FedScoop Interviews PilieroMazza’s Tony Franco on Judge Prohibiting Use of Presumed Racial Disadvantage in SBA 8(a) Program
A federal judge in Tennessee struck down the Small Business Administration’s use of presumed racial and ethnic disadvantage as a qualification for SBA’s 8(a) Program—a keystone program intended to broaden the government contracting landscape for small business government contractors—throwing it into uncertainty. In an interview with FedScoop, PilieroMazza ’s managing partner, Tony Franco , said he doesn’t believe the ruling would apply to people currently in the program, but that it could have a chilling effect on working with businesses in the program. . . . Read More
Government Contractors Protesting a Lease Award: Is It Worth It?
In a recent decision, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found the General Services Administration (GSA) improperly awarded a lease to a firm whose proposal failed to comply with a material solicitation requirement. [1] Despite this finding, GAO did not recommend that GSA terminate the lease—leaving the protester only to possibly recover its “proposal preparation costs, as well as the costs of filing and pursuing its protest, including reasonable attorneys’ fees.” GAO’s decision presents an important question to disappointed offerors considering protesting . . . Read More
Federal Court Prohibits SBA’s Use of Rebuttable Presumption for 8(a) Program
On July 19, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee issued an important decision where it declared that the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) rebuttable presumption of social disadvantage, which is used in admitting many small-disadvantaged businesses to the SBA’s 8(a) program, violated the equal protection rights of a government contractor and enjoined the use of the rebuttable presumption in administering the 8(a) program. Ultima Servs. Corp. v. U.S. Dep’t of Agric., No. 2:20-CV-0041-DCLC-CRW (E.D. Tenn. July . . . Read More
Weekly Update for Government Contractors and Commercial Businesses – July 20, 2023
If you have questions concerning the content below, please visit this link . Upcoming Events: Register to attend PilieroMazza’s upcoming events here . Recent Thought Leadership: Check out PilieroMazza’s recent client alerts and blogs here . GovCon Live! Podcast: Listen to PilieroMazza’s Podcast Series “Commercial Businesses New to Government Contracting” here . BID PROTESTS National Institutes of Health’s IT Acquisition and Assessment Center (NITAAC) to Take Corrective Action on CIO-SP4 After Government Accountability Office (GAO) Sustains 125 Protests, Federal News Network NITAAC will need several . . . Read More
PilieroMazza Welcomes Former Military Trial Judge Mark Rosenow to Its Litigation Team
PilieroMazza is pleased to announce the arrival of Mark Rosenow as Counsel in the Firm’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group . A former trial judge in the U.S. Air Force Trial Judiciary, Mark brings to PilieroMazza more than 15 years of legal practice and experience in complex civil and criminal litigation and high-risk investigations. Matt Feinberg , the Group’s Chair, said: “Mark’s diverse experiences give him the perspective to negotiate practical business solutions for clients to avoid costly disputes or litigate when necessary to defend a client’s bottom line. . . . Read More
Weekly Update for Government Contractors and Commercial Businesses – July 13, 2023
If you have questions concerning the content below, please visit this link . Upcoming Events: Register to attend PilieroMazza’s upcoming events here . Recent Thought Leadership: Check out PilieroMazza’s recent client alerts and blogs here . GovCon Live! Podcast: Listen to PilieroMazza’s Podcast Series “Commercial Businesses New to Government Contracting” here . BID PROTESTS GAO Sustains Protests of CIO-SP4 Procurement On June 29, 2023, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) sustained protesters’ challenge of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), National Institutes of Health’s . . . Read More
Clocking in with PilieroMazza: What’s New in OFCCP Compliance? Important 2023 Updates for Government Contractors
DHS Updates Cybersecurity Regulations Clarifying Old and New Obligations
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently released a final rule (Final Rule), effective July 21, 2023, updating the Homeland Security Acquisition Regulation (HSAR) to include cybersecurity provisions aimed at safeguarding Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI) and facilitating improved incident reporting. This rule’s promulgation follows a recent trend and overall government-wide effort focused on strengthening our national security against bad actors and foreign adversaries. PilieroMazza recently blogged about some of those efforts, including the TikTok ban ( here ), new standardized cybersecurity obligations mirroring . . . Read More
8(a) MAS Pool Initiative Increases Federal Contracting Opportunities for Small-Disadvantaged Businesses
PilieroMazza recently shared the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) new rules: (1) Small Business Lending Company (SBLC) Moratorium Rescission and Removal of the Requirement for a Loan Authorization (Moratorium Rule) and (2) Affiliation and Lending Criteria for the SBA Business Loan Programs (Affiliation Rule). These rules focus on combating persistent gaps in access to capital affecting small business owners in underserved communities. Along the same vein, a recent initiative jointly issued by the SBA and the General Services Administration (GSA) is the 8(a) MAS (Multiple Award Schedule) Pool Initiative (the Initiative). The Initiative aims to increase federal contracting opportunities for small-disadvantaged businesses (SDBs) who are part of SBA’s 8(a) . . . Read More
Weekly Update for Government Contractors and Commercial Businesses – July 6, 2023
If you have questions concerning the content below, please visit this link . Upcoming Events: Register to attend PilieroMazza’s upcoming events here . Recent Thought Leadership: Check out PilieroMazza’s recent client alerts and blogs here . GovCon Live! Podcast: Listen to PilieroMazza’s Podcast Series “Commercial Businesses New to Government Contracting” here . GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS Veteran-Owned Small Business (VOSB) and Service-Disabled, Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB): Certification; Correction, Small Business Administration (SBA) SBA is correcting a final rule published in the Federal Register on November 29, 2022. . . . Read More