Before a contractor can submit a bid on a federal project, receive a contract award, or be paid by a federal agency, the entity must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM.gov) and hold an active Unique Entity ID (UEI). Registration is free and must be renewed annually — a lapse of even one day can disqualify you from award consideration on a project you spent weeks preparing.

The SAM.gov registration process requires a DUNS successor UEI, an active CAGE code, current financial data including NAICS codes, and certifications for any set-aside eligibility (8(a), HUBZone, SDVOSB, WOSB). Many first-time government bidders are disqualified not for price but for an expired or incomplete SAM registration discovered at award review. Build a 60-day registration renewal reminder into your preconstruction calendar.

Subcontractors on federal prime contracts exceeding $35,000 are also required to be SAM-registered in most cases. This surprises specialty trades entering the government market for the first time. Verify your entire first-tier sub team's SAM status as part of your bid-day checklist, not post-award.

The Davis-Bacon and Related Acts (DBRA) require contractors and subcontractors on federally funded construction contracts of $2,000 or more to pay workers no less than the locally prevailing wages and fringe benefits for corresponding work on similar projects in the area. These wage determinations are published by the U.S. Department of Labor and incorporated into the solicitation by reference — they are not optional and cannot be waived by the prime contractor.

Davis-Bacon currently applies to an estimated $217 billion in federal and federally assisted construction annually and covers approximately 1.2 million U.S. construction workers. The 2023 DOL Final Rule — the first major overhaul since 1983 — changed how "prevailing wage" is calculated, generally pushing wage determinations higher in competitive markets. Contractors should pull the applicable wage determination (General Decision number) and build those rates into your estimate before bid day, not after.

Certified payroll is the documentation mechanism: every contractor and subcontractor must submit WH-347 forms weekly to the contracting agency, certifying that workers were paid no less than the applicable Davis-Bacon wage rates. Errors or omissions in certified payroll are one of the most common causes of withholding and debarment proceedings. Automate the generation of WH-347s and store them by project — audits can reach back three years.

The Miller Act requires performance bonds and payment bonds on all federal construction contracts exceeding $150,000. Many state "Little Miller Acts" apply the same requirements at lower thresholds (often $25,000–$50,000). A bid bond — typically 5–10% of the bid amount — guarantees you will execute the contract if awarded; failure to do so forfeits the bond amount to the owner. Performance and payment bonds each equal 100% of the contract value and protect the owner and subs respectively.

Bond premium rates typically range from 0.5% to 3% of the contract value, tiered by contract size. A $2 million contract might carry a bond cost of $12,000–$40,000 — a real line item in your overhead and profit calculation. Contractors with strong balance sheets, low debt, adequate working capital, and favorable surety history pay the low end; those with thin financials or first-time government work pay more or may struggle to obtain bonding at all.

Before pursuing public work, meet with your surety broker to establish your single-project and aggregate bond capacity. Overbidding beyond your capacity is not just risky — it can collapse your bonding relationship entirely. Structure your bid calendar so you are not simultaneously committed to multiple large bonded bids that would push you past aggregate capacity if all were awarded.

Standard Form 1442 (SF 1442) is the solicitation, offer, and award document used for federal construction contracts. It is the cover sheet of the entire bid package and contains the contract number, project description, bid due date, bid bond requirement, and the legal certification you sign when submitting. Every attachment — the specifications, drawings, wage determinations, and special contract requirements — is incorporated by reference into SF 1442.

The most overlooked sections of federal solicitation packages are the Special Contract Requirements (Section H) and the Contract Clauses (Section I). These contain the compliance provisions that do not appear in the specs or drawings: liquidated damages rates, insurance requirements, site safety certifications, Buy American provisions, and sometimes project labor agreement mandates. Read these before estimating — liquidated damages of $1,500 per day on a project with a tight schedule materially affects your risk pricing.

Addenda issued between solicitation and bid closing are incorporated into SF 1442 and must be acknowledged in your bid submission. Failure to acknowledge all addenda is a basis for rejection of your bid as nonresponsive — not just a minor administrative oversight. Log every addendum immediately upon receipt and confirm acknowledgment in your bid form before submission.

Federal bids are frequently rejected not for price but for administrative non-compliance: missing forms, unacknowledged addenda, unsigned certifications, expired SAM registrations, or bid bonds with insufficient coverage. A competitive price that arrives incomplete is no better than not bidding. The bid-day file must be assembled with the same rigor as the estimate itself.

Build a bid-day checklist covering: SF 1442 signed by authorized company representative; bid bond in correct format and amount; acknowledgment of all addenda; NAICS code match to the solicitation; SAM.gov registration active and not expired; all required representations and certifications (Section K); subcontractor listing (required on some federal solicitations); and any state-specific forms for federally assisted work. On electronic submission platforms (SAM.gov eBuy, beta.SAM, agency portals), upload every file and receive a submission confirmation number before the deadline — late uploads due to technical issues are rarely accommodated.

For sealed bid (IFB) projects, the lowest responsive and responsible bid wins — price alone determines award. For negotiated (RFP) procurements, technical merit, past performance, and price are evaluated together. Know which procurement vehicle the solicitation uses before pricing, because margin strategy differs substantially.