Supreme Court Ruling Increases Potential Liability for Employers Failing to Accommodate Pregnant Employees
By Corey Argust On March 25, 2015, the Supreme Court reinstated a pregnancy discrimination suit that the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals had previously decided in favor of the employer. The decision in Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., 575 U.S. ____ (2015), opens the door to potential liability for employers with disability accommodation policies that formerly appeared to be nondiscriminatory. Peggy Young, the plaintiff in Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc. was a former, part-time . . . Read More
Late is not Always Late: The Government Control Exception for Late Proposals
By Julia Di Vito A common nightmare of government contractors probably plays out like this: you spend a significant amount of time and resources preparing a robust proposal in response to a solicitation, you are sure your firm is the most qualified to do the work and can provide the best value to the government, you submit your proposal electronically before the deadline and then—to your horror—the agency rejects your proposal because it is “late.” If this scenario happens to . . . Read More
House Bill Proposes Improvements to Small Business Contracting Policies
By Megan Connor The House Small Business Committee approved legislation on March 25, 2015 to ensure more small businesses can compete for federal contracts and help save taxpayer money. H.R. 1481, The Small Contractors Improve Competition Act of 2015 , proposes a series of common sense improvements to small business contracting policies to promote increased competition, a healthier industrial base, and a more cost-effective federal procurement process. The bill is the result of a series of hearings examining small business contracting policies, including a full committee hearing in February and . . . Read More
GSA Proposes to Amend GSAR for Reporting of Transactional Data and Prices Paid by Ordering Activities
By Katie Flood On March 4, 2015, the General Services Administration (GSA) issued a Proposed Rule to amend the GSA’s Acquisition Regulations. The rule outlines a plan to adopt clauses requiring vendors to report transactional data from orders and prices paid by ordering activities. This includes orders placed against FSS contracts & non-FSS contract vehicles, GWACs, and IDIQ contracts. The Proposed Rule signals a shift away from GSA’s current price enforcement mechanism, the Price Reductions Clause, in favor of a . . . Read More
Your “Form” Teaming Agreement: Enforceable Contract or an “Agreement to Agree”?
Teaming agreements have become virtually universal in the world of government contracting, and their use is recognized and promoted in the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Given the prevalence of teaming agreements, it is our experience that many government contractors have developed a “form” teaming agreement, as they have with other often-used documents, such as form subcontracts. Typical provisions included in a teaming agreement often include: Allocations of a specific percentage of the work share to each team member; A pledge of . . . Read More
Seminar with SBA Speaker on Recent Proposed Rules
SBA recently released two long-awaited and significant new proposed rules—one on changes to the Mentor-Protégé program and the other on the Limitations on Subcontracting. The Mentor-Protégé proposed rule will establish a new mentor-protégé program available to all small businesses, while the other will change the way small businesses determine compliance with the limitations on subcontracting. Both proposed rules include a number of other potential changes to SBA’s small business programs, including the rules pertaining to joint ventures, affiliation, applications for . . . Read More
GAO Allows New Company to Rely Upon Owner’s Personal Past Performance
Newly-organized small businesses often struggle to establish adequate past performance to successfully compete in the federal marketplace. Fortunately, in the matter of Recogniti, LLP, B-410658 (January 21, 2015), GAO ruled that an agency could rely on the past performance of an offeror’s owner, rather than solely on the company’s past performance. In the Recogniti case, the awardee submitted its winning proposal after being in business for only eight months. As part of that proposal, under the past performance section, the . . . Read More
Similar But Different: FAA Size Protest Challenges
Most small business contractors are familiar with the notion that the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) has exclusive jurisdiction over all size protests. In fact, in the realm of government contracting, there is really no question as to which federal agency “wears the pants” when it comes to handling small business size issues. Still, is the SBA really the only federal agency capable of making a formal size determination regarding a business concern? Officials at the Federal Aviation Administration (“FAA”) . . . Read More
Protecting an LLC From A Wayward Member While Maintaining SBA Eligibility
By Ambi Biggs When creating a limited liability company (“LLC”), members are often so concerned with getting the company established–and anticipating problems that may arise with third parties, be it suppliers or customers–that they fail to consider what will happen if issues arise among the members themselves. This is a mistake. Usurpation of corporate opportunities, the misuse of company assets and a breach of fiduciary duties are just some of the most common issues that can arise among LLC . . . Read More
STOP, THIEF! – How to Keep Your “Secret Sauce” In-House, When an Employee Is Lured to Greener Pastures
No matter how collegial and successful a workplace you have created for your employees, attrition is an inevitable fact of life in business, and in government contracting in particular. And when departing personnel have been privy to hard-won confidential and proprietary company data, the thought of that information falling into the hands of a competitor have caused many a sleepless night for business owners. This article is intended to outline some steps that the prudent executive should take to preserve . . . Read More