Category: FEMA

Types of FEMA Disaster Jobs

fcr Leave a comment

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) constantly needs goods and services from government contractors. While you might associate FEMA disaster jobs with tasks such as cleanup services, there are many other profitable opportunities available and it’s not just about cleanup.

Your First Step: SAM Registration
Before you can bid on any FEMA disaster jobs or any government contracting jobs, you will need to complete SAM (System for Award Management) registration. SAM is a database with all government contracts, and once you complete the registration process and are approved, you will be given a Corporate and Government Entities (CAGE) Code.

Once you have an active SAM registration and a CAGE Code, you are free to bid on government contracts, including FEMA contractor jobs. Keep in mind, FEMA needs goods and services throughout the year, and not just when a disaster occurs. For instance, with the recent pandemic, they’ve need supplies and services throughout the year. But they also need basic items, such as office supplies, throughout the year.

SAM registration can be an arduous process and take can take 10 hours or more to complete. As a third-party SAM registration service, we receive calls all of the time from people frustrated with the process, ready to give up on government contracting. However, rather than forget about government contracting jobs, just hire us to complete the process.

We handle hundreds of SAM registrations and renewals each year, and we can complete your registration and have you approved and ready to bid on contracting jobs as quickly as possible. While you can register for SAM yourself at no charge, using our services is a bit like using an accountant to handle your taxes. You could file taxes yourself, but the tax code is complicated, and if you make mistakes, there are penalties so sometimes it’s easier to allow a pro to handle these types of tasks.

How To Find FEMA Disaster Jobs
One way to find FEMA jobs, as well as other federal contracting jobs, is to head to Beta.SAM.gov, which is run by the Federal Service Desk, the same organization that manages SAM.

At this website, you can search for jobs by agency. About halfway down the page, you will see a section for Federal Organizations. For FEMA, you would need to type out the full name – Federal Emergency Management Agency or type in the number 7022, which is the number designated for FEMA.

On a recent search for FEMA contractor jobs, we noticed that there were more than 20 pages of job listings. So, rather than scroll through 20-plus pages looking for jobs that suit your goods or services, it can be better to also add in your North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Codes or your Product Service Codes (PSCs). If you don’t already know your codes, we can find them for your during the SAM registration process.

If you don’t see anything listed, we recommend that you clear FEMA from your search and just do a general search for all agencies using your PSCs or NAICS codes. There may be other agencies that need your goods or services.

Types Of FEMA Jobs
After a disaster has struck, FEMA can help out in a number of ways. They can help provide emergency shelters, food and water for victims. They also can help support medical personnel, such as during our current pandemic. So, if your businesses can provide items such as protective gear, hazardous waste cleanup, medical test kits or something else needed to help fight Covid-19, you might be able to win a government contract.

During a quick, recent search we discovered a few of the following opportunities available via FEMA:
• Power Generators
• Generator Maintenance & Repair
• Janitorial Services
• File Cabinets & Safes
• Satellite Phones
• Copier Services
• Protective Equipment

These are just a few of the FEMA contracting jobs that have been offered recently. Keep in mind, that the dates to apply or bid on some of these jobs has passed, but it gives a general idea of the wide scope of opportunities available throughout the year. Food services and medical supplies are other items commonly needed by FEMA.

During a disaster, state and county governments also will need government contractors to help. It’s a good idea to sign up with your state’s procurement agency, as well as with SAM, so that you can take advantage of any natural disaster cleanup jobs at all levels of government. FEMA isn’t always called in to help with every emergency situation, so you should expand your contracting goals beyond this single agency.

In general, FEMA disaster jobs can be quite lucrative, and if you want to get started working with FEMA or any agency, contact us at any time and we will handle your SAM registration. You can contact us by phone at (800) 985-7658 or click on the green New Registration tab on our homepage and fill out our quick contact form.

How To Get A Job With FEMA

fcr Leave a comment

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) awards thousands of government contractors to businesses every year, amounting to billions of dollars. If you were wondering how to get a job with FEMA, we can help you get started and provide you with some helpful facts.

1. Determine If You Are A Good Fit For FEMA
As the name suggests, FEMA was created to help with national emergencies, which could include tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, floods, earthquakes and other types of disasters, such as the terror attacks on September 11, 2001.

When you think about disaster services, you might think about clean up, but FEMA also helps provide food, shelter and medical support during emergencies. FEMA relies on government contractors to provide its goods and services. Some they need quickly during an emergency, while others they stockpile and need throughout the year.

To discover if your company provides goods and services needed by FEMA, you will need to determine your North American Industry Classification System codes or NAICS codes. There are codes for just about any business imaginable, from construction to paper suppliers, from food services to air conditioning repair. To download the most recent NAICS codes, go to https://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/.

Once you’ve discovered your NAICS codes, you can head to beta.SAM.gov. This website allows you to search for contracting opportunities using several methods. You can search using your NAICS codes or search using your Set Aside (more about this later in the blog) or search by a government agency.

When we enter “Federal Emergency Management Agency” into the Federal Organizations section of beta.SAM.gov, hundreds of government contracting jobs appear. For instance, FEMA needs someone to provide gate repair, and they need file cabinets and safes. These are contracting jobs that might not immediately spring to mind when you think about FEMA, but if you can provide these to FEMA, you may be able to win a lucrative government contract.

While you might be focused on FEMA, we recommend that you search for contracting jobs using your NAICS codes. This saves you time because you will be searching for contracting jobs that truly match your goods and services. You may find out that, currently, you are a better match with another agency.

2. SAM Registration Is Crucial
You cannot sell to the government without first completing your System for Award Management (SAM) registration. SAM is a government database that lists all government contractors and government contractor jobs. In order to work with FEMA or any government agency, you need an active SAM registration.

At Federal Contractor Registry, we can complete your SAM registration for you. The government does not charge you to register with SAM, but it is a highly confusing and often frustrating system and the registration process can take 10 hours or more to complete. Additionally, if you make a mistake, this can delay the approval process significantly. Using a third-party registration service, such as Federal Contractor Registry, can ensure that your registration is not only complete but that it is completed as quickly as possible.

Additionally, we can help you determine the best NAICS codes for your business as well as Product Service Codes (PSCs) and help you figure out if you qualify as a small business, which brings us to the next fact . . .

3. Register As A Small Business
Every government agency sets aside a portion of its yearly contracting budget specifically for small businesses. These are called “set-asides” and there are many different types of set-asides. If you qualify as a small business, you may qualify for additional set-asides, and this can make it easier to earn some contracts. To see if you qualify, head to the Small Business Administration website at SBA.gov.

Some of the specific set-asides include those for woman-owned small businesses and veteran-owned small businesses, but there are set-asides in place for just about any person that is part of a historically disenfranchised group, such as those who might be African-American, Native American or perhaps those who have a disability or perhaps has been discriminated against because of their sexual orientation.

Additionally, there is a set-aside for businesses located in HUBZone. There are HUBZones throughout the United States. Some of these HUBZones expire, such as those located in disaster areas. Sometimes a HUBZone will no longer qualify and be redesignated. You can check to see if your business is located in a HUBZone at SBA.gov.

4. Learn All You Can About The Bidding Process
There are many different types of government contracts, and the bidding process is unique for each type of contract. There are some helpful guides to contracting at SBA.gov, but you also should go to APTAC-US.org, which is the main website for the Association of Procurement Technical Assistance Centers.

This organization helps small businesses learn the ropes of government contracting, and they have tons of helpful information on their website, and sometimes host webinars or post videos about various elements of government contracting. Your first step will be to find your local Procurement Technical Assistance Centers, or PTAC, and sign up.

Additionally, we highly recommend that once you have completed SAM registration, you also sign up to do business with your state government. Simply do an internet search with your state name and the word “procurement” and look for a result with the .gov extension. Once you sign up, you’ll find that your state also will hold helpful seminars and even events (no doubt virtual events these days) where you can meet representatives from various state government agencies and learn more about contracting opportunities.

In a nutshell, that’s how to get a job with FEMA. Sign up with SAM and SBA and do some research about bidding. Whether you get a job with FEMA or another agency, it takes time to learn the contracting process. Typically, it can take 12 to 18 months to win your first government contract. In some cases, with emergency services or Covid-related services, the government might accelerate the process, but it usually takes time to win that first contract. Still, government contracting can be a lucrative option for most companies.

We hope this article has helped to answer the question regarding how to get a job with FEMA or has provided you with at least enough information to get you started. If you would like our help with SAM registration, give us a call or click on the green New Registration button on our homepage. We can complete your SAM registration quickly and you will soon be eligible bid on FEMA contractor jobs as well as other types of government contracts.

FEMA Business Registration – Disaster Clean Up Jobs

fcr 1 Comment

FEMA Business Registration

FEMA contracts with companies to help support disaster recovery efforts. This includes floods, earthquakes, hurricanes, fires, and tornadoes as well as providing support during other times of crisis, such as the current pandemic. There are hundreds of profitable FEMA contracting jobs available every year.

To become a FEMA contractor, you must be registered with the System for Award Management (SAM).

Start Your FEMA Registration

If you need help getting started with your FEMA business registration, give us a call at (800) 985-7658.