§§ 8127–8128) to mean that the Rule of Two is mandatory and applies to all VA procurements, including the federal supply schedule procurement at issue in Kingdomware. In Kingdomware, the Supreme Court interpreted Section 8127(d) of the VBA (38 U.S.C. After a brief summary of the Rule of Two, this post lays out these bright-line rules, and concludes with predictions regarding future VBA Rule of Two protests. Over the past five years, the Federal Circuit, Court of Federal Claims, and Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) protest decisions have created some bright-line rules interpreting the VBA’s Rule of Two. However, the importance of the Rule’s purpose-to prioritize and increase the government’s use of small businesses owned by veterans-cannot be credibly challenged. The Rule has been criticized for delaying Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) procurements and increasing the prices the government pays for goods and services.

June 2021 marked the five-year anniversary of the Supreme Court’s Kingdomware decision, which is best known for broadly interpreting the so-called “Rule of Two” requirement flowing from the Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006 (the “VBA”).

Bane the rule of two