Government Contracts Insights

February 27, 2023 - Federal Procurement
SAM.gov Is Changing – Make Sure You’re Keeping Up
By: Damien C. Specht, Locke Bell and Thomas Lee
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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February 13, 2023 - Federal Procurement
OMB Proposes New Domestic Preference Requirements for Federally Funded Infrastructure Projects
By: Damien C. Specht and Markus Gerhard Speidel
On February 9, 2023, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued a proposed rule that would subject all federally funded infrastructure projects to domestic preference requirements that are materially similar to the Buy American Act requirements applicable to many federal procurements. For purposes of
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January 16, 2023 - Federal Procurement
A Bluer Shade of Blue: All “outstandings” Are Not Created Equal
By: James A. Tucker
A common mistake in competitive procurements is a mechanical fixation on the adjectival ratings, color ratings, or numerical “scores” a procuring agency assigns a proposal under a particular evaluation factor. In best value tradeoff acquisitions, one often hears (from both contractors and government personnel)
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August 22, 2022 - Federal Procurement
“I Get By with a Little Help from My Friends”: Relying on Affiliate Past Performance and Experience
By: Damien C. Specht and James A. Tucker
For evaluation purposes in a federal procurement, may an offeror rely upon the past performance and experience of its affiliates? The answer generally is a qualified yes, but the answer and the qualifications may change depending on the terms of each solicitation. If, on the other
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August 16, 2022 - Federal Procurement
Another Piece to the Puzzle: Court of Federal Claims Has Jurisdiction Over Bid Protest Where the Disputed Other Transaction Could Lead to a Follow-On Production Contract
By: Locke Bell and Victoria Dalcourt Angle
There has been significant uncertainty as to where a company can protest an Other Transaction (“OT”) award. As we previously reported , cases such as SpaceX , MD Helicopter , and Kinemetrics have provided useful data points. The most recent decision of the U.S. Court of
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August 12, 2022 - Federal Procurement
July 2022 Bid Protest Roundup: Standing, Delivery Orders, Conflicts
By: Sandeep N. Nandivada
This month’s bid protest round up focuses on three recent decisions from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims and the Government Accountability Office (GAO). These decisions involve (1) standing at the Court where protest allegations are speculative; (2) the rules related to delivery orders issued
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July 12, 2022 - Acquisition Regulations, Federal Procurement, Domestic Preferences
Chasing the FAR: DOD’s Buy American Act Final Rule
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel
Recently, the Department of Defense (DOD) issued a final rule that immediately implements President Trump’s Executive Order (E.O.) 13881 to maximize the government’s procurement of American-made goods, products, and materials under the Buy American Act (BAA) statute. The final rule conforms the DOD’s pre-existing
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June 13, 2022 - Federal Procurement
DoD Calls for Continued Flexibility in Contract Place of Performance
By: Markus Gerhard Speidel
In a win for remote contractors, the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) expressed its continued preference for remote work under its contracts. In a memorandum issued earlier this month, the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense (OUSD) asked contracting officers (COs) not to
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May 31, 2022 - Federal Procurement
Sekri, Inc. V. United States: Are Pre-proposal-submission Email Exchanges Now Enough to Avoid Blue & Gold Waiver?
By: James A. Tucker
In the seminal decision Blue & Gold Fleet, L.P. v. United States , the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit held that “a party who has the opportunity to object to the terms of a government solicitation containing a patent error and
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May 16, 2022 - Federal Procurement
April 2022 Bid Protest Spotlight: Late-Is-Late, Party Interest, Timeliness
By: Caitlin A. Crujido
This month’s Bid Protest Roundup examines three recent decisions by the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and the Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”). The first two protests involve late proposal submissions both at the GAO and at the COFC, and the third involves establishing interested
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Topic Archives: Federal Procurement

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

By: Damien C. Specht, Locke Bell and Thomas Lee

OMB Proposes New Domestic Preference Requirements for Federally Funded Infrastructure Projects

By: Damien C. Specht and Markus Gerhard Speidel

A Bluer Shade of Blue: All “outstandings” Are Not Created Equal

By: James A. Tucker

“I Get By with a Little Help from My Friends”: Relying on Affiliate Past Performance and Experience

By: Damien C. Specht and James A. Tucker

Another Piece to the Puzzle: Court of Federal Claims Has Jurisdiction Over Bid Protest Where the Disputed Other Transaction Could Lead to a Follow-On Production Contract

By: Locke Bell and Victoria Dalcourt Angle

July 2022 Bid Protest Roundup: Standing, Delivery Orders, Conflicts

By: Sandeep N. Nandivada

Chasing the FAR: DOD’s Buy American Act Final Rule

By: Markus Gerhard Speidel

DoD Calls for Continued Flexibility in Contract Place of Performance

By: Markus Gerhard Speidel

Sekri, Inc. V. United States: Are Pre-proposal-submission Email Exchanges Now Enough to Avoid Blue & Gold Waiver?

By: James A. Tucker

April 2022 Bid Protest Spotlight: Late-Is-Late, Party Interest, Timeliness

By: Caitlin A. Crujido