) is the nine-digit number companies use for income tax purposes. If you do not know your TIN, contact the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) at 1-800-829-1040. If you operate as an individual sole proprietorship, you may use your Social Security Number if you do not have a TIN/EIN. If you are located outside the United States and do not pay employees within the U.S., you are not required to provide a TIN. When entering your TIN or SSN on the web site, enter only the numbers; do not include the dashes (Example: 123456789 not 123-45-6789) 6. *Division and Branch Name and Number: If you do business as a division or branch of a larger company, use this space to indicate the proper name for your division or branch. If some other identifier commonly distinguishes your division or branch, enter that in the space on the right. Otherwise, leave blank. 7. * *Physical Street Address 1: PO Box and c/o MAY NOT BE USED IN THIS SPACE. You must include a valid street address where your business is located. If you use a PO Box for correspondence, this may be included in the space allocated for “mailing address” under the tab “Address Info”. Your street address, as entered on the CCR registration, MUST match the street address for which Dun & Bradstreet has you registered. If the information does not match, your registration may be rejected during processing. You may not register a branch of the business with the branch address and the headquarters DUNS number. Physical Street Address 2: Use this space to continue your physical street address, if needed. *City, State, Zip: The 9-digit zip code is mandatory. When entering the nine-digit zip code on the web, enter numbers only; do not include the dash. (Example 123456789 not 12345-6789) *Country: Choose the appropriate country code abbreviation from the list provided. Mailing Address Information: If you are unable to receive mail at your physical address enter a proper mailing address here. A Post Office Box is permissible. Any address used here will receive all CCR correspondence. If the Point of Contact is in a different location than the legal business address and you want to receive the mail directly, enter the appropriate address here. 8. * Date Business Started: Enter the date your business was started in its present form. This may be used to distinguish you from others with similar names. When entering the information on the web site, you must enter as mm/dd/yyyy. (Example: 01/01/1995) 9. * Fiscal Year End Close Date: Enter the day on which you close your fiscal year. For example, if you use the calendar year, this would be 12/31. When entering the information on the web site, you must enter as mm/dd. 10. * Average # of Employees and Average Annual Receipts - Be sure to provide accurate information about the number of employees and 3-year average annual receipts for your business, as these values can determine your business size classification. The calculation must include the employees and receipts of all affiliates. For more information see: http://www.sba.gov/siz/part121sects.html Special Note: Average Annual Receipts cannot be zero. You must enter a number. When entering revenue in the web site, enter numbers only, no dollar signs or commas. 11. * Company Security Level: If applicable, choose the correct level of security for the facility. Highest Employee security Level: If applicable, choose the highest level of security for an employee located at that facility. 12. * Corporate Web Page URL: If applicable, provide a desired URL for your company. Both upper and lower cases are acceptable. Corporate Information: This section contains mandatory fields. 13. *Type of Relationship
with the U.S. Federal Government:
14. * Type of Organization: You must choose one of the boxes to indicate the legal form of your business. Sole Proprietorship
Corporate Entity (Not Tax-Exempt): If you choose Corporation as your status, you must enter the state of incorporation if incorporated in the USA. If you are incorporated outside the USA, you must provide Country of incorporation and check foreign supplier under business types. Corporate Entity (Tax-Exempt): If you choose Corporation as your status, you must enter the state of incorporation if incorporated in the USA. If you are incorporated outside the USA, you must provide Country of incorporation and check foreign supplier under business types. Partnership U.S. Government Entity –
International Organization: Defined in the Code of Federal Regulations (26 CFR 1.6049-4) found at http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/cfr-table-search.html Special Note: If you are a Limited Liability Partners Company or S-Corporation, choose Corporation 15. *Business Types
You may visit their web site at http://www.sba.gov If you check 8(a) Program Participant, HUBZone, certified SDB, or DoT DBE, then you will be required to complete name and address of certifying party. Special Note: Select business types that reflect the current status of your business. The business types are not an indication of the business opportunities you hope to pursue. Type of Organization:
Other Government Entities: Airport Authority
Other Business/Organization Factors: Foreign Owned and Located
Types of Business:
Education Entities
16. *Socio-Economic Factors:
17. *Socio-Economic Certifications:
Federally Recognized Native
American Entities:
Other Socio-Economic Categories:
Goods/Services: This section contains mandatory fields. 18. *North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS) Codes: NAICS Codes are a method for classifying
business establishments. You must supply at least one for your registration
to be complete. If you do not know your NAICS codes, you may search on
the Internet at www.census.gov/epcd/naics02 You must use six-digit NAICS
Codes in your registration.
20. *Product Service Codes (PSC Codes): PSC Codes are optional, 4 character, alphanumeric. Product Service Codes are similar to SIC Codes. PSC Codes are used only to identify services. You can find the PSC Codes that relate to your business at http://fpdcapp.gsa.gov/pls/fpdsweb/psc 21. *Federal Supply Classification
Codes (FSC Codes): FSC Codes are optional, 4- numeric digits. FSC Codes
are similar to SIC Codes. FSC Codes are used only to identify products.
You may search for an FSC Code at: http://www.dlis.dla.mil/PDFs/h2.pdf
Financial Information: This
section contains mandatory fields
22. *Financial Institution: Name of the bank used for EFT/banking purposes. This field will be automatically filled from the ABA Routing Number provided below. 23. *ABA Routing Number: ABA Routing number is the American Banking Association 9-digit routing transit number of your financial institution. This number is the first nine digits on the lower left-hand corner of your check. Special Note: You must fill in the EFT ABA Routing number in this space, Not the Wire Transfer ABA number. 24. *Account Number, Type, & Lockbox Number - Enter the appropriate account number to which you want your EFT payments deposited and check the proper box to indicate whether it is checking or savings account. (If your money is being deposited into your checking account, then use your checking account number. If you want it deposited into you your savings account, use that number. If you prefer to use a lockbox service, enter the appropriate account number in the space provided. If you use a lockbox for your banking purposes, you must also check “checking” under account type.) 25. *Automated Clearing House: ACH is the Automated Clearing House department of your bank. Enter the appropriate contact information for the ACH coordinator at your bank. This information is necessary in case problems occur with your EFT transfer; payment offices must have a bank contact to call. Special Note: e-mail addresses requested under the contact entries refer to Internet e-mail, not a local area network e-mail address within your office. When entering the phone numbers on the web site, enter the numbers only; do not put in dashes or parentheses. (Example: 9995551212 not (999) 555-1212) Mathew Lesko | Govt. Grants & Money | American Grant Directory | Govt Grants 26. *Remittance Information: This is the address where you would like a paper check mailed in the event an EFT transfer does not work. Please indicate on the name line the party to whom the check should be mailed and fill in the appropriate information. If you use a lockbox, and want checks mailed directly to the bank, put in the bank name and address here. 27. *Accounts Receivable: Provide contact information for the accounts receivable person at your company. An email address is required. This is the contact provided to Defense Finance and Accounting Service regarding EFT payments on your government contracts. Special Note: This contact is not authorized to receive and/or release information regarding the CCR registration to any Registration Assistance Center personnel. It may be beneficial to have the accounts receivable contact also act as the additional contact for the registration. 28*Credit Card Information: Does your company accept credit cards for payment? This is a YES or NO question. Point Of Contact: This section contains mandatory fields. 29. *Registrant Name: Also known as the CCR POC. List the name of the person that acknowledges that the information provided in the registration is current, accurate and complete. The person you list here will be the ONLY person within the registering company to receive the Trading Partner Identification Number (TPIN) via e-mail or U.S. Postal mail. The Registrant and the Alternate Contact are the only people authorized to share information with CCR Assistance Center personnel. So make sure that whoever you list here knows about the CCR registration. An email address is required. Both upper and lower cases are acceptable for all email addresses. 30. *Alternate Contact: Provide name and a phone number for another person at your company, in case questions arise when the primary contact is not available. 31. *Government Business POC: This POC is that person in the company responsible for marketing and sales with the government. An email address is required. Both upper and lower cases are acceptable for all email addresses. This POC and contact information, if entered, will be publicly displayed on the CCR Search Page. All contact methods are mandatory. 32. *Past Performance POC: This POC is that person in the company responsible for administering the company’s government past performance reports and response efforts. An email address is required. Both upper and lower cases are acceptable for all email addresses. This POC and contact information is optional and, if entered, will be publicly displayed on the CCR Inquiry web site. All contact methods are mandatory. 33. *Electronic Business POC: The EBPOC is the person in the company responsible for authorizing individual company personnel access into government electronic business systems (e.g., Electronic Document Access (EDA), Wide Area Workflow (WAWF)). POC and contact information is mandatory. This information will be publicly displayed on the CCR Inquiry web site. All contact methods are mandatory. You can check out http://wawf.eb.mil to get detailed information on EBPOC responsibilities for WAWF. 34. *Marketing Partner ID (MPIN): This is a self-defined access code that will be shared with authorized partner applications (e.g., Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS), Federal Technical Data Solutions (FedTeDS) etc.). Special Note: The MPIN is your password in these other systems so write it down, and put it in a secure place! The MPIN must be nine positions and contain at least one alpha character, one number and no spaces or special characters. Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Special Note: This is an optional section for those doing business through EDI. If you have questions about doing business through EDI you can contact your local Procurement Technical Assistance Center (PTAC) by visiting them at http://www.dla.mil/db/procurem.htm. 35. *EDI Contact Information:
If you are registering as an EDI-capable company, provide an EDI Point
Of Contact here.
SEE PAGE 1 of Grants
for women Grant Faq's HERE
SEE Also: Grants
for women
Don't miss any of Cheryl's Grant FAQ's! Subscribe to our FREE business newsletter, sent in text only, every two weeks featuring Grant questions and answers! Click HERE. About Cheryl: Cheryl Antier is the president of "Dream Weaver Enterprises" a business and fundraising consultancy firm that specializes in helping you to "weave your dreams into reality". She recently married for the second time, has three children at home and lives bi-continentally in Southern France and Southeast Utah. See also grants for women here. |
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