On September 10, 2025, the Department of Defense (As all the documents we address use the Department of Defense naming, we will go by that to prevent confusion.) (DoD) implemented the acquisition rules for the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification program at DFARS subpart 204.75. This follows the federal government’s institution of the CMMC program last year (We explored this a bit with a review of the proposed rules some time before that and noted that initial rules have been in place since 2020.) These rules are present at 32 C.F.R. Part 170. Despite these rules having now been in place for a little while, the scope and complexity of the CMMC program can nonetheless be daunting for contractors to deal with. In this first in a series of posts, we will explore the basics of the CMMC program and what it means for you.
Continue readingAuthor Archives: John Holtz
Finalized Increases to Micro-Purchase, Simplified Acquisition, and Other Thresholds
Last year, we noted that the FAR Council (DoD, GSA, and NASA) issued a proposed rule to adjust the statutory acquisition thresholds for inflation. Under 41 U.S.C. § 1908, the federal government must adjust these thresholds every five years to account for inflation. Effective October 1, 2025, the updated thresholds have gone into effect. In this post, we’ll look at the new thresholds.
The finalized rule, issued on August 27, 2025, mostly matches the proposed rule from 2024, although there are some differences.
Continue readingA Refresher on How the Small Business Rule of Two Generally Works
We have talked a good deal about the Small Business Rule of Two (not to be confused with the separate VA rule of two for veteran-owned businesses) over the years. The (very) general gist of the rule is this: If the procurement is above the simplified acquisition threshold, the agency must set it aside for small businesses if two or more small businesses can perform the work at fair prices. If the agency has a reasonable expectation that two or more SDVOSB/VOSBs, EDWOSBs/WOSBs, 8(a) participants, or HUBZone participants can perform work under a procurement, the agency must consider setting aside the procurement for that particular category (i.e., if it believes two or more 8(a) participants can perform the work, it can set aside the procurement for 8(a) participants). However, it appears there remains a good deal of confusion about what the Rule of Two requires, as opposed to what it simply permits. In a recent GAO protest, a contractor learned this the hard way, and today, we’ll explore that decision.
Continue readingTAA Can Apply to Small Business Set-Aside: COC Clarifies Trade Agreements Act and Buy American Act Applicability
The Trade Agreements Act (TAA) and Buy American Act (BAA) are among the most complex regulatory systems in federal contracting. There’s been a lot of confusion from both contractors and agencies on when they apply to a procurement and how. We have written on the BAA and TAA in the past. Recently, the Court of Federal Claims issued a decision discussing how the two laws interact, and showed that how they apply depends significantly on the circumstances of the procurement, providing some clarification on a past GAO decision we wrote on as well (which held that the TAA is inapplicable to small business set-asides). We will explore that here.
Continue readingTiming is Everything: GAO Dismisses Post-Bid Protest of Solicitation Terms as Untimely
It is safe to say that every federal contractor, at one time or another, has felt the terms of a solicitation were unfair or otherwise didn’t make sense. Federal agencies are comprised of people, and people make mistakes. Sometimes, then, mistakes make it into the solicitation. Unfair or erroneous terms in a solicitation are a valid grounds for a protest, but it is crucial to know when such a protest is timely. In most cases, if the time for bids has passed, any protest of the terms of the solicitation, be it at GAO or the Court of Federal Claims, will be untimely. There are rare exceptions, but, in general, a protest of terms of the solicitation must be brought before bids are due to be timely. Untimeliness equals dismissal. In this post, we will explore a protest GAO dismissed for this very reason.
Continue readingSBA Introduces its New Small Business Search System
Recently, and with very little fanfare, the SBA released its Small Business Search system (SBS), replacing the Dynamic Small Business Search (DSBS) system that had been in use for a number of years. Per the SBA, existing business profiles have been migrated to this new platform. However, it is a good idea to take a look and see what has been transferred over to be sure that all information for your company has been properly moved over. We’re going to take a quick look at this new system and how to address some common issues.
Continue readingEnd of the Bona Fide Place of Business Moratorium
SBA requires that, for 8(a) Program construction contract set-asides, the contractor must have a “a bona fide place of business in the applicable geographic area.” 13 C.F.R. § 124.501. In 2021, SBA suspended the enforcement of this requirement in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. On June 17, 2025, SBA announced that this moratorium is coming to an end. In this post, we’ll look at the rule and what the end of this moratorium means for 8(a) construction contractors.
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