The Weekly Update for February 23, 2018
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE Contractors on Board with Defense Department Budget Request The defense contracting industry has had a positive reaction to President Donald Trump’s fiscal year 2019 Defense Department budget request. The requested $686 billion for fiscal year 2019 is the largest ever request for the Pentagon. The National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA) praised the administration for recognizing a growing defense spending need in the U.S. Spokesperson for NDIA, Evamarie Socha, stated, “NDIA welcomes the president’s fiscal year 2019 budget . . . Read More
Review of NAICS Codes Assignments Reveals Inconsistencies and Small Percentage of Successful Appeals
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) has released a report on its review of several issues related to the North American Industry Classification System (“NAICS”) codes. Although it found that there are some inconsistencies in the assignment of NAICS codes – and thus size standards – for substantively similar procurements, only about 20 percent of NAICS codes appeals are successful. This is likely due to the fact that, in order to win a NAICS code appeal, an appellant must demonstrate . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for February 2, 2018
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Procurement of Commercial Items (DFARS case 2016-d006) The Department of Defense (DOD) issued a final rule, which amended the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS), to implement sections of the National Defense Authorization Acts for Fiscal Years 2013, 2016, and 2018, related to commercial item acquisitions. The rule will reduce the risk of fraud, increase accountability, and make the buying process more seamless for the military. See 83 Fed. Reg 4431 . SMALL BUSINESS Ownership and Control . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for January 26, 2018
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation (GSAR); Federal Supply Schedule, Order-Level Materials The General Services Administration (GSA) is amending the General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation (GSAR) to clarify the authority to acquire order-level materials (OLMs) when placing an individual task or delivery order against a Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) contract or FSS blanket purchase agreement (BPA). OLMs are supplies and/or services acquired in direct support of an individual task or delivery order placed against an FSS contract or BPA, . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for January 19, 2018
TOP OF THE NEWS The Government Shutdown Top 10: Things You Should Know Before You Send Employees Home By Nichole D. Atallah Ms. Atallah’s blog creates an invaluable list for government contractors to keep in mind should the government shutdown actually come to fruition. The list discusses various labor and employment issues that could expose companies to liability, and ranges from state wage and hour law compliance to security clearance processing. For the complete list, please read the full . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for January 12, 2018
GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS Pentagon Task Force’s $675 Million in Contracts to Rebuild Afghanistan Found Wasteful According to an article from Government Executive, the Defense Department’s now-defunct business task force for rebuilding war-torn Afghanistan has again been found to have ineffectively spent its budget, devoting more than half of $675 million in contract obligations to indirect or support costs. The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction on Tuesday released its latest critique of the Pentagon’s Task Force for Business and Stability Operations, . . . Read More
New Year, New Certification?
With a new year upon us, it is an optimal time for contractors to review their size/status certifications on SAM.gov. A contractor’s representations in the SAM database qualify as certifications upon which federal agencies and prime contractors may rely. An inaccurate certification on SAM could lead to a protest by the SBA or liability under the False Claims Act. Therefore, it is vital that contractors keep these certifications up-to-date. SBA’s regulations require contractors to certify their size in SAM “at . . . Read More
The Weekly Update for December 22, 2017
LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT Department of Labor Seeks to Loosen Reins on Restaurant Industry By Rescinding Regulation of Certain Tip Pooling Practices In 2014, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) Wage and Hour Division launched an aggressive enforcement initiative aimed at ensuring companies in the restaurant and food service industry comply with the federal minimum wage, overtime, and record-keeping requirements of the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”). Plaintiff-side employment lawyers took note immediately and began advertising to their target audience. It . . . Read More
2018 NDAA Makes Big Changes to HUBZone Program
The 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”), signed last week, made some significant changes to the Small Business Administration’s (“SBA”) Historically Underutilized Business Zone (“HUBZone”) Program. Most of the changes will not take effect until January 1, 2020, but one important change is effective immediately: the current HUBZone maps will be “frozen” and will not change until at least January 1, 2020. This means that areas that currently are designated as HUBZone (or in redesignated status) will remain HUBZones until . . . Read More
The Land Mines of Unpopulated Joint Ventures
SBA has all but eliminated populated joint ventures (i.e., a joint venture with employees of its own performing direct labor). As a result, companies that want to form a joint venture for set-aside opportunities and not be affiliated with each other need to form an unpopulated joint venture. While SBA’s preference for unpopulated joint ventures is meant to benefit small business venturers and provide them with more hands-on experience, it creates wrinkles for the venturers. 1. Scope of Work When . . . Read More