The Department of Labor (DOL) recently published a Notice [84 Fed. Reg. 49345 (9/19/19)] announcing that, effective January 1, 2020, the minimum hourly wage rate required to be paid to workers performing work on or in connection with covered federal contracts, per Executive Order 13658, will increase from the present $10.60 to $10.80. The minimum hourly tipped wage will increase from $7.40 to…
Pentagon leaders have been speaking out, increasingly, regarding the risks to U.S. military operations created if and when Chinese technology is used in any military related 5G wireless telecommunications networks. Specifically, officials (former and current) are warning that using Chinese firms (for example, Huawei) to outfit military networks creates a high risk ... indeed a probability ... of…
On January 31, 2019 President Trump signed yet another Executive Order addressing Buy American issues: Buy American, Hire American [here]. This Order requires that federal agencies purchase U.S. goods and services in any and all infrastructure projects including, interestingly, cybersecurity projects. Among other things, this recent Order underscores the Trump Administration’s policy of enforcing…
Happy New Year! The start of a new year is the time for New Year’s Resolutions. Here are several we strongly urge you to follow-through on early in 2019.
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 and…
What happens when a competitor receives proprietary information during a procurement? Will an offeror whose information has been improperly disclosed succeed in a protest? The answer is . . . it depends. Most recently, inDynCorp International, LLC, the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that an agency had a reasonable basis for not disqualifying a competitor that had received…
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently published a Notice [83 Fed. Reg. 44906 (9/4/18)] announcing that, effective January 1, 2019, the minimum hourly wage required to be paid to workers performing work on or in connection with covered federal contracts, per Executive Order 13658, will increase from the present $10.35 to $10.60. The minimum hourly tipped wage will increase from $7.25 to $7.40.
In addition to changing leaves and cooler temperatures, some federal contractors will soon also face Affirmative Action Plan (“AAP”) audits by the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”). Last week, the OFCCP sent out 750 Courtesy Scheduling Announcement Letters (“CSAL"s) to notifying specific federal contractors that they had been selected to…
Executives of Wellco Enterprises were sentenced earlier this month for their role in a rather brazen scheme to defraud the Government by flouting the sourcing restrictions imposed by the Trade Agreements Act and the Berry Amendment. The executives were among the six defendants originally charged in an 11-count indictment including conspiracy to commit wire fraud, eight counts of wire fraud, major…
Reassess Your Size Status, Update Your DSBS and SAM Listings, Check Your Past Performance Ratings, and Update Your Employment Policies, Handbooks and Postings
Happy New Year! The start of a new year is the time for New Year’s Resolutions. Here are several we strongly urge you to follow-through on early in 2018.
1. Reassess Your (and Any Subcontractors’) Small Business Size Status: Most companies…
Eric Whytsell will be speaking at the upcoming Fall Meeting of the American Bar Association Section of Public Contracts Law, which will take place in Louisville, Kentucky on November 2-3, 2017. He will be part of the "Hot Topics in State and Local Procurement" portion of the Program, which will consist of four TED Talk style presentations. Mr. Whytsell's talk is entitled "Exemptions -…
The Justice Department recently announced that an individual, Michael Pirolo, residing in Palm Harbor, Florida, has pleaded guilty to wire fraud in connection with a telemarketing scheme promising, for a $500 one-time fee. to “register” companies with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA} to enable them to receive FEMA contracting preferences. Approximately 1,200 victim-companies were…
One of the biggest complaints about the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)’s programs for Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (VOSB) and Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (SDVOSBs) has been that program eligibility, granted on the basis of an exhaustive process, was valid for only one, and subsequently two, years, before having to be reestablished through an intensive reverification…
