Category Archives: Statutes and Regulations

Unpaid Federal Taxes Will Mean “No Contracts” Under New FAR Provision

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Under a new FAR provision effective in February 2016, the Government typically will not enter into a contract with any corporation that has an unpaid Federal tax liability that is not being contested or timely repaid.  The same new FAR provision prohibits the Government, in most cases, from awarding a contract to a company recently convicted of a Federal felony.

The new FAR provision requires a corporate offeror to represent whether it has any unpaid tax liabilities or recent felony convictions.  If the answer to either question is “yes,” the Government cannot award a contract unless it has first considered suspension or debarment of the offeror, and determined that suspension or debarment is unnecessary to protect the Government’s interests.

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Bridge Contracts Need Improved Oversight, Says GAO

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In a recent GAO review of three agencies’ use of bridge contracts, the agencies in question had “limited or no insight into their use of bridge contracts.”

According to a recent GAO report, a lack of effective guidance for the use of bridge contracts contributed to potential misuse–such as several so-called “bridge” contracts that were longer than three years in duration.

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SBA Proposes Credit For Lower-Tier Subcontracts

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Large prime contractors operating under individual subcontracting plans would receive credit for small businesses performing at any subcontracting tier, according to a proposed rule issued yesterday by the SBA.

The proposed rule also requires large primes to assign a NAICS code and size standard to “solicitations” for subcontracts–a notion that may come as a surprise to prime contractors, many of whom do not typically issue formal subcontract solicitations.

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No GAO Jurisdiction Where Government Receives “De Minimis” Value

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GAO lacks jurisdiction to decide a protest relating to a solicitation under which the government will receive de minimis value.

De minimis is a fancy Latin term meaning, essentially, “not much.” In one recent bid protest decision, GAO held that it lacked jurisdiction to consider a protester’s challenge to the terms of a solicitation because the solicitation called for the contractor to purchase scrap metal from the government, not the other way around.

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Buy Indian Act: 105 Years (And Counting) Of Frustration

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In 1910, William Howard Taft lived in the White House, the Chicago Cubs were just two years removed from back-to-back World Series titles, and Arizona had yet to be admitted to the Union.  That summer, Congress passed the Buy Indian Act, a statute authorizing a special federal contracting program for Indian-owned businesses.

Since then, it has been mostly downhill.  It took the Bureau of Indian Affairs (BIA) 103 years to issue regulations implementing the Act’s contracting preferences.  Now that the regulations are finally in place, the Buy Indian Act program is suffering from lack of effective oversight and implementation.  In fact, a recent GAO report found that the BIA and the Indian Health Service could not even clearly articulate whether Buy Indian Act set-aside contracts take priority over other set-asides.

If the Buy Indian Act is ever to live up to its potential, significant changes are needed.

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Buy Indian Act: Implementation Needs Improvement, Says GAO

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The implementation of the Buy Indian Act set-aside program suffers from inconsistencies and uncertainties–including the fundamental question of whether Buy Indian Act set-asides are to be prioritized over other set-aside contracts.

In a recent report on the Buy Indian Act, the GAO uncovered a disturbing lack of effective oversight and implementation, and made several recommendations to enable the government to maximize the effectiveness of the Buy Indian Act.

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Simplified Acquisition Threshold To $500,000? House Proposes Huge Increase

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The simplified acquisition threshold would increase to $500,000 under the version of the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act currently before the U.S. House of Representatives.

If the House proposal ultimately becomes law, the simplified acquisition threshold would more than triple from its current $150,00 level.  Such a dramatic increase in the simplified acquisition threshold could affect nearly all federal contractors–especially small businesses.

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