Government Contracts & Investigations Blog

Latest updates on Developments Affecting Government Contracts & Investigations

Latest from Government Contracts & Investigations Blog

In fiscal year 2022 alone, the Federal Government is estimated to have spent over $1 trillion in grant and assistance programs – a little less than double the Federal Government’s estimated procurement budget for the same year. This spending reflects a trend in recent years towards making more Federal dollars available for more assistance programs. The American Rescue Plan Act, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, and even the CHIPS Act (to name a few), have created significant financial incentives for largely commercial entities to partner for the first time with the Federal Government. What marks a shift in policy
Continue Reading Hot off the Presses: Sheppard Mullin Publishes its “Federal Grants Survival Guide” for Commercial, For-Profit Companies

On August 23, 2023, the White House’s Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) issued its notification of final guidance implementing Title IX of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (“IIJA”) – the Build America, Buy America (“BABA”) Act. The Guidance amends Title 2 of the Code of Federal Regulations, by adding a new Part 184 and a new provision to the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards at 2 C.F.R. Part 200 (the “Uniform Guidance”). The publication provides key clarifications arising from industry input after releasing the Proposed Rule back in February (and discussed previously
Continue Reading Top 10 Takeaways from OMB’s “Build America, Buy America” Guidance for Infrastructure Projects

The U.S. antiboycott laws and regulations have been around since the era of disco. In stark contrast to fast-moving sanctions and export controls, we rarely see updates to the antiboycott regulations or enforcement strategies. Last October, however, the Department of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) announced enhancements to its antiboycott enforcement strategy. As part of its implementation of this updated enforcement strategy, BIS has both expanded the scope of required antiboycott reports and flagged antiboycott compliance specifically for government contractors. These moves demonstrate how BIS plans to focus its enforcement efforts on Federal contractors.
Continue Reading Antiboycott Update for Government Contractors and More

The idea that investors might choose to consider certain environmental, social, and governance factors when deciding whether to buy shares of a company—a concept commonly known as ESG—continues to gain popularity with trillions of dollars currently held in investment funds that take into account ESG principles. Yet recently, the use of ESG investment measures has been the target of intense scrutiny and political pushback that threatens to produce inconsistent regulation and enforcement approaches at the federal, state, and local levels. The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), for example, has focused on ESG by investigating and taking action against
Continue Reading An Evolving High-Wire Act: Navigating Conflicting Laws, Regulations, and Guidance in the ESG Space

Welcome back to the Cost Corner, where we provide practical insight into the complex cost and pricing compliance issues facing Government contractors. This is the second installment of a two-part article on Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) audits. DCAA’s mission is to conduct contract audits and to provide accounting and financial advisory services to all Department of Defense (DoD) components responsible for procurement and contract administration. Part 1 of this article provided an overview of DCAA’s mission, organization, and audit rights, as well as the types of audits conducted by DCAA. Part 2 focuses on DCAA’s standard audit procedures across
Continue Reading Government Contracts Cost and Pricing – DCAA Audits (Part 2)

On July 18, 2023, the Biden Administration announced the launch of the long-awaited cybersecurity labeling program, called the “U.S. Cyber Trust Mark,” aimed at providing consumers with a better understanding of the cybersecurity of the products they use daily. This labeling program seeks to enhance transparency and competition in the Internet of Things (“IoT”) device space, to “help differentiate trustworthy products in the marketplace,” and to incentivize manufacturers to meet higher cybersecurity standards.
Continue Reading Cybersecurity Labeling is (Almost) Here! Biden Administration Announces the U.S. Cyber Trust Mark Program

It’s starting to feel like summer in Washington, DC and like most Washingtonians, the GSA and SBA are thinking about pools. So throw on some flip flops, grab a cold beverage, and let’s dive in to the 8(a) Multiple Award Schedule (“MAS”) Pool Initiative (and, obviously, prepare yourself for many, many more pool-themed puns).
Continue Reading Let’s Go Swimming: Small Disadvantaged Business Growth Targeted by SBA and GSA 8(a) MAS Pool Initiative

Summer is here and we’re back with another edition of the Cost Corner, where we provide practical insight into the complex cost and pricing requirements that apply to Government contractors. We just completed a two-part series on the Truthful Cost or Pricing Data Statute, commonly known as the Truth in Negotiations Act (TINA).[1] We will return to TINA in a few months to address the Defense Contract Audit Agency’s (DCAA) playbook for defective pricing audits. But first, we embark on a two-part series regarding DCAA audits generally. Part 1 (this article) provides an overview of DCAA’s mission, organization, audit
Continue Reading The Cost Corner: Government Contracts Cost and Pricing – DCAA Audits

A few months ago we wrote about Congress utilizing the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 to offer bonus tax credits[1] to certain energy facilities for meeting specified “domestic content” requirements.[2] Relying heavily on the Government’s prior experience with domestic content authorities, including the Federal Transit Authority’s (“FTA”) “Buy America” regulations, we discussed how the regulations, as written, left the renewable energy industry with more questions than answers on the applicability of the domestic content bonus tax credit to their current and future projects. Though we walked through our then-understanding of the regulations, including providing our own step-by-step analysis
Continue Reading Treasury Issues New Proposed Guidance on Domestic Content Requirements of the Inflation Reduction Act – Updated Qualification Analysis and (Still) Lingering Questions

Over the last several years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) and the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) have been laser-focused on the use of so called “off-channel communications” in the financial services industry. On the theory that employees’ use of personal devices to communicate about business matters violates the “books and records” rules as these communications are not saved in company systems, regulators have conducted intrusive and extensive investigations requiring employees to turn over their personal devices for review. SEC Chairperson Gary Gensler recently stated that “bookkeeping sweeps are ongoing,” having resulted in well over $1 billion in
Continue Reading SEC Off-Channel Communications Sweep

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has released an initial public draft of NIST SP 800-171, Revision 3, Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information in Nonfederal Systems and Organizations. Compliance with the security controls in NIST SP 800-171 is required for Department of Defense contractors and is expected to be incorporated into a new Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clause and required for all federal contractors that process, store, or transmit Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). 
Continue Reading NIST Releases Initial Public Draft of NIST SP 800-171, Revision 3 for Protection of Sensitive Government Information

Welcome back to the Cost Corner, where we provide practical insight into the complex cost and pricing regulations that apply to Government contractors. This is the second installment of a two-part article on the Truthful Cost or Pricing Data Statute, commonly known by its former name, the Truth in Negotiations Act (TINA).[1] As a reminder, TINA is a procurement statute that requires contractors: (1) to disclose information – known as cost or pricing data – when negotiating certain types of contracts, subcontracts, and modifications; (2) to certify that those data were accurate, complete, and current as of the date
Continue Reading Government Contracts Cost and Pricing – The Truth in Negotiations Act … or Whatever the Kids Are Calling It These Days (Part 2)

The Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) is seeking public comment on the secure software development common self-attestation form to be completed by software producers that sell software to the federal government. Federal agencies are scheduled to begin collecting attestation forms for critical software by June 2023 and for all other software by September 2023.
Continue Reading CISA Releases Proposed Security Attestation Form for Software Producers

While you were asking ChatGPT to create a 3-course menu for the upcoming book club you’re hosting or to explain the Rule Against Perpetuities, several federal government agencies announced initiatives related to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and automated systems, focusing on the potential threats stemming from the misuse of this powerful technology. As the development and use of AI becomes integrated into our daily lives and employee work routines, and companies begin to leverage such technology in their solutions provided to the government, it is important to understand the developing federal government compliance infrastructure and the potential risks
Continue Reading ChatUSG: What Companies Doing Business with the Government Need to Know About Artificial Intelligence

On April 4, 2023, the Defense Contract Management Agency’s (“DCMA”) Commercial Item Group held an industry day at Fort Lee in Virginia. The DCMA Commercial Item Group assists DOD purchasers in determining whether items provided to DoD qualify as commercial products or services and, thus, will be subject to fewer federal acquisition and DoD requirements. The Commercial Item Group also assists with market research, technical analysis, price analysis, negotiation support, commercial item database maintenance and providing support on commercial products and services initiatives.
Continue Reading DoD Commercial Item Group Summit: A Recap

The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Program Management Office recently released a revised version of its Obligations and Compliance Standards document for third party assessors – the organizations that conduct reviews and enable security authorizations for cloud service offerings to the federal government. The revised document seeks to further define the performance and compliance expectations for third party assessors (3PAOs) and incorporates changes stemming from the FedRAMP Authorization Act, which was enacted as part of the Fiscal Year 2023 National Defense Authorization Act and codified FedRAMP. The revisions reflect recent trends in cyber and supply chain security, focusing
Continue Reading Reassessed: FedRAMP Releases Revised Obligations and Standards for Cybersecurity Assessors