As reported in an earlier alert and blog, on September 9, 2021, President Biden rolled out his Path Out of the Pandemic plan (the “Plan”) to combat the spread of COVID-19. ...more
9/22/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Employer Mandates ,
Executive Orders ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
General Services Administration (GSA) ,
OSHA ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
On September 9, 2021, President Biden rolled out his Path Out of the Pandemic plan (the “Plan”) to combat the spread of COVID-19. As reported in an earlier alert, this Plan contains a number of moving parts and coverage that...more
9/14/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employer Mandates ,
Essential Workers ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Employees ,
Health and Safety ,
Infectious Diseases ,
OSHA ,
Public Health Emergency ,
Service Contract Act ,
Vaccinations ,
Workplace Safety
Numerous pieces of legislation and regulation have been issued in recent years to address the increased threats to the supply chain. We previously reported on the various aspects of the Section 889 ban on the Government and...more
As government contractors, you have been caught between the Scylla and Charybdis of the COVID-19 pandemic. On the one hand, you have been required to continue to perform your government contracts to ensure the safety and...more
Pre-award protests can be tricky. The U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) has jurisdiction to hear timely bid protests by interested parties regarding violations of procurement law or regulation. Under GAO rules, a...more
1/8/2021
/ Bid Protests ,
Bid Solicitation ,
Business Development ,
Competitive Bidding ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Procurement Systems ,
Filing Requirements ,
GAO ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
SBA ,
Small Business
The Government has many rules regarding the protection of data. Government contractors must understand these rules and the importance of timely and properly marking data that they own or develop in performance of a government...more
12/23/2020
/ Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals ,
Boeing ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Drafting ,
Contract Terms ,
Copyright ,
Data Protection ,
Data Rights ,
DFARS ,
Federal Contractors ,
Intellectual Property Protection ,
Proprietary Information ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
US Air Force
The Contract Disputes Act (CDA) governs claims under FAR-based Government contracts. More than forty years after its enactment in 1978, we are apparently still not all in agreement as to when the time for filing a claim has...more
The Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Advisory Board (CMMC AB) made a major announcement on September 16, 2020, announcing that it has trained an initial group of provisional assessors....more
The saga of what is prohibited and what is covered by an exception to the National Defense Authorization Act, FY 2019, Section 889 prohibition on the use or delivery of covered telecommunications and video surveillance...more
9/3/2020
/ Cybersecurity ,
Data Security ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
General Services Administration (GSA) ,
NASA ,
NDAA ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
Supply Chain ,
Surveillance ,
Telecommunications
Government contractors have been closely watching developments in the implementation of Section 889 of the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2019, which bans government contractors’ use and provision of...more
8/17/2020
/ China ,
Department of Defense (DOD) ,
Economic Sanctions ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Huawei ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
National Intelligence Agencies ,
NDAA ,
Supply Chain ,
Surveillance ,
Telecommunications
On July 14, 2020, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council issued an interim final rule intended to clarify the scope and application of the requirements set forth in Section 889(a)(1)(B) of the FY2019 National...more
8/3/2020
/ False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Fraud ,
Goods or Services ,
Interim Final Rules (IFR) ,
NDAA ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
Strict Compliance ,
Supply Chain ,
Surveillance ,
Telecommunications
Our blogs and alerts have reported on the increasing legislative and regulatory requirements to promote the security of the U.S. supply chain, including its cybersecurity....more
8/3/2020
/ China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) ,
Data Security ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Foreign Adversaries ,
Hackers ,
Indictments ,
National Security ,
Popular ,
Risk Management ,
Supply Chain ,
Vulnerable Victims
On July 14, 2020, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council issued an interim final rule intended to clarify the scope and application of the requirements set forth in Section 889(a)(1)(B) of the FY2019 National...more
Implementing Section 823 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2020 (NDAA FY ‘20), on July 5, 2020, the Department of Defense (DoD) amended the DoD Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to...more
It is now June 2020. The Department of Defense (DoD) initially projected that, this month, it would issue ten pilot Requests for Information (RFIs) as part of its efforts to develop the means for its implementation of the...more
Companies doing business in the United States are required to act honestly in their business dealings. Companies that have affirmative compliance and reporting requirements may suffer significant penalties if they are...more
Under the CARES Act, Congress issued Section 3610 which authorized executive branch agencies to provide contractors certain reimbursement where the contractors used paid leave to keep their employees or subcontractors in a...more
Last week we reported on developments in the Department of Defense (DoD) efforts to implement enhanced Defense Industrial Base cybersecurity requirements. ...more
The Government continues to take steps to address its Defense Industrial Base supply chain cybersecurity....more
Section 3610 of the CARES Act provides for funding to aid government contractors whose employees or subcontractors “cannot perform work on a site that has been approved by the federal government, including federally-owned or...more
In addition to providing relief to individuals, employees, small and non-small businesses, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act also mobilizes government and government contractors to address the...more
Generally speaking, entities that enter into contracts are bound to perform them. However, as matters evolve, the impacts of natural and man-made problems arising from the coronavirus (COVID-19) are being felt by customers,...more
3/13/2020
/ Business Interruption ,
Contract Terms ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Delay Claims ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Federal Contractors ,
Force Majeure Clause ,
Foreign Commerce ,
Imports ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Liability Insurance ,
Performance Standards ,
Public Health ,
Risk Management ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain ,
Supply Contracts ,
Uniform Commercial Code (UCC)
At the end of December, China acknowledged the existence of the coronavirus. We don’t know how long it has been around or how many people have actually contracted the virus. We do know the virus has spread at an alarming rate...more
2/13/2020
/ China ,
Emergency Management Plans ,
Emergency Response ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Procurement Systems ,
Global Marketplace ,
Health and Safety ,
Imports ,
Incident Response Plans ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Manufacturers ,
Public Health ,
Public Projects ,
Public Sector ,
Risk Management ,
Suppliers ,
Supply Chain
Earlier this month, it was reported that the National Security Agency (NSA) discovered a serious security flaw in Microsoft Windows 10 cryptographic functionality, CVE-2020-0601.That security flaw could render trust...more
2/4/2020
/ Controlled Defense Information (DDI) ,
Cybersecurity ,
Defense Sector ,
DFARS ,
Federal Contractors ,
Information Security ,
Just Compensation ,
Microsoft ,
National Security ,
National Security Agency (NSA) ,
Network Security ,
NIST ,
Popular ,
Security and Privacy Controls ,
Security Controls ,
Software ,
Supply Chain ,
Vulnerability Assessments
Being a small business can have its advantages. Federal procurement rules provide that certain contracting opportunities may be set-aside for small business competition. Small businesses also may be exempt from certain...more
1/10/2020
/ Competition ,
Competitive Bidding ,
Contractors ,
Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) ,
Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Procurement Systems ,
Gross Receipts ,
NAICS ,
New Legislation ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Rulemaking Process ,
SBA ,
Small Business ,
Small Business Loans ,
Small Business Runway Extension Act ,
Subcontractors ,
Transitional Arrangements