Podcasts about federal acquisition regulation

The Department of Government Efficiency has arrived at the Office of Biometric Identity Management, a quiet but powerful component of the Department of Homeland Security that handles a critical database of fingerprint, facial, and iris data used throughout the federal government. Three people, including one person within DHS and two more familiar with the matter, confirmed that DOGE now has a presence at the agency. Two of those sources added that DOGE seems to have restarted conversations about the future of the Homeland Advanced Recognition Technology (HART) program, which DHS has long hoped would replace the agency's current biometrics database — the Automated Biometric Identification System (IDENT), one of the world's largest known systems of that kind. OBIM was created more than a decade ago to manage the biometric information used to make border security decisions. As a relatively small office, OBIM provides assistance to DHS and federal agencies, including the State Department. OBIM also sometimes exchanges biometrics with other countries. OBIM's biometric database stores hundreds of millions of biometric data points. A DHS website notes that a single query of the system “can retrieve data for an individual tied to a Department of State visa application, a U.S. Customs and Border Protection log of an entry into the United States, and an immigration status change logged by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.” The Trump administration has launched an effort to overhaul the Federal Acquisition Regulation with a focus on delivering a quicker, more efficient and less burdensome procurement process for federal agencies. To provide details on the progress of the so-called “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul,” the General Services Administration — one of the federal government's lead procurement agencies and a member of the FAR Council — launched a new website Tuesday for the initiative. Federal acquisition stakeholders can expect to find a streamlined version of the FAR, buying guides — the first of which will be focused on software-as-a-service — and opportunities to share their feedback about acquisition policy on the new website, according to a release from GSA. The Trump administration's overhaul of the FAR was spurred by an executive order in April that called on the Office of Federal Procurement Policy in the Office of Management and Budget to lead the effort with FAR Council members GSA, NASA and the Defense Department. Within 180 days of that order, the group is expected to “amend the FAR to ensure that it contains only provisions that are required by statute or that are otherwise necessary to support simplicity and usability, strengthen the efficacy of the procurement system, or protect economic or national security interests.” The Daily Scoop Podcast is available every Monday-Friday afternoon. If you want to hear more of the latest from Washington, subscribe to The Daily Scoop Podcast  on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify and YouTube.

Kevin Rhodes, a senior advisor at OMB, says the team rewriting the Federal Acquisition Regulation will be transparent and consider all comments as they slim down the 2,000 page document.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The now infamous rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, all 2,000 pages of it, the government has a lot of work to do. But the result will have the most effect on contractors. For whether they'll have any say in the rewrite and what they would say, we turn to the executive vice president for policy at the Professional Services Council, Stephanie Kostro. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The now infamous rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, all 2,000 pages of it, the government has a lot of work to do. But the result will have the most effect on contractors. For whether they'll have any say in the rewrite and what they would say, we turn to the executive vice president for policy at the Professional Services Council, Stephanie Kostro. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Internal Revenue Service's chief information officer is leaving the tax agency this month, the latest in an increasingly long line of veteran IT leaders exiting the government amid President Donald Trump's gutting of the federal workforce. Rajiv Uppal told IT staffers in a Monday email, obtained by FedScoop, that he had “decided to depart” the tax agency, and that his last day will be April 28. Kaschit Pandya, the agency's chief technology officer, will take over as acting CIO “while leadership finalizes long-term plans for the role,” Uppal wrote. President Donald Trump signed a pair of executive orders Tuesday to revamp the federal procurement and contracting processes, part of the administration's sweeping takedown of government regulations. The procurement order takes aim at the Federal Acquisition Regulation, which the White House says has evolved “into an excessive and overcomplicated regulatory framework and resulting in an onerous bureaucracy.” To “create the most agile, effective, and efficient procurement system possible,” Trump's EO calls for the removal of “undue barriers” and “unnecessary regulations” in procurement. The Daily Scoop Podcast is available every Monday-Friday afternoon. If you want to hear more of the latest from Washington, subscribe to The Daily Scoop Podcast  on Apple Podcasts, Soundcloud, Spotify and YouTube.

The Trump administration has ordered a rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. But not by members of the FAR Counsel but rather by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy. The White House, that is. Here with what's at stake, Hunton Andrews Kurth procurement attorney Eric Crusius. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin That rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation what's likely to change You may never have heard of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, but you might miss it when it's gone Congress is out on a two-week recess, but that doesn't mean things are quiet on Capitol Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today on the Federal Drive with Tom Temin That rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation what's likely to change You may never have heard of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service, but you might miss it when it's gone Congress is out on a two-week recess, but that doesn't mean things are quiet on Capitol Hill Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Trump administration has ordered a rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. But not by members of the FAR Counsel but rather by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy. The White House, that is. Here with what's at stake, Hunton Andrews Kurth procurement attorney Eric Crusius. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Alan Thomas, founder of Alpha Tango Strategies, and BillGormley, president of the Gormley Group, join host Roger Waldron on this week's Off the Shelf for an engrossing discussion of the evolving federal procurement market.  The discussion highlights the consolidation of procurement functions at the General Services Administration (GSA) pursuant to the president's executive order.  Thomas and Gormley, both former senior executives at GSA, share their insights on the role of GSA, the management opportunities, and considerations of consolidating federalprocurement for common products and services with GSA's Federal AcquisitionServices (FAS).  They also provide historical context to GSA's role in federal procurement and how the consolidation will reshape the federal market.  As part of that discussion, Thomas and Gormley share their thoughts regarding consolidation opportunities and implementation strategies for GSA and FAS.  Other topics covered include right-sizing GSA's Multiple Award Schedule program, the impending rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and thestate of the IT GWACs.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Alan Thomas, founder of Alpha Tango Strategies, and Bill Gormley, president of the Gormley Group, join host Roger Waldron on this week's Off the Shelf for an engrossing discussion of the evolving federal procurement market.  The discussion highlights the consolidation of procurement functions at the General Services Administration (GSA) pursuant to the president's executive order.  Thomas and Gormley, both former senior executives at GSA, share their insights on the role of GSA, the management opportunities, and considerations of consolidating federal procurement for common products and services with GSA's Federal Acquisition Services (FAS).  They also provide historical context to GSA's role in federal procurement and how the consolidation will reshape the federal market.  As part of that discussion, Thomas and Gormley share their thoughts regarding consolidation opportunities and implementation strategies for GSA and FAS.  Other topics covered include right-sizing GSA's Multiple Award Schedule program, the impending rewrite of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and the state of the IT GWACs.     Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Controlled, unclassified information. That's most of the information the government generates. It's known as DUI. The Federal Acquisition Regulation council is considering new rules for CUI. With what they'd do and why they might be problematic, we turn to Haynes Boone procurement attorney Dan Ramish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Controlled, unclassified information. That's most of the information the government generates. It's known as DUI. The Federal Acquisition Regulation council is considering new rules for CUI. With what they'd do and why they might be problematic, we turn to Haynes Boone procurement attorney Dan Ramish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of the Govcon Giants Podcast, Randie Ward sits down with Shauna Weatherly, President and Founder of Federal Subcontract Solutions LLC, to delve into Weatherly's extensive experience in Federal acquisition. With over 35 years of hands-on experience and a career spanning various crucial roles within the General Services Administration (GSA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE), and more, Weatherly brings a wealth of knowledge to the table. Throughout the discussion, Weatherly shares insights gleaned from her tenure as a Senior Procurement Analyst at GSA, where she served as an advisor to the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council, analyzing the impacts of new laws, executive orders, and Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and Defense FAR Supplement (DFARS) rules on SAM.gov. Her roles as Lead Business Management Specialist and Contracting Officer's Representative (COR) on the governmentwide GSA SmartPay 3 contracts provided her with invaluable experience in navigating complex procurement processes. Weatherly's leadership positions, including Director of the National Airspace System, Logistics, and Facilities O&M Contract Branch at FAA, and Contracting Chief at USACE's Tulsa District, showcase her expertise in developing acquisition strategies, evaluating sources, and negotiating contracts across various industries. Additionally, her deployment to the Afghanistan Engineer District highlighted her commitment to overseeing compliance processes for construction contracts in challenging environments. As a seasoned instructor and sought-after speaker on Federal acquisition topics, Weatherly brings a unique perspective to the conversation, offering practical advice for small businesses looking to navigate the intricacies of Federal acquisition policies and processes. Her dedication to supporting the Department of Defense (DoD), FAA, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), GSA, and civilian agencies underscores her passion for ensuring mission success. Join us as we explore Weatherly's journey from Federal Civilian Service to entrepreneurship, and gain valuable insights into the world of Federal acquisition from one of the industry's most respected experts.   Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/shauna-weatherly/  Website: https://www.fedsubk.com/about  Contact: https://www.fedsubk.com/contact-us  Email: info@mysite.com 

TCS National Security Analyst Gabe Murphy joins Steve Ellis with an important update on America's military budget and spending issues. Hit play for the latest on the defense budget, military aid to Ukraine, the F-35 fighter jet, the Marine Corps transformation plan, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rule, that guides the Pentagon's role in addressing climate change.

Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) are 19 standards and rules promulgated by 41 U.S.C. 422. These standards impact emerging small and large businesses alike. They are designed to achieve uniformity and consistency in cost accounting practices and to improve the accuracy of cost data by ensuring its basis on consistent definitions and principles.  Ultimately, the Federal government wants a reliable basis for cost comparison and decision making. This allows them to be able to compare proposals from contractor to contractor and from a single contractor year-over-year.In this new Cherry Bekaert GovCon Podcast CAS series, Eric Poppe, a Managing Director in Cherry Bekaert's Government Contracting Industry practice, is joined by Jeff Annessa, a Senior Manager in the Firm's GovCon practice who spent 13+ years with DCAA holding positions such as Quality Manager, Supervisory Auditor and Field Audit Office Manager, to give an overview of CAS. Listen to find out:An overview of CASThe differences between the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and CASWhat the standards consist of, including the four main categories When CAS comes into consideration as it pertains to government contractingWhen CAS would apply to a contract and if there are certain dollar thresholdsThe current exemptions, differences in full and modified CAS coverage and applicationOverview of the disclosure statement requirementWhy contractors should consider completing a disclosure statement prior to being CAS- covered Who is responsible in administering CAS and making the required determinations and findings The benefits of abiding by CASPitfalls and compliance considerations for changes in accounting practices, M&A activity and budgeting/forecasting Cherry Bekaert's Government Contractor Industry practice has significant  CAS experience and can help you navigate CAS compliance issues or disclosure statement development. Contact us to discuss your situation.Don't forget to keep an eye out for the remainder of our GovCon podcast CAS series, where our hosts will go into more detail on the specifics of the individual CAS standards, general requirements, cost accounting changes and the disclosure statement. View all Government Contracting Podcasts

Almost everything the government buys in the future could look like cybersecurity with some other product attached, if new proposed rules from the Federal Acquisition Regulation council take effect early next year. That's more a matter of when than if. Attorney Townsend Bourne, a partner at Sheppard Mullin, has read the proposed rules and joins Federal Drive host Tom Temin for this discussion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Almost everything the government buys in the future could look like cybersecurity with some other product attached, if new proposed rules from the Federal Acquisition Regulation council take effect early next year. That's more a matter of when than if. Attorney Townsend Bourne, a partner at Sheppard Mullin, has read the proposed rules and joins Federal Drive host Tom Temin for this discussion. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) doesn't provide many details on the specifics related to an adequate timekeeping system. However, the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) does have some specific requirements they look for when performing accounting system audits and labor floor checks.In this episode of Cherry Bekaert's GovCon Podcast, Eric Poppe, a Managing Director in Cherry Bekaert's Government Contracting Industry practice, is joined by Jeff Annessa, a Senior Manager in the Firm's GovCon practice who spent 13+ years with DCAA and held various leadership positions such as Quality Manager, Supervisory Auditor and Field Audit Office Manager, and Jacquelin LaClair, a Manager in the Firm's GovCon practice who spent 10 years working with DCAA and the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA). They discuss one of their favorite topics: timekeeping and the government's expectations. Listen to find out:Why contractors should have written timekeeping policies and procedures in place and should consider including all types of work arrangements available by your organization (in-office, remote or hybrid)Key elements for an adequate timekeeping systemEnsuring segregation of responsibilities for labor-related activitiesTotal Hours Worked approach and why the government caresPolicies and procedures that address how direct and indirect time is recordedHow to handle paper vs. electronic timesheets  The employee and the supervisor roles in certifying the accuracy of timesheets on a daily, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly basis Record retention requirements for timesheetsAt the end of the day, would a government auditor be able to review your current timekeeping policies and procedures and compare them to what is currently happening at your organization and find no discrepancies? If you have any questions specific to your situation, we are available to discuss your situation with you. Contact us. View all Government Contracting Podcasts

Imagine a federal procurement shop where you use every technique, except the Federal Acquisition Regulation. And you don't do grants, either. And you've got congressional backing for your novel approach. That's the case for one of the government's newer agencies, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, known as ARPA-H. For a look on the inside, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with Diane Sidebottom, ARPA-H Director of Acquisition and Contracts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Imagine a federal procurement shop where you use every technique, except the Federal Acquisition Regulation. And you don't do grants, either. And you've got congressional backing for your novel approach. That's the case for one of the government's newer agencies, the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health, known as ARPA-H. For a look on the inside, Federal Drive Host Tom Temin spoke with Diane Sidebottom, ARPA-H Director of Acquisition and Contracts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Watch out, a new small business subcontracting rule took effect Tuesday. It brings new limits on subcontracting on set-aside contracts. It harmonizes a confusing situation of a mismatch between Small Business Administration rules and the Federal Acquisition Regulation. For the details, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with Haynes Boone procurement attorney Dan Ramish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoicesSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Watch out, a new small business subcontracting rule took effect Tuesday. It brings new limits on subcontracting on set-aside contracts. It harmonizes a confusing situation of a mismatch between Small Business Administration rules and the Federal Acquisition Regulation. For the details, Federal Drive host Tom Temin spoke with Haynes Boone procurement attorney Dan Ramish. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

The Federal Acquisition Regulation, or FAR, is the primary guidance followed by federal agencies—including NASA, the Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and all others when acquiring goods and services. It's also a regulation with its own set of compliance requirements for government contractors. How does FAR differ from other regulatory guidance, and what do government contractors need to know to ensure they have an effective program in place? On the Principled Podcast, host Jen Üner talks with LRN colleague Eric Morehead about why the FAR compliance program requirements matter to broader E&C program effectiveness, and how government contractors can implement those requirements in practical ways.    Guest: Eric Morehead Eric Morehead is a member of LRN's Advisory Services team and has over 20 years of experience working with organizations seeking to address compliance issues and build effective compliance and ethics programs. Eric conducts program assessments and examines specific compliance risks, he drafts compliance policies and codes of conduct, works with organizations to build and improve their compliance processes and tools, and provides live training for Boards of Directors, executives, managers, and employees. Eric ran his own consultancy for six years where he advised clients on compliance program enhancements and assisted in creating effective compliance solutions. Eric was formally the Head of Advisory Services for NYSE Governance Services, a leading compliance training organization, where he was responsible for all aspects of NYSE Governance Services' compliance consulting arm. Prior to joining NYSE, Eric was an Assistant General Counsel of the United States Sentencing Commission in Washington, DC. Eric served as the chair of the policy team that amended the Organizational Sentencing Guidelines in 2010. Eric also spent nearly a decade as a litigation attorney in Houston, Texas where he focused on white-collar and regulatory cases and represented clients at trial and before various agencies including SEC, OSHA and CFTC.   Host: Jen Üner Jen Üner is the Strategic Communications Director for LRN, where she captains programs for both internal and external audiences. She has an insatiable curiosity and an overdeveloped sense of right and wrong which she challenges each day through her study of ethics, compliance, and the value of values-based behavior in corporate governance. Prior to joining LRN, Jen led marketing communications for innovative technology companies operating in Europe and the US, and for media and marketplaces in California. She has won recognition for her work in brand development and experiential design, earned placements in leading news publications, and hosted a closing bell ceremony of the NASDAQ in honor of the California fashion industry as founder of the LA Fashion Awards. Jen holds a B.A. degree from Claremont McKenna College.    For a transcript of this podcast, please visit the episode page at LRN.com.

Listen in as we hear Stephanie Wilson, the Contracting and Agreements Officer in the U.S. Army, detail how to create and handle improved contracting practices necessary to acquire AI and emerging technology. She shares her years of experience in dealing with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and how proper use and understanding of OTAs have helped her be successful. Hear how asking questions and challenging the existing policies has helped develop new ways of accomplishing goals within federal contracting. Wilson also details the value in an influential and memorable quote she coined some time ago regarding the benefits of using OTA's!

The Office of Federal Procurement Policy has been banging this particular drum for years now. Not only are agencies allowed to engage in discussions with industry before they craft procurements, doing so is usually a good thing. Now that principle is enshrined in the Federal Acquisition Regulation via a new rule issued just last week. To go a little deeper, Federal News Network Deputy Editor Jared Serbu talked with Larry Allen, president of Allen Federal Business Partners.

Federal regulators have proposed a new climate-reporting rule that would require large federal contractors to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, climate-related financial risks and science-based emissions reduction targets. The new proposal, known as the Federal Supplier Climate Risks and Resilience Proposed Rule, would amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation. It was jointly announced Nov. 14 by the Department of Defense, General Services Administration and NASA. The agencies are proposing adding the climate reporting as a revision to the FAR, which governs federal contractors.

Federal regulators have proposed a new climate-reporting rule that would require large federal contractors to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions, climate-related financial risks and science-based emissions reduction targets. The new proposal, known as the Federal Supplier Climate Risks and Resilience Proposed Rule, would amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation. It was jointly announced Nov. 14 by the Department of Defense, General Services Administration and NASA. The agencies are proposing adding the climate reporting as a revision to the FAR, which governs federal contractors.

The Federal Acquisition Regulation is clear, fixed-price contracts are just that: Fixed price. There's no provision for adjustments because of inflation. Or is there? A memo last week from the Defense Pricing and Contracting office offers some hope. Federal Drive host spoke with someone who has studied the memo closely: Zach Prince, a partner at Smith Pachter McWhorter.

The Federal Acquisition Regulation is clear, fixed-price contracts are just that: Fixed price. There's no provision for adjustments because of inflation. Or is there? A memo last week from the Defense Pricing and Contracting office offers some hope. Federal Drive host spoke with someone who has studied the memo closely: Zach Prince, a partner at Smith Pachter McWhorter.

The delays have gotten so bad with the transition to the new unique entity identifier (UEI) on SAM.gov that the Defense Department isn't requiring contractors to have a new number to do business with them for the next six weeks. The Defense Pricing and Contracting office issued a deviation to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) on Sept. 8 that allows the services and defense agencies to do business with companies who aren't fully registered in the governmentwide acquisition system.

Exactly who is responsible for labor law enforcement when it comes to federal contractors? The short answer the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs, part of the Labor Department. But that's not the full answer. An Federal Acquisition rule that was banned by Congress is rearing its ugly head agency-by-agency. The Federal Drive with Tom Temin got the latest from the president and CEO of the Professional Services Council, David Berteau.

Today, we visit with attorney, consultant, expert witness, and writer, Christoph Mlinarchik. He's the author of Federal Acquisition Regulation in Plain English and Government Contracts in Plain English. And completing the trio of books, Government Contracts Negotiation, Simplified! — all part of the Government Contracts in Plain English series of books. Join us!LISTEN IN: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/all-things-small-business/id1523710805

Jon Barker has been involved in managing government contracts from the supplier side his entire career. He started a company called PTW Solutions, where PTW means Price To Win, and they help companies win government contracts. Jon is an avid coach and he's coached both lacrosse and soccer. When coaching, Jon fosters a team environment, while learning the strengths and weaknesses of each individual to build up skills and confidence. In this episode, Jon talks about government contracting as he puts emphasis on why the government's focus is set on cost-plus.   Why you have to check out today's podcast: Learn how pricing runs in government contracting Discover what a “probability of win” means and why you should focus on deals with higher “probability of win” Find out resources you can visit as you look for data of your competitors' prices   “Create your own internal models of the data that you use a lot to make those decisions, and have the ability to make the levers change easily. I think as a government contracting pricer, it would be extremely beneficial.” – Jon Barker   Topics Covered: 01:36 – The start of Jon's pricing journey for government contractors 04:39 – Small businesses having more volatility with government contracting if compared to large companies 08:10 – What's a P-win + what Jon loves about the field he's in 09:23 – Best value tradeoffs; putting energy into writing proposals for deals of higher p wins 14:23 – Position, Plan, and Price to Win; Government contracting as an interesting field 17:37 – Go-to's of a data guy: GSA price list, GSA Calc, STARS III, SAM, USA Spending 22:25 – Jon's passion for government contracting 24:44 – Jon's piece of pricing advice for today's listeners   Key Takeaways: “Here's the beauty of it. When you're talking with larger companies, those rates are set. When you're talking to smaller companies, they have a lot more flexibility. They're not on the radars of these agencies… The smaller you are, the more of an art it is to be able to be clever with the numbers and figure out where you can ship those costs.” – Jon Barker “As you add layers and layers of contracts that you win, you have more capabilities. The biggest thing about winning contracts is being able to successfully execute them.” – Jon Barker “Section M (evaluation criteria) is probably your most important section in terms of how to create a winning bid and how to tailor your technical and your pricing strategies in order to maximize that probability of win.” – Jon Barker “The government customers' so huge, and there's so many different facets to it. There's plenty of other work to be had there. Don't get focused on, again, losing efforts to where the evaluators are not going to find the value in your offering, because you're not set up to be successful for that.” – Jon Barker “Pricing is just a fascinating topic; it's very psychological, as you know. But in government procurement, it's very much cost-plus based, because the government expects to understand how companies came up with the rates that they bid.” – Jon Barker   People / Resources Mentioned: PTW Solutions Inc.: https://price-to-win.com/ CPARS: https://www.cpars.gov/ GSA Calc: https://calc.gsa.gov/ STARS III: https://www.gsa.gov/technology/technology-purchasing-programs/governmentwide-acquisition-contracts/8a-stars-iii SAM: https://sam.gov/ USA Spending: https://www.usaspending.gov/ Federal Acquisition Regulation: https://www.gsa.gov/policy-regulations/regulations/federal-acquisition-regulation-far   Connect with Jon Barker: Email: jon@pricetowinsolutions.com LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-barker-4648b84/ Telephone: 571-216-9890 Website: https://price-to-win.com/   Connect with Mark Stiving: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stiving/ Email: mark@impactpricing.com  

Idle facilities and the associated costs have always been a topic of debate between government contractors and the Federal government. Contractors need to proactively monitor their facility use to avoid potential questioned costs while ensuring they can meet contract work fluctuations and future demand. With businesses becoming more comfortable with employees working from home due to the COVID 19 pandemic, office occupancy has greatly declined and there is uncertainty as to when, or if, government contractors will go back to a fully occupied office environment. Many contractors now find themselves in a position of evaluating their long-term needs for facility space.  Listen to Brendan Halloran, a Senior Manager in Cherry Bekaert's Government Contracting Industry (GovCon) practice who previously spent 10 years at the Defense Contract Management Agency (DCMA), and Curt Smith, a Manager in the Firm's GovCon practice who spent 12 years at the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA), discuss how the Federal government views idle facilities, how much time contractors are allowed before the government considers facility costs unallowable, and how contractors should address the costs associated with these facilities.If you need help determining or supporting idle facilities costs, Cherry Bekaert's GovCon Consultants are available to discuss your situation with you.

With transformative technologies such as AI and Machine Learning, government agencies can help achieve goals, detect fraud, and create data-driven strategies. Chief Data Scientist and ODS Acting Associate Director at NTIS, US Department of Commerce Chakib Chraibi joins tech transforms to discuss his insights on helping the US Federal agencies and citizens use data to enhance any mission. Episode Table of Contents[00:53] Delivering Transformative Data Solutions [09:00] AI Has Very Transformative Data and Technology [18:12] How Transformative Data Identifies Fraudsters [29:10] Virtual Reality Episode Links and Resources Delivering Transformative Data SolutionsCarolyn: Today, we got to talk to https://www.linkedin.com/in/chakibchraibi/ (Dr. Chakib Chraibi). He's the Chief Data Scientist in the US Department of Commerce, National Technical Information Service, or NTIS, and acting associate director for the Office of Data Services. He provides expertise and assistance to government agencies in harnessing innovative technologies and delivering data-driven solutions to achieve mission impact within the NTIS framework. Chakib, welcome to Tech Transforms. Let's start with a brief overview of your role at NTIS as well as the role of NTIS within government agencies. Chakib: NTIS is a bureau within the US Department of Commerce. We want to think about NTIS as the best-kept secret in government. What I'm going to say about NTIS is going to resonate with a lot of our listeners. NTIS is a very interesting agency that is focused on data science and data innovation. It was created shortly after the Second World War. The main task at that point was to gather all the information collected from the Second World War that dealt with technical research, et cetera. It became a repository of information for the government. They dealt with any technical papers or publications from the civilian side. But in the 1990s, the internet happened. And so, we're still doing that. We have one of the largest libraries. We're continuing collecting that information, but Congress has thought about focusing us on a different mission at that time. It is actually a great idea, and which is about data science. Our Main Focus at NTISChakib: Currently, that's our main focus at NTIS. We provide a unique pathway for federal agencies towards innovation and digital transformation. We have an authority from Congress that allows us to seek out their partners from the industry, from academic institutions, nonprofits, to help federal agencies address national data center challenges. It's available to all federal agencies seeking an agile capacity to scale. It has quick access to private sector ingenuity, and expertise, to meet critical mission data priorities. We also use a very innovative framework. It's based on agile methodology to be able to harness emerging and cutting-edge technologies. We operate outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation, outside of FAR. It's in the innovation space, and it's really exciting. Whenever you want to innovate, you are not sure about how to go about it. All federal agencies want to be effective and efficient in accomplishing their missions and addressing data priorities. But, sometimes they don't know how to go about it. They have an idea about the business problems and what they want to achieve, but they don't have all the details, and the steps to go about it. That's because that's part of any innovative work that you're going to do. That is where we can help them with. We have a very agile framework where they can come and discuss their business problems with us at a very high level and what they want to achieve. What is their mission? What's the most important thing that they want to accomplish? Based on that conversation, we can actually develop a problem statement. It's a very high level scope statement that tries to address data innovation goals they want to achieve.A Free-Flowing Discussion on Transformative...

In this episode of Acquisition Talk, we listen in on a recent event on Other Transactions Authority hosted by George Mason University's Center for Government Contracting. Many thanks to my colleague Stephanie Halcrow for moderating a panel that included Stan Soloway, who recently authored a report on the progress of OTs, Wes Bennett, Director of the Contracts Management Office at DARPA, and Dan Fick, Vice President of SAP. In case you've been asleep at the acquisition wheel the past few years, Other Transactions (OTs) allow select government agencies to flexibly contract without all the rules found in the Federal Acquisition Regulation that can make it impossible to reach startups and nontraditional contractors. Actually, as panelist Stan Soloway noted, OTs are not technically "contracts" because the term has a specific meaning in the FAR. They use the term "agreements" and are signed by "agreements officers." But, in the general commercial sense, OTs are binding contractual documents. Although OTs were invented around 1958 for NASA, they were expanded for use in DoD in 1989 with 10 USC 2371. It seemed by the time Future Combat Systems used OTs and was terminated in 2009, the authority reached its nadir. With the FY 2016 NDAA, OTs were refreshed, adding the ability to transition a competitive prototype OT into production (up to $500 million). That signaled Congressional intent for increased adoption.

The Incurred Cost Submission (ICS) is an administrative hurdle and something that government contractors do not look forward to putting together every year. However, it is required to be submitted six months after the end of a company's fiscal year for any contractor who has cost-type and T&M contracts that contain the Allowable Cost and Payment Clause.Listen to Eric Poppe, Senior Manager in Cherry Bekaert's Government Contracting practice and Rich Wilkinson, Director of Product Marketing at Unanet discuss the importance of the calculation of a Company's indirect rates and Incurred Cost Submissions and the consequences for not having final rates or late submissions, as it is more than just an administrative exercise. Don't put it off and don't ignore the ICS. If you think you don't have to submit, confirm with your contracts manager to identify all your active contracts containing Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.216-7, Allowable Cost & Payment. If you haven't already, catch up on part one, part two and part three of our four-part series:Indirect Rates – More than Just a Math Exercise: Part OneIndirect Rates – Monitoring and Best Practices in Calculating Your Rates: Part TwoIndirect Rates – The Close Out Process: Part Three

Even simplified acquisitions can get an agency tied into knots. That's what the Department of Homeland Security found out when it used simplified procedures for a training contract worth less than $5 million. Smith Pachter McWhorter attorney Joseph Petrillo has the details.

Listen to Susan Moser, Partner and Leader of Cherry Bekaert's Government Contracting practice, and Eric Poppe, a Senior Manager in the Government Contracting practice, discuss winning an 8(a) competitive contract in episode five of our podcast series on the Small Business Administration's (SBA) 8(a) Business Development program.In part five, they discuss:An overview of what Section 8 of the Small Business Act authorizesBest practices for finding 8(a) competitive procurement opportunitiesSingle award vs. multiple award contracts, and what to be aware of when considering teaming partners Best practices and considerations when putting together a proposal, from identifying teaming partners early on, to understanding the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) compliance requirements and contract types, to cost and pricing and indirect rates.Benefits of requesting a debrief on your proposalIf you haven't already, catch up on other episodes in our podcast series discussing various aspects of the Small Business Administration's (SBA) 8(a) Business Development Program:Part I: The SBA 8(a) Business Development Program – What Is It and What Are the Requirements?Part II: The SBA 8(a) Business Development Program Application Process and RequirementsPart III: What Are the Compliance Requirements for 8(a) Certified Companies?Part IV: Winning an SBA 8(a) Sole Source Award Contract – What's Involved and What to KnowOur Government Contractor Services group has an in-depth understanding of the 8(a) program and advises 8(a) government contractors through each step of the process to add value and anticipate ongoing opportunities. From the initial important decisions made in becoming an 8(a), to the first contract, to how the company is growing throughout the life of the program.

In this episode, we talked with Steven Koprince about Demystifying the FAR. The Federal Acquisition Regulation or FAR is intimidating on the surface. It's over 2,000 pages of legalese. The FAR gets less intimidating with time and once you understand how it's organized. This podcast helps break down what you need to know about the FAR and provides general guidance for government contractors. ----- Federal Access is helping Government Contractors win more contracts. It can help you too. Here's a special offer. Visit https://federal-access.com/gamechangers today and get started for just $29. *You are going to get access to a digital copy of the Government Sales Manual. * Over 85 strategy videos * More than 30 webinars * 300 documents and templates AND * SME support. So when you run into an issue, you can email me directly for help. Go check out this special offer today at https://federal-access.com/gamechangers

In today's Federal Newscast, the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Council has issued regulatory guidance on implementation of the vaccine mandate for federal contractors.

Federal spending for large quantities of medical supplies sucked in many companies doing business with the government for the first time. In fact, five times as many as in a normal year. The Government Accountability Office says agencies learned a thing or two, and now they need to remember them. Earlier we talked to the GAO is Marie Mak, director of contracting and national security acquisitions, about use of other transaction authorities. She's back and talked to Federal Drive with Tom Temin about how agencies can apply the lessons learned with non traditional contractors.

For several years, agency acquisition shops have been getting more comfortable with buying outside of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Both Defense and civilian agencies have been increasing their use of what are known as other transaction authorities. That revved up during the COVID pandemic spending. And it meant a few transparency problems. Federal Drive with Tom Temin heard more from Marie Mak, the director of Contracting and National Security Acquisitions Issues at the Government Accountability Office.

Like discovering a long buried pair of jeans that becomes your new favorite, other transaction agreements (OTAs) are a procurement methodology that falls outside of the Federal Acquisition Regulation and its Defense supplement. Use of OTAs has grown rapidly across the government in the last couple of years but it might be a mixed blessing. Now the IBM Center for the Business of Government has sponsored a detailed analysis of OTAs and how the government is using them. For the highlights, co-author and Hacking for Defense adviser Stan Soloway spoke to Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

In today's Federal Newscast, the Department of Health and Human Services will strengthen internal controls when using Other Transaction Authorities, for procurements outside of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

Contractors have long complained that they don't get enough information in debriefings, those informational meetings contracting officers often grant after they've made the award. Well now, you've got until July 19 to comment on a proposed change to the Defense supplement of the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Prompted by a 2018 provision of the defense authorization law, debriefings would get a big enhancement. For more, the Federal Drive turned to RJO attorney Jeff Chiow.

New buy-American rules in the Federal Acquisition Regulation took effect just after the Biden administration arrived. But they were developed during the Trump administration. The changes seem small, but they're significant. The Federal Drive got a few items to watch out for from procurement attorney Joseph Petrillo.

The Pentagon's acquisition system often gets a bad rap -- often deservedly so. But DoD's fledgling Space Development Agency is offering the latest example in why the Federal Acquisition Regulation doesn't have to be synonymous with slowness. SDA just awarded a major multi-million dollar systems integration contract in the span of three and a half months as part of its effort to build the new National Defense Space Architecture. On this week's show, Ryan Frigm, SDA's deputy director, joins Jared Serbu to discuss the work involved in building the new satellite constellation and why the agency sees itself as a "constructive disruptor" in the space domain.

The utilization of emerging technologies in procurement and acquisition have come a long way from years past. Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, and natural language processing have developed to a new point, where more capabilities exist today to explore its many applications. The time is right for industry, government, and academia to collaborate together and explore how these technologies may be applied using publicly available data and regulations. There is a wealth of information contained publicly available in distributed databases such as Federal Procurement Data System Next Generation, FPDS-NG, USA Spend, and the Federal Acquisition Regulation. These sources can be utilized to develop an acquisition tool that will benefit the entire acquisition community. A Data and Analytics Lab should be created where products and solutions can be developed and explored to advance acquisition, and create the acquisition process easier for all parties. Experts from across government, industry, and academia can partner together and develop a tool to benefit the entire acquisition community. It could be used to answer basic questions, perform analysis, or to detect when there are problems and anomalies within the statutes, regulations, and/or contract requirements.

In this episode, we discuss public notices, such as pre-solicitation notices or special notices for contract requirements. For pre-solicitation notices, we review what the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) says is required for how far in advance the Government must publish the notice, if the notice can be combined with the solicitation or if the Government has to publish a notice at all. Special notices are for requirements that will notify industry that the Government will not be competing a requirement and why to be as transparent as possible. Listen in to hear more about why these public notices matter for businesses, why you should take interest, and how you can use these to plan out your upcoming year. 

Small businesses need to understand the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) #federalacquisitionregulation #far in order to compete on government contracts.  After all government contracting and the Federal Acquisition Regulation is complicated. #governmentcontracting.  It can take years to understand the federal acquisition process. Today, I will go tell you which parts of the Federal Acquisition Regulation you need to pay attention to when bidding on government contracts

Sometimes the Federal Acquisition Regulation calls for meaningful discussions between government and would-be contractors. The lack thereof can result not only in a bid protest - it can come up long after a contract has been awarded but runs into performance problems. That's the heart of an issue between the Navy and one of its suppliers. Procurement attorney Joseph Petrillo brought Federal Drive with Tom Temin more details on the case.

In a special webinar event of the Acquisition Talk podcast, I spoke with the excellent Ben McMartin. He is a managing partner at the Public Spend Forum, and before that was chief of the Acquisition Management Office at the Army's CCDC Ground Vehicle Systems Center. He has been at the center of the recent rise of Other Transactions contracting in the Department of Defense, founding the Acquisition Innovation Roadshow and leading the Joint Acquisition Agility Summit. In the episode, Ben argues that Other Transactions -- a method of contracting outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation -- is not simply a way to cut corners or move faster. Instead, it is a way to collaborate with industry, which is particularly important in the research and development stage. If the level of collaboration with industry starts to feel "dirty and wrong," then you're almost doing it right! This is important because R&D efforts cannot be priced like commodities. Instead, the contract terms must be flexible to updated information. What matters is how much funding is available, and what are the relevant alternative actions that could be a better use of funds. Ben provides a ton of insights on contracting, barriers to entry, and more: - Why industry buy-in will drive continued OTA growth - How OTA consortia grew up in response to researchers wanting to outsource bookkeeping - What are the two ways to OTA? - How to determine value outside of price - The lack of success stories with follow-on production Two big insights for me were: (1) prototyping must be increased at the subsystem level using OTAs and other authorities like 2373 for experimental purposes, and then rather than transition to an OTA production follow-on, should more realistically be transitioned to the large primes for integration; and (2) that there is no objective cost for real innovative products from non-traditionals, the buyer must know the technologies and relevant analogies and do a more subjective evaluation to triangular a "fair and reasonable" price. This podcast was produced by Eric Lofgren. Soundtrack by urmymuse: "reflections of u". You can follow us on Twitter @AcqTalk and find more information at AcquisitionTalk.com.

Profitability has been strong for Architecture and Engineering firms over the past several years. With increased company success comes individual financial success, usually in the form of bonuses. Because of that, there is now increased scrutiny surrounding bonuses from State DOT’s. How can firm owners reward their employees and themselves while adhering to the requirements imposed by government contract regulations? In this episode of “Unique Perspectives – The DGC Podcast,” our guest is Chad DaGraca, a Partner at DGC and the co-leader of our Architecture and Engineering Practice. Chad discusses bonus criteria for A&E firms and how you can ensure you’re adhering to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). This podcast is brought to you by DGC. For all of your accounting, tax, and advisory services, you can turn to us. Where there’s unique perspective, there’s DGC. Visit our website: www.dgccpa.com

Alexander Canizares joined me on the Acquisition Talk podcast to discuss the legal side of the acquisition system. He is a senior counsel at Perkins-Coie, a lecturer at George Washington Law School, and a former trial attorney at the Department of Justice. Alex provides insights on a number of topics, including: Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Whether an OTA contract can be protested What's new in pricing sole source contracts Whether VC funding disqualifies businesses from SBA loans The Procurement Collusion Task Force Throughout the episode, Alex relates a fundamental tension in procurement law that I would describe as the tension between the desire to move with commercial speed and the fact that government is not just a big firm. For example, the CMMC addresses a real problem for national security but has a number of unknowns in terms of compliance issues. Bid protests help create fair procurement processes but can upset agency timelines and create risk aversion. Cost or pricing data requirements prevent abusive sole-source pricing but may deter competition from commercial firms. One of the highlights was the discussion on whether an Other Transaction Authority (OTA) contract can be protested or not. Alex explains how the Court of Federal Claims rejected SpaceX's bid protest of an OTA because they are not considered procurement contracts under the Tucker Act -- they are outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation. The caveat is that a protest can be raised over whether the contract was able to use an OTA in the first place. For example, Oracle successfully protested an OTA follow-on production award because the agency did not specify in the original prototyping solicitation that follow-on production was available, citing the DoD OTA Guide. This podcast was produced by Eric Lofgren. Soundtrack by urmymuse: "reflections of u". You can follow us on Twitter @AcqTalk and find more information at AcquisitionTalk.com.

Date Published: May 8, 2020                                                                                        Episode #131   Hello, and welcome to Federal Contracting Made Easy, where we take the complex world of government contracting and break it down into simple steps that anyone can master. Today’s topic is on “DUNS Numbers are Going Away.”    The General Services Administration (GSA) is replacing the DUNS number with a new 12-character identifier ID.  How soon will this happen? GSA states that this is happening by December 2020.   Why Change?   The DUNS was created by Dun & Bradstreet in 1962. It has been the official entity verification number since it was required by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) back in 1998. Why the change? GSA opened the contract to new vendors last year. As a result, they awarded the new contract to Ernst & Young, which will administer the new ID number and manage the transition from Dun & Bradstreet. Next, we will look at the new Unique Entity ID.   Unique Entity ID   The new Unique Entity ID will be structured to avoid confusion with the tax ID number and Commercial and Government Entity or CAGE codes. All systems that use the DUN’s numbers nine-digit code will have to be updated to use the new 12-digit code.   Where to Obtain the New Unique Entity ID?   GSA is changing SAM.gov to allow organizations to request the Unique Entity ID when they register in SAM.gov. Whereas, to obtain a DUNS Number, it takes about two to five days if requested through the web or immediately if you call Dun & Bradstreet.     GSA says that they understand that this change can be confusing and that they want to provide as much information as possible during the transition. GSA created a website where anyone can go to find out     more information.   My Thoughts   I believe this will be a good thing if it handled correctly. I hate being contacted by Duns & Bradstreet, pushing their services on me. Many small business owners purchased their services, believing that the Government required it. Although Dun & Bradstreet has gotten better about letting potential clients know that their service is not necessary to receive a DUNS number. It is still frustrating to get a solicitation phone call for a service that you don’t want.   The number should be system generated when filling out a new registration. That would be optimal, in my opinion. This change should have happened years ago—way to go GSA.     Do you want to read more articles by the author?     Support our channel:   Subscribe to Our Podcast: Continued support:  http://bit.ly/FCMEPatreon One-Time Support:  https://www.paypal.me/FCME801    

On this episode guests John Sebastian and Brian Padove attorneys with Watt, Tieder, Hoffar & Fitzgerald, LLP will discuss Federal Construction Contracts and more specifically the Federal Acquisition Regulation or FAR in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. They will share insights into, when and how to provide notice, the burden of proof, suspension of work, and the sovereign acts doctrine. As well as stressing the importance of reviewing your current contract documents and taking the pandemic into consideration as you move forward with new contracts during these uncertain times. For more information on this topic check out the NASBP Blog post that our speakers co-authored with several colleagues at Watt Tieder, Federal Construction Contracts vs. COVID-19: An “Excused” Delay? Hosted By: Kat Shamapande, Director, Professional Development, NASBP and Mark McCallum, CEO, NASBP

Date Published:  April 17, 2020                                                                                     Episode #127     Welcome to Federal Contracting Made Easy (FCME), where we take the complex world of Government Contracting and break it into simple steps that anyone can master.  We are on episode number 127, and we are going to look at the COVID-19 Contract Performance & Guidance. Essential Business and Operations The government must restrict contract performance to those "Essential Business and Operations" contracts. But what is the definition of Essential Business and Operations? The following meets the government's requirements: Groceries & Medicine; Food, beverage, and licensed marijuana production & agriculture; Organizations that provide charitable and social services; Religious entities Media; First Amendment protected speech; Gas stations and businesses needed for transportation; Financial and Insurance Institutions Hardware & Supply Stores; Critical trades; Main, post, shipping logistics, delivery and pick-up services; Educational institutions; Laundry Services; Restaurants (Take out only) Supplies to work from home; Supplies for essential businesses and operations; Transportation; Home-base care and services; Residential facilities and shelters; Professional Services; Manufacture, distribution, and supply chain for critical products & Industries; Critical labor union functions;     Hotels and motels; and Funeral Services.   Next, we will look at Shelter-in-place. Shelter-in-place Shelter-in-place orders are handled differently depending on the state. Some states require all non-essential businesses and operations to stop. Others have stated that non-essential businesses may continue to conduct Minimum Basic Operations. Minimum Basic Operations What does Minimum Basic Operations mean? Any activity to maintain the value of the company's inventory or preserve the condition of a company's' physical plant and equipment. Also, the following functions: security, payroll, and employee benefits or related functions. Lastly, any activity to facilitate employees working from home. Review Contracts As we have discussed in earlier blogs, you must review your contract clauses. Especially if you find that your business does provide essential services, but you cannot perform them due to interruptions in the supply chain, or decreased laborers. What should you be looking for? That is coming up next. Force Majeure Clause Review your contracts for a "Force Majeure Clause." A Force Majeure Clause allows for an excusable delay. What is an excusable delay? According to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.249-14, an excusable delay includes, among other things, acts of God, fires, floods, epidemics, quarantine restrictions, strikes, freight embargoes, and unusually severe weather. So you see, this clause fits the epidemic happening in the world today. No Force Majeure Clause If your contract does not contain a Force Majeure Clause, you may also seek relief through other common law doctrines of impossibility and impracticability. These doctrines may not fit all contracts, so check with your attorney. File an Insurance Claim Lastly, you could review your insurance policy as it may contain a provision for relief in this situation. Also, talk to your contracting officer. They understand the present situation and will work with you. Remember that failure to perform the contract result in a default, which brings significant ramifications. Defense Production Act President Trump invoked a wartime law that makes supplies to the Federal Government the top priority. Specifically, for medical equipment and supplies.  The government has the authority to go to the top of the line and force contractors to prioritize the sales of goods to the government before selling to consumers or other private purchasers. DX and DO Ratings You must review any active or new government orders for DPAS ratings. These DPAS orders will include a field indicating the level of DPAS rating. The rating is either "DX" or "DO." DX orders are higher than DO orders. DO orders must be prioritized over non-DPAS orders.   Make sure that you review your orders for these DPAS rating and pay attention as you must respond within a set timeframe to the agency. Small Business Loans We have discussed SBA Small Business loans in detail in previous episodes. SBA Disaster loans and Payroll Protection Program (PPP) loans are available to small businesses. Please be patient as SBA is experiencing a high volume, and the application process can take up to 21 days. Eight Recommendations Preparation is key.   Spend your time now researching your contracts to determine the types of relief contained for pandemics and natural disasters. Review your contracts to determine if they contain DPAS. Plan now to comply with state/federal law. Keep track of incurred costs over and above the contract for compliance. Communicate with your contracting officer and let them know your current capabilities and any accommodations that might be required. Submit requests for equitable adjustment as soon as possible to your contracting officer. Update your sick leave policies and reinforce key messages to your employees. Example: stay home when they are ill or have any COVID-19 symptoms. Be prepared to change business plans if needed to maintain critical operations. Summary   Please take the time now to review your contracts for the Force Majeure clause or other common law doctrines of impossibility and impracticability. Also, consider reviewing the eight steps listed above to help prepare your business.   For more articles, please click here.   Support our channel:   Continued support:  http://bit.ly/FCMEPatreon One-Time Support:  https://www.paypal.me/FCME801    

Contractors might be asked to do extra work during the coronavirus and as agency's scramble to keep operating. Or contractors might have trouble pulling together the people they need, and that could cause delays. Barbara Kinosky said those and other situations have specific procedures and remedies, and as contractors you've got specific rights. The managing partner of Center Law & Consulting joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin to talk more.

In this episode of the Acquisition Talk podcast, I speak with Richard Dunn about commercial contracting, and in particular, Other Transactions Authority(OTAs). He is the founder of the Strategic Institute, and has had a long career in government including General Counsel of DARPA. Rick argues that the traditional Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) does not have enough flexibility to allow for commercial contracting. Instead of focusing on value and innovation, the FAR narrows government's focus on cost. The system is "fundamentally unfair," he said. If it were fair, we should expect to see greater business participation. One study found that just the top ten regulations contribute to an 18 percent cost premium. Why would any firm take on that cost at the expense of being noncompetitive in their commercial markets? Other Transactions, by contrast, allow the government to legally negotiate terms and conditions without reference to the FAR. In other words, the government can do business like any commercial firm, leading to lower transaction costs. However, the adoption of OTs have been stymied for decades because of proactive resistance. Preexisting learning stops subsequent learning, and contracting officers tend to think in terms of FAR language. Rick suggests how to break out of that mindset. During the conversation, we discussed: - The reason Norm Augustine said Lockheed couldn't do commercial business - How contract regulations became so burdensome - Why are most OT consortia are only "so-called" consortia - The effect of telling contract officers they will go to jail for non-compliance - How OTs "shop problems" while the FAR "shops requirements" - How startups can use unfunded OTs to gain access to government capital and users - Why payable milestones are outside of the FAR - The history of OTs, including Paul Demling, NASA, and the Telestar satellite This podcast was produced by Eric Lofgren. Soundtrack by urmymuse: "reflections of u". You can follow us on Twitter @AcqTalk and find more information at AcquisitionTalk.com.

Soraya Correa joined me on the Acquisition Talk podcast to discuss small business programs, the procurement innovation lab, workforce training programs, why contracting officers might be risk averse, industry engagement, and much more. She is the Chief Procurement Officer for the Department of Homeland Security, and one of our government's most impactful business leaders. During the episode, Ms. Correa describes how she has taken a different approach to acquisition reform. As we often see in the Pentagon and as it is instigated by Congress, acquisition reform usually means trying to streamline regulations while creating new parallel structures (e.g., middle-tier acquisition, urgent capabilities, software, etc.). Ms. Correa, however, recognized that many authorities already exist. Real change comes from focusing on developing and then empowering people. "I'm not trying to change the rules," she said, "I'm trying to change how we think about the rules." We discuss why, on the margin, leadership should focus on the inputs and trust that the outputs will take care of themselves. To that end, Ms. Correa has nurtured several workforce training and mentoring programs. Moreover, she set up an in-house "consultancy" to help those professionals innovate from the bottom up. The Federal Acquisition Regulation isn't overly restrictive, Ms. Correa finds, instead it is risk aversion on the part of the workforce. Using her leadership position and backed by a long tenure, Ms. Correa provides the necessary top cover to allow her workforce to execute great solutions. I'd like to thank Soraya Correa for joining me on the Acquisition Talk podcast. She has been a recurring guest on Government Matters, watch them all! She is a frequent communicator, numerous videos are available on You Tube. Another good interview is here, and you can find out her thoughts on business automation here. Listen to Ms. Correa on the "Let's Talk about IT" podcast. You can learn more about doing business with DHS here, and career opportunities are here. This podcast was produced by Eric Lofgren. Soundtrack by urmymuse: "reflections of u". You can follow us on Twitter @AcqTalk and find more information at AcquisitionTalk.com.

  Welcome to the wonderful world of Federal Contracting Made Easy. It is our job to take the complex world of government contracting and break it into simple steps that anyone can master. We are on episode number 99 and today’s topic is on “All About Protests?” But before we get started in today’s topic let’s roll that intro. Welcome Back Before we get started today, I wanted to talk about a new opportunity for my viewers. Federal Contracting Made Easy is now on Patreon. Patreon allows viewers of our blog, podcast and YouTube channel the opportunity to join our community. This means that you will have access to Patreon only videos and our blog. I will be posting topics information such as Agency’s Open Houses, Changes affecting contracting, Regulatory Changes, and much more. Depending on the level of membership you may have your name mentioned on our videos and an opportunity to meet with me as a group and ask those pressing questions. Don’t wait. Stop this video now and go to http://bit.ly/FCMEPatreon now. If you prefer to support our channel, we accept one-time donations at http://bit.ly/2lYw4ZI. Alright, let’s get into today’s topic. What if you do not agree with the decision that the buying agency or contracting officer made? Or what if you believe that their decision is not correct? The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) does provide contractors with several options. The first option is filing a protest. The second option is a dispute. The third option is taking the government to court. First let’s define some terminology. Under government contract law, you have the right to “protest” and also a right to “dispute”. While these terms appear to be similar and are often used interchangeably to everyday language, the government regulations treat them differently. These rules generally give you a right to “protest” a defective bid or the award of a contract to another bidder. These rules also give you the right to “dispute” an issue or disagreement with the contracting officer that arises after you won, and the contract has been awarded. In addition, you may have other options. Three Federal Bid Protest Levels In case you did not know there are three bid protest levels. I have listed them from the highest level to the lowest level. They are: 1. Judicial action brought at the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (COFC). 2. Protest filled with the Government Accountability Office (GAO). 3. Agency-level protest filed with the agency conduction the procurement.   Remember that you have only ten days to file a protest after the basis for the protest is known or should have been known. If you fail to file a protest within this timeframe you will not win the protest. The only option available to you is to go to a higher level of Protest which is usually with the US Court of Federal Claims. Protesting a Bid or Award. Not just anyone can file a protest. In order to file a protest, you must be an “interested party”. This means an actual or prospective bidder whose direct economic interest would be affected by the award of the contract or by the failure to award a contract. When challenging the government’s evaluation of proposals and the award of contract, this means a bidder that would potentially be in line for award if the protest was sustained. Most contractors that file a protest do so under one or more of the following situations. • Challenge the acceptance or rejection of a bid or proposal. • Contractor challenges the award or proposed award of a contract. • Contractor states the solicitation or bids were defective as a protest basis.   Up next, we will discuss some examples of defective solicitations or bids. Bid Defects Most of the protest filed by contractors challenge the acceptance or rejection of a bid or proposal, and the award or proposed award of a contract. However, defective solicitations or bids may also be used as a basis for a protest. A contractor can protest bids based on the following: • Allegedly restrictive specifications. • Allegedly omission of a required provision. • Contractor alleged questionable or indefinite evaluation factors. • A terminated contract may be protested if the protest alleges that the termination was based on improprieties in the award of the contract.   What does all this mean? Well it means that you the contractor, has the right to protest a bid or an award before and after the award of a contract. You have the right to protest a bid, you can protest an award and you can protest a termination of your contract. It is important that you respond to a negative performance assessment when it first arises. The tome to manage performance problems is during the performance, not during the next proposal. It is extremely important that you be on time with your protest. Remember there are no exceptions for missed deadlines. Sometimes we need examples of reasons to protest. That is what we will be discussing next. Common Protest Grounds I have found that many of my clients prefer examples when discussing protests. Below are common protest grounds for defective bids? • The bid does not contain enough detail. You cannot determine what the government wants. • The solicitation is too detailed. The Statement of Work (SOW) contains 50 pages. • The solicitation to too restrictive. For example, it uses standards or specifications that are not needed. • You need more time to respond. The government’s timeframe is too restricting. • The statements in the bid or vague. You cannot determine what the government wants. • The Government is using many brand names or equal issues. • Small business problems o Wrong Size Standard o HUBZone problems o “Failure” to set aside for small business   Summary We are going to end today’s episode here. Next week we will pick up where we left off continue our discussions on protests. So, stay tuned for your next vlog. As always, we appreciate our subscribers and followers. If you have not subscribed yet, please remember to do so and if you would hit that “like” button that would do a world of good. As the like button will let Google know that they should share this video with more people. As always please be safe.

Friday September 20, 2019 Episode #096 Termination for Convenience. Those three little words are something that no contractor wants to hear. After all, who wants the government to seek termination actions on their contract. But let's be honest, it does happen. Contract terminations can happen at any time. Sometimes the contractor is at fault and sometimes the contractor is not at fault. Our goal for today’s episode is to educate you on the procedures that transpire when the government terminates a contract. In addition, we will go over the resources available to both parties (government and contractor). Remember the better educated you are the better business decisions you can make. Up next, we will go over the contract termination options used by the government. Types of Contract Terminations There are three types of contract terminations available to the government. The first called Terminate for Convenience otherwise known as T4C. The second called Termination for Default otherwise known as T4D. The third termination called the no-cost cancelation. Generally, contracts greater than $25,000 will contain a contract clause allowing the government to terminate the contract if the contractor defaults on the contract. The reason for this is obvious. The government needs to protect itself. Because it is in the government's best interest to do so. The Government will use a Termination for Convenience clause when it is in the Government’s best interest to do so. If you have been following along with our episodes, you will notice that this is a common theme with the government. In essence, this allows the Government an exit strategy. The government can now discontinue a contract due to technological developments that make the contract obsolete. Perhaps there is a lack of funding due to budgetary restrictions. Finally, the government can terminate the contract because the work is no longer needed. Thus, allowing the government to reallocate taxpayer money for something that needed by the government. Essentially this clause avoids liability for the government for a Breach of Contract action by a contractor. Next we will look at the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) references for Termination of Convenience. FAR References for Termination of Convenience Below, I have included the FAR references for Termination for Convenience: • 52.249.1 & 2 – Fixed Price • 52.249.3 – Dismantling, Demolition, or Removal of Improvements • 52.249.4 - Services • 52.249.5 - Educational & Other Nonprofit Institutions • 52.249.6 - Cost-Reimbursement • 52.249.7 - Fixed Price Architect-Engineer   It is important that you review the clauses contained in your contract. Generally these clauses are the only ones that the contracting officer can use. Make sure to go to the FAR and read about each clause. Make sure that you not only read but comprehend what is contain in the clause. Sometimes the wrong clauses added to a contract. If you suspect that a clause is not relevant contact your contracting officer immediately. Do this before you even begin work on the contract. Notifications As we discussed earlier, a termination for convenience allows the government to terminate all or part of a contract for its convenience. When the government terminates a contract for convenience, they must notify you in writing. The notice of termination must contain an effective date of the termination, the extent of the termination and any special instructions. What do you mean when you say the extent of termination? Well, the government may not eliminate the entire contract but only a portion of the contract. Thus, leaving part of the contract still intact. If the government leaves part of the contract intact then you, the contractor, will need to perform the parts of the contract that the government did not remove. Next we will discuss termination notices. Termination Notice The termination notice will instruct the contractor to stop work immediately only on the terminated portion of the contract. This includes any subcontractors that are performing work on a portion contract that the government is terminating. However, the contractor and subcontractors must still perform the portions of the contract that are not terminated. In addition, the government will settle termination claims from both the contractor and its subcontractors. Good to know right! You must follow the instructions in the termination notice. If you fail to do so you are opening yourself up to risk and expense. The government will include detail instructions on the protection and preservation of all property that is or may become government owned. Do not under any circumstances continue to perform work on any portion of the contract that the government is terminating! The chances of you being reimbursed for expenses is low. Next, we will talk about the settlement process. Settlement Because the government is eliminating part or all of a contract they still must compensate you for the work that you have performed and any preparations that were taken before the termination. In addition, the government is required to make a fair and prompt settlement with you. Generally, this will result in a negotiated agreement between both parties. The objective here is to compensate you fairly and fully for the work you have done and for any preparation you have made for the terminated portion of the contract. Also a reasonable allowance for profit is also included. This settlement is much easier in cost-reimbursement contract since you were reimbursed on a cost basis since the beginning of the contract. Furthermore, you are entitled to recover all allowable costs incurred in settling a termination for convenience. These reimbursable costs include: • Costs incurred for work completed and accepted at the time of the Termination; • In addition, costs considered include allowable, allocable, and reasonable; • Don't forget your profit on the above costs incurred; and • Finally, close-out, demobilization, and settlement proposal costs associated with preparing a final cost proposal for submission to the government are allowable, less profit.   As soon as you receive notification that the government is going to terminate a portion or the whole contract start gathering the above information. It is in your best interest to be as detailed as possible. Besides you do not want to leave money on the table. Termination - Settlement Agreement More importantly, the government will retain the right to approve or ratify any settlements made with subcontractors. Once the government and the contractor agree to all or part of your compensation claim as a result of the termination, a written amendment is made to the contract. This is known as a settlement agreement. Your contracting officer will amend the contract accordingly. Under normal circumstances a termination will stop regular payments to you under a contract. However, since you may have money tied up in finished and unfinished products, materials and labor, most termination clauses provide you with interim financing through partial payments. In fact, discuss this with your contracting officer as soon as possible. In future articles, we will discuss your rights for termination for convenience. Make sure to sign up to our newsletter so that you are kept up to date on our latest articles. Don't have time to read? Check out our podcast or YouTube channel for more information.

This episode features a team that changed the way training systems and support were being competed in the Air Force Life Cycle Management Center's Simulators Program Office. Program Manager Jacob Kolb and Contracting Officer Dustin Tatum led the C-17 Training Systems acquisition team in its use of Federal Acquisition Regulation 16.5 Fair Opportunity Selection procedures for a program valued over $900 million. They discuss how they tailored their selection criteria for a best value decision and how they also cut down the acquisition timeline significantly by documenting that the team may do interchanges with one, some, none or all offers. They stress the importance of following your process, communicating with stakeholders, and of course – having fun! Acronyms: FMS – Foreign Military Sales ASP – Acquisition Strategy Panel KC-135 BOSS – Boom Operator Simulator System TSA III – Training Systems Acquisition MAC – Multiple Award Contract IDIQ – Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity AFMC – Air Force Materiel Command EN – Evaluation Notice IN – Interchange PWS – Performance Work Statement SOW – Statement of Work AFLCMC – Air Force Life Cycle Management Center I/ITSEC – Interservice/Industry Training, Simulation and Education Conference ACE – Acquisition Center of Excellence Air Force Materiel Command Guiding Principles for Fair Opportunity Selection: https://www.dau.mil/cop/ace/_layouts/15/WopiFrame.aspx?sourcedoc=/cop/ace/DAU%20Sponsored%20Documents/Fair%20Opportunity%20Guiding%20Principles%20AFMC%20v2.6%20Final.docx&action=default&DefaultItemOpen=1 If you would like to share feedback on the podcast, please submit via thecontractingexperience@gmail.com.

In this episode of Stopping Traffick, Amy Groff will discuss the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) that addresses human trafficking.  She’ll provide an overview of the requirements that apply to all U.S. government contractors under the FAR, as well as the more rigorous requirements that apply to contracts exceeding $500,000 for goods produced or services provided outside the U.S.  She’ll also highlight some best practices and ways to mitigate the potentially harsh consequences of a violation. Presenter:  Amy L. Groff

In this episode of Stopping Traffick, Amy Groff will discuss the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) that addresses human trafficking.  She’ll provide an overview of the requirements that apply to all U.S. government contractors under the FAR, as well as the more rigorous requirements that apply to contracts exceeding $500,000 for goods produced or services provided outside the U.S.  She’ll also highlight some best practices and ways to mitigate the potentially harsh consequences of a violation. Presenter:  Amy L. Groff

Find “Trump, Inc.” wherever you get your podcasts. This week’s episode examines the intersection of money, presidential access and security, and the push and pull between government spending and private profits at Mar-a-Lago. In April 2017, Chinese President Xi Jinping visited Mar-a-Lago, President Donald Trump’s Palm Beach, Florida, estate and club, for a two-day summit. While Xi and his delegation stayed at a nearby hotel, Trump and his advisers stayed at the peach-colored, waterfront resort. That evening, Trump and a dozen of his closest advisers hosted Xi and the Chinese delegation in an ornate dining room where they ate Dover sole and New York strip steak. Those sorts of lavish, formal gatherings are expected for a major bilateral summit. But then there are less formal events. At some point later that evening, a group repaired to Mar-a-Lago’s Library Bar, a wood-paneled study with a portrait of Trump in tennis whites (titled “The Visionary”) hanging nearby. The group asked the bartender to leave the room so it “could speak confidentially,” according to an email written by Mar-a-Lago’s catering director, Brooke Watson. // View note The Secret Service guarded the door, according to the email. The bartender wasn’t allowed to return. And members of the group began pouring themselves drinks. No one paid. Six days later, on April 13, Mar-a-Lago created a bill for those drinks, tallying $838 worth of alcohol plus a 20% service charge. It covered 54 drinks (making for an average price of $18.62 each) of premium liquor: Chopin vodka, Patron and Don Julio Blanco tequilas and Woodford Reserve bourbon. Watson’s email did not specify how many people consumed the alcohol or who the participants were. (It stated that she “was told” the participants included then-strategist Steve Bannon and then-deputy chief of staff Joe Hagin. Bannon, who has said he stopped drinking years ago, said he didn’t drink at Mar-a-Lago and didn’t recall the episode. Hagin did not respond to requests for comment.) // View note The bill was sent to the State Department, which objected to covering it. It was then forwarded to the White House, which paid the tab. The unusual cocktail hour underscores a unique push and pull in the current administration: Donald Trump’s White House pays a bill and Donald Trump’s club reaps the revenue. (It’s unclear if the White House asked any of those drinking to reimburse the government; the White House declined to comment.) The premium liquor costs are only the beginning of government spending at Mar-a-Lago that emerges in hundreds of pages of receipts and email correspondence between Trump Organization employees and staffers for the State Department, which oversees presidential diplomatic travel and works with the Secret Service and White House. The emails show that the president’s company refused to agree to what was essentially a bulk-purchase agreement with the federal government, and that it charged the maximum allowable federal rate for hotel rooms. The Trump Organization could be obstinate when it came to rates for, say, function rooms at Mar-a-Lago, a problem that was eased when the president signed a law lifting the maximum “micro-purchase” the government can make.   The emails have been released as part of an ongoing lawsuit between the nonprofit Property of the People, a Washington-based transparency group, and the federal government. Property of the People provided the emails and receipts to ProPublica and we, in turn, have added them to our tracker of government spending at Trump-owned properties for our interactive graphic Paying the President. (The State Department is expected to release an additional 1,800 pages of records as part of the lawsuit, which was filed under the Freedom of Information Act.) In response to questions from ProPublica, the State Department asked for and received the documents described in this article. State Department officials promised a detailed response, but then declined comment. The documents reveal the intersection between Trump’s conflicting interests. The emails show that “Mar-a-Lago wanted to have the government money without the government rules,” said Charles Tiefer, a law professor at the University of Baltimore who served on the congressionally chartered Commission on Wartime Contracting in Iraq and Afghanistan. A few months after Trump’s inauguration, the State Department proposed a contract that would pay $200,000 for all room costs for federal employees who stay at Mar-a-Lago over the first term of his presidency. But Mar-a-Lago rejected the government's proposal. Instead, Trump’s resort bills the government the maximum permitted by federal rules: 300% of the government’s per diem rate, which works out to $546 per night. Mar-a-Lago rejected the proposed flat-fee arrangement, according to the emails, because of concerns the club’s lawyers had about the Federal Acquisition Regulation, or FAR, which governs federal purchases and is overseen by contracting officers. FAR seeks to promote competition and maintain “the public’s trust.” The emails suggest the Trump Organization was worried that the lack of competitive bidding could run afoul of federal rules, among other concerns. A State Department staffer wrote in May 2017 that Mar-a-Lago’s attorneys brought up federal “small business set-aside” requirements, which set strict rules for sole-source government bids for small businesses. The State Department staffer wrote that Mar-a-Lago’s “concerns are based on their general lack of knowledge on the applicability of the FAR regulations.” // View note Mar-a-Lago and the Trump Organization did not respond to ProPublica’s requests for comment. Since Mar-a-Lago wouldn’t agree to a bulk contract, the State Department had to go to Plan B. When it came to the meeting with China’s president, for example, the agency had to go into some contortions to make Mar-a-Lago’s $546 nightly room rate square with its rules on competitive bidding, given that there are other less expensive hotels nearby. At least 16 staffers stayed at the Hampton Inn in West Palm Beach; at least eight stayed at the nearby Hilton Garden Inn; and four others stayed at the Tideline Ocean Resort & Spa, where the press pool also stayed, according to a hotel manifest obtained through the FOIA lawsuit. The government-negotiated rates at those establishments ranged from $195 to $305 per night. // View note (At least 24 White House and federal staffers stayed at Mar-a-Lago during the Xi visit. They included then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson; then-chief of staff Reince Priebus; then-Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis; Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin; then-National Economic Council adviser Gary Cohn; and other advisers, past and present, such as Bannon, Hope Hicks, Stephen Miller and Sean Spicer.) // View note The State Department also broke with protocol regarding taxpayer-funded travel and applied for a Citibank travel card just for Mar-a-Lago visits. Meanwhile, other problems emerged: • Mar-a-Lago can’t process charges over $10,000, which led to problems when the club split bills and charged the government card for multiple transactions, emails show. // View note • Mar-a-Lago refused government requests to waive the costs of its "function room” for press and other official meetings in April 2017, leading to a near-violation of a $3,500 government spending cap. Last year, Trump signed a law that lifted that cap, known as the “micro-purchase threshold,” from $3,500 to $10,000. The law does not appear to have been aimed at facilitating spending at Mar-a-Lago, but it allows the club to avoid additional government contracting rules when charging sums below $10,000. • In one instance, after the government was charged more than $3,500 for conference space at Mar-a-Lago, it asked the Trump Organization for a 10% discount so that it wouldn’t violate the micro-purchase threshold. Mar-a-Lago relented, but only after months of haggling. // View note In the emails, the director of presidential travel support, Michael Dobbs, frequently described the creation of a charge card unique to Mar-a-Lago as a “headache.”   // View note As Steve Schooner, a professor of government contracting law at George Washington University, put it, “The fact that we have a State Department contracting officer saying this is a headache is a reminder that, but for the relationship with President Trump, this would not be a contract the government would be having. That's a problem." Many of the expenses incurred by White House staff are arranged and paid for by the White House’s Office of Administration. These expenses are not required to be made public. The same goes for Secret Service spending to protect the president on such visits. (The Government Accountability Office released a report last month evaluating spending at Mar-a-Lago in February and March 2017 and found that a total of $60,000 was spent at the hotel during four trips; the figure ran to $13.6 million when costs for plane travel, secret service, security and other logistics were included.) The State Department payments, and its work on behalf of the White House and other traveling staff, are considered public records. Between 2015 and June of 2018, at least $16.1 million has poured into Trump Organization-managed and branded hotels, golf courses and restaurants from his campaign, Republican organizations and government agencies. Because Trump’s business empire is overseen by a trust of which he is the sole beneficiary, he profits from these hotel stays, banquet hall rentals and meals. Federal spending rules don't specifically address agency-level spending on alcohol that is directly invoiced to the government, as occurred with the $1,000 bar tab at Mar-a-Lago. The State Department and the White House have had exemptions included in their appropriations legislation to allow for alcohol purchases. Individual government employees are not permitted to use charge cards for "improper" purposes, such as alcohol, and federal per diem rules allow for charges for breakfast, lunch, dinner and related tips and taxes but specifically exclude alcoholic drinks. Six government contracting experts said Mar-a-Lago may be violating rules requiring competitive bids. They argue that Mar-a-Lago’s practice of invoicing meeting spaces, hotel stays and meals separately is a way to get around federal spending rules. “Mar-a-Lago didn’t want to compete, they wanted to sneak around the requirements, and charge much higher prices than the competition,” said Tiefer, who served as deputy general counsel with the House of Representatives for 11 years. “It’s not the first time in history that vendors have tried to get around the rules by charging individual components. This is familiar to every contracting officer. And it’s wrong. It’s not just a technicality. It’s not a game. The only safeguard the public has against the Trumps swallowing up all the government business is at least minimal competition.” Several experts contend the State Department is exploiting loopholes in government spending rules to facilitate official gatherings at Mar-a-Lago. “It’s one of the biggest fears coming true, that they are bending over backwards to help the Trump Organization,” said Scott Amey, general counsel of the Project On Government Oversight. “I'm frustrated the State Department would exploit the system to bill Uncle Sam and the taxpayers. To have the government bicker to get a 10% discount shows the Trump Organization isn't putting the American public first. It's a worst-case scenario when it comes to conflicts of interest, with the president and his children putting themselves and profits ahead of the public." ### “Trump, Inc.” is exploring whether the federal Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is still enforcing consumer financial laws and holding companies accountable. We want to hear from people who work at the agency or left recently (particularly those familiar with enforcement actions, supervisory exams and areas such as payday lending and debt collection). We’re also hoping to hear from consumers and companies who have interacted with the bureau in recent years. To find out more, click here.  “Trump, Inc.” is a production of WNYC Studios and ProPublica. Support our work by visiting donate.propublica.org or by becoming a supporting member of WNYC. Subscribe here or wherever you get your podcasts.

3/4/2019 Limitations on subcontracting for prime contractors is an important topic. Especially now that the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) and the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) are NOT in agreement. Let's get into this topic in more detail, shall we? Background In January 2013, the 2013 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) became law. This Act made major changes to the limitations on subcontracting. The law changes the way the government determined compliance with the limitations on subcontracting for prime contractors. By the way, limitations on subcontracting applies to service and supply contracts. The old way was formula based upon “cost of personnel” and “Cost of Manufacturing”, to formulas based on the amount paid by the government. Most importantly the 2013 NDAA allowed small primes to claim performance credit for “similarly situated entities.” In essence, this would make it easier for a small prime contractor to meet his self performance requirement. A prime contractor could use the work performed by the first tier subcontractor and add it to his self performance to meet the requirement. 3 1/2 Years Later Three and a half years after the 2013 NDAA became law, SBA finally published a final rule implementing the changes. See 13 C.F.R 125.6. SBA’s regulation took effect on June 30, 2016. The Department of Veteran Affairs declared a Class Deviation incorporating the reference from SBA regulations almost immediately after SBA regulations went into effect. However, contracting officers from other agencies continue to use the old formulas and did not acknowledge similarly situated entities. (Note FAR 52.219-14 applies to small businesses and 8(a) contracts. For HUBZone, , non-VA SDVOSB procurements, and WOSB/EDWOSB contracts the regulation specifies the clauses already. 5 Years Later Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube FCME uploads new episodes every Monday & Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. MST. Topics include proposal writing, bonds, types of contracts, why do business with the federal government, 8(a), business services for veterans and women, where federal opportunities are listed, and more. You can listen to the podcast here or with your favorite podcast provider (iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or Stitcher). FCME is also active on social media and launched the Federal Contracting Made Easy YouTube channel on January 1, 2019. On December 4, 2018 the FAR Council finally took the first major step toward implementing the changes. The FAR Council published a proposed rule in the Federal Register. As of today 2/17/19 the FAR has not been changed. The result As one would expect this led to a ton of confusion. Which regulation does the prime contractor follow? SBA regulation? FAR clause? Both? Contracting officers took the position that the FAR clauses take precedence until they’re amended. However, the CFR takes precedence over the FAR. What if you had a joint venture formed under SBA’s regulation must pledge to comply with 13 CFR125.6. What a mess. Proposed FAR Changes What are the changes recommended by the FAR Council? Instead of a mixture of clauses the FAR Council is recommending consolidating the clauses for all small business programs. This makes sense. The proposed rule would also allow prime contractors to use similarly situated entities to meet their performance thresholds. What does this mean for small businesses? It means that if you are a small business and you subcontract to another small business first tier subcontractor, you can claim their work performance as part of your performance. Here is an example, an 8(a) company can subcontract to another 8(a) company and use their subcontract performance to meet your performance expectations. The proposed rule could change before the final rule based upon public comment. We will have to wait and see what happens. When will the final rule come out? I am not sure but you can always do the research yourself. Hopefully the final rule will resolve the confusion for small businesses. In the meantime, I would recommend that small businesses read the FAR, CFR and talk to the contracting officer. Remember you must follow what FAR clauses are in your contract. If you are still confused, I would suggest that you talk to your attorney and get legal interpretation. Conclusion Unfortunately, sometimes the rules are not clear, and you must use your best judgement. You will find the clauses pertaining to your limitations on subcontracting in your contract. Always read your contract. If you have any questions talk to the contracting officer first and if you still are unsure call your attorney. Remember I am not an attorney and am providing you with the best information that I have. For more articles. Please help support our podcast by purchasing from our store. https://teespring.com/stores/federal-contracting-made-easy Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube FCME uploads new episodes every Monday & Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. MST. Topics include proposal writing, bonds, types of contracts, why do business with the federal government, 8(a), business services for veterans and women, where federal opportunities are listed, and more. You can listen to the podcast here or with your favorite podcast provider (iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or Stitcher). FCME is also active on social media and launched the Federal Contracting Made Easy YouTube channel on January 1, 2019.

  FCME uploads new episodes every Monday & Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. MST. Topics include proposal writing, bonds, types of contracts, why do business with the federal government, 8(a), business services for veterans and women, where federal opportunities are listed, and more. You can listen to the podcast here or with your favorite podcast provider (iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or Stitcher). FCME is also active on social media and launched the Federal Contracting Made Easy YouTube channel on January 1, 2019.   Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube   054 How To Become a Government Subcontractor? Introduction Please help support our podcast by purchasing from our store. https://teespring.com/stores/federal-contracting-made-easy We all know that the government is the largest buyer of products and services in the world. The competition is fierce for prime contractors. As a result, there are companies that are building relationships with these prime contractors in hopes of receiving a subcontract. Many small businesses have gotten into government contracting by utilizing this method. The goal of today’s episode is to introduce you to subcontracting. So let’s get on with it. What is a Subcontractor? A prime contractor is the one that received the contract from the government. A prime contractor is the point of contact on this contract and deals directly with the customer. Whereas, a subcontractor participates with the prime contractor to help complete the project for the client. As a subcontractor your contract is with the prime contractor. Simple enough! Consequently, depending on the contract a subcontractor plan may be required. Subcontracting Plan Federal contracts may require a subcontracting plan. When they do, the prime contractor must hire subcontractors. When is a subcontracting plan required? Well, that depends on the contract value and type of work being performed. Large prime contractors with contracts for goods and/or services other than construction, valued greater than $700,000 must establish subcontracting plans and goals for subcontracting with small businesses. For those prime contractors in the construction industry they will require subcontracting plans when the contract is greater than $1.5 Million. What does this mean to you? In short, it opens the doors for small businesses to become subcontractors. FCME uploads new episodes every Monday & Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. MST. Topics include proposal writing, bonds, types of contracts, why do business with the federal government, 8(a), business services for veterans and women, where federal opportunities are listed, and more. You can listen to the podcast here or with your favorite podcast provider (iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or Stitcher). FCME is also active on social media and launched the Federal Contracting Made Easy YouTube channel on January 1, 2019. Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube   Steps to Become a Subcontractor to a Prime Government Contractor? Next, we are going to list the steps to streamline the process of becoming a subcontractor. In short, just follow these steps to get ready to become a subcontractor. Step 1. Get Your Official Paperwork in Order 1. To protect your personal assets from liability you must structure your entity correctly. 2. DUNS Registration. This is your business credit score. 3. Register in the System for Award Management (SAM.GOV). This registration is free, and it is essential for being paid by the government and government contractors.   After your paperwork is in order go to step 2. Step 2. Research Agencies and Prime contractor directories for subcontracting needs. Now that your paperwork is in order it is time to research prime contractors and find opportunities within our niche. Many federal agencies have Subcontracting Opportunity Directories that you can review. The U.S. Small Business Administration has a database called SubNet which allows large prime contractors to post opportunities for small businesses to serve as subcontractors. I have known many small businesses that have used this system to find prime contractors. General Services Administration (GSA) has a subcontracting directory for small businesses that are looking for subcontracting opportunities with prime contractors. The directory lists large business prime contractors that are required to have subcontracting plans and goals for subcontracting with small businesses. The Department of Defense (DoD) has a similar directory for large prime contractors that small businesses can use to find subcontracting opportunities. We have listed a few resources to help you get started finding subcontracting opportunities. Let us know if you find more. In the meantime, use the websites above to get started. FCME uploads new episodes every Monday & Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. MST. Topics include proposal writing, bonds, types of contracts, why do business with the federal government, 8(a), business services for veterans and women, where federal opportunities are listed, and more. You can listen to the podcast here or with your favorite podcast provider (iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or Stitcher). FCME is also active on social media and launched the Federal Contracting Made Easy YouTube channel on January 1, 2019. Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube   As you can see, the government wants large prime contractors to use subcontractors. They have even gone out of their way to make it easy for you to find these opportunities. Don't wait start using these listings now. After you have completed step 2 move on to step 3. Step 3. Attend Outreach Events Now that step 2 has been completed it is time to find outreach events to attend. Many prime contractors will hold outreach events, publish notice of sources sought, or solicitation for subcontract work. To start, you will need to create a Capability Statement to share with government contracting officers and prime government contractors. Don’t know what a Capability Statement is or how to write one? See our video here. Where are these events held? These events are held all over the country. See the list below for events that you may want to attend if you cannot locate one close to you. To find more opportunities use Federal Business Opportunities and search special notices. Lots of time the government will list opportunities there. 1. GCO Consulting Group is an SDVOSB that holds events in the Washington DC metro area. 2. Solvability is a government contracting consulting firm which holds annual events in Florida GovCon Summit. 3. AFCEA West connects military and government leaders with industry professionals. 4. National 8(a) Association Small Business Conference brings together small, minority and 8(a) businesses and offers educational sessions and resources.   After you have completed this step go on to step 4. Step 4. Research Prime Contractor Websites Prime contractors know that they cannot win a government contract unless they have a pool of subcontractors that they can refer to. Therefore, most large prime contractors’ websites contain information for potential subcontractors. These websites will explain how to register with the large prime contractor and the types of small businesses they are looking for.  Below are a few prime contractor websites for you. Please note that these prime contractors are not listed in any order. Top Prime Contractors (Not all listed) • L3 Technologies - https://www.l3t.com/suppliers/small-business • Boeing - http://www.boeingsuppliers.com/ • Honeywell - https://www.honeywell.com/contact-us/small-business • Pratt & Whitney - https://www.pw.utc.com/company/doing-business-with-us • Lockheed Martin Corporation - https://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/suppliers/information.htmlhttps://www.lockheedmartin.com/en-us/suppliers/information.html • General Dynamics - https://www.gd.com/suppliers/become-supplier • Raytheon - https://www.raytheon.com/suppliers • Kiewit - https://www.kiewit.com/services/procurement/ • PCL Constructors Inc. - https://www.pcl.com/Partners-in-Building/Pages/Subcontractor-and-Supplier-Registration.aspx   We have only listed a small portion of prime contractors above. You will need to spend some time and find prime contractors within your geographical area. Once you have your registered on the website it would be a good idea to start building a relationship with the procurement person within the company. Call and setup a meeting to introduce yourself and discuss your capabilities with them. Give them a copy of your Capability Statement. Remember to follow up after the meeting and continually after the meeting. After you have been to some meetings it is time to go to the next step. Step 5. Prepare your administrative and accounting requirements for being a subcontractor. Before you start work as a subcontractor you will need to ensure that you are familiar with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation (DFAR) and other acronyms that the government uses. Even though you are not the prime contractor you need to understand what is required of you. • You will need to become familiar with the rules and regulations associated with government contracting. For example, FAR Subpart 19.7 The Small Business Subcontracting Program and DFARS Subpart 219.7 (Remember DFARS is the supplement to the FAR for DoD). Also, you will need to get up to speed on FAR Part 44 Subcontracting Policies and Procedures. • Explore training opportunities with SBA, DoD or PTAC. SBA has online and in class training opportunities available. For online opportunities go here. For in class opportunities see your local SBA office. • Have you established internal financial controls and are they in compliance with Generally Acceptable Accounting Practices (GAAP)? If you do not know please contact your accountant. If you don’t have an accountant, then you will need to get one. It is advisable to have a good accountant, and attorney that you can reach out too. Don't think of these professionals as an expense but rather there are part of your team. The same goes for your bonding agent. • Will your company need a loan if awarded a contract? Look at financing options BEFORE you need one. It is better to have funding available before you need it.   Once you have completed this section it is time to make sure you know your correct set-aside. After you finish the above steps move on. What is Your Business Ownership Status? What percentage of the business do you own? Is it greater than or equal to 51%? Why do I ask? Because in order to qualify for set-aside’s you will have to declare your ownership percentage. If you do not own at least 51% or more of a company than you cannot claim that status. Also certain certifications require that you be certified by SBA. For example, you cannot claim the 8(a) or HUBZone status unless SBA has issued that status to you. Why does this matter in subcontracting? Because government agencies will define goals for their contractors for specific types of set-asides for certain certifications. The certifications include, but are not limited to 8(a) BD companies, HUBZone companies, Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business, and Woman-Owned Small Business. In other articles we discussed each of these set-asides in detail. If you are not familiar with them check out our other articles. It is important to make sure that you claim the correct set-aside for your business. If you misrepresent yourself, the government can take action against you. Or worse, you could be suspended or debarred from government contracts.  Now that you have declared your set-aside status it is time to move on. Do I need any documents as a Subcontractor? Do I need to have a license? The prime contractor and the industry in which you are in will determine the documents. A license will be needed if you are seeking subcontract work that otherwise requires state or federal licensing. If you are not sure that your business requires a license check with your State's Division of Occupational and Professional Licensing. In addition, to the documents mentioned in step 1. Other documentation you will need to consider creating include: • A Capability Statement. This is a marketing document that will be required as a prime or subcontractor. • Proof of General Liability Insurance Coverage. The amount required will be dependent on the industry. Your company may also be required to obtain bonding. This is industry specific. If you are in the construction industry you will need bonding. Why would bonding be required? Doesn't the prime contractor take care of the bond? Your prime contractor may require that you bond your portion of the job. This is especially true if a large portion of the work to be performed is by one subcontractor. • Proposal Documentation to submit to the Prime Contractor. For more information see FAR 15.404-3.   Small Business Financing Because the government pays prime contractors after invoicing, it is necessary for subcontractors to have access to enough financing to cover the period between beginning the work and receiving the invoice payments. You could be required to demonstrate the availability of financing prior to being award a subcontract as part of showing the financial sustainability of your business. You can obtain a financial capability letter from a lender. By the way, if you are having difficulty obtaining financing, consider using SBA’s 7a loan program. Contact your local SBA office or your lender for more information. Conclusion Becoming a subcontractor is a great way to get familiar with the government contracting. The information that we have gone over is a great way for you to get started as a subcontractor.   FCME uploads new episodes every Monday & Friday morning at 6:00 a.m. MST. Topics include proposal writing, bonds, types of contracts, why do business with the federal government, 8(a), business services for veterans and women, where federal opportunities are listed, and more. You can listen to the podcast here or with your favorite podcast provider (iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, or Stitcher). FCME is also active on social media and launched the Federal Contracting Made Easy YouTube channel on January 1, 2019. Website Facebook Twitter Instagram YouTube   Please remember to subscribe to our podcast, and YouTube channels as we provide more information in future episodes. Please help support our podcast by purchasing from our store. https://teespring.com/stores/federal-contracting-made-easy

On this episode, we interview Rich Banta, founder and Chief Compliance Officer of Lifeline Data Centers. Rich leads the country in compliance and certifications and has been instrumental at driving innovation in the Data Center industry. His certifications include: CISSP (ISC²) Certified Information Systems Security Professional - April 2017 - Present CCSP (ISC² & CSA) Certified Cloud Security Professional - May 2017 - Present CISA (ISACA) Certified Information Systems Auditor - September 2010 - Present CRISC (ISACA) Certified in Risk & Information Systems Control - December 2010 - Present CFCP (FISMA Center) Certified FISMA Compliance Practitioner - October 2014 - Present CDCDP (CNet/BTEC) Certified Data Center Design Professional - February 2014 - Present CDCAP (CNet/BTEC) Certified Data Center Audit Professional - February 2018 - Present DCIE (IDCA) Data Center Infrastructure Expert - February 2018 - Present The defense acquisition system exists to manage the investments of the United States in technologies, programs, and product support necessary to achieve the national security strategy and to support the United States Armed Forces. The primary objective of DoD acquisition is to acquire quality supplies and services that satisfy user needs with measurable improvements to mission capability and operational support at a fair and reasonable price. Rich is an expert in compliance and the regulations associated with them. Rich speaks regionally and nationally on all topics related and is a saught out speaker. Special Guest: Rich Banta.

Back in 2014 the law changed for how much prime contractors can subcontract under small business set-asides. But because the federal acquisition regulation council never got around to updating the FAR, its rules have differed from those of the Small Business Administration. Finally that situation is rectified, almost. Federal Drive with Tom Temin got details from Washington procurement attorney Joseph Petrillo, of Petrillo and Powell.

The federal acquisition system might be complicated and slow, but it's not immune to change. In fact, Congress and its own practitioners are constantly tinkering with it. The coming year will bring a number of crucial changes. Eric Crusius, partner at Holland and Knight, joined Federal Drive with Tom Temin in studio to discuss some of the most important changes.

A growing number of agencies are dusting off old procurement rules that lie outside the Federal Acquisition Regulation. These so-called other transaction authorities are perfectly legal. For more detail, Ben McMartin, chief of the acquisition management office at the Army Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center, spoke with Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

When establishing your business development strategy, it is best to consider all contracting avenues. So let's discuss today's topic of Blanket Purchase Agreements (BPAs).  BPAs is for buying supplies or services on a routine basis. The contracts are short in nature and usually for one year. The contracting officer can issue another BPA after the first BPA has expired if needed.  The Federal Acquisition Regulation states that best value is a need on BPAs. See FAR 13.303 for more information.

Our duty as voters is to judge the job performance of our members of Congress and decide whether or not they deserve to be re-hired or fired from their positions as lawmakers. In this episode, Jen summarizes 20 controversial bills and laws that passed during the 115th Congress which you can use to judge whether your Representative and two Senators have voted in your best interest. Links to all of the votes are listed in this episode's show notes on www.congressionaldish.com Please Support Congressional Dish - Quick Links Click here to contribute a lump sum or set up a monthly contribution via PayPal Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Send Zelle payments to: Donation@congressionaldish.com Send Venmo payments to: @Jennifer-Briney Use your bank’s online bill pay function to mail contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North Number 4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Please make checks payable to Congressional Dish Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes CD174: Bank Lobbyist Act CD163: Net Neutrality CD157: Failure to Repeal CD151: AHCA - The House Version (American Health Care Act) CD129: The Impeachment of John Koskinen CD069: Giving Away Your Land CD048: The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) Bills S.2155: Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, introduced Nov 16, 2017, enacted May 24, 2018. Outlined in detail in CD174: Bank Lobbyist Act First significant re-writing of the banking laws since Dodd-Frank in 2010 Most significant change: Kills a Dodd-Frank requirement that banks with more than $50 billion in assets undergo stress tests to ensure their stabilityr. Bank Lobbyist Act changed that so stress tests will only be required for banks with over $250 billion. This exempts 25 of the 38 largest US banks from important regulations. Passed the Senate 67-31 Passed House of Representatives 258-159   H.R.1628: American Health Care Act of 2017, introduced March 20, 2017, passed House May 4. 2017. Outlined in detail in CD151: ACHA The House Version (American Health Care Act) There were quite a few versions of bills that would have ripped up the rules placed on insurance companies by the Affordable Care Act, but every version - including this one - eliminated the requirements that health insurance cover “essential health benefits”, which include: Ambulances Emergencies Hospital stays Maternity and newborn care Mental health Prescription drugs Rehab Lab work Preventative visits Dental and vision for children Would have also allowed - in some circumstance - insurance companies to charge us more for “pre-existing conditions” Passed the House of Representatives 217-213 All Democrats no's 20 Republicans no’s   S.Amdt. 667 (McConnell) to H.R. 1628: Of a perfecting nature., July 28, 2017. The “Skinny Repeal” is a wildly irresponsible 8 page bill, which was only available to read for a few hours before the vote, which also would have allowed the sale of health insurance that doesn’t cover the essential health benefits. This vote was the famous, dramatic moment when John McCain turned his thumb down and killed the bill. Get the full story in CD157: Failure to Repeal Failed Senate 49-51 All Democrats and Independents voted no   S.J.Res. 34: A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission relating to "Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services." introduced March 7, 2017, enacted April 3, 2017. Regulation overturned: Killed a regulation that applied the privacy requirements of the Communications Act of 1934 to internet access and telecommunications providers. Required them to: Provide privacy notices that clearly and accurately inform customers Get opt-in or opt-out customer approval to use and share customer information Require opt-in’s when the company is making money from selling our information Secure our information Notify customers of data breaches Not condition service upon the customer’s surrender of privacy rights Passed Senate 50-48 All Republicans yes All Democrats and Independents no Passed House 215-205 - All Democrats no   H.R. 21: Midnight Rules Relief Act of 2017, introduced January 3, 2017, passed House January 4, 2017. Allows Congress to bundle rules that they want to prevent into one bill so there is a single vote on a joint resolution of disapproval. This means that each one will not be carefully considered as is required now. Passed the House of Representatives 238-184 Every Democrat voted no Has not been voted on in the Senate   H.R. 26: Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny Act of 2017, introduced January 3, 2017, passed House January 5, 2017. Changes the Congressional Review Act to require Congressional review of major agency regulations before they can go into effect. Passed the House 237-187 all Republicans voted yes Has not been voted on in the Senate   H.J.Res. 38: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of the Interior known as the Stream Protection Rule, introduced January 30, 2017, enacted February 16, 2017. Regulation overturned: Killed the “Stream Protection Rule”, which required permits to specify when coal mining would reach a damaging level for ground and surface water quality. Stricter water quality monitoring requirements in streams. Required land disturbed by mining be restored to a condition similar to what it was before the mining. Passed Senate 54-45 Passed House 228-194   H.J.Res. 41: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of a rule submitted by the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to "Disclosure of Payments by Resource Extraction Issuers." introduced January 30, 2017, enacted February 14, 2017. Regulation overturned: Kills a regulation requiring fossil fuel companies to annually report any payments made by the company or a subsidiary to a foreign government or the Federal Government for the commercial development of oil, natural gas, or minerals. Passed Senate 52-47 All Republicans yes All Democrats and Independents no Passed House 235-187   H.J.Res. 44: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of the Interior relating to Bureau of Land Management regulations that establish the procedures used to prepare, revise, or amend land use plans pusuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976, introduced January 30, 2017, enacted March 27, 2017. Regulation overturned: Kills a regulation that enhanced opportunities for public involvement during the preparation of resource management plans by increasing public access to plans in earlier stages of the process, allowing the public to submit data and other information. Passed Senate 51-48 All Republicans yes All Democrats and Indepedents no Passed House 234-186   H.J.Res. 40: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Social Security Administration relating to Implementation of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007, introduced January 30, 2017, enacted February 28, 2017. Regulation overturned: Kills a regulation that required Federal agencies to give the Attorney General information on more people for inclusion in the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS). People who would be added include people collecting disability benefits due to mental instability. Passed Senate 57-43 All Republicans voted yes Passed House 235-180   H.J.Res. 83: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to Clarification of Employer's Continuing Obligation to Make and Maintain an Accurate Record of Each Recordable Injury and Illness, introduced February 21, 2017, enacted April 3, 2017. Regulation overturned: Kills a regulation that made clear that the requirement to record work-related injuries and illnesses is an ongoing obligation; the duty does not expire if the employer fails to create records in the first place. The records must be complete for as long as records are required, which is 5 years and citations can be issued for up to 6 months after that. Passed Senate 50-48 All Republicans yes All Democrats and Independents no Passed House 231-191   H.J.Res. 37: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration relating to the Federal Acquisition Regulation, introduced January 30, 2017, enacted March 27, 2017. Regulation overturned: Kills a regulation that required contractors for the Defense Department, General Services Administration, and NASA to report their compliance with 14 federal labor laws, required contractors to provide documentation on “hours worked, overtime hours, pay, and additions to or deductions from pay” in each pay period, and limited mandatory arbitration of employee claims for contracts and subcontracts worth more than $1 million. Passed Senate 49-48 All Republicans voted yes All Democrats and Independents voted no Passed House 236-187   H.J.Res. 111: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by Bureau of Consumer Finanacial Protection relating to "Arbitration Agreements" introduced July 20, 2017, enacted November 1, 2017. Regulation Overturned: Killed a regulation that prohibited banks and other financial institutions from forcing arbitration in their contracts to prevent customers from filing and participating in class action lawsuits. Passed Senate 51-50 VP Mike Pence broke the tie All Democrats and Independents voted no Passed House 231-190 All Democrats voted no   S.J.Res. 57: A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by Bureau of Consumer financial Protection relating to "Indirect Auto Lending and Cmopliance with the Equal Credit Opportunity Act" introduced March 22, 2018, enacted May 21, 2018. CFPB regulation overturned: Killed a regulation that included auto dealers in the definition of “creditor” for the purpose of prohibiting them from discriminating in any way in a credit transaction on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, sex, marital status, age, or welfare assistance. Passed Senate 51-47 All Republicans yes All Independents no Passed House 234-175   S. 204: Trickett Wendler, Frank Mongiello, Jordan McLinn, and Matthew Bellina Right to Try Act of 2017, introduced January 24, 2017, enacted May 30, 2018. Allows people diagnosed with a life-threatening diseases or conditions who have exhausted approved treatment options and can’t participate in a clinical trial on an experimental drug that has not been FDA approved to get that drug directly from the drug company, with a doctor’s approval. Allows drug companies to sell their unapproved drugs directly to customers as long as the drugs have to have been through a completed Phase 1 of a clinical trial. This law says the Secretary of HHS can’t use the clinical outcomes of the patient’s use of the drug to delay or adversely affect the review or approval of the drug, unless he/she certifies it’s for safety reasons or the drug company requests that data be used. Gives legal immunity to the drug companies, prescribers, dispensers or an “other individual entity” unless there is willful misconduct, gross negligence, to the intentional breaking of a state law. Passed the Senate by unanimous consent (no recorded vote) Passed House 250-169 on May 22 All Republican votes were yes's Along with 22 Democrats   H.R. 772: Common Sense Nutrition Disclosure Act of 2017, introduced January 31, 2017, passed House February 6, 2018. Changes the calorie disclosure requirements from telling us the number of calories in the standard menu item as usually prepared to allowing them to tell us the calories per serving, with them determining what a serving is. Allows restaurants to choose whether they will display calories by entire combo meals, by individual items in combos, by servings in items in combos. Let’s them use ranges, averages, or “other methods” as determined by the Secretary of Health and Human Services (making it a decision of political appointee) Eliminates the requirement that restaurants provide calories in store if “the majority of orders are placed by customers who are off-premises” Restaurants will not be required to get any signed certifications of compliance. Restaurants can not be held liable in civil courts for violating nutrition disclosure laws. Passed the House 266-157 Has not been voted on in the Senate   H.R. 2936: Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017, introduced June 20, 2017, passed House November 1, 2017. Allows more wood to be removed by the logging industry from Federal Forests and exempts them some from environmental regulations Passed House 232-188 Has not been voted on in the Senate   H.R. 4606: Ensuring Small Scale LNG Certainty and Access Act, introduced December 11, 2017, passed House September 6, 2018. Deems the importation or exportation of natural gas to be “consistent with the public interest” and says the applications for importation or exportation “shall be granted without modification or delay” if the volume does not exceed 0.14 billion cubic feet per day and if the application doesn’t require an environmental impact statement. Passed House 260-146 Has not been voted on in the Senate   H.R. 1119: Satisfying Energy Needs and Saving the Environment Act (SENSE Act), introduced Febraury 16, 2017, passed House March 8, 2018. Says the EPA must give coal companies the choice of if their steam generators will comply with emissions standards for hydrogen chloride or sulfur dioxide. The EPA is not allowed to require compliance with both Passed House 215-189 Has not been voted on in the Senate       H.R. 3053: Nuclear Waste Policy Amendments Act of 2018, introduced June 26, 2017, passed House May 10, 2018. Forces the continuance of the process of moving all the nuclear waste in the United States to Yucca Mountain in Nevada. Grants the entire US government immunity for damages caused in the course of “any mining, mineral leasing, or geothermal leasing activity” conducted on the land reserved for nuclear waste disposal. Speeds up the approval process by 6 months for interim storage and basically forbids disapproval Would Increase by 57% the amount of spent fuel allowed to be held during construction - no environmental review to make sure the tanks can hold this much The Secretary of Energy does NOT need to consider alternative actions or no-action alternatives to infrastructure projects needed for Yucca mountain as far as environmental analysis are concerned. Passed the House of Representatives 340-72 Has not been voted on in the Senate                       H.R. 7: No Taxpayer Funding for Abortion and Abortion Insurance Full Disclosure Act of 2017, introduced January 13, 2017, passed House January 24, 2017. Makes permanent a common funding law amendment that prevents federal money from being used to perform abortions. This bill would also prevent any government payment assistance on the health insurance exchanges for plans that cover abortion - which effectively would stop health insurance companies from offering abortion coverage in their plans since that would make them ineligible for many of us to purchase. Passed the House of Representatives 238-183 All Republicans voted yes Has not been voted on in the Senate       Additional Reading Article: Pompeo eyes Fox News reporter to head Counterpropaganda Office by Robbie Gramer and Elias Groll, Foreign Policy, September 6, 2018. Article: "Right to Try" is a cruel farce by Beatrice Adler-Bolton, Jacobin Magazine, August 12, 2018. Article: The 'right to try' could cost dying patients a fortune by Michelle Cortez, Bloomberg, June 20, 2018. Article: Congress works to revive long-delayed plan to store nuclear waste in Yucca Mountain by Michael Collins, USA Today, June 3, 2018. Report: Johnson to FDA: Agency should comply with right to try law, U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs, May 31, 2018. Article: Senator behind right-to-try law says its intent is to weaken FDA by Anna Edney, Bloomberg, May 31, 2018. Opinion: Right to Try Act poses big challenge for FDA by Michael D. Becker, NPR, May 24, 2018. Article: Right-to-try bill headed for vote puts bigger burden on FDA to protect patients, Gottlieb says by Ike Swetlitz and Erin Mershon, Stat News, May 17, 2018. Article: Walden, Shimkus, Lance, Walters steer House toward advancing nuclear waste bill by Ripon Advance News Service, May 14, 2018. Article: House passes Yucca bill, but its future is uncertain as Heller pledges to stop it in the Senate by Humberto Sanchez, The Nevada Independent, May 11, 2018. Article: The revenge of the stadium banks by David Dayen, The Intercept, March 2, 2018. Article: Pence says that Congress should get right-to-try legislation 'done' by Erin Mershon, Stat News, January 18, 2018. Statement: Examining patient access to investigational drugs by Scott Gottlieb, FDA.gov, October 3, 2017. Article: What was in the failed Senate 'skinny repair' health care bill? by Tami Luhby, CNN Money, July 28, 2017. Article: Scott Gottlieb: Conflicts surround Trump's FDA pick by Sandee LaMotte, CNN, April 4, 2017. Report: House passes bill to overturn 'midnight' regulations en masse by Lydia Wheeler, The Hill, January 4, 2017. Article: Now you have to keep OSHA injury records for 5 years by Fred Hosier, Safety News Alert, December 21, 2016. Opinion: With Harry Reid's retirement, will the Yucca Mountain plan be revived? by The Times Editorial Board, Los Angeles Times, December 8, 2016. Article: Bankers ease rules on automatic student loan defaults by Danielle Douglas-Gabriel, The Washington Post, October 27, 2016. Article: Sallie Mae under fire for death-induce defaults by Shahien Nasiripour, Huffpost, April 25, 2014. Report: Victim: Gang-rape cover-up by U.S., Halliburton/KBR by Brian Ross, Maddy Sauer, And Justin Rood, ABC News, December 10, 2007. Resources Company Information: Volks Constructors Corporation Congressional Publication: Disapproval of Regulations by Congress: Procedure Under Congressional Review Act, Oct 10, 2001. Court Report: Petition for Review of a Final Order of the Occupational Safety & Health Review Commission Disease Information: Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD), MDA.org Explanatory Statement: Department of the Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2018 Fact Sheet: President Trump: Cutting Red Tape for American Businesses FDA: Expanded Acces INDs and Protocols Law Resolutions: Congressional Review Act (CRA) Letter: Scott Gottlieb to Elizabeth J. Fischmann, Associate General Councel for Ethics Letter to the Senate: Dean Heller, Re: 2019 NRC Approps LinkedIn Profile: Scott Gottlieb OpenSecrets.org: Rep. Bruce Westerman - Arkansas District 04 OpenSecrets.org: Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers - Washington District 05 OpenSecrets.org: Domino's Pizza OpenSecrets.org: Sen. Ron Johnson - Wisconsin Study Report: Clinical Development Success Rates Study 2006-2015 Sound Clip Sources House Session: Legislative Day of May 22, 2018, HouseLive.gov. 6:13:00 - Rep. Mike Burgess (TX) "The bill we will be voting out soon is about patients. It is about having more time with their loved ones. In the words of Vice President MIKE PENCE, ‘‘It’s about restoring hope and giving patients with life-threatening diseases a fighting chance.’’ With hundreds of thousands of Americans with a terminal illness and their families looking for us to act, I urge Members of this House, the people’s House, to support restoring hope and giving them a fighting chance at life." Hearing: House Hearing; Yucca Mountain, May 10, 2018. 32:00 Representative Greg Walden (OR): You know, the Department of Energy’s Hanford site is just up the mighty Columbia River from where I live and where I grew up. That area and those workers helped us win World War II, and the site’s nuclear program was instrumental in projecting peace through strength throughout the Cold War. While the community has been a constructive partner in support of our vital national security missions, it did not agree to serve as a perpetual storage site for the resulting nuclear waste. Fifty-six million gallons of toxic waste sitting in decades-old metal tanks at Hanford—these are those tanks that were being constructed to hold this waste. They are now buried in the ground. The only entry point is right here. The amount of waste stored at Hanford would fill this entire House Chamber 20 times over. According to a recent Government Accountability Office report, the oldest of these tanks, some of which date back to the 1940s, have single-layer walls, or shells. They were built to last 20 years. They will be almost 100 years old by the estimated end of their waste treatment. The Department of Energy has reported that 67 of these tanks are assumed or known to have leaked waste into the soil. There is an understandable sense of urgency in the Northwest behind the cleanup efforts that are under way at Hanford. H.R. 3053 will provide the pathway to clean up the contaminated Hanford site. You see, the waste from Hanford will end up in a secure permanent storage site that we believe will be Yucca Mountain. 35:15 Representative Greg Walden (OR): The legislation authorizes the Department of Energy to contract with private companies to store nuclear waste while DOE finishes the rigorous scientific analysis of the repository design and the associated Nuclear Regulatory Commission licensing process. So, an interim storage facility can bring added flexibility to DOE’s disposal program and may provide a more expeditious near-term pathway to consolidate spent nuclear fuel. 41.31 Representative Fred Upton (MI): In my district, we have two nuclear plants. Both of them have run out of room in their storage, so they have dry casks that are literally a John Shimkus baseball throw away from Lake Michigan. Every one of these 100-some sites across the country is in an environmentally sensitive area, and at some point they’re going to run out of room. In Michigan, we’ve got two other sites that also have dry casks in addition to the two in my district. 45:05 Representative Buddy Carter (GA): This legislation is important not only because of what it means to the future of clean-energy opportunities for this country, but also what this means for our communities. Nuclear energy has become a safe and effective way to generate energy, all while not producing greenhouse gas emissions. 53:29 Representative Leonard Lance (NJ): New Jersey is home to four nuclear reactors at three generating stations: Oyster Creek, Hope Creek, and Salem. Oyster Creek will be closing this October. In the congressional district I serve, these plants account for about half of the power generation and 90 percent of the carbon-free electricity. New Jersey’s nuclear plants avoid 14 million tons of carbon emissions each year. Public Service, FirstEnergy, and Exelon are doing their part in storing their station’s spent nuclear fuel on-site, but we need a permanent site. The expertise and know-how of the federal government has a responsibility to my constituents and to the American people. I want the 3,000 metric tons of nuclear waste out of New Jersey and consolidated in a national protected facility. 58:54 Representative Dina Titus (NV): The first ‘‘Screw Nevada’’ bill was passed in 1982, and since that time, Nevada’s residents, elected officials, business leaders, health and environmental groups have steadfastly opposed the Yucca Mountain repository. I ask unanimous consent to enter into the record over 100 letters from those groups in opposition. 59:19 Representative Dina Titus (NV): You’ve heard that the legislation before you now, ‘‘Screw Nevada 2.0,’’ is a work of compromise, a bipartisan effort, not perfect, but a step forward. Well, that, frankly, is an opinion. It’s not the facts. Here are the facts: the legislation overrides environmental laws, allowing the EPA to move the goalposts in terms of radiation limits to ensure that nothing will ever interfere with the agenda of the nuclear industry. It sets up a consent-based process for the establishment of an interim storage facility but imposes a permanent facility at Yucca Mountain. It increases the amount of nuclear waste to be dumped in Nevada by 37 percent, 110 metric tons more that were not considered in any of the environmental or safety studies being used to justify the project. It also removes the prohibition currently in law that prohibits Nevada from being the de facto interim storage facility until a permanent one can be licensed. It was also changed after passing out of committee to address the high scoring costs—is it already three minutes? Chairman: Gentlewoman’s time has expired. Representative Paul Tonko: Mr. Speaker, we grant the gentlelady another minute. Chairman: Gentlelady’s recognized. Rep. Titus: Thank you. —to address the high scoring costs, making it less likely that we get host benefits. Also, contrary to the sponsor’s comments, the area around Yucca Mountain is not some desolate area. It has iconic wildlife, endangered species, and Native American artifacts. Also, the proposed facility sits above the water table and on an active fault and can only be reached by roads that travel through 329 of your congressional districts. 1:03:53 Representative Ruben Kihuen (NV): You know, Mr. Speaker, I find it offensive. I sit here and listen to all my colleagues, and they all want to send nuclear waste to the state of Nevada. They’re all generating this nuclear waste, and they want to send it to my backyard right in the Fourth Congressional District. You know, bottom line is this, Mr. Speaker: if you generate nuclear waste, you should keep it in your own backyard. Don’t be sending it to our backyard. 1:11:27 Representative Joe Courtney (CT): Next to me is a picture of Haddam Neck, Connecticut, which is a pristine part of the state where the Connecticut River and the Salmon River come together. Where the circle is on the photograph, there are 43 casks of spent nuclear power uranium rods that, again, today, pretty much cordon off that whole area. If you drove up in a car, you’d be met by a platoon of heavily armed security guards who, for good reason, have to patrol that area every single day because of the dangerous material that is stored there. That has been the case for over 20 years. It costs Connecticut ratepayers $10 million a year, again, for a site that should be long overdue for renovation and access to folks from all over the world because of its rich archeological and historical area. This bill provides a way out for this area, along with 120 other sites across the country, that host communities have been saddled with storage of spent nuclear fuel because of the fact that this country has been unable to come together with a coherent policy. And this bill provides a way out. 1:15:23 Representative Dana Rohrabacher (CA): This bill authorizes the construction of Yucca Mountain as a nuclear waste storage site, which would alleviate the burden of incredible risk that is now borne by communities throughout the country, such as in my district, where homes are not far located from the closed San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station. That, and many other plants throughout the nation, have closed their doors in decades. Yet, Congress has yet to agree of how to safely store that waste, while—and what’s really important is we must store the waste—but while we develop new nuclear energy technologies, that we are capable of doing, that are safe and produce less of their own waste and can consume the waste of older plants—I reminded Secretary of Energy Perry of that yesterday—but, in the meantime, until that technology—by the way, it is sinful that we have not developed that technology, which we are capable of, that could eat this waste—but until we do, having safe storage at Yucca Mountain makes all the sense to me and is safe for my constituents. 1:17:07 Representative Rick Allen (GA): Mr. Speaker, I have the great honor of representing Georgia’s 12th Congressional District, which is home to every nuclear reactor in our state, and we are leading the way in the new nuclear. At Plant Vogtle, in my district, there are thousands of spent fuel rods being held in spent fuel pools and dry cask storage containers, and in the next few years we’re going to double the number of nuclear reactors online at Vogtle. Hearing: House Hearing; Forests Act, November 1, 2017. 3:02:49 Representative Bruce Poliquin (MA): Now, H.R. 2936 brings federal regulations in line with this new technology and new standards of safety by allowing family-owned logging business the ability to train 16- and 17-year-olds under very close supervision of their parents. 3:23:31 Representative Greg Walden (OR): In Oregon, this bill would take away arbitrary prohibition on harvesting trees over 21 inches in diameter. It’s tied the hands of our forest managers. 3:28:00 Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (WA): I represent the Colville National Forest, which is about a million-acre forest. It’s really the engine of our economy in the Northwest, because what happens on the Colville National Forest determines whether or not we have Vaagen’s lumber or 49 Degrees North ski resort or the biomass facility that Avista runs, converting wood waste into electricity. This is all providing jobs, energy, recreational opportunities. Yet mills have been closed, jobs have been lost. It’s unacceptable. It’s time to pass the Resilient Federal Forests legislation. 5:32:57 Representative Jeff Denham (CA): The Resilient Federal Forests Act gives us the tools to immediately reduce the threat of catastrophic wildfires. It allows us to expedite the removal of dead trees and rapidly mitigate disease-infested areas. 5:41:58 Representative Louie Gohmert (TX): If you want to just leave it to nature, nature will destroy massive numbers of acres of land. So we have a responsibility. Even in the Garden of Eden when things were perfect, God said, tend the garden. 6:06:29 Representative Raul Grijalva (AZ): This is not the first time we have seen the bill, this piece of legislation. House Republicans sent a version to the Senate in the 113th and the 114th Congress, where it languished on the shelf because our colleagues on the other side of the Capitol found it too extreme. Rather than view that experience as an opportunity to seek compromise, this time around, today, we are considering a bill that is even more extreme and polarizing. They doubled the environmental review waivers, added language to undermine the Endangered Species Act, and scaled back protections for national monuments and roadless areas. 6:07:39 Representative Raul Grijalva (AZ): But this bill is not about forest health or wildfire mitigation; it’s about increasing the number of trees removed from our forests. 6:18:24 Representative Tom McClintock (CA): You know, there’s an old adage that excess timber comes out of the forest one way or the other—it’s either carried out or it burns out. When we carried it out, we had resilient, healthy forests and a thriving economy, as excess timber was sold and harvested before it could choke our forests to death. In the years since then, we’ve seen an 80 percent decline in timber sales from our federal lands and a concomitant increase in acreage destroyed by forest fire. I would remind my friend from Oregon that timber sales used to generate us money, not cost us money. The direct revenues and spin-off commerce generated by these sales provided a stream of revenues that we could then use to improve our national forests and share with the local communities affected. 6:22:38 Representative Jared Huffman (CA): Title I of this bill allows intensive logging projects of 10,000 to 30,000 acres each. That’s as big as the entire city of San Francisco. Projects of that size can proceed on federal public lands without any environmental review under NEPA, without any compliance with the Endangered Species Act. Title II of the bill eliminates the requirement that the Forest Service consult with the Fish and Wildlife Service; essentially, lets the Forest Service decide for itself if it wants to follow the Endangered Species Act consultation requirements regarding any of its projects on public lands. Title III further chokes judicial review by prohibiting the recovery of attorneys' fees for any challenges to forest management activity under the Equal Access to Justice Act, including meritorious successful challenges. This severely limits public review of logging projects on federal public lands. Hearing: Examining patient access to investigational drugs, Energy & Commerce, October 3, 2017. House Session: Legislative Day of January 4, 2017, Houselive.gov 4:15:30 - Rep. Darrell Issa (CA) "For the freshmen of either party,when you go to make a vote on this, re-member, we are not changing the un-derlying law. Only one regulation under the underlying law has ever been repealed, and it was bipartisan in both the House and the Senate when it was repealed. It has been 16 years, and the few that will likely be considered under this act and the underlying law will be just that, a relatively few regulations that are believed to be unnecessary and for which the House, the Senate, and the President concur.   Video: Josh Lyman Sick of Congress, YouTube, July 23, 2012. Community Suggestions See more Community Suggestions HERE. Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations Music Presented in This Episode Intro & Exit: Tired of Being Lied To by David Ippolito (found on Music Alley by mevio)  

Call it reform, call it tinkering around the edges. Whatever you call it, Congress is always making adjustments to the rules around federal procurement. Often the updates are in response to complaints from either the government or from industry. Fiscal 2019 will be no exception. For a round up of changes you need to pay attention to, Joseph Petrillo, a procurement attorney with Petrillo and Powell, spoke with Federal Drive with Tom Temin.

It is crucial for small businesses to educate themselves about a topic before they develop a business strategy.  Learning the rules and regulations is just a tiny part of this process.  In government contracting, the Federal Acquisition Regulation otherwise known as the FAR is the government's bible.    Federal agencies and small businesses awarded contracts must follow the procurement rules and policies set forth within the FAR.  One of the items contained within the FAR is called the Past Performance Questionnaire otherwise known as PPQ.    Websites: FAR http://farsite.hill.af.mil/ Federal Contracting Made Easy federalcontractingmadeeasy.com Byerly Enterprises byerlyenterprises.com email:  nancy@byerlyenterprises.com

Welcome to the wonderful world of government contracting.  This is episode 20 and today's topic is on the Federal Acquisition Regulation. We would greatly appreciate it if you would take a moment to subscribe and rate our podcast.  Your feedback is important to us and your suggestions help us improves our podcast.  While developing your business strategy it is important to get familiar with the rules and regulations associated with government contracting.  That is why today's topic is about the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).  The FAR is what contracting officers use to create the contracts that you as a small business owner will sign.  Since it is a binding document what better way to prepare to expand into government contracting then learn about the FAR. Congress created the Federal Acquisition Regulation otherwise known as the FAR on April 1, 1984.  To created standardize policies and procedures across agencies.  The FAR is the primary document and agency acquisition regulations implement or supplement the FAR.   The FAR system does not include internal agency guidance. FAR Vision The vision for the Federal Acquisition System is to timely deliver the best value product or service to the customer while maintaining the public's trust and fulfilling public policy objectives. Reference: 48CFR 1.102.  CFR stands for Code of Federal Regulations. The Federal Aviation Administration does not use the FAR. All other agencies must follow this regulation.  If you elect to do business with the FAA then you will need to become familiar with the rules and regulations that they follow. FAR Oversight The Secretary of Defense, Administrator of General Services and the Administrator, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration is overall responsible for the FAR System. Any proposed rules, government agency rules, and public notices are published daily, except on federal holidays in the Federal Register.  You can also find a combined form in the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR).  If there is a dispute between the CFR and the FAR, the CFR will override the FAR.  I doubt that as a contractor this will impact you.  However, I have included this for your information anyways. The public will have opportunities to comment on these changes to the FAR.   To comment please go the Federal Register. The comment period is generally open between 30 days and 60 days.  Though 60 days is generally the standard length of time that the public has to comment.   It is important for businesses to comment on these proposed changes.  Your input can impact the final rule.  I have seen it happen in the past.  If you are serious about contracting for the government then you need to voice your concerns when the government announces these revisions or new rules are open to public comment.  You need to make this apart of your business strategy. FAR clauses and provisions will be incorporated in federal solicitations and contracts in either full text or more commonly in by reference.  It does not matter how these clauses and provisions will be entered into the solicitations and contracts they have the same force and effect as those FAR terms included in full text. Small Business Responsibility Any small business seeking to perform or already performing work for the federal government will need to educate and familiarize themselves with the FAR.  The best website for this is http://farsite.hill.af.mil/. It is also important that you understand the new rules and regulations the government is proposing.  This is important as your voice can change how the final rules are written.  Any significant proposed rule must have a comment period.  Sometimes the government will also hold public forums where you can voice your concerns regarding these rules.  It would be a great idea if you were notified when proposed changes to the FAR were announced.  Check out the Federal Register to see if that option is available.  Please consider adding this as part of your business strategy. There are parts of the FAR that every contractor must know.  For example, Part 19 of the FAR covers Small Business Programs; FAR Part 8 covers required Sources of Supplies and Services; Part 9 of FAR covers Contractor Qualifications; FAR Part 12 covers Acquisition of Commercial Items; Part 13 of FAR covers Simplified Acquisition Procedures; Part 14 Covers Sealed Bidding; FAR Part 15 Covers Contracting by Negotiation; Part 22 of FAR Covers Application of Labor Laws to Government Acquisitions, and so on. The Christian Doctrine Overview Contracting Officers use the FAR to write the contracts.  If they forget to include a clause you are still liable.  This is “The Christian Doctrine”.  Taking this doctrine into consideration when making the business decision is important as it can have a negative impact on your business.  Please consider adding this to your business strategy to ensure that you are fully aware of potential consequences. The Christian Doctrine. "In both commercial and Government contracting, written contracts usually reflect the entire scope of the contracting parties' agreement.  However, in Government contracts, the written agreement does not always reflect the rights, obligations, and responsibilities of the contracting parties.  Both the courts and Boards of Contract Appeals have used the Christian Doctrine to incorporate, “as a matter of law,” mandatory procurement clauses into Government contracts.  The Christian Doctrine has been used to insert clauses unintentionally left out of the contract as well as mandatory clauses that the parties, in good faith, believed they had negotiated out of the contract.  When insertion of previously omitted mandatory clauses can fundamentally alter the contract and alter the bargain struck between the parties and potentially force a contractor to incur additional costs or obligations not anticipated at the time of contract execution."  Reference: "http://govcon360.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/The-Christian-Doctrine1.pdf Impact on Businesses In order not to be taken by surprise, businesses must be aware of the required regulations to ensure they are not disadvantaged by a mandatory clause that was not included in the original written contract.  If the contract does not contain an authorized deviation for an omitted clause, or if a contracting officer mistakenly concluded that a clause did not apply, the contractor may be forced to incur costs or obligations that were not anticipated when the contractor submitted its proposal. “Reference: "http://govcon360.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/The-Christian-Doctrine1.pdf".  This is why it is important to understand the risks associated with the Christian Doctrine.  Please consider adding this topic to your business strategy. My goal is not to deter you from becoming a contractor for the government.  The more educated you are the better decisions you can make for your business.  It is imperative that you consider these topics when developing a business strategy for working with the government.  Don't wait, act now. We would greatly appreciate it if you would take a moment to subscribe and rate our podcast.  Your feedback is important to us and your suggestions help us improves our podcast.    Websites: FAR – 48CFR1.102 Federal Acquisition Regulation - http://farsite.hill.af.mil/ Federal Register - https://www.federalregister.gov/ The Christian Doctrine - http://govcon360.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/09/The-Christian-Doctrine1.pdf  

For the Navy, a new $100 million other transaction agreement focusing on information warfare isn’t just a way to turn government requirements into prototypes and fielded products at a faster clip than is possible under Federal Acquisition Regulation. It is that, but the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command sees the value in the Information Warfare Research Project as a way to pull new ideas from industry at the same time it’s asking companies to solve specific problems. Bill Deligne, the deputy executive director of SPAWAR's Systems Center Atlantic joins Jared Serbu to talk about IWRP's objectives, including how it plans to maintain proper governance and oversight in the world of OTAs, where most of the government's usual acquisition rules don't apply.

Possibly the leading cause of contractor claim denials – lack of proper notice – just got a little bit easier for contractors thanks to the U.S. Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals’ conclusion that a request for information (RFI) can satisfy a notice requirement under F.A.R. (Federal Acquisition Regulation). http://sjcivil.net/sjcc/an-rfi-can-satisfy-notice-requirement-said-the-feds/ --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/sjccsitesurvey/support

First volume of three expected reports from the "Section 809" panel seeks changes in areas ranging from business IT to contract oversight and commercial buying.

We have the first wave of the Trump laws! In this episode, highlights of the most impactful laws from the first three months of the 115th Congress, which include favors to the fossil fuel industry, gun industry, telecommunications industry, and defense contractors. In addition, learn about a law (that’s flown completely under the radar) that fundamentally changes how NASA operates. Please support Congressional Dish: Click here to contribute using credit card, debit card, PayPal, or Bitcoin Click here to support Congressional Dish for each episode via Patreon Mail Contributions to: 5753 Hwy 85 North #4576 Crestview, FL 32536 Thank you for supporting truly independent media! Recommended Congressional Dish Episodes CD124: The Costs of For-Profit War CD135: Education is Big Business Bills Outline S. 84: A bill to provide for an exception to a limitation against appointment of persons as Secretary of Defense within seven years of relief from active duty as a regular commissioned officer of the Armed Forces. Exempts General James Mattis from the law that prohibits anyone from serving as Defense Secretary within seven years of leaving military service (Mattis had retired less than four years before his appointment). H.R. 72: GAO Access and Oversight Act of 2017 Gives the Government Accountability Office (GAO) more power to get federal agency records for audits and investigations Requires agency heads to report their plans - not just their actions - that the agency will take when given recommendations by the GAO and requires the reports to be given to more Congressional committees Makes it easier for the GAO to sue federal agencies that don't comply Gives the GAO access to the National Directory of New Hires (NDNH) H.J.Res. 41: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of a rule submitted by the Securities and Exchange Commission relating to “Disclosure of Payments by Resource Extraction Issuers”. Repeals an Obama administration rule requiring companies listed in the stock market to publicly report payments by the fossil fuel and mineral industries to the US or foreign governments if the payments are over $100,000 in a year. H.J.Res. 38: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of the Interior known as the Stream Protection Rule. Repeals a Department of Interior regulation known as the "Stream Protection Rule" which aimed to reduce pollution from coal mining by blocking mining within 100 feet of streams and requiring coal mining companies to restore the land their use to it's pre-mining condition. H.J.Res. 40: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Social Security Administration relating to Implementation of the NICS Improvement Amendments Act of 2007. Repeals a Social Security Administration rule that never went into effect that would have prohibited approximately 75,000 people who receive disability checks for mental illness from buying guns. H.R. 321: Inspiring the Next Space Pioneers, Innovators, Researchers, and Explorers (INSPIRE) Women Act Orders the NASA administrator to create a plan to use current and former NASA employees to engage with K-12 female students to encourage them to pursue careers in aerospace. The plan must be submitted in 90 days. H.R. 255: Promoting Women in Entrepreneurship Act "Encourages" the National Science Foundation to recruit women to work in commercial science and engineering - S. 442: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Transition Authorization Act of 2017 Authorizes $19.5 billion for NASA operations for 2017 Declares that it will be US policy that we will support the International Space Station through at least 2024 Sense of Congress: "Commercially provided crew transportation systems" should be the primary means of transporting US astronauts to and from the International Space Station and reliance upon Russian transportation should be ended as soon as possible. Commercial providers of NASA services will have to provide "evidence-based support for their costs and schedules" only "in a manner that does not add costs or schedule delays" NASA will have to create a plan to "transition in a step-wise approach from the current regime that relies heavily on NASA sponsorship to a regime where NASA could be one of many customers of a low-Earth orbit non-governmental human space flight enterprise." The first report on progress will be due December 1, 2017 Contracts between NASA and private providers are allowed to give immunity to the private providers from lawsuits for "death, bodily injury, or loss of or damage to property resulting from launch services and reentry services carried out under the contract" for any amount over what their insurance covers. The maximum amount of insurance a provider will have to obtain is for $500 million The immunity may exclude claims resulting from willful misconduct by the private provider Establishes long term goals for NASA, which include "to enable a capability to extend human presence, including potential human habitation on another celestial body and a thriving space economy in the 21st Century." There will be a specific focus on enabling humans living on Mars Repeals provisions of law that required the government specifically to have the ability to restart the Space Shuttle program, if needed. Authorizes the NASA Administrator to conduct long-term medical monitoring and treatment of astronauts with no out-of-pocket costs for the astronauts for space flight related ailments only. H.J.Res. 44: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of the Interior relating to Bureau of Land Management regulations that establish the procedures used to prepare, revise, or amend land use plans pursuant to the Federal Land Policy and Management Act of 1976. Repeals a Bureau of Land Management Rule that would give the public a larger and earlier role in management plans for public land. The public would have been able to submit data & other information. The public also would have been given information as the plans were developed, allowing the public to comment during the planning process instead of after. H.J.Res. 37: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration relating to the Federal Acquisition Regulation. Repeals a rule written by the Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and NASA that would have made federal contractors prove their compliance with fourteen Federal labor laws, which would then be taken into consideration by agencies when awarding contracts. The contractors would also have to report their wages paid to employees to the agencies and would have limited forced arbitration of employee claims. H.J.Res. 57: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Education relating to accountability and State plans under the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Repeals a Department of Education rule that would have pushed states to weigh student achievement via test scores of 95% of their students and graduation rates when determining which schools are "underperforming". The rule also would have required schools to provide parents and the public with more information on their annual report card. H.J.Res. 58: Providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Department of Education relating to teacher preparation issues. Repeals a Department of Education rule that outlined indicators that states would have to use to judge teacher performance and tied results to some Federal aid funding. H.J.Res. 42: Disapproving the rule submitted by the Department of Labor relating to drug testing of unemployment compensation applicants. Repeals a Department of Labor rule that allowed but limited the drug testing of people receiving unemployment benefits. People could only be tested if they were dismissed for substance abuse related reasons and only if their jobs required carrying a firearm, aviation flight crews, air traffic controllers, commercial drivers, railroad crews, pipeline crews, and commercial maritime crews. S.J.Res. 34: A joint resolution providing for congressional disapproval under chapter 8 of title 5, United States Code, of the rule submitted by the Federal Communications Commission relating to “Protecting the Privacy of Customers of Broadband and Other Telecommunications Services” Repeals a Federal Communications Commission rule that would have required Internet service providers to obtain our approval if they were going to share our information, and not condition service on an acceptance of data sharing, and to notify us if our data was compromised. Additional Reading Article: Congress Votes To Expand Drug Testing For Unemployment Recipients by Kelly Mcevers, NPR, March 27, 2017. Article: Why you should take a closer look at this week's NASA bill by Andrew Wagner and Nsikan Akpan, PBS, March 24, 2017. Article: Obama Education Rules Are Swept Aside by Congress by Dana Goldstein, The New York Times, March 9, 2017. Article: The Senate just voted to overturn another environmental rule - sending it to Trump's desk by Chelsea Harvey, The Washington Post, March 8, 2017. Article: Senate overturns Obama-era regulations on teacher preparation by Emma Brown, The Washington Post, March 8, 2017. Congressional Record: National Aeronautics and Space Administration Transition Authorization Act of 2017, House of Representatives, March 7, 2017. Article: Trump Signs Bill Revoking Obama-Era Gun Checks for People with Mental Illnesses by Ali Vitali, NBC News, February 28, 2017. Article: FCC Chairman Goes After His Predecessor's Internet Privacy Rules by Alina Selyukh, NPR, February 24, 2017. Article: Why Trump just killed a rule restricting coal companies from dumping waste in streams by Brad Plumer, Vox, February 16, 2017. Article: Trump signs Sasse's bill to let GAO access massive financial database by Joseph Morton, Omaha World Herald, February 3, 2017. Article: Goodbye, Stream Protection Rule by Paul Rauber, Sierra, February 1, 2017. Article: On the same day Rex Tillerson is confirmed, the House votes to kill a transparency rule for oil companies by Brad Plumer, Vox, February 1, 2017. Article: Republicans will try a little-used tactic to kill five Obama regulations this week by Brad Plumer, Vox, February 1, 2017. Press Release: Bill Johnson Leads House Effort to Protect Coal Jobs by Overturning Ill-Advised "Stream Protection Rule" by Representative Bill Johnson, January 30, 2017. Press Release: Chairman Huizenga, Senator Inhofe Move To Eliminate Resource Extraction Rule via CRA, Chairman Bill Huizenga, January 30, 2017. Op-Ed: The Congressional Review Act, rarely used and (almost always) unsuccessful by Stuart Shapiro, The Hill, April 17, 2015. References U.S. Dept of Labor: Unemployment Insurance Senator Al Franken: Arbitration Amendment OpenSecrets: Rep. Liz Cheney - Top Industries, 2015-2016 OpenSecrets: National Rifle Association - 2016 Contributions OpenSecrets: Rep. Bill Johnson - Top Industries OpenSecrets: Rep. Bill Johnson - Top Industries, 2015-2016 OpenSecrets: Rep. Bill Huizenga - 2014 Assets OpenSecrets: Rep. Bill Huizenga - Top Industries OpenSecrets: Senator Jeff Flake - Top Industries OpenSecrets: Rep. Marsha Blackburn - Career Profile OpenSecrets: Communications/Electronics - Money to Congress Sound Clip Sources Hearing: NASA: Past, Present, and Future, House of Representatives, Committee on Science, Space and Technology, February 16, 2017. Video: NASA Authorization Bill Signing, Oval Office, March 21, 2017. Cover Art Design by Only Child Imaginations

This episode provides a brief history of FSSI and Category Management and then discusses the important proposed rule changes happening in August of 2016 and what you can do about it. This podcast is critical to ANYONE who is currently selling to or planning to sell to the government. The upcoming changes to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) can potentially lock your company out of doing business with the government. Get Your Free Government Contractor's Success Kit now with key templates, strategies, graphics packs, and free bonus training video. Just click here: https://federal-access.com/?wpam_id=6

In today's episode, we talk with retired Air Force Lt. Col. Dan Ward about how—despite the Federal Acquisition Regulation's reputation for inhibiting innovation— he learned to love the FAR as an engine for change. To learn more about Public Spend Forum, visit http://publicspendforum.net/ To check out the learning path we discussed on the show: http://publicspendforum.net/fire Dan's site where you can download the FAR document: http://thedanward.com His books: https://www.amazon.com/Simplicity-Cycle-Making-Things-Without/dp/0062301977/ https://www.amazon.com/FIRE-Inexpensive-Restrained-Elegant-Innovation/dp/006230190X/ Follow Dan on Twitter: https://twitter.com/thedanward And follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/PSpendForum

Kevin Jans is the President and Founder of Skyway Acquisition Solutions (“Skyway”). After 16 years as a Department of Defense contracting officer, he founded Skyway to help companies navigate the increasingly complex process of competing for Federal contracts. Kevin built the company on the premise that no one knows the Federal acquisition system better than contracting officers who managed it from the inside. Following this idea, he built a team of experts with actual contracting officer experience. What separates this podcast is the insight that Kevin and Paul bring from having been Contracting Officers (COs). Kevin has held contracting officer warrants with unlimited signing authority in multiple Department of Defense agencies. He has written and reviewed over 1,000 contracts valued from $7,700 to $882 Million. In addition, Kevin has personally led or managed 143 competitive government source selections. This experience has made him a veritable expert in a series of acquisition regulations including the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), the Defense FAR Supplement (DFARS), the Air Force FAR Supplement (AFFARS), and the Special Operations Command FAR Supplement (SOFARS). He has competed, awarded and administered contracts in a wide variety of industries, from aircraft and space systems to facilities and tactical vehicles.  His collaborative style allowed him to communicate across a disparate customer base (Army Rangers, Navy SEALs, Air Force and Marine Corps SOF) to create rapid, effective acquisition strategies. In addition to his hands on experience, Kevin has extensive credentials in the contracting and source selection field. He is an active member of the National Contract Management Association (NCMA), Suncoast Chapter.  Kevin also has elite training and development experience in the Federal contract market. He was competitively selected for both the US Air Force's Copper Cap Training Program and the Career Broadener Programs. Both of these targeted Department of Defense training programs are designed to accelerate the experience and knowledge of high-performing professionals in the DOD contracting and acquisition field. He is a Certified Federal Contracts Manager (through NCMA), DOD-Certified in both Contracting and Program Management (through Defense Acquisition University) and he holds a Yellow Belt Certification in Six Sigma. Key Takeaways: [5:13] Kevin's new 80/20 rule [7:07] A few places you can go to find government contracts out there and if you might be a fit [9:48] Getting started and learning the basics of learning to get government contracts [11:50] How to compete for government contracts with small businesses and minority owned businesses [14:53] Comparing the government contract market to the stock market [17:51] How long it takes to get a government contract going [21:55] Exploring the all important topic of how much it costs to get help submitting your government contract proposal [24:40] Looking at what the government's going to look at when they're onsidering if you'll win the contract Websites Mentioned: www.usaspending.gov www.federalbusinessopporunities.gov www.skywayacquisition.com www.contractingofficerpodcast.com

Kevin Jans is the President and Founder of Skyway Acquisition Solutions (“Skyway”). After 16 years as a Department of Defense contracting officer, he founded Skyway to help companies navigate the increasingly complex process of competing for Federal contracts. Kevin built the company on the premise that no one knows the Federal acquisition system better than contracting officers who managed it from the inside. Following this idea, he built a team of experts with actual contracting officer experience. What separates this podcast is the insight that Kevin and Paul bring from having been Contracting Officers (COs).Kevin has held contracting officer warrants with unlimited signing authority in multiple Department of Defense agencies. He has written and reviewed over 1,000 contracts valued from $7,700 to $882 Million. In addition, Kevin has personally led or managed 143 competitive government source selections. This experience has made him a veritable expert in a series of acquisition regulations including the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), the Defense FAR Supplement (DFARS), the Air Force FAR Supplement (AFFARS), and the Special Operations Command FAR Supplement (SOFARS). He has competed, awarded and administered contracts in a wide variety of industries, from aircraft and space systems to facilities and tactical vehicles.  His collaborative style allowed him to communicate across a disparate customer base (Army Rangers, Navy SEALs, Air Force and Marine Corps SOF) to create rapid, effective acquisition strategies.In addition to his hands on experience, Kevin has extensive credentials in the contracting and source selection field. He is an active member of the National Contract Management Association (NCMA), Suncoast Chapter.  Kevin also has elite training and development experience in the Federal contract market. He was competitively selected for both the US Air Force’s Copper Cap Training Program and the Career Broadener Programs. Both of these targeted Department of Defense training programs are designed to accelerate the experience and knowledge of high-performing professionals in the DOD contracting and acquisition field. He is a Certified Federal Contracts Manager (through NCMA), DOD-Certified in both Contracting and Program Management (through Defense Acquisition University) and he holds a Yellow Belt Certification in Six Sigma.Key Takeaways:[4:27] Kevin's new 80/20 rule[6:21] A few places you can go to find government contracts out there and if you might be a fit[9:02] Getting started and learning the basics of learning to get government contracts[11:04] How to compete for government contracts with small businesses and minority owned businesses[14:07] Comparing the government contract market to the stock market[17:05] How long it takes to get a government contract going[21:09] Exploring the all important topic of how much it costs to get help submitting your government contract proposal[23:54] Looking at what the government's going to look at when they're onsidering if you'll win the contractWebsites Mentioned:www.usaspending.govwww.federalbusinessopporunities.govwww.skywayacquisition.comwww.contractingofficerpodcast.com