July 11, 2016
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson half a century ago. On June 30, the President signed the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, amending the law in any effort to increase government transparency and public access to government records. Under the Act, federal agencies must now make disclosable records available in an electronic format. Where records…
May 22, 2016
The Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently issued a final rule aimed at ensuring a basic level of protection for covered contractor information systems. The new rule is just one in a series of regulatory actions being taken or planned to strengthen protections for information systems. It is intended to…
May 15, 2016
Today, the Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have issued a final rule to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement a section of U.S. Code which establishes a higher simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) for overseas acquisitions in support of humanitarian or peacekeeping operations.
As…
May 2, 2016
The 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA-16), 15 U.S.C. § 632(a)(9), authorizes SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) to hear administrative challenges seeking reconsideration of NAICS Code size standards promulgated by SBA, “us[ing] the same process [OHA] uses to decide challenges to the size of a small business concern.” Id., § 632(a)(9)(A) & C). Such requests are to be filed “not…
April 26, 2016
Earlier this month, the SBA’s Office of the Inspector General released an audit report detailing findings regarding SBA determinations of eligibility for the 8(a) Business Development Program. Ensuring good performance in this area is critically important because Government contracting officers rely on the SBA’s eligibility determination process to ensure that an 8(a) contractor will be able to…
April 26, 2016
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a proposed rule amending its Bid Protest Regulations to implement the requirements of Section 1501 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (the “FY14 CAA”) and to make certain administrative and other changes. The primary thrust of the proposed amendments is to implement the FY14 CAA’s direction to establish and operate an…
April 19, 2016
The Department of Defense (DoD) recently issued new guidance concerning the proper selection of contract type for use in procurements. The “Guidance on Using Incentive and Other Contract Types” will be posted within the DFARS Procedures, Guidance and Information (PGI) at DFARS PGI 216.104.
In her April 1, 2016 issuing memorandum, Claire M. Grady, Director of Defense Procurement and Acquisition…
April 18, 2016
The Small Business Administration (SBA) recently issued proposed amendments to its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program Policy Directives. Specifically, the Notice of Proposed Amendments describes plans to combine the two directives into one document, clarify the data rights and Phase III preference afforded to SBIR and STTR small…
April 11, 2016
Effective April 6, 2016, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) has been amended to require reporting in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) to include, to the extent practicable, identification of any immediate owner or subsidiary, and all predecessors of an offeror that held a Federal contract or grant within the last three years.
The final rule implements…
March 28, 2016
At first glance, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) rules concerning deadlines for filing bid protests may seem relatively straightforward. But looks can be deceiving. And, as a recent GAO opinion reminds us, following the timeliness rules requires careful attention to detail and a proactive approach to learning about – and acting to challenge -- the basis for the procuring agency’s…
March 14, 2016
In addition to other changes previously noted, section 825 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2015 required the Small Business Administration (SBA) to conduct a new study to identify the industries in which women-owned small businesses (WOSBs) are underrepresented in federal government contracting and report its findings to Congress. SBA’s March 3, 2016 Federal Register …
March 7, 2016
Most contractors are familiar with the “Rule of Two,” which in general requires acquisitions to be set aside if the government determines that there is a reasonable expectation that offers will be received by at least two small (or service disabled veteran-owned, etc.) business concerns and that award can be made at a fair and reasonable price. But what happens if the government determines that…
July 11, 2016
The Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) was signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson half a century ago. On June 30, the President signed the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, amending the law in any effort to increase government transparency and public access to government records. Under the Act, federal agencies must now make disclosable records available in an electronic format. Where records…
May 22, 2016
The Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) recently issued a final rule aimed at ensuring a basic level of protection for covered contractor information systems. The new rule is just one in a series of regulatory actions being taken or planned to strengthen protections for information systems. It is intended to…
May 15, 2016
Today, the Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have issued a final rule to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement a section of U.S. Code which establishes a higher simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) for overseas acquisitions in support of humanitarian or peacekeeping operations.
As…
May 2, 2016
The 2016 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA-16), 15 U.S.C. § 632(a)(9), authorizes SBA’s Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA) to hear administrative challenges seeking reconsideration of NAICS Code size standards promulgated by SBA, “us[ing] the same process [OHA] uses to decide challenges to the size of a small business concern.” Id., § 632(a)(9)(A) & C). Such requests are to be filed “not…
April 26, 2016
Earlier this month, the SBA’s Office of the Inspector General released an audit report detailing findings regarding SBA determinations of eligibility for the 8(a) Business Development Program. Ensuring good performance in this area is critically important because Government contracting officers rely on the SBA’s eligibility determination process to ensure that an 8(a) contractor will be able to…
April 26, 2016
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has issued a proposed rule amending its Bid Protest Regulations to implement the requirements of Section 1501 of the Consolidated Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2014 (the “FY14 CAA”) and to make certain administrative and other changes. The primary thrust of the proposed amendments is to implement the FY14 CAA’s direction to establish and operate an…
April 19, 2016
The Department of Defense (DoD) recently issued new guidance concerning the proper selection of contract type for use in procurements. The “Guidance on Using Incentive and Other Contract Types” will be posted within the DFARS Procedures, Guidance and Information (PGI) at DFARS PGI 216.104.
In her April 1, 2016 issuing memorandum, Claire M. Grady, Director of Defense Procurement and Acquisition…
April 18, 2016
The Small Business Administration (SBA) recently issued proposed amendments to its Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program Policy Directives. Specifically, the Notice of Proposed Amendments describes plans to combine the two directives into one document, clarify the data rights and Phase III preference afforded to SBIR and STTR small…
April 11, 2016
Effective April 6, 2016, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) has been amended to require reporting in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) to include, to the extent practicable, identification of any immediate owner or subsidiary, and all predecessors of an offeror that held a Federal contract or grant within the last three years.
The final rule implements…
March 28, 2016
At first glance, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) rules concerning deadlines for filing bid protests may seem relatively straightforward. But looks can be deceiving. And, as a recent GAO opinion reminds us, following the timeliness rules requires careful attention to detail and a proactive approach to learning about – and acting to challenge -- the basis for the procuring agency’s…
March 14, 2016
In addition to other changes previously noted, section 825 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2015 required the Small Business Administration (SBA) to conduct a new study to identify the industries in which women-owned small businesses (WOSBs) are underrepresented in federal government contracting and report its findings to Congress. SBA’s March 3, 2016 Federal Register …
March 7, 2016
Most contractors are familiar with the “Rule of Two,” which in general requires acquisitions to be set aside if the government determines that there is a reasonable expectation that offers will be received by at least two small (or service disabled veteran-owned, etc.) business concerns and that award can be made at a fair and reasonable price. But what happens if the government determines that…
