Coming off their World Series win last year, my Chicago Cubs are back atop the National League Central division in hopes of repeating as champions.  While we still have few months of the regular season left, I’m hoping for a repeat of October 4, 1908, when a whopping 6,210 fans watched the Cubs successfully defend their 1907 title.

But enough baseball for now–this is a government contracts blog, after all.  And since it’s Friday, here is the SmallGovCon Week in Review.  In this edition, a contractor gets 60 months in jail for paying $3 million in bribes, the Federal Times takes a look at potential bid protest reforms, a commentator takes aim at no-bid contracts, and much more.

• A former government contractor conspired with a contracting official to commit close to $3 million in bribery–and he’s now been sentenced to 60 months in prison. [United States Department of Justice]
• When you get past the sky-is-falling headline, this article provides a surprisingly nuanced take on potential bid protest reforms.  (See my own take right here).  [Federal Times]
• The House has voted to continue a seven-year-old moratorium on public-private competition to perform certain federal jobs under the long-standing Office of Management and Budget Circular A-76. [Government Executive]
• NASA has launched a new program to help buyers using its governmentwide IT contract verify that the products they’re buying from are legitimate sources. [Nextgov]
• With the “use it or lose it” philosophy many federal agencies adopt in Q4, the Federal Times offers some tips for businesses looking to bid on contracts at the end of the government’s fiscal year. [Federal Times]
• President Trump’s first anti-regulation agenda is winning favor with federal contractors. [Federal News Radio]
• One commentator calls no-bid contracts an “outrage,” and says that the government needs to renew its focus on competition. [The Hill]
• A look at what vendors can do to capture year-end money, as well as set the stage for the new fiscal year head as Q4 winds down. [American City & County]
• An appeal has been filed challenging a major Court of Federal Claims ruling in May, which held that SDVOSB preferences trump AbilityOne at the VA . [Winston-Salem Journal]
• An ex-GSA contracting official and her husband both received prison sentences for a nepotism conspiracy scheme totaling more than $200,000. [Government Executive]
• The Pentagon has detailed a plan to shake-up its Acquisition, Technology and Logistics office in the Office of Secretary of Defense with two main goals in mind. [Federal News Radio]