Author Archives: Shane McCall

Event Announcement: GovCon Roundup Live, Teaming Agreements, April 15, 2026

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We’d like to invite you to a great interactive virtual event coming up — and it’s completely free. 

On April 15th, Carroll Bernard and Steven Koprince are hosting Episode 9 of GovCon Roundup Live, and the topic is one that trips up contractors at every stage: teaming. Our very own, federal government contracts attorney, Nicole Pottroff, will be contributing her thoughts to the discussion.

Whether you’ve never heard the term or you’ve been navigating teaming agreements for years, this session will give you something useful. 

Here’s what they will cover:

  • What teaming really means in the federal marketplace and why agencies love it
  • The most common teaming structures — prime/sub arrangements and joint ventures — and when each one makes sense
  • Why contractors are willing to take on the complexity of joint ventures (and what they get in return)
  • How teaming opens the door to larger contracts, stronger proposals, and new markets
  • The SBA Mentor-Protégé Program — including a little-known rule exemption that gives small businesses a real competitive edge

Bring your questions to the live Q&A at the end of the show. Register here.

GovCon Roundup Live Recordings: Streaming here.

Webinar Announcement: Joint Ventures & Teaming, April 23, 2026 hosted by El Paso Texas APEX Accelerators

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If you aren’t able to attend the April 14th webinar on joint ventures & teaming agreements and how they can be essential to winning and successfully performing federal government contracts, here’s another chance!

Please join, government contracts attorneys, Nicole Pottroff and John Holtz from Koprince McCall Pottroff, as they explain how to develop, negotiate and administer agreements that are both compliant and effective. The presentations will cover both the key rules (such as flow-downs and ostensible subcontractor affiliation) and best practices for agreements that go beyond the bare minimum legal requirements. 

Hope you can join us! Registration link here.

SmallGovCon Week in Review: April 6-10, 2026

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Happy Friday! April has started out in full swing, and it’s already shaping up to be a busy and eventful month. Along with plants being active for spring, this week has been active in the federal government contracting world, with some new developments and policy updates to track. As always, we’ve gathered a selection of relevant articles and insights below to help you stay informed and ahead of the curve.

Key updates including a proposed federal budget, increased IT spending review, and new AI risk management updates. We hope you find these resources helpful as you wrap up the week. Thank you for taking the time to stay connected, and we wish you a relaxing, enjoyable, and well-deserved weekend!

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SmallGovCon Week in Review: March 30-April 3, 2026

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Happy Friday—and welcome to April! Recently, SmallGovCon contributor Nicole Pottroff traveled to Las Vegas to attend and present at the RES 2026 conference, hosted by the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development. While there, she took part in a panel titled “Navigating the New Regulatory Landscape for Native-Owned Federal Contractors.” The event brought together professionals from across the industry, offering valuable opportunities for networking, business development, and Native procurement matchmaking. It proved to be a great event. Hope you were able to see or say hi to Nicole at the conference!

This week in federal government contracting news included important stories about DEI in federal contracting, more info on IT purchasing, and AI’s potential reform to procurement.

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Webinar Announcement: Teaming Agreements & Joint Ventures, April 14, 2026 hosted by UT San Antonio APEX Accelerators

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For large and small contractors alike, teaming agreements and joint venture agreements can be essential to winning and successfully performing federal government contracts. In this presentation, government contracts attorneys, Shane McCall and Annie Birney from Koprince McCall Pottroff, will explain how to develop, negotiate and administer agreements that are both compliant and effective. The presentations will cover both the key rules (such as flow-downs and ostensible subcontractor affiliation) and best practices for agreements that go beyond the bare minimum legal requirements. 

Hope you can join us! Registration link here.

SmallGovCon Week in Review: March 23-27, 2026

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Happy Friday! I just got back from a short trip to the Caribbean to enjoy some relaxation with the fam. We saw some incredible fish, rays, and even a sea turtle, while also making some time for reading on the beach. It’s good to recharge the batteries every once in a while and come back raring to go.

But federal contracting news never stops. This week in federal government contracting news including a report that the federal government is looking to hire more employees (but maybe cut down on the number of contractors), SBA moving it’s Washington district office, and how AI is fitting into federal contractor work.

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“In Scope” vs. “Out of Scope” Modifications: How GAO Explains The Difference

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One of the perennially popular topics on SmallGovCon has been the question of what constitutes a modification to a contract that renders that modification “Out of Scope.” This post will explore a leading GAO decision that came out back in 2017, along with some recent updates on this same question.

An agency may modify a contract without having to deal with restrictions in the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA), so long as the the modification is deemed “in scope.” An “out of scope” modification, on the other hand, is improper–and may be protested at GAO.

In a leading bid protest decision, GAO denied a protest challenging an agency’s modification of a contract where the modification was within scope and of a nature that competitors could have reasonably anticipated at the time of award. In its decision, GAO explained the difference between an in scope and out of scope modification, including the factors GAO will use to determine whether the modification is permissible.

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