GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS SBA Backlash to SBA Regulatory Research Contract Is Growing Critics are raising significant concerns about the award of a federal contract to study regulatory costs to two researchers whose previous work has been widely criticized. The Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy on September 21st awarded researchers W. Mark Crain and Nicole V. Crain a contract worth $136,250 to conduct a study on the disproportionate cost impact of regulations on small businesses, due in December 2018. “We . . . Read More
GUEST BLOG ARTICLE Published with permission from Aronson Fed Point Blog Written by: Thomas Marcinko Submitting incurred cost submissions and closing out flexibly priced contracts in a timely manner is important for contractors, especially for those who are owed money due to indirect rate overruns, lagging invoices, or fee retention. The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) states that flexibly priced contracts should be closed out within 36 months of completion. Historically, this goal has rarely been met. The General Accountability Office (GAO), in a report . . . Read More
Special Business and Corporate Issue In this Issue: Understanding the Impact of M&A on Pending Proposals Size Matters: Corporate Strategies for Maintaining Small Business Status Tax Ramifications upon Exiting Your LLC Considerations When Bringing on a New Owner
In late October 2017, the period to comment on SBA’s proposed rule to amend the SBA Office of Hearings and Appeals (“OHA”) rules of practice to implement provisions of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 (“2017 NDAA”) closed. By way of background, the 2017 NDAA, which Congress passed on December 23, 2016, prohibits the VA from issuing rules related to the status of SDVOSB, requiring it to instead follow SBA regulations. The 2017 NDAA specifically granted OHA . . . Read More
On September 18, 2017, the Senate passed its version of the National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) which authorizes nearly $700 billion in defense spending for Fiscal Year 2018 and contains significant procurement reform provisions. One of those reforms deals with new Department of Defense (“DoD”) debriefing requirements. Currently, unsuccessful offerors are entitled to little information under FAR part 15 procurements. Under FAR 15.506(d), a post-award debriefing must include, at a minimum: the agency’s evaluation of any significant weaknesses or deficiencies . . . Read More
Now that the government fiscal year end has passed, government contractors that handle controlled unclassified information (“CUI”) must turn their attention – if they haven’t already – to the quickly approaching calendar year end deadline of being compliant with cybersecurity obligations imposed under Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) § 252.204-7012. U.S. Department of Defense (“DoD”) rules adopted in 2016 require that government contractors handling “controlled unclassified information” have until December 31, 2017, to implement standards set forth in NIST . . . Read More
CAPITOL HILL House Small Business Committee letter requesting update to Small Business Tax This week, House Small Business Committee Chairman Steve Chabot (R-OH) sent a letter with Ranking Member Nydia Velázquez (D-NY) to House Committee on Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-TX) and Ranking Member Richard Neal (D-MA) requesting the Committee consider H.R. 3717, the Small Business Owners’ Tax Simplification Act. H.R. 3717 which would update the tax code for small businesses, startups, and entrepreneurs. In the letter, Chairman . . . Read More
Michelle Litteken was recently quoted by Bloomberg Government Federal Contracts Report in their recent article “Raytheon’s Win in Conflicts Case Serves as a Vetting Reminder.” When asked about screening federal contract employees and preventing conflicts of interest, Ms. Litteken responded, “Contractors should gain an understanding of the new employee’s prior level of authority and obtain the employee’s former job description,’’ she said. ‘‘Contractors should also obtain a copy of the employee’s ethics opinion if one was prepared by the former . . . Read More
