On September 24, 2021, the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force issued its COVID-19 Workplace Safety: Guidance for Federal Contractors and Subcontractors. This was part of President Biden’s Path Out of the Pandemic: COVID-19 Action Plan, announced in early September....
Offerors Must Always Carefully Review the Q&As Before Submitting a Proposal
GAO’s recent decision in Barbaricum, LLC, B-418427.7 (Dec. 11, 2020) highlights the importance of carefully reviewing all Q&As issued as part of a solicitation. The Army Material Command (AMC) issued a solicitation for training support services to provide “special...
Section 3610 of the CARES Act Extended until September 30, 2021
On March 11, 2021, President Biden signed into law the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, a $1.9 trillion economic stimulus bill to facilitate the recovery from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Act extended Section 3610 of the CARES Act through September 30,...
Federal Circuit Clarifies Protest Timeliness Rules for Obtaining Automatic Stay
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit’s recent decision in Nika Technologies, Inc. v. United States, reversed a decision by the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) and provided important clarification regarding the timeliness rules for obtaining a stay of...
SBA Issues Interim Final Rule on Extension of Participation in 8(a) Business Development Program
On January 13, 2021, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) published an interim final rule that implementing provisions of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2021 (Appropriations Act), and the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021 (NDAA...
COVID-19 Relief Impact for Government Contractors: PPP Forgiveness, Indirect Rates, & Incurred Cost Proposals
Guest Author: Robert E. Jones, CPA, CPCM, NCMA Fellow, Left Brain Professionals Background Congress approved multiple COVID-19 relief bills in 2020 to aid businesses and employers struggling with the financial impacts continuing into 2021. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief,...
Federal Court Enjoins Enforcement of Executive Order Limiting Diversity Training
On December 22, 2020, the US District Court for the Northern District of California issued a nationwide preliminary injunction prohibiting the federal government from enforcing portions of Executive Order 13950 (EO 13950), “Combating Race and Sex Stereotyping.” We...
GAO Releases FY2020 Bid Protest Statistics
On December 23, 2020, GAO issued its Bid Protest Annual Report to Congress for Fiscal Year 2020. The Annual Report provides data on the protests filed with the GAO, including a summary of the most common grounds for sustaining protests. GAO received 2,149 cases in...
FY 2021 NDAA Small Business Contracting Changes
On December 11, the Senate passed in an 84-13 vote the FY 2021 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA), and the bill has now passed both the House and the Senate. The FY21 NDAA includes a number of provisions that impact government contractors, including those below...
SBA’s Recent Changes to the Small Business Joint Venture Rules
On October 16, 2020, the SBA issued an extensive final rule that makes numerous revisions and clarifications to the small business procurement regulations. We previously provided a high-level overview of some of the most significant changes implemented by the new...