Earlier this month, the GSA announced a new Unique Entity Identifier Standard for Federal awards management. The new standard will go into effect December 2020. It will replace the current DUNS number system as the official identifier for all businesses contracting with the U.S. Federal Government.
This should make registering to do business with the federal government a little easier, but the proof will be in the roll-out.
Continue reading…Many federal construction contractors know that contract changes can be frustrating business. Changes can be unilateral or bilateral. They can stress a contractor’s finances. They can delay the overall project. And they can result in animosity between the agency and a contractor.
Fortunately, GAO has shined some light on the problems in the contract change process. Indeed, in a recent report, GAO concluded that agencies, particularly the Army Corps of Engineers and GSA, need to develop better systems to collect data about changes in construction contracts.
Continue reading…Make sure to check your NAICS code size standards based on receipts, because SBA is increasing them across the board on August 19 to give small businesses more time to grow. On July 18, the SBA announced it will increase monetary-based industry size standards (meaning receipts-based and assets-based size standards).
This change is a result of adjustments for inflation that the SBA makes every five years. These rules will go into effect August 19, 2019.
Continue reading…We’ve been getting a lot of the dreaded “Excessive Heat Warnings” this week. If you’re in the same boat, please stay cool out there. An alternative to going outside could be staying in the air conditioning and reading up on some interesting government contracting news.
This week in federal government contracting news, please check out noteworthy updates on cyber provisions in the NDAA, securing the supply chain, and possible changes to Buy-American rules for steel, as well as many other stories.
Continue reading…Most federal contracts are structured with a base period with a number of option periods that can be exercised at the agency’s discretion. But what happens if an option year goes unexercised? Recently, a disappointed contractor attempted to challenge the agency’s decision not to exercise an option before GAO.
Unfortunately, GAO was not receptive.
Continue reading…On Friday, July 12, 2019, the U.S. House of Representatives passed its version of the 2020 National Defense Authorization Act.
While this passage may lead to an uncharacteristic political fight over appropriations, contractors will be watching whether the U.S. Senate and House bills ultimately agree upon the less politically-charged sections likely to impact their businesses.
Continue reading…The proposed National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2020 introduces new pathways for certain Department of Defense software acquisitions. These proposed software acquisition pathways would be separate from the traditional Department of Defense acquisitions process, and contain sweeping streamlining functions, especially within their supervisory structure.
If passed, this new pathway could have a significant effect on how defense agencies acquire software.
Continue reading…