SmallGovCon Week In Review: March 6-10, 2017

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I am headed back to Kansas after a great trip out west to speak at the 2017 Alliance Northwest Procurement Conference in Puyallup, WA. It was great seeing many familiar faces and meeting many other new ones. But I won’t be home long: I will be off to fabulous Las Vegas for the National RES Conference, where I’ll be presenting on Monday. If you will be at RES, please be sure to connect.

Even with all of this travel, I’ve been keeping a close eye on government contracting news–and that means that it’s time for the SmallGovCon Week In Review. In this week’s edition, scammers are using the HHS OIG telephone number in a spoofing ploy, the GAO releases a report on developments in the HUBZone program, a Coast Guard employee makes a funny FedBizOpps post (no, really!) and more.

  • A post from the U.S. Coast Guard’s Pacific Northwest contracting office that appeared on FedBizOpps showed some humor, and a bit of bureaucratic frustration. [The Libertarian Republic]
  • The GAO reports that agencies need to step it up when it comes to protecting contractor whistleblowers. [U.S. Government Accountability Office]
  • Fraud Alert! The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General recently confirmed that the HHS OIG Hotline telephone number is being used as part of a telephone spoofing scam. [Office of Inspector General]
  • The SBA has made significant improvements in HUBZone Program administration, but some weaknesses remain. [U.S. Government Accountability Office]
  • One commentator explains that the GSA Schedule program needs an overhaul–and offerors some thoughts as to how the program should be revised. [Federal News Radio]
  • The former owners of a Pittsburgh-area military supplier have been accused of defrauding the U.S. government of more than $6 million in defense contract work.
  • The Defense Department may have hit upon an acquisition innovation that is slowly drifting to the civilian world. [Federal News Radio]
  • The Senate voted Monday to kill an Obama administration rule aimed at curbing labor violations among government contractors and President Trump can seal its fate with his signature. [The Center for Public Integrity]
  • Washington Technology gives us 5 steps for contractors to meet the FAR’s cyber requirements. [Washington Technology]