Government Contracts MonitorShort Take: DPAP Acquisition Compliance ScorecardJune 6, 2016 On May 18, the Office of the Undersecretary for Defense, Acquisition, Technology and Logistics (OUSD/AT&L) released its Acquisition Compliance Scorecard for the second quarter of fiscal year 2016. The report analyzed several Department of Defense (DoD) Agencies’ compliance with procurement regulations in three areas: competition, past performance, and including the new DFARS clause 252.204-7012,… Options are OptionsJune 5, 2016 In the often complicated context of government contracting, it can sometimes be easy to forget basic principles. For example, a contractor awarded a contract with a base period and option years knows that the government’s exercise of the option years is not guaranteed. Still, barring a performance issue, such options are overwhelmingly exercised. Many contractors count on this practical reality… Short Take: Contract Award Moots NAICS Code AppealsMay 23, 2016 Timing is everything, particularly when filing North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code appeals at the Small Business Administration (SBA) Office of Hearings and Appeals (OHA). This point was driven home in the recent case of KAES Enterprises, LLC, SBA No. NAICS-5731. The matter involved a sole source award to McCann Contracting, Inc. by the Veterans Administration (VA) under a… Rule of Thumb: Treat All RFP Amendments as MaterialMay 23, 2016 It has been suggested that “proper planning prevents poor performance.” While that may not always be the case, the statement does provide a pleasantly alliterative reminder that establishing procedures generally does help minimize mistakes. In the context of proposal preparation, one mistake contractors should try to avoid is failing to acknowledge amendments to the solicitation. The recent… Proposal Costs: Grabbing the Brass Ring at GAOMay 23, 2016 A protest sustained on its merits is always good news for a contractor, and often is accompanied by an award of the costs to pursue the protest. Occasionally, however, a contractor will achieve an even bigger win: not only seeing its protest sustained and recouping its protest costs, but also winning award of its proposal preparation costs. The recent Government Accountability… Short Take: Carrie Willett Joins Jackson Kelly\'s Government Contracts TeamMay 23, 2016 Jackson Kelly’s Government Contracts team is pleased to welcome Carrie Willett to the Firm’s Denver office. Ms. Willett joins Jackson Kelly from the United States Air Force where she served as an Attorney Advisor at Peterson Air Force Base. Prior to that, Ms. Willett was an Air Force trial attorney, litigating bid protests before the Government Accountability Office and contract disputes before… New FAR Rule on Basic Safeguarding of Contractor Information Systems Is HereMay 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… Short Take: Simplified Acquisition Threshold Doubles for Certain Overseas AcquisitionsMay 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… Beyond Spoon-Feeding: When an Agency Holds Out in DiscussionsMay 15, 2016 In a negotiated procurement, it is axiomatic that, when discussions are initiated, an agency must hold “meaningful discussions” with all offerors. On the other hand, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) has held time and again that an agency need not “spoon-feed” an offeror by identifying every area in which an offer could be improved. In Crowley Logistics, Inc., the GAO addressed the… Remember, the RFP Is Your Touchstone in Both Structuring Your Proposal Team and Selecting Past Performance ExamplesMay 10, 2016 The solicitation is always your quintessential touchstone, in both constructing your proposal team and preparing your response, including particularly demonstrating your experience and selecting your past performance examples. You therefore need to carefully review the solicitation, and understand both what the agency says it wants, and what it requires and is willing to consider in evaluating… Short Take: Baltimore Construction Firm Pays $100,000 to Settle Discrimination ClaimsMay 9, 2016 The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently announced a settlement with Asbestos Specialists, Inc. (ASI), a Baltimore-based company that specializes in asbestos removal and demolition in the Washington, D.C. area. ASI has agreed to pay $100,000 and furnish significant equitable relief to resolve a charge of national origin harassment filed with the EEOC and a Department of… Short Take: OHA Defers NAICS Code Size Standard Challenges Pending the Promulgation of New Governing RegulationsMay 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… |
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