Even as contractors focus on the last two weeks of the fiscal year, changes are coming to the federal procurement world that every company needs to know about and understand.  Here are three things shaping your market today that could impact your business for good or otherwise.

1.  Guidance Coming Soon for AI in Acquisition:  The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) is expected to issue policy guidance in the next 7-10 days on how federal buyers should incorporate AI into their acquisition processes.  We wrote recently that many policy leaders believe that AI can be an important tool in assisting acquisition professionals in making good business decisions but is not nearly mature enough right now to be solely relied upon.  The OMB guidance will tell government and by extension contractors, how AI can best be used in acquisitions right now.

2.  More Rules Coming on Contractor Environmental Mandates:  GSA officials said last week that industry can expect new rules on greenhouse gas emissions, climate change, and overall sustainable acquisition approaches in the next several months.  This is on top of single use plastic restrictions and other pro-environment requirements that have previously been introduced.  The current administration is serious about using the federal acquisition system to drive environmentally friendly practices.  Whether the government market is big enough to actually make a dent in these areas is unknown, but industry should expect its costs to go up in trying to meet the new rules.

3.  GSA Will Focus More on TAA Compliance:  During the same regulatory discussion last week, GSA policy officials were clear with industry that Trade Agreements Act compliance will be one key focus area over the next year.  Contractors are correct if they feel that there is a government-wide push to limit the use of Chinese technology and products across the board, with increased TAA compliance being just one tool to bring it about.  Contractors are on notice that the government is serious about the origins of the components and end products being offered.  They should also remember that the compliance pendulum seldom stops in the middle.  As such, a “belt and suspenders” approach to compliance in this area may be a best practice.  The bottom line is that government contractors cannot afford to only focus on sales, no matter how enticing that may be.  The boundary lines of what is and what is not acceptable are changing and no company wants to wake up and find itself on the outside.