Morrison Foerster LLP

For the second time in as many years, the Department of Defense (DOD) has issued a final rule that brings its Buy American Act (BAA) requirements into alignment with the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).View the full article

On November 17, 2023, the Department of Defense published its long-awaited proposed revisions to the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement data rights regulations to implement a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA). 88 Fed. Reg. 80258. View the full article

This month’s Bid Protest Roundup highlights a trio of U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) decisions. The first decision, Deloitte Consulting, highlights the risk of severing a teaming partner after quote submission. The second, Kauffman and Associates, Inc., illustrates how a latent ambiguity in the solicitation can reset the competition. The third, Conti Federal Services, emphasizes that an agency’s upward cost adjustment must remain reasonable.View the full article

This month’s bid protest roundup highlights one decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and two decisions from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO).View the full article

The U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has issued a policy memorandum with a goal of promoting small business participation under multiple-award indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity contracts (MACs).View the full article

On January 29, 2024, the Biden administration issued a Proposed Rule that would prohibit federal contractors from seeking and considering compensation history when making employment decisions and require contractors to disclose compensation being offered in job postings.View the full article

This month’s Bid Protest Roundup include decisions regarding supplementation of the record and whether an agency may convert a sealed bid opportunity into a negotiated procurement due to lack of funds, as well as a case in which the Court of Federal Claims found a GAO precedent failed to provide a rational basis to reject a bid.View the full article

Small business regulations create one of the stickier wickets in bid protest litigation. View the full article

On December 22, 2023, President Biden signed the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024 into law after bipartisan congressional majorities approved the bill earlier in the month. The annual bill authorizes appropriations and sets policy for the Department of Defense (“DoD”) and generally reflects the priorities of the House and Senate Armed Services Committees.View the full article

The U.S. Department of Defense released a special holiday treat for government contractors and subcontractors last week in the form of long-promised proposed regulations for its Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program. View the full article

Presented as part of its effort to lower what it views as excessive prices for prescription drugs, the Biden administration on December 7, 2023, announced the release of a proposed framework to expand the use of government “march-in” authority under the Bayh-Dole Act. View the full article

This month's protest spotlight highlights three decisions by the U.S. Government Accountability Office. View the full article

In recent months, there have been a number of articles about an increase in venture capital interest in entities that do business with the federal government. View the full article

This month, we feature three bid protest decisions—two from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and one from the U.S. Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”). Though each of these decisions focuses on a different fundamental point of procurement law, all share a common theme: they pertain to agency awards of indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (“IDIQ”) contract vehicles or task orders thereunder. View the full article

The Biden administration issued a widely anticipated executive order on artificial intelligence (“AI”) earlier this week. The Executive Order on the Safe, Secure, and Trustworthy Development and Use of Artificial Intelligence (the “EO”) addresses a multitude of issues reflecting an emerging national policy on AI. This article focuses on those aspects of the EO most directly related to national security and federal procurement.View the full article