Government Contracts MonitorProcurement News and AnalysisSequestration Part IV – Preparing for the WorstDecember 13, 2012 As “talks” among the White House and Congressional leaders stumble along here in Washington, D.C., contractors all along the ideological spectrum hope that reason will prevail and a deal will be struck so the “fiscal cliff” and sequestration can be avoided. However, as demonstrated by the wrangling that resulted in the Budget Control Act of 2011 (and our current predicament),… Sequestration Part III – Contracts Are Not Only Harder to Win and Keep, but Harder to PerformDecember 10, 2012 In addition to causing the impacts on winning awards and maintaining contract scope discussed in our previous article, sequestration promises to make contract performance substantially more difficult for government contractors. This doesn’t mean that sequestration will add to the requirements with which contractors have to comply. It just means that sequestration will give contractors more… Sequestration Part II – As Contracting Gets Harder, Don’t Forget That Feds Are People TooNovember 29, 2012 In all the recent hand-wringing about what sequestration is, whether it will happen and what it will mean for federal procurement if it does (see, e.g., our previous article ), one group has too often been overlooked in the discussion: the federal procurement professionals who will play a central role in how the sequestration plays out. There is no doubt that, if implemented, sequestration will… Update: USDA Designates New Categories of Biobased Products to Receive Preferential Treatment in Federal ProcurementNovember 27, 2012 As previously reported here, the Federal Government has a procurement preference program for biobased products called BioPreferred. On November 19, 2012, the Department of Agriculture (USDA) designated 12 new categories of products that qualify for this preferential treatment. Thus, effective December 19, 2012, federal agencies are generally required to purchase biobased products within these… Sequestration Part I – What is Sequestration and What Does it Mean for Me?November 26, 2012 Here in Washington, DC, sequestration (or the "fiscal cliff") is the number one topic of conversation. But, what is it and what does it mean for federal contractors across the country? This is the first in a series of articles on sequestration and its impacts on federal contractors nationwide. At its heart, sequestration is the result of political gamesmanship gone bad. … The Litigious Engine That CouldNovember 16, 2012 The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit becomes the third circuit to hold that the Fraud Enforcement and Recovery Act of 2009 (“FERA”) amendments to the liability provisions of the False Claims Act (“FCA”) apply to all cases pending after June 7, 2008. See United States ex rel. Sanders v. Allison Engine Co., Nos. 10-3818/10-3821 (6th Cir. Nov. 2, 2012). This trend,… WARN Notices and SequestrationNovember 15, 2012 Over the last several months and right up through the recent election, there has been much public discussion about possible sequestration and its automatic and severe budget cuts to defense and domestic federal spending that are supposed to take effect January 2, 2013. Given the uncertainty surrounding these billions in potential federal budget cuts and their possible effect on large… Afghanistan Contractors Gone WildNovember 5, 2012 In March of this year two Whistleblowers filed a complaint against their employer, Jorge Scientific Corporation (Jorge), a company that received almost a billion dollars in federal contracts for covert operations performed in the Middle East, including the Army’s “Legacy” projects in Kabul and Qandahar Province – projects intended to help Afghanis provide their own security. According to… Sixth Circuit Rejects FCA Liability for Technical ViolationsOctober 25, 2012 The Sixth Circuit recently announced an important limitation on False Claims Act (“FCA”) liability by holding that “irrespective of whether the [defendant] in fact violated the regulations, [t]he False Claims Act is not a vehicle to police technical compliance with complex federal regulations.” United States v. Renal Care Group, Inc., No. 11-5779 (6th Cir. Oct. 5, 2012). The case involved… Two Government Contractors Get to “Kickback” in Prison for Accepting $1 Million from a SubcontractorOctober 23, 2012 Clearing munitions in Iraq and keeping them out of enemy hands is very challenging work. The Project Manager and Deputy Project Manager of an international government contractor made that work even more challenging by taking kickbacks from a subcontractor. The Parsons Company, an international construction and engineering firm, had a contract with the Army Corps of Engineers Coalition… Defective Debriefings - Where\'s the Remedy?October 15, 2012 Debriefings are a key component of most competitive procurements. They can occur before or after contract award and can and should be requested by successful and unsuccessful offerors alike. In a debriefing the agency discusses the strengths and weaknesses it found during the evaluation process and, post-award, information about the awardee's proposal and price and the rationale for… It’s Good to Be King: COFC Applies Sovereign Act Doctrine to Negligence ClaimsOctober 12, 2012 In a case of first impression, the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) held that the Sovereign Acts Doctrine barred claims by a contractor for damage to its equipment during Hurricane Katrina that the contractor alleged was the caused by the Army Corps of Engineers’ negligent design, maintenance, and operation of the New Orleans levees. C.R. Pittman Construction Co. v. United States, No. 08-196C (Fed.… |
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