Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Historical reports say the Irish have been celebrating St. Patrick’s Day for over 1,000 years. They would feast on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage–not quite sure when the green beer was added into the festivities! The first St. Patrick’s Day parade took place not in Ireland but in America on March 17, 1601 in St. Augustine, Florida. Although not as old as St. Augustine’s, our city of Lawrence, Kansas is also preparing for a St. Patrick’s Day Parade, which has been a tradition since 1988. It’s always a fun experience, with 100 floats, and has raised more than $1.2 million dollars for children’s charities.

We’ve included a few articles from this week’s news in federal government contracting to peruse before you head out to your local St. Pat’s Day celebrations, including updates on government budges for the upcoming fiscal year and contractors leaving the federal space. Have a fun day, stay safe, and a have great weekend.

• Pentagon’s $842B budget boosts procurement, R&D as personnel levels shrink [FedNewsNet]
• Federal IT spending in 2024 request up by 13% in part thanks to cyber, CX plans [FedNewsNet]
• Federal arbitrator: VA didn’t bargain ‘in good faith’ with AFGE to update decade-old contract [FedNewsNet]
• Why do so many contractors leave the federal market each year? [FedNewsNet]
• GSA Aims to Double Down on Initiatives to Boost WOSB Participation in GovCon [ExecGov]
• CACI court filing alleges lack of transparency by the Army [WashTech]
• GSA announces the 2022 design award winners [GSA]
• NASA opens bidding for $1.3B IT services contract [WashTech]
• White House requests more than $500M to support CX offices and initiatives in 2024 budget [FedScoop]
• Federal arbitrator: VA didn’t bargain ‘in good faith’ with AFGE to update decade-old contract [FedNewsNet]
• FY24 Clock is Already Ticking: Congress and the Whitehouse Need to Mind the calendar and Get Moving on the Budget [PSC]
• General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation; Standardizing Federal Supply Schedule Clause and Provision Prescriptions [FedReg]
• Supporting Competition in the AbilityOne Program [FedReg]
• Pentagon’s $842B budget boosts procurement, R&D as personnel levels shrink [FedNewsNet]

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