National Wetlands Research Center

The Department of the Interior's National Wetlands Research Center, a civilian research sub-agency of the U.S. Geological Survey, funds contract work supporting wetland science, hydrology, ecology, and resource-management research. The Center has awarded 540 federal contracts totaling $11.3 million in combined potential value since 2008, with activity concentrated heavily in the 2014–2016 window and minimal transactional volume in recent years.

Contract award activity has declined sharply. The Center issued 76 awards in 2014, 49 in 2015, and 27 in 2016, then fell to 1 award in 2017 and 1 award in 2023. No recent contract awards are recorded after June 2023. The portfolio spans 329 distinct prime contractors, indicating a highly fragmented competitive landscape. Over the last five years, Govsmart, Inc. is the only contractor with recorded awards (1 award valued at $24 thousand), reflecting the Center's minimal recent contracting volume.

The set-aside mix is dominated by unrestricted awards, which account for 65% of all awards (352 awards). Small-business set-asides represent 32% of the portfolio (171 awards), with the remainder split among Competitive 8(a) (9 awards, 2%), Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (4 awards, 1%), HUBZone (2 awards), 8(a) Sole Source (1 award), and Partial Small Business (1 award). This distribution reflects a research institution's typical contracting pattern — most work flows through unrestricted procurements, with a meaningful share reserved for small businesses.

Combined dollars obligated stand at $11.3 million (99% of potential value), indicating that the Center has committed nearly all planned funding across its contract portfolio. However, the three-year gap between the most recent recorded award and today's date signals that the Center either is not actively contracting for new work, relies on multi-year or standing agreements established prior to 2023, or executes work through mechanisms not captured in this award roll-up. No recent contract solicitations or opportunities are recorded against the agency.