Airing of Grievances: FAR Council Invites Novation Comments
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Morrison Foerster’s Government Contracts Insights blog provides an in-depth analysis of news, developments, and trends impacting government contracting and procurement. Through Insights, attorneys from our nationally recognized Government Contracts and Public Procurement practice will offer a real-time assessment of the statutory, regulatory, legal, and business-related developments that are shaping the industry. This blog will also examine a full array of U.S. and non-U.S. public procurement issues, mindful that our clients compete in a global marketplace.
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- Is it finally time to fix the outdated, incomplete, and often misunderstood novation regulations? Maybe. On April 5, 2024, the FAR Council released a Notice and Request for Comments requesting comments from federal contractors related to novation and change-of-name agreements under FAR 42.12. In particular, the FAR... ›
DFARS Realigns with FAR Buy American Requirements
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel
For the second time in as many years, the Department of Defense (DOD) has issued a final rule that brings its Buy American Act (BAA) requirements into alignment with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). The final rule amends the Defense FAR Supplement (DFARS) Part 225... ›March 2024 Bid Protest Roundup: “Each Procurement Stands on Its Own”; Responsibility Determinations; Trade Agreement Act Compliance
By: James A. Tucker
In our bid protest roundup for March, we consider three recent decisions of the Government Accountability Office (GAO). The first explains why similar proposals for similar requirements under similar evaluation criteria may legitimately receive very different ratings from one procurement to the next. The... ›DOD’s Proposed Data Rights Regulations For MOSA Undercut Its Pursuit Of Commercial Innovation
By: Locke Bell
On November 17, 2023, the Department of Defense published its long-awaited proposed revisions to the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement data rights regulations to implement a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA). 88 Fed. Reg. 80258. In this article, we focus on one aspect of... ›Bid Protest Spotlight: Conflict, Latent Ambiguity, Cost Realism
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel
This month’s Bid Protest Roundup highlights a trio of U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) decisions. The first decision, Deloitte Consulting , highlights the risk of severing a teaming partner after quote submission. The second, Kauffman and Associates, Inc. , illustrates how a latent ambiguity in the... ›Bid Protest Spotlight: Standing, Brand-Name or Equal, Insufficient Documentation
By: Victoria Dalcourt Angle
This month’s bid protest roundup highlights one decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and two decisions from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO). REV, LLC v. United States clarifies the elements required to establish prejudice and standing in multi-phase,... ›OMB Says Agencies “Should” Perform a Rule of Two Analysis and Set Aside Requirements for Task Orders Under Multiple-Award Contracts
By: James A. Tucker and Damien C. Specht
The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has issued a policy memorandum with a goal of promoting small business participation under multiple-award indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contracts (MACs). One of the memorandum’s three areas of focus – and the focus of this article – is... ›Proposed Rule Seeks to Mandate Pay Transparency and Ban Using Salary History for Federal Contractors
By: Andrew R. Turnbull and Keniece Y. Gray
On January 29, 2024, the Biden administration issued a Proposed Rule that would prohibit federal contractors from seeking and considering compensation history when making employment decisions and require contractors to disclose compensation being offered in job postings. If implemented, the requirements will apply broadly to... ›December 2023 Bid Protest Roundup: Supplementation, Conversion, Rejection
By: Lyle F. Hedgecock and Michaela E. Thornton
This month’s Bid Protest Roundup include decisions regarding supplementation of the record and whether an agency may convert a sealed bid opportunity into a negotiated procurement due to lack of funds, as well as a case in which the Court of Federal Claims found... ›GAO Finds Company's BPA BID Remains Eligible for Award Despite a Transaction, Recertification, and Change in Size Status in Connection with Its Underlying Federal Supply Schedule Contract
By: Damien C. Specht and James A. Tucker
Small business regulations create one of the stickier wickets in bid protest litigation. Although the Small Business Administration (SBA) has exclusive authority to determine a company’s size and socioeconomic status, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) sometimes must wrestle with size and status questions to adjudicate... ›