All federal agencies are currently open and funded by a Continuing Resolution that runs through December 16th. Will, there, however, be “final” appropriations at that time? Please don’t shoot the messenger, but the answer is “doubtful”. The best contractors and their government customers can count on is a short-term CR that will last 1-2 days until Congress does get a final spending deal together. Experience shows that, even with a known deadline over two months away, at least one short-term spending measure will be necessary. The worst Read more
The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) published a new 12% small, disadvantaged business (SDB) goal for FY’23 last week, meaning that federal agencies should try to award 12% of prime contracts to such businesses. The new goal is 1% more than what federal agencies achieved last year, but still 3% short of the administration’s stated goal of awarding 15% of all prime business to SDB’s. The 12% figure is a governmentwide goal, meaning that some Read more
Congress is placing substantial pressure on federal agencies to increase the list of actions that could result in the suspension or debarment of government contractors. While no proposed legislation has yet made it into law, both House and Senate lawmakers have made it clear to the Department of Justice that they don’t believe suspension or debarment are being used “enough” to punish bad actors. Senators Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) and Ben Ray Lujan (D- Read more
Welcome to Fiscal Year 2023! We have no government shutdown (yet) and all federal agencies remain open for business. While your office may feel like 5th Avenue after a ticker-tape parade, there are still things that need to get done to be prepared for what comes next. Here are three areas on which all contractors may want to focus. Read more
While both DOD and GSA have recently issued directives aimed at easing the impact of inflation on contractors, companies do not have a blank check to charge higher prices out of line with actual market reality. One contractor found that out the hard way in submitting a bid that, even when inflation was factored in, was still over 80% higher than the previous years’ bid. Read more