The Small Business Administration suspended more than 1,000 companies in the 8(a) program. SBA made the decision after it deemed those small businesses non-compliant with its financial data request from December. . . . Lawyers that represent small businesses say SBA issued the suspensions on Wednesday based on the fact that the 8(a) firms either failed to submit their responses on or before the January 19 deadline or submitted incomplete responses. “At least some firms that submitted complete data call . . . Read More
Last week, the Supreme Court declined to review Percipient.ai, Inc. v. United States, 153 F.4th 1226 (Fed. Cir. 2025), a high‑profile Federal Circuit decision that limits who may bring a protest at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (COFC). Percipient.ai invested years and untold legal fees in protesting and appealing COFC’s “interested party” standard, underscoring just how consequential meeting that definition is for government contractors seeking to challenge federal procurement decisions. In this blog, we explain why positioning your company . . . Read More
In the evolving landscape of government contracting, non-FAR-based procurements, including Other Transactions Authority (OTA), have become a focal point. A key element of President Trump’s April 9, 2025, Executive Order, “Modernizing Defense Acquisitions and Spurring Innovation In the Defense Industrial Base,” emphasized reforming the Department of War’s (DOW) acquisition process by prioritizing Commercial Solutions Openings (CSOs) and OTA. In November 2025, Secretary Hegseth’s memorandum, “Transforming the Warfighting Acquisition System to Accelerate Fielding of Capabilities,” highlighted that the Under Secretary of . . . Read More
PilieroMazza is pleased to announce that Partner Nichole Atallah was appointed to the Board of Directors of Women Impacting Public Policy (WIPP) for the 2026 term. WIPP is a national nonprofit organization focused on advancing women-owned businesses and strengthening their ability to compete, grow, and succeed in the highly regulated government contracting sector. Nichole’s appointment aligns with PilieroMazza’s commitment to helping clients achieve sustainable growth while maintaining compliance, managing risk, and controlling costs. WIPP President and CEO Angela Dingle shared, . . . Read More
The Weekly Update recaps recent legislative and regulatory updates affecting government contractors and commercial businesses. If you have questions concerning this content, please email marketing@pilieromazza.com. _____________________________________________ Happy New Year from PilieroMazza! PilieroMazza Promotes Eric Valle to Partner, Helping Government Contractors Navigate Compliance and Stay Competitive, PilieroMazza News PilieroMazza is proud to announce that Eric Valle was promoted to Partner in the Firm’s Government Contracts Group effective January 1, 2026. Eric’s promotion reflects his deep experience in government contracting law and his . . . Read More
In December 2025, PilieroMazza explained some key highlights of the 3,000-page 2026 NDAA for defense contractors, tracking how these important updates will affect their ability to compete and how they align with DOW’s Acquisition Overhaul. In this blog, we dive deeper into one of these NDAA updates—Section 1826—which all small businesses, defense contractors, and prospective defense contractors need to understand, as it could significantly ease compliance burdens across the existing defense industrial base and invite new competitors into the space. . . . Read More
The Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA) and the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) recently published their annual reports (the Reports), providing updates on personnel, decision statistics, and other relevant developments over Fiscal Year 2025 (FY2025). As the primary forums for federal contract appeals, the CBCA and ASBCA serve as critical resources for federal contractors. In this blog, attorneys in PilieroMazza’s REAs, Claims, and Appeals Group offer key insights from the Reports that could affect how government contractors . . . Read More
On Thursday, December 18, 2025, President Trump signed into law the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2026 (2026 NDAA), which authorizes over $900 billion in funding for the Department of Defense (DOD) and other national security programs. The 2026 NDAA contains many acquisition reform provisions and other critical provisions impacting defense contractors. This client alert provides six key takeaways from these provisions. Efforts to Increase Competition by Small Businesses and Nontraditional Defense Contractors Several provisions of the 2026 . . . Read More
The Weekly Update recaps recent legislative and regulatory updates affecting government contractors and commercial businesses. If you have questions concerning this content, please email marketing@pilieromazza.com. _____________________________________________ Season’s Greetings from PilieroMazza! GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS / FALSE CLAIMS ACT / AUDITS & INVESTIGATIONS Inside the SBA’s Full-Scale 8(a) Audit: What Participants Need to Know Now, PilieroMazza Webinar Replay, Matthew E. Feinberg, Meghan F. Leemon The SBA has issued formal data and document requests to all certified 8(a) participants, marking the first major step in the “immediate and full-scale audit” announced in . . . Read More
Enforcing foreign bank account reporting requirements through penalties has been an IRS priority for several years, spawning numerous precedent-setting cases throughout the courts. In the latest such case[1], a federal appeals court rebuffed foreign bank accountholders’ efforts to resist the federal government’s robust powers to collect those penalties. This case demonstrates two things: (1) not all IRS-administered penalties are treated like taxes and (2) understanding the difference is critical to effectively challenging them—especially for foreign bank accountholders who could face . . . Read More
