SmallGovCon Week in Review: August 9-13

Happy Friday the 13th, Readers! In doing research on the origins of why Friday the 13th became an ominous day on the calendar, I found a lot of theories.  Dr. Simon Bronner, a professor of American studies and folklore at Pennsylvania State University says that Friday the 13th is just a convenient milestone for people who are looking to trace bad luck to a certain cause—but there’s nothing special about the date itself. Apparently, the number 13 is considered lucky in some countries, like Italy, he adds. I’m one who prefers to look at things optimistically so I’m gong to side with the Italians on this one. I hope your Friday the 13th is the best day ever.

Here are some articles covering the happenings in federal government contracting this week. Enjoy, and have a wonderful Friday the 13th and weekend. Wishing you all “buona fortuna” (good luck in Italian).

Continue reading

SmallGovCon Week in Review: August 2-6

Happy Friday, All. We hope you had a productive week (or if you were on vacation, hope you were able to just tune out). Here are some highlights in federal government contracting including news on the contracting dollars in the 2020 fiscal year , a bill aimed at enhancing small business participation in the federal marketplace passing in the Senate, and an announcement to nominate former HUD appointee to lead federal procurement. Enjoy your weekend!

Continue reading

SmallGovCon Week in Review: July 26-30, 2021

Happy Friday, Readers. We have been in the midst of a heatwave here in Kansas with temperatures at 100 degrees and the humidity at 91%. Whew! We are very grateful for air conditioning during the dog days of summer. Here’s an interesting fact. The ancient Romans called the hottest, most humid days of summer “diēs caniculārēs” or “dog days.” The name came about because they associated the hottest days of summer with the star Sirius. Sirius was known as the “Dog Star” because it was the brightest star in the constellation Canis Major (Large Dog).

There was a lot of news and announcements in Federal government contracting this week such as several executive orders and proposed rules impacting federal government contractors related to the Buy American Act and boosting federal competition, and the U.S. Small Business Administration has an update on successfully awarding over $7.5 billion in Shuttered Venue Operators Grants (SVOGs) as well as announcing the opening of the paycheck protection program direct forgiveness portal.

Here’s hoping that the weather is cooler in your neck of the woods. Stay cool and have a great weekend!

Continue reading

SmallGovCon Week in Review: July 19-23

Happy Friday, Readers. Can you believe we are heading into the home stretch of July already? We hope you are able to get in some R&R around this time of year. But it was also an important week in the Federal government contracting arena.

Some of the big stories included more oversight from Labor, rules on increasing wages for workers, and increasing opportunities for veterans. You can read more about that and other contracting news in the articles below. Have a great weekend!

Continue reading

SmallGovCon Week in Review: July 12-16

Happy Friday, readers! We hope you are enjoying the beautiful summer days. We here at SmallGovCon have definitely been getting out for some much needed vacation time lately. But we still want to keep you up to date on what’s going on in the federal contracting realm.

Here are a few noteworthy articles in the federal government contracting world this week, including looking back on the GAO and all the changes that have been made along the way as well as the DoD’s list of recent contract awards. Read on for all the details and have a great weekend.

Continue reading

SmallGovCon Week In Review: June 28 -July 9, 2021

Happy Friday! We hope everyone had a wonderful and safe 4th of July holiday weekend. Despite the holiday, there has been a lot of news and announcements in Federal government contracting these past two weeks. Here are a few articles that we found interesting and informative including news about a new order to bolster cybersecurity, the Pentagon canceling the JEDI Cloud contract and an announcement that Soraya Correa, the Department of Homeland Security’s chief procurement officer, is retiring after more than 40 years of federal service. Have a great weekend!

Continue reading

SmallGovCon Week In Review: June 21-25, 2021

Happy Friday and welcome to this week’s addition of the week in review. I recently got back from a camping trip in 100 degree weather, so I know that staying cool is crucial. Hope you are all staying cool and enjoying the summer.

There were several announcements such as Robin Carnahan‘s confirmation by the Senate as Administrator of the General Services Administration Wednesday afternoon and on Tuesday Kiran Ahuja was also confirmed to be the next director of the Office of Personnel Management. The General Services Administration made awards to 426 small businesses in an effort to provide agencies with more emerging technology options, completing the first phase of its $50 billion 8(a) STARS III contract Thursday. Read on for more details and have a great weekend!

Continue reading