It’s relatively rare for the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (an intermediate federal appeals court immediately below the Supreme Court) to weigh in on the Trade Agreements Act, as it applies to federal government contracts.
So, when we saw the Federal Circuit’s recent decision on the issue, we had just one thought: this has to make the blog. So, here it is.
Continue reading…Here at Koprince Law LLc, we’re trying to withstand these last few weeks of winter as we hold out for spring.
In federal contracting news, there are some interesting highlights. Among them are reactions from contractors to the beta.sam.gov portal, changes in agency priorities in the 2021 budget, and a new adaptive acquisition framework for defense agencies.
Continue reading…As we’ve previously discussed here at SmallGovCon, a substantial number of GAO bid protests are resolved through voluntary corrective action. While corrective action is typically a desirable outcome for a bid protest, it by no means affords a protester the opportunity to relax.
Indeed, as one offeror recently discovered, the failure to diligently protest the scope of a corrective action barred raising certain challenges later on.
Continue reading…Requests for reconsideration are rarely granted by GAO and reconsideration of cost claims is even more unique. But GAO recently granted one of these unicorns–recommending additional reimbursement of more than $20,000 to the protester.
Continue reading…For a protester, a corrective action from the agency is a win. It gives the protester another bite at the apple to possibly win a contract award. But for the initial awardee, a corrective action has some unfortunate consequences, the dreaded double whammy.
Besides the obvious–losing the award–the former awardee’s price is usually revealed to the other competitors. Could this give the competitors a leg up when proposals are resubmitted as part of the corrective action? Yes. Does this amount to a flaw in the corrective action such that GAO will sustain a protest over it? Not likely.
Continue reading…CMMC has been a hot topic for federal government contractors of late, for good reason: once CMMC is rolled out, contractors under a particular Defense Department procurement must meet the applicable cybersecurity level, or they’ll be considered ineligible.
But in case you’re still wondering what CMMC is and why it matters, let’s take a closer look. Here are five things you should know about the Department of Defense’s new Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (“CMMC”).
Continue reading…Happy Valentine’s Day SmallGovCon readers! Hope you have a great one!
This week, we’re really loving some federal contracting updates, including a piece questioning the impact of enhanced debriefings, e-commerce supply chain risks, and a 57-month prison term for defrauding subcontractors on federal contracts to the tune of $3.7 Million.
Continue reading…