Jump to content
  • entries
    67
  • comments
    136
  • views
    357,542

About this blog

This blog is managed by Bob Antonio, the Owner of Wifcon.com. It includes link to news items on contracting and the blogger's comments

Entries in this blog

"I Hope . . . I've Earned What All Of You Have Done For Me"

Not long ago, a discussion board user posted a note about a theoretical government negotiator misrepresenting the truth during contract negotiations. The responses were on target. Vern Edwards was succinct and said: "Don't tell a lie!" Napolik said: "I would be . . . concerned with losing my credibility in the contractor's eyes." Now, its time for a story from over 40 years ago. It was my sophomore year in college and it was the night before the final exam in second year Spanish. I didn't learn

robert_antonio

robert_antonio

Just Call Me Johnson!

Years ago, I had three stories from my life posted on Wifcon.com and they picked up a small following on the internet. Since I usually add something from my life around Christmas to Wifcon.com, I thought I would add one of those three stories. So here is, as it happened: Just Call Me Johnson! In the 1970s, when I first moved to the Washington D. C. area, I lived in Greenbelt, Maryland. Although Greenbelt is actually a small town, it is also one of those "areas" located around Washington t

robert_antonio

robert_antonio

The Hobbit: An Unexpected Contract Analysis

One of our colleagues sent this to me and I am posting it for you. Even Bilbo Baggins has a contract attorney to watch over him. "I, the undersigned, [referred to hereinafter as Burglar,] agree to travel to the Lonely Mountain, path to be determined by Thorin Oakenshield, who has a right to alter the course of the journey at his so choosing, without prior notification and/or liability for accident or injury incurred." "The aforementioned journey and subsequent extraction from the Lonely Mo

bob7947

bob7947

The Fixed-Price Incentive Firm Target Contract:  Not As Firm As the Name Suggests

The Fixed-Price Incentive Firm Target Contract:  Not As Firm As the Name Suggests At the end of 1976, I met the Director of the Procurement Control and Clearance Division of the Naval Material Command in Arlington, Virginia.  The Director was a legend of the contracting community and any significant Navy contract had to be approved by his office prior to award.  I was there because of a controversy involving a contract to acquire a new class of nuclear cruisers.  Th

bob7947

bob7947 in fpif-ft

Lockheed Propulsion Company, Thiokol Corporation, B-173677, June 24, 1974 - Part 6: April 3, 1974

One of the things I first noticed when we drove from Marshall Space Flight Center (MSFC) to our hotel was a sign post that looked like a corkscrew with a road sign on top.  Someone told me:  "A tornado did that."  How could wind do that?  I was about to find out.  It was April 3, 1974.  When we left MSFC after work, there was a strange feeling in the air.  One that I have never forgotten.  In fact, I stll feel if it is there after all of these years.  There was no wind, no noise, just a sti

bob7947

bob7947 in Part 6

Lockheed Propulsion Company, Thiokol Corporation, B-173677, June 24, 1974 - Part 2: I Arrive in Huntsville

My road to Huntsville was simple enough, drive through Tennessee, pass into Alabama, and find the Tourway Inn on Memorial Parkway.  Those were the exact directions given to me.  "Find the Tourway on Memorial Parkway."  I had a paper fold-up map to find Memorial Parkway.  So it was drive up and down Memorial Parkway to find the Tourway.  There, I would meet our staff from the Atlanta Regional Office and they would fill me in on our work.  This was my first trip into the deep south, and with my Ph

bob7947

bob7947 in Lockheed Part 2

Why Not an Insider? Lesley Anne Field as Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy

I only add the quote about Gene Dodaro to show that Actings can effectively manage organizations.  He's been running GAO for 12 years now.  I was relieved to see that an insider was finally made the Comptroller General.  Someone that knew the agency, someone that could hit the ground running, someone that could get the job done.  That's enough about Gene, this entry is about the Office of Federal Procurement Policy and its next Administrator. I'm feeling a little nasty this morning because

"Required In The Performance Of A Contract"

This morning, I was searching for bid protest decisions from the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) and the Court of Federal Claims (COFC) and stumbled across two interesting decisions on indirect research and development (IR&D). I remember listening to debates about IR&D in the bowels of the then General Accounting Office (GAO), now the Government Accountability Office. I was a pup back then in the early 1970s. I'm a pup no longer. The decisions involve the phrase--required

robert_antonio

robert_antonio

Government Contracting Improvement Act of 2012?

At this time of year, newly introduced legislation often is introduced and then quickly enters oblivion. I checked this Senator's committee and subcommitee assignments and did not find any direct link to federal contracting. Maybe that explains it. "Sen. Toomey's bill would require the GAO to include the most common reasons bid protests are sustained. This additional information could help federal agencies identify needed improvements in the contracting process, reduce the number of protests

bob7947

bob7947

When The Rule Is Mandatory, It Means Mandatory!

You're travelling on your own for the government and you found a way to save money but you're subject to the Joint Travel Regulations as well as the Federal Travel Regulation. What do you do? You went ahead and saved the government money and were proud of yourself. Unfortunately, your finance office stiffed you when it came time for payment. Its time to learn about rules that are mandatory. See the case at cbca.gsa.gov. (it is only 2 pages.)

bob7947

bob7947

Is FAR 8.406-6 As Easy As "May" and "Shall"?

I was reading a decision of the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (ASBCA) about a week ago and I found the following. Why read the ASBCA decision when I could go straight to the horse's mouth! So I searched the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (CAFC) web site and I found the Sharp decision--and it was recent. Here is a brief description of the issue in the Sharp case. On September 18, 2001, the General Services Administration (GSA) awarded a multiple award schedule (MAS) cont

bob7947

bob7947

A Subcontract Is . . . .

It was the Fall of 1978 and I was walking down the steps from the contracting office at Rock Island Arsenal. At this point in my contracting journey around the country, I was told that P. L. 95-507 had been signed into law. I was reviewing contracts awarded under the Mandatory Small Business Subcontracting Test which was authorized by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP). OFPP conducted the test in response to Recommendation A-48 of the Commission on Government Procurement, which b

robert_antonio

robert_antonio

Two Days To Remember

The government has plenty of rules involving time. In certain circumstances, an offeror has 10 days to submit a protest. On the other end of the process, contractors have so much time to submit a claim or to respond to a contracting officer's final decision. Here is one case involving time limits: On April 26, 2012, EPSI submitted a certified claim to the SBA contracting officer seeking $135,013.27 from the SBA for increases in the minimum wages during EPSI's period of performance fr

bob7947

bob7947

Termination For Convenienience: Not As Convenent As One Might Think

In 2010, the U.S. Central Command's Task Force for Business and Stability Operations, had a requirement for security services to facilitate investment and commerce in Iraq. This blog entry deals with the 2 competitive solicitations and contracts that led to a case before the Court of Federal Claims (COFC). Unfortunately for Tigerswan, the awardee of the 2 contracts under the solicitations, the contracts weren't rewarding--at least for the contracted items. (TigerSwan did claim damages of $

bob7947

bob7947

A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Wifcon.com

Over on the Wifcon Forum, a member started a topic called How to find the best places to work. It made me remember how I became involved in contracting as an auditor for the Government Accountability Office (GAO). I've laughed about it many times over the years. When I was hired, GAO had a rotation policy for its new employees (trainees). There were 3 trainee assignments: one for 2-months and two for 3-months within the various GAO divisions and offices. After the trainee assignments, the

robert_antonio

robert_antonio

The Case Of The Reluctant Subcontractors

In the U. S. District Court for the District of Columbia, a recent opinion was issued in which 3 hospitals wanted to avoid being labled as government subcontractors to avoid the Department of Labor's rules covering subcontractors. The hospitals had contracts with UPMC Health Plan to provide medical services and supplies to individuals enrolled in its program. UPMC contracted with the U. S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to provide coverage for federal employees in the Federal Employees

bob7947

bob7947

Rebates And Discounts In Food Service Contracts

"The Subcommittee’s investigation of food service contracts has revealed systemic deficiencies in the transparency and oversight of contractors’ rebate and discount policies. Chairman McCaskill asked Office of Management and Budget Director Zients to review the Subcommittee’s findings and issue guidance to federal agencies to address these deficiencies. She also requested that OMB consider how the federal government can better leverage its buying power through the strategic sourcing of food serv

bob7947

bob7947

Some Thoughts On "FPIF Math"

As we all know, federal agency budgets are being cut. Those cuts will work their way into contracting programs. Of course, that made me think about the abuse of the fixed-price incentive firm target (FPIF) contract. Almost a decade ago, I posted an article I titled The Fixed-Price Incentive Firm Target Contract: Not As Firm As the Name Suggests. The abuse I mention there requires a special skill and an understanding of what can be done with the FPIF. These skills were at their peak in the

robert_antonio

robert_antonio

Contractors Up For Suspension

"A bipartisan group of senators led by U.S. Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) are expressing continued concern and frustration over the Army's use of contractors that have potential ties to terrorist groups. The senators specifically referred to a longstanding backlog of 43 referrals pending before the Army's Suspension and Debarment Official that involve individuals or companies with links to groups including the Haqqani Network and Al Qaeda as reason for concern that underscores the Army's need t

bob7947

bob7947

Camp Pendleton Contracting Official Arrested On Bribery Charges

"According to the complaint, filed in this matter with the United States District Court, Southern District of California, case number 13MJ1269, Cervantes is charged specifically with violating Title 18, United States Code (U.S.C.) Section 201 ( B )(2), bribery. Cervantes allegedly used his position to extort bribes from businesses seeking to do business at Camp Pendleton and allegedly referred to himself as the Godfather at Camp Pendleton; Cervantes is currently a U.S. Department of Defense empl

bob7947

bob7947

The Sovereign Has Not Consented To Be Sued

In Estes Express Lines, Inc. v. U. S., No. 11-597C, January 15, 2013, the Court of Federal Claims said: "For the government to be sued on a contract pursuant to the Tucker Act, there must be privity of contract between the plaintiff and the United States." "This is so because the doctrine of sovereign immunity precludes a suit against the United States without its consent and because, under the Tucker Act, the United States has 'consent[ed] to be sued only by those with whom it has privity

bob7947

bob7947

If You Want A Contract, Don't Have A "Seriously Delinquent Tax Debt"

H. R. 882, the Contracting and Tax Accountability Act of 2013 passed the House of Representatives on April 15, 2013. The bill would lead to a nice amount of paperwork, new criteria for determining contractor responsibility, and opportunity for debarment. A copy of the bill, as reported from committee, is here.

bob7947

bob7947

Design Defects & Differing Site Conditions

Searching for an item to post is time-consuming and frustrating. However, some times an item pops up from an unexpected place. In this case, it was the U. S. Civilian Board of Contract Appeals. The case is straightforward and easy to read and contains some excerpts that are noteworthy. Here is what the Board said: "Our view is in line with the contractor's. Although Drennon's technique for excavating the hillside may not have been ideal, due to the defects in the design of the project and

bob7947

bob7947

GSA Schedule Contractors: CTA or Prime/Subcontractor Relationship?

"Under a Contractor Team Arrangement (CTA), two or more GSA Schedule contractors work together to meet ordering activity needs. By complementing each other's capabilities, the team offers a total solution to the ordering activity's requirement, providing a "win-win" situation for all parties." But what is a Prime/Subcontractor relationship and what is the difference from a CTA? Let GSA explain. See the information at gsa.gov.

bob7947

bob7947

Unilateral Or Bilateral, That Is The Answer

We've all seen this before. The government and contractor sign a contract with a base period and several 1-year options. Sometimes, the 1-year option periods even mirror the government's fiscal year. A nice little puppy. Then, the harsh realities of government take over and our little puppy grows into an unwieldy mongrel. Such is life in federal contracting and here is a story about one such dog. On February 27, 2009, the Army National Guard and Glasgow Investigative Solutions, Inc. (GIS)

bob7947

bob7947

×
×
  • Create New...