Federal EOY is moving. Just not the way we're used to.

We're officially in the final days of the federal fiscal year.

And this is one of the stranger year-ends we've seen.

There are opportunities moving. We're seeing them firsthand. But much of the activity doesn't look like the traditional September rush where opportunities are readily visible across SAM.gov and other public channels.

Instead, we're seeing a meaningful amount of work pushed through existing vehicles, limited distribution lists, and directly to a small number of companies—often three to five firms invited to compete. That doesn't mean the money isn't moving. It means access matters more than ever: access to vehicles, customers, partners, and the networks where these opportunities are actually being distributed.

A few other things we're watching:

OASIS+ Marketing & PR Is Taking Shape

We've been closely following the rollout of GSA's OASIS+ Marketing and Public Relations domain, which covers advertising, marketing, production and media services.

The latest GSA data now shows seven companies in the OASIS+ Small Business Marketing & PR domain:

  • Censeo Consulting Group

  • Lempugh Inc. / LMD Agency

  • PCI Productions

  • Red Carrot

  • Schatz Publishing Group

  • Spectra Tech

  • Timothy J. Londagin, LLC / Totem Consulting

The important part isn't simply who's on it. It's that the pool remains extraordinarily small relative to the size of the federal marketing and communications industry. And, remember the point above about how we're seeing work move at EOY. If agencies increasingly turn to OASIS+ for communications requirements, vehicle access could quickly become a competitive differentiator—either because you're on it or because you've built a relationship with someone who is.

Note, GSA still lists the Marketing and Public Relations domain as unavailable for ordering, so the next thing we're watching is when ordering actually opens and what the first task orders look like.

SBA Pumps the Brakes on Its Size-Standard Overhaul

Another major development: SBA has extended the comment period on its proposed overhaul of small-business size standards by 60 days, to November 20.

If you missed our earlier commentary, this is a big one.

SBA has proposed dramatically increasing the thresholds for what constitutes a "small business" across many industries—potentially bringing substantially larger companies into the small-business marketplace. The proposal has generated significant pushback from existing small businesses concerned about what that would mean for competition. SBA has also revised its estimate of how many existing contractors could become newly eligible as small businesses. The additional 60 days gives the industry more time to weigh in—and perhaps more importantly, gives SBA more time to consider the response before moving toward a final rule.

We'll continue watching this closely. For marketing and communications firms that depend on small-business set-asides, the ultimate outcome could materially reshape the competitive landscape.

Looking Beyond Federal: California

All of this also reinforces something we've been talking about for a while: diversification.

One market we've spent considerable time studying (and, have talked about several times over the past couple of years...) is California.

California is one of the largest government marketing and communications markets in the country, with significant spending across advertising, public education, behavior change, public relations, research and related services. But it isn't simply federal contracting at the state level. The procurement process is different. The competitive landscape is different. The incumbents are different. And understanding those differences before investing in the market matters.

That's part of why we're bringing the industry together in Los Angeles next month.

Wednesday, October 21
Program: approximately 3:00–4:30 PM
Networking Reception: approximately 4:30–6:00 PM
Los Angeles

We'll talk about what we're seeing in the California market, how firms successfully enter it, the dynamics between incumbents and challengers, and what agencies should be watching heading into 2027.

For our federal audience, if you've been thinking about diversifying your government portfolio—or simply want to better understand another major public-sector market—we'd love to have you join us. Let me know if this of interest. 

We'll keep watching the federal EOY activity over the next week.

There is work moving.

You may just need to look in different places to find it.

Mike KapetanovicMarketing Communications, Professional Services