Government Contracts Insights

October 06, 2023 - Cybersecurity & Data Privacy, Federal Procurement
The FAR Council’s Proposed Cybersecurity Overhaul: Lots of Questions, but Only Some Answers
By: Tina D. Reynolds and Sandeep N. Nandivada
In what can best be described as a tsunami of cybersecurity regulation, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council—consisting of the Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA)—issued two proposed rules on October 2, 2023. If implemented, the
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August 22, 2023 - Federal Procurement, Schedule Contracting
GSA Issues Multiple Award Schedule Solicitation Refresh 16: What It Means for Joint Ventures, Good and Bad
By: Alissandra Young McCann, James A. Tucker and Damien C. Specht
On May 19, 2023, the General Services Administration (GSA) issued Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) solicitation refresh 16, which introduced a formal offer process for joint ventures. To provide guidance on navigating those changes, GSA also issued a list of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) for joint
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August 10, 2023 - Federal Procurement
Proposed Sustainable Procurement Rule Would Streamline Existing Environmental Regulations and Clarify FAR Part 23
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel and Michaela E. Thornton
The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council published on August 3, 2023, a proposed “Sustainable Procurement” rule that reorganizes FAR Part 23 for clarity, moves subparts unrelated to sustainability or material safety to FAR Part 26, and includes a proposed “Sustainable Products and Services” contract
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August 04, 2023 - Intellectual Property, Federal Procurement
Biden Executive Order Has Potential to Discourage U.S. Company Participation in Federal Research
By: Tina D. Reynolds
A new Biden administration Executive Order proposes to enforce more rigorously U.S. manufacturing requirements attendant to federally funded inventions. While the aim of the Executive Order is to support domestic manufacturing and jobs, the policy could have the unintended effect of discouraging U.S. company
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July 24, 2023 - Federal Procurement
DoD Issues Updated Other Transactions (OT) Guide
By: Locke Bell
The Department of Defense updated its guidance on “other transaction” agreements, or “OTs,”[1] an increasingly popular contracting authority not subject to the FAR or most procurement laws that accounted for more than $37 billion in defense spending from 2019 through 2021.[2] Although the new
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May 08, 2023 - Federal Procurement, Labor & Employment
The Debt Ceiling and Its Potential Implications for Government Contractors
By: Kevin P. Mullen and Markus Gerhard Speidel
Contractors face potential payment uncertainty as a result of the current congressional inability to agree to increase the federal government’s debt ceiling. The government reached the official debt limit months ago, on January 19, 2023. Yet by all appearances it continues to operate “as normal.”
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April 27, 2023 - Federal Procurement, Defense, Compliance
Challenging Unilateral Definitizations of Undefinitized Contract Actions: What Is a Claim?
By: James A. Tucker
Forty-five years after enactment of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (CDA), contractors and agencies still often struggle to identify what is and isn’t a CDA claim—a term the CDA itself does not define. Until the CDA’s administrative dispute process is complete, a contractor is
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March 31, 2023 - Small Business, Federal Procurement
Back to the Drawing Board: Far Councils Withdraw Long-delayed Proposed Rule for Lower-tier Small Business Subcontracting Credit
By: James A. Tucker, Damien C. Specht and Alissandra Young McCann
Some of you may recall the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2014 from nearly a decade ago. It amended the Small Business Act (SBA) to allow a contractor, under certain circumstances, to receive credit towards its subcontracting plan goals for awards
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February 27, 2023 - Federal Procurement
UK Procurement Bill: Pursuing Simple and Accountable Procurement
By: Alistair Maughan
The UK is pressing ahead with a reform to its government procurement laws that will diverge from the harmonized EU procurement regime that applied in the UK pre-Brexit. The proposals are intended to create a more transparent approach. Whether a different but simplified process
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February 27, 2023 - Federal Procurement
SAM.gov Is Changing – Make Sure You’re Keeping Up
By: Damien C. Specht and Locke Bell
The System for Award Management website (SAM.gov) recently changed its registration and update process, and the feedback we’ve heard from clients is that it is slow – even for entities that are simply renewing an existing registration. As SAM delays can cause payment delays, the
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Topic Archives: Federal Procurement

The FAR Council’s Proposed Cybersecurity Overhaul: Lots of Questions, but Only Some Answers

By: Tina D. Reynolds and Sandeep N. Nandivada

GSA Issues Multiple Award Schedule Solicitation Refresh 16: What It Means for Joint Ventures, Good and Bad

By: Alissandra Young McCann, James A. Tucker and Damien C. Specht

Proposed Sustainable Procurement Rule Would Streamline Existing Environmental Regulations and Clarify FAR Part 23

By: Markus Gerhard Speidel and Michaela E. Thornton

Biden Executive Order Has Potential to Discourage U.S. Company Participation in Federal Research

By: Tina D. Reynolds

DoD Issues Updated Other Transactions (OT) Guide

By: Locke Bell

The Debt Ceiling and Its Potential Implications for Government Contractors

By: Kevin P. Mullen and Markus Gerhard Speidel

Challenging Unilateral Definitizations of Undefinitized Contract Actions: What Is a Claim?

By: James A. Tucker

Back to the Drawing Board: Far Councils Withdraw Long-delayed Proposed Rule for Lower-tier Small Business Subcontracting Credit

By: James A. Tucker, Damien C. Specht and Alissandra Young McCann

UK Procurement Bill: Pursuing Simple and Accountable Procurement

By: Alistair Maughan

SAM.gov Is Changing – Make Sure You’re Keeping Up

By: Damien C. Specht and Locke Bell