GAO Denies Protest Based on Cybersecurity Compliance
Last month, I blogged about DoD’s draft guidance on how it will evaluate cybersecurity compliance in the award of contracts. The blog is available here . Based on this draft guidance indicating DoD may use cybersecurity compliance as pass/fail or best value criteria in evaluations, I concluded that bid protests would not be too far behind once DoD finalizes and implements the guidance. The public comment period on DoD’s draft guidance recently closed, so we may still be a little way . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for June 29, 2018
DEFENSE DEPARTMENT Federal Acquisition Regulation: Special Emergency Procurement Authority The Department of Defense, General Service Administration, and National Aeronautics and Space Administration are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation to implement sections of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 to expand special emergency procurement authorities for acquisitions of supplies or services that facilitate defense against or recovery from cyber attack, provide international disaster assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, or support response to an . . . Read More
False Claims Act Cases Involving Set-Aside Contracts Held to More Stringent Requirements Following Escobar
Two years have passed since the U.S. Supreme Court issued Universal Health Services, Inc. v. United States ex rel. Escobar, a key False Claims Act (“FCA”) case that resolved a circuit court split regarding the scope and validity of the implied false certification theory and established that the materiality standard for FCA cases is “demanding.” Since that time, lower courts have been implementing those standards to varying effects. The trend has been favorable for companies facing FCA cases that allege . . . Read More
The FLSA Is 80 Years Old—Has It Made Us Wiser?
This week marks the Fair Labor Standards Act’s (“FLSA”) 80th birthday. Because I have a particular affection for birthdays, this occasion is a good time to send the FLSA some overdue love and reflect on how it continues to challenge us today. The FLSA was passed in 1938 in the midst of the industrial revolution and on the heels of the Great Depression, which perpetuated a culture of workforce abuse and child labor. The FLSA’s most basic premise is that . . . Read More
Mergers & Acquisitions – Overview of the M&A Process and Considerations for Government Contractors
Presented by Cy Alba and Jonathan Bush Click here to view the recorded session. As a business owner or key executive, at some point, you may consider whether the time is right to acquire another business, either its assets, including government contracts, or its equity, as a possible strategy to diversify your business. At another time, you may be considering whether to sell some of your company’s assets as part of an effort to divest yourself of business lines on . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for June 22, 2018
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTING White House Proposes a Massive Reorganization of Federal Agencies According to an article in govexec.com , the Trump administration on Thursday released a blueprint for a massive overhaul of the federal bureaucracy, one that if implemented would touch virtually every agency and the way all Americans receive government services. “This effort, along with the recent executive orders on federal unions, are the biggest pieces so far of our plan to drain the swamp,” said Office of Management and . . . Read More
Megan Connor was recently quoted in Bloomberg Government Federal Contracts Report article, “GAO to Pentagon: Not So Fast With Your Cloud Services Award.”
Megan Connor was recently quoted in Bloomberg Government Federal Contracts Report in an article discussing GAO’s decision that DOD overstepped its other transaction authority in making a $950 million award to REAN Cloud LLC, based on a protest filed by Oracle Corp. Ms. Connor stated that GAO “simply applied the plain language of the other transaction authority statute to find the Army did not comply.” Further she stated, “[f]rankly, I’m surprised the Army didn’t take corrective action to avoid a . . . Read More
Jon Williams Interviewed by Veterans N Transition on Partnering & Teaming
Jon Williams was recently interviewed by Veterans N Transision at the Veterans in Business Conference. In this video, Jon was asked about choosing the right teaming partner and how to protect your company and your teaming agreements. He also got the chance to talk about PilieroMazza’s commitment to the Veteran Community.
Don’t Get Disqualified Because of Organizational Conflicts of Interest
A recent decision from the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) reiterates two important principles concerning organizational conflicts of interest (“OCIs”). First, proactive measures may allow a contractor to effectively mitigate and avoid an OCI. Second, appearances, innuendo, and suspicion are insufficient to establish that a contractor has an OCI. Hard facts are required. In Archimedes Global, Inc. , B-415886.2 (June 1, 2018), the protester challenged the agency’s decision to exclude it from a competition because of an alleged OCI. By way of background, the . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for June 15, 2018
CAPITOL HILL Vets First? An Examination of VA’s Resources for Veteran-Owned Small Businesses On June 7, 2018, the House Committee on Small Business Subcommittee on Investigations, Oversight, and Regulations (“Subcommittee”) held a hearing to examine the resources of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (“VA”) for veteran-owned small businesses (“VOSB”), specifically the Veterans First Contracting Program (“Vets First”). The Subcommittee invited testimony from the National Veteran Small Business Coalition, the American Legion, and two service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses (“SDVOSB”). At . . . Read More