Government Contracts MonitorContracting Rules and RegulationsNew FAR Interim Rule Increases Minimum Wage to $10.10January 27, 2015 The FAR Council recently issued a new Interim Rule (correction here), implementing President Obama’s Executive Order 13658 establishing a $10.10 per hour minimum wage for employees of covered federal contractors and subcontractors starting January 1, 2015. The new Rule also implements, for FAR-covered contracts, the Final Rule issued by the Department of Labor (DOL) on October 10, 2014,… ShortTake: Past Performance v. Experience - Don’t Conflate the TwoJanuary 27, 2015 In a protest decided last week, a disappointed bidder, Amyx, argued that the government was inconsistent in its evaluation of Amyx’s bid since Amyx received only a “good” rating under the relevant experience criterion but an “outstanding” rating under the past performance criterion, an argument that intuitively may seem correct since the government’s ratings were based on the same projects for… Avoid the ‘New and Improved’ Strain of IncumbentitisJanuary 20, 2015 Just as people across the country have begun to recover from this year’s particularly nasty flu variant, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a decision involving an especially virulent form of Incumbentitis. This strain manifests as an incumbent’s touting a new and improved version of the same technology it used to perform the prior contract. However understandable… Agency Must Update Solicitation When It Changes Its Buying StrategyJanuary 20, 2015 The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently sustained a protest where the Navy’s evaluation did not reasonably reflect its planned purchases. Specifically, GAO found that the Navy should have updated its solicitation for a $2.4 billion information technology modernization contract as soon as the Navy changed its buying strategy. “Where an agency’s requirements materially change… Agency Did Not Properly Consider Awardee\'s Access to Inside InformationJanuary 12, 2015 Beware the revolving door. It can hit you or those with you on the way in or the way out. The Government Accountability Office (GAO) recently reminded us of this fact when it sustained a protest by International Resources Group (IRG) regarding an organizational conflict of interest. The problem? The Agency (USAID) failed to properly investigate the awardee AECOM’s hiring of a… New Year’s Resolutions – Reassess Your Size Status, Update Your DSBS and SAM Listings and Check Your Past Performance RatingsJanuary 12, 2015 Happy New Year! The start of a new year is a time for New Year’s Resolutions. Here are several we strongly urge you to follow-through on early in 2015. 1. Reassess Your (and Any Subcontractors’) Small Business Size Status: Most companies operate on a calendar year for tax reporting purposes. For such companies the start of a new tax year, and the end of the prior year, means a change… OFCCP Issues Final Rule Implementing Executive Order 13672December 16, 2014 Last week, the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) issued a final rule revising its regulations to implement amendments to Executive Order (EO) 11246 and EO 11478 made by EO 13672, which was signed by President Obama on July 21, 2014. Reflecting the recent Executive Order, the new rule adds sexual orientation and gender identity to the prohibited bases of discrimination… Big Changes on the Horizon for ZPIC ContractorsDecember 2, 2014 Two years after a report critical of how the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) addresses potential conflicts of interest (COIs) when choosing Zone Program Integrity Contractors (ZPICs), the chickens are finally coming home to roost – with extreme prejudice. In July 2012, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report… Defending Size Protests, Part I: OverviewDecember 2, 2014 Much has been written, including on this blog, about filing size protests. However, less attention is paid to an equally important subject – namely, defending size protests. This article, the first in what will be a five-part series on defending size protests, provides an overview of size protests. Future articles will address (i) the importance of advance consideration and… Buy American – What Can A Government Contractor Deliver?December 2, 2014 Many government contractors and subcontractors ask the question, “What does ‘Buy American’ mean?” Unfortunately, Buy American refers to number of complex statutory and regulatory schemes that impose different requirements. One thing is certain, however: whether you are conducting business with the federal government directly, as a prime contractor, or indirectly, as a subcontractor,… Short Take: The Slow Death of Cost Reimbursement ContractsNovember 25, 2014 Contracting personnel are required to obtain approval of cost reimbursement contracts at least one level above the contracting officer. FAC 2005-50 states “the contracting officer shall document the rationale for selecting the contract type in the written acquisition plan and ensure that the plan is approved and signed at least one level above the contracting officer.” The documentation must… You Say Responsibility, GAO Says Acceptability, Let’s Call the Protest OffNovember 25, 2014 Just because a small business award involves security clearance issues does not automatically mean there is a “responsibility matter” that must be referred to the Small Business Administration (SBA) for a Certificate of Competency (COC) determination. Sometimes, as in the recent case of MT & Associates, LLC, B-410066 (October 17, 2014), the protestor simply fails to convince the agency… |
|
© 2024 Jackson Kelly PLLC. All Rights Reserved.