By Oles Morrison on December 8, 2015 | Posted in False Claims Act
In Fiscal Year (“FY”) 2015, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) raked in $3.6 billion in settlements and judgments from civil actions filed under the False Claims Act (“FCA”). This marks the fourth consecutive year that the United States’ recovery under the FCA exceeded $3.5 billion. This trend suggests that aggressive […]
By Oles Morrison on December 7, 2015 | Posted in Bid Protests
A recent Court of Federal Claims (“COFC” or “Court”) decision denied a post-award bid protest applying the rarely successful equitable defense of laches. In addition to finding the protest failed on the merits, COFC found that the disappointed bidder unreasonably delayed in bringing the protest by waiting more than eight months after […]
By Oles Morrison on December 2, 2015 | Posted in Legislative and Regulatory Developments
As many readers may know, in February 2015, the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) released its proposed rule to establish a mentor-protégé program for all small businesses. Currently available only to participants of the SBA’s 8(a) Program, the SBA’s proposed rule would create a new mentor-protégé program open to all […]
By Oles Morrison on October 15, 2015 | Posted in Bid Protests
A recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) bid protest decision provides yet another example of the importance for contractors to identify potential organizational conflicts of interest (OCI) when submitting a proposal in response to a federal government solicitation. In DV United, LLC, B-411620, B-411620.2, Sept. 16, 2015, GAO denied a bid protest […]
By Oles Morrison on January 7, 2015 | Posted in Procurement Issues
The National Industrial Recovery Act, part of the New Deal policies in 1934, allowed businesses employing individuals with disabilities to pay less than minimum wage to their disabled workers. This “sub-minimum” wage policy was buttressed by the 1938 Fair Labor Standards Act which allows employers to apply for Section 14(c) […]
By Oles Morrison on December 17, 2014 | Posted in Labor
On December 9, 2014, the U.S Department of Labor’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (“OFCCP”) published a final rule implementing Executive Order (EO) 13672 effectively amending EO 11246, which previously only prohibited discrimination by federal contractors and subcontractors on the bases of race, color, religion, sex, and national origin. […]
By Oles Morrison on November 19, 2014 | Posted in Labor
As Congress reconvenes it will consider a new bill that would direct federal agencies to give preferential points in the bidding process to federal government contractors based on their labor practices. The bill, proposed by Rep. Eleanor Holmes Norton (D-D.C.), would give points to companies that pay their employees a […]
By Oles Morrison on October 28, 2014 | Posted in Labor
This month, the United States Department of Labor (“DOL”) issued a Final Rule establishing a minimum wage of $10.10 per hour for certain federal contractors beginning January 1, 2015. The rule implements Executive Order 13658 signed by President Obama earlier this year. The Final Rule applies to: Procurement contracts for […]
By Oles Morrison on October 23, 2014 | Posted in Legislative and Regulatory Developments
Over the past two months the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”) has published two proposed rules to revise small business size standards in the North American Industry Classification System (“NAICS”). If the proposed rules are adopted, nearly 1,650 additional firms will become eligible for small business contracting programs and SBA small business loans. […]
By Oles Morrison on October 2, 2014 | Posted in Claims and Disputes
When subcontractor claims arise on a federal contract, it is not uncommon for the prime to then assert those claims as pass-through claims against the government. In such circumstances, it is important for subcontractors to remember that while they have rights to proceed against the prime contractor for those claims, […]
By Oles Morrison on September 24, 2014 | Posted in Bid Protests
This is the first in a series of posts highlighting common mistakes made (by protestors) in bid protests at GAO. Today’s post discusses a mistake related to the deadline for filing supplemental protests when an extension is granted for filing comments on the agency report. This mistake is made by […]
By Oles Morrison on June 23, 2014 | Posted in Small Business
Size matters. Companies that exceed applicable SBA size standards are ineligible for award of small business set-aside contracts. The SBA uses rules of affiliation to make sure companies do not take unfair advantage of the benefits of small business contracting programs. When measuring whether a company comes within the applicable […]
By Oles Morrison on November 7, 2013 | Posted in LEED
On October 25, 2013, the U.S. General Services Administration (“GSA”) concluded that federal agencies should continue to use third party rating systems to evaluate the performance of federal buildings. Specifically, GSA advocated that agencies use U.S. Green Building Council’s (USGBC) LEED green building rating system or the Green Globes system […]
By Oles Morrison on May 21, 2013 | Posted in Legislative and Regulatory Developments
An interim rule, with immediate effect, will amend regulations to the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (“SBA”) Federal Contract Program, allowing for increased access to federal contracting opportunities for women-owned small businesses. This change comes as a result of the National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) signed in January 2013. (For more […]
By Oles Morrison on March 29, 2013 | Posted in Buy American Act
It comes as a surprise to no one that Congress has wide-ranging ability to place conditions on the federal government’s ability to spend federal dollars. What may surprise some contractors is the effect that Congress’s power via “domestic preference acts” has to limit how the contractor builds a project and […]