Tag Archives: Federal Contracting

Year in Review: Top SmallGovCon Posts of 2025

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Hello, SmallGovCon readers! As we do each year, this post revisits the most popular SmallGovCon articles that were posted in 2025, as well as the most popular all-time posts in 2025. As we move deeper into 2026, I look to reflect on these important and well-liked posts from 2025.

Below, we summarize the blogs written in 2025 that were the most visited as well as the perennial favorites from years past that were the most read in 2025. It’s a good chance to look back on the important articles from 2025, and those topics of continuing interest to federal contractors. While there are exceptions, chances are that those topics that were of high interest in 2025 will carry on into 2026.

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TAA Can Apply to Small Business Set-Aside: COC Clarifies Trade Agreements Act and Buy American Act Applicability

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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. 

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SmallGovCon Week in Review: December 30-January 3, 2025

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Happy Friday and Happy New Year to all of our SmallGovCon readers! We hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and are looking forward to 2025. As we look forward to the new year and close out the old, there are sure to be lots of developments in the federal contracting space. So, as you batten down the hatches for the polar vortex, it’s time for a nice, warm fire, maybe some hot cocoa and the latest in federal contracting news.

Stories included a new law on custom software, and rules on small business representation and debarments.

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SBA Issues Final Rule to Streamline WOSB Program Rules

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In June, we reported on a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that applied to the SBA’s Woman-Owned Small Business/Economically Disadvantaged Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) regulations. These proposed rules were intended to take the WOSB regulations and make them more consistent with the other types of set-aside programs offered by the SBA. Now, following the required period for comments from the general public, the SBA has published its Final Rule which will be effective January 3, 2025. Read ahead to find out more!

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Webinar Event: Legal Updates 2024 hosted by the Catalyst Center for Business & Entrepreneurship, November 20, 2024

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The Catalyst Center for Business & Entrepreneurship is hosting this helpful, virtual workshop on Legal Updates 2024. In this webinar, government contracting attorneys, John Holtz and Gregory Weber will discuss the most important legal developments for federal contractors in 2024. Specifically, we will discuss important new small business rules, updates to the 8(a) rules and application procedures, joint venture changes, updated SDVOSB certification requirements, key provisions of the recent National Defense Authorization Act, recent cases pertinent to federal contractors, and more. Hope you can join us! Register here.

SmallGovCon Week in Review: October 21-25, 2024

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Happy Friday! I just got back from presenting at the 35th Judicial Conference for the United States Court of Federal Claims. It was a great experience and I got to learn from some very smart folks. But the wheel of federal contracting keeps turning, and this week was no different. Important stories included updates from a recent OIG SBA report, a bill to modernize federal cloud procurement, and the Army seeks to cut contract award times to six months. Have a great weekend.

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Govology Webinar: October 10, 2024 – Communicating with Government Contracting Officials: What Can (and Should) Contractors Really Say and Do? (2024 Update)

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When it comes to effective communication, the government and industry often get it wrong. Misconceptions and misunderstandings abound and can prove very costly for contractors.

In this webinar, government contracts attorneys Nicole Pottroff and John Holtz debunk some of the most common myths and misunderstandings held by contractors, including when and how you can communicate one-on-one with a contracting officer, who has authority to modify your contract, what to do when an unauthorized official gives you instructions, how the government gratuities rules differ from standard commercial practice, and much more. Register here.