DOD Seeks to End the 25-Year “Pilot” Status of the DoD Mentor-Protégé Program
By Alex Levine The U.S. Department of Defense (“DoD”) recently announced its intent to request a 10-year extension of its mentor-protégé program. The move is a bid to add more permanence to a program, since its advent in 1991 has been labelled a pilot program that must be reauthorized in a National Defense Authorization Act every few years. The DoD hopes that the move will encourage participation amongst businesses, participation which the DoD asserts has been “chilled” due to the . . . Read More
Exiting the 8(a) Program: an Overview of Terminations, Suspensions, and Early Graduations in the Current Environment
Presenters: Tony Franco and Peter Ford. For the National 8(a) Association.
Organizations Urge SBA to Expedite WOSB Sole Source
By Megan Connor As we explained in a previous blog post , Section 825 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2015 creates sole source authority for participants in the Woman-Owned Small Business (“WOSB”) Program. Additionally, Section 825 seemingly eliminates WOSB self-certification. Because these are two major developments in the WOSB Program, it could take considerable time for the SBA to issue its proposed rulemaking. Therefore, 24 organizations are urging the SBA to move on the sole source authority quickly and then . . . Read More
Comments on the Proposed Rule Regarding the Women-Owned Small Business Federal Contract Program
Includes: Sole source authority Study of underrepresented industries Certification
Claim Basics: Five Key Considerations for Government Contract Claims – Tony Franco, Set-Aside Alert
A Win for Employers Enforcing Restrictive Covenants in Virginia
By Julia Di Vito The enforceability of a restrictive covenant in an employment agreement, including a non-competition, non-solicitation, or non-disclosure provision, depends greatly on the state in which the covenant is to be enforced. In Virginia, courts will not “blue pencil” or modify restrictive covenants, and thus if the restrictive covenant is unenforceable as written, then a court will not enforce it at all. Other states are more flexible and will enforce restrictive covenants to the extent they are reasonable. . . . Read More
Yet Another Recertification Rule
On December 29, 2014, the Small Business Administration (“SBA”) issued a proposed rule to implement the subcontracting limitation requirements mandated by the National Defense Authorization Act of 2013. Buried therein was a new proposed regulation with regard to recertification of size prior to a contract award. Under this new, proposed size recertification rule, firms that are bidding on small business set-aside contracts will need to recertify their size prior to an award if they engage in a merger and/or an . . . Read More
Cybersecurity Resolutions for the New Year
Presenters: Jon Williams with Steve Chafitz of e-End.
When Should you File a Contract Disputes Act Claim?
By Julia Di Vito Under the Contract Disputes Act (“CDA”), a contractor must submit a claim within six years of accrual of the claim. A claim is simply a written demand for payment directed to the contracting officer (“CO”) that indicates that it is requesting a final decision. Although six years seems like more than enough time to submit a claim, it is best to not take that time period for granted. Determining when a claim actually accrues can pose . . . Read More
The “Rule of Two” For Orders Placed Against Multiple Award Contracts: The Other Shoe Has Dropped
As many of you may recall, Congress passed the Small Business Jobs Act (“Act”), in July 2010. The purpose of the Act was to ameliorate the effects of the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent recession. Although the Act expanded opportunities for small business there were, nonetheless, some provisions which, in fact, made doing business with the Government somewhat more difficult for small business contractors. In particular, Section 1331 of the Act mandated the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (“OFPP”) and . . . Read More