Government Contracts & Investigations

OCTOBER 11, 2023

Welcome back to the Cost Corner, where we provide practical insight into the complex cost and pricing requirements that apply to Government contractors. Applicability of the FAR Cost Principles The FAR Cost Principles apply to the “pricing of contracts, subcontracts, and modifications whenever cost analysis is performed.” [1]

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Price Government Contracts Government Government 52

Government Contracts & Investigations

FEBRUARY 29, 2024

9] Costs of compensation established under covered labor-management agreements are deemed reasonable unless the costs are “unwarranted” by the character and circumstances of the work or “discriminatory” against the Government. [10] 29] As a result, such compensation has a lower the audit risk.

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Price Government Contracts Government Government 52

SmallGovCon

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

million for construction contracts). While the specific goal will vary with each contract (or in some cases may be on a company-wide basis), it is rare for a contracting officer to find a large business hasn’t met the given goal. Looking for the latest government contracting legal news?

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Government Contracts Legal Forum

JUNE 27, 2024

The CASB also published a paper discussing six possible approaches and the criteria it will use to evaluate those approaches, but welcomed the public to identify alternatives for the CASB to consider. For contractors who currently do not have CAS-covered contracts, but do hold IDIQ contracts not otherwise CAS exempt (e.g.,

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Thresholds Contract Accountability Quantity 52

Government Contracts Legal Forum

APRIL 30, 2024

The Final Rule also makes many changes to 2 CFR Parts 180 and 200, including, but not limited to, increasing the threshold for audits, clarifying the requirements for fixed amount awards, and implementing a mandatory disclosure rule. View the full article

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Federal News Network

FEBRUARY 22, 2024

In the first instance, they challenged the VA’s evaluation of their own proposal saying instead of acceptable, we should have been rated either good or outstanding because of flaws in the way that the agency evaluated our proposal. So typically, the Federal Circuit is the court of last resort for government contracts.

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Public Contracting Institute

AUGUST 19, 2024

when the scope of the basic contract is very broad and the nature of individual orders could be significantly different)….” Does this policy establish that an evaluation cannot be performed on both the basic contract and each established order alternately during the contract term?

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Select GCR

JUNE 4, 2024

We cover the eligibility criteria, application steps, and the tangible benefits you can gain from this program, aiming to enhance your competitive edge in government contracting. Once certified, your business becomes eligible for sole-source contracts up to $7 million for manufacturing and $4.5

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Government Contracts & Investigations

DECEMBER 6, 2023

Two categories of successful protest arguments discussed in our previous blog are Improper Past Performance Evaluations and Flawed Best Value Analyses. Another category of successful protest challenges are those where there is an improper technical evaluation. As such, the GAO sustained this protest ground. In RELX, Inc. ,

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Government Contracts & Investigations

FEBRUARY 29, 2024

After receiving quotations, the contracting officer added salient characteristics to the technical evaluation form to be considered during evaluations that were not stated in the solicitation. For the awardee’s first prior experience example, the TET report did not analyze or evaluate the size of the project.

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Tracker Intelligence

SEPTEMBER 6, 2022

By law, a public sector organisation that is seeking a contract opportunity over a given value must advertise the opportunity in the Official Journal of the European Union OJEU). The type of contract will determine the threshold since different thresholds exist for specific types of contracts.

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Government Contracts Legal Forum

MAY 9, 2024

Both prohibitions will apply to all procurements, including commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) items, and purchases below the micro-purchase threshold: Section 5949(a)(1)(A) ( Part A ) prohibits agencies from acquiring electronic products or services that include covered semiconductor products or services. View the full article

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Supply Chain Electronics Purchasing Manufacturing 52

Government Contracts & Investigations

OCTOBER 11, 2023

According to the Final Rule, FASC will evaluate sources and/or covered articles that may present supply chain risk, conduct reasonable diligence into the covered articles and/or sources identified, and will issue a recommendation for next steps. In August 2021, the FASC issued a Final Rule adding a new 41 C.F.R.

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Supply Chain Government Government Telecommunication 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

APRIL 4, 2024

The CBCA held the EULA between Avue and the Federal Government was not a “procurement contract” because the EULA did not obligate Avue to furnish any services, or obligate the Federal Government to pay Avue for any services furnished. This would be a big win for software companies that sell indirectly to the Government.

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Federal Construction Contracting

JANUARY 16, 2024

The proposed rule applies to defense contractors and subcontractors that will process, store, or transmit FCI or CUI and is expected to be made a part of every DoD solicitation with a value above the micro-purchase threshold (currently, $10,000). Comments on the proposed rule must be submitted by February 26, 2024.

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Contract Thresholds Electronics Supplier 52

Government Contracts & Investigations

SEPTEMBER 18, 2023

In government contracting, if a contract value exceeds a certain dollar threshold and an international trade agreement governing procurement is applicable, the BAA domestic preferences will be waived in favor of permitting acquisition of TAA-compliant products. The same process will not apply to BABA.

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Manufacturing Supply Chain Procurement Thresholds 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

This language would require suppliers to adhere to specified actions that are “consistent with the Framework” (although the bills do not specify what these actions will be) and provide “appropriate access to data, models, and parameters…to enable sufficient test and evaluation, verification, and validation.” Register now by clicking here.

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E-procurement Price Negotiation Utilities Procurement 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

OCTOBER 19, 2023

PAP 2021-05, Evaluation of FSS Program Pricing, is one such example. This PAP fundamentally alters the MAS negotiation process, establishing evaluation standards, requirements, and procedures not found in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) or the General Services Acquisition Regulation (GSAR).

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E-procurement Price Supply Chain Procurement 52

Government Contracts Legal Forum

DECEMBER 27, 2023

Applicability All government contractors that handle regulated data under DoD contracts such as CUI and FCI are required to meet CMMC. CMMC requirements, however, are not applicable under the proposed rule to government information systems operated by contractors in support of the government. View the full article

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The Coalition for Government Procurement

FEBRUARY 1, 2024

This language would require suppliers to adhere to specified actions that are “consistent with the Framework” (although the bills do not specify what these actions will be) and provide “appropriate access to data, models, and parameters…to enable sufficient test and evaluation, verification, and validation.”

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Government Contracts Legal Forum

AUGUST 29, 2024

Currently, SBA’s regulations on joint ventures provide that a procuring activity may not require a protégé firm to individually meet the same evaluation or responsibility criteria as that required of other offerors generally. Application of HUBZone Price Evaluation Preference (PEP). United States , 165 Fed. 745 (2023).

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E-procurement Participation Purchasing Contract 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

JANUARY 11, 2024

Applicability All government contractors that handle regulated data under DoD contracts such as CUI and FCI are required to meet CMMC. CMMC requirements, however, are not applicable under the proposed rule to government information systems operated by contractors in support of the government.

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Select GCR

DECEMBER 17, 2024

Understanding Federal Government Contracting Federal government contracting is a multifaceted process involving the acquisition of goods and services by federal agencies. Governed by a comprehensive set of laws and regulations, this process ensures fairness, transparency, and accountability.

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GovCon & Trade

AUGUST 28, 2023

Whether through the vaccine mandate, minimum wage increase, emissions disclosure rules, or now with Buy America (BA) rules, the Biden administration has long used the government contracting community to advance its domestic policies. The GAO agreed with Unico, finding the waiver was improperly granted.

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Federal News Network

APRIL 30, 2024

Those key personnel actually have a huge effect on your on the government’s evaluation of the contractors proposal and on the ability to actually win the job and be able to perform the work. The government takes a long time to solicit, evaluate and award contracts.

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The Coalition for Government Procurement

APRIL 11, 2024

The CBCA held the EULA between Avue and the Federal Government was not a “procurement contract” because the EULA did not obligate Avue to furnish any services, or obligate the Federal Government to pay Avue for any services furnished. The guidance also instructs VA staff to limit the sharing and saving of data on VA systems.

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E-procurement Procurement Procurement Contracts Supply Chain 98

The Coalition for Government Procurement

SEPTEMBER 26, 2024

The FIT Act would authorize agencies to make advanced payments for cloud computing services, increase the simplified acquisition threshold from $250,000 to $500,000 and the micro-purchase threshold from $10,000 to $25,000, and require Federal procurement officers to take cross-functional training. The CMMC 2.0

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E-procurement Procurement Price Buyers 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

SEPTEMBER 5, 2024

DFARS clause 252.204-7021, Contractor Compliance with the CMMC Requirements , will be used in solicitations and contracts that require contractors to have a specific CMMC level, including those using FAR Part 12 for commercial products and commercial services, with the exception of COTS items. The CMMC 2.0

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The Coalition for Government Procurement

AUGUST 29, 2024

Further, confirming the broad applicability of CMMC, DOD confirmed that these requirements will be applicable to contracts below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (which currently sits at $250,000). 1] The Government Accountability Office denied the protest. The CMMC 2.0

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Select GCR

SEPTEMBER 3, 2024

For procurements exceeding specified thresholds, justification must document the effort to find alternative suppliers, listing unique technical requirements and companies contacted. This involves documenting the evaluation of potential alternative supplies and explaining why they could not satisfy the requirements.

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The Coalition for Government Procurement

APRIL 25, 2024

While the threshold for reporting under CISA’s rule is higher than, for example, under the Department of Defense’s (“DoD’s”) cyber incident reporting rule (which requires reporting of incidents involving activities that “may have” occurred), this is a welcome acknowledgement of the practicalities of cyber incident detection and response.

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Supply Chain E-procurement Procurement Thresholds 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

AUGUST 15, 2024

Accordingly, contractors competing under OT solicitations (as well as government contracting personnel) should be aware of the potential for judicial review of these kinds of acquisitions. 1] The Government Accountability Office denied the protest. The proposed changes to the DFARS are primarily to: Add references to the CMMC 2.0

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E-procurement Supply Chain Procurement Price 52

Government Contracts Legal Forum

JANUARY 5, 2024

Crowell & Moring’s Government Contracts Group discusses the most consequential changes for government contractors here. Website content must be updated biannually and be maintained as open government data assets. View the full article

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Procurement Notes

OCTOBER 10, 2022

Jay Blindauer A contractor takes on a Government contract to make money, and inflation is getting in the way. With inflation eroding value for this long, a Government contractor may need to obtain contract relief. 17] However, FAR 16.203-4 limits the use of the FAR EPA clauses to fixed-price contracts. [18]

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The Coalition for Government Procurement

JULY 18, 2024

For bulk sensitive personal data, there is a yet-to-be-determined volume threshold that must be involved in the transaction for it to be covered. Suggested thresholds in the ANPRM range from data sets on 100 U.S. Government (e.g., persons for highly sensitive data to more than 1,000,000 U.S.

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Supply Chain Data Price Thresholds 52

The Procurement School

OCTOBER 22, 2024

RFP simplification involves careful consideration of evaluation criteria and with desired outcomes identified. With bundling, the requirements may eliminate SMEs from contention, and the bidding market may become constrained to a shrinking pool of participants with greater resources to meet the higher thresholds.

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Participation Procurement Strategies Procurement Buyers 52

The Coalition for Government Procurement

JANUARY 4, 2024

The rule, entitled “Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers under Service Contracts,” requires that contractors and subcontractors who work on “covered Federal service contracts” offer service employees on a predecessor contract a right of first refusal of employment on the successor contract.

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