Georgia Tech Procurement Assistance Center

Good news for new tech: Panel recommends DoD IT acquisition reform

By

As information technology (IT) companies have known for years, the U.S. government regularly acquires inferior technology, often slowly and at high prices. The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD), which stands to benefit the most from state-of-the-art technology, is encumbered by a web of complex and archaic procurement regulations. For emerging technology companies looking to serve the government, DoD’s procurement approach can be a major source of frustration, discouraging many of them from entering the federal arena altogether.

Fortunately, meaningful reform may be on the horizon. The Section 809 Panel, a group tasked by the 2016 National Defense Authorization Act to identify ways to improve the defense acquisition system, has recently set forth three recommendations aimed at streamlining DoD’s IT procurement process. These IT-focused recommendations are found in Section 3 of the panel’s Volume 3 Report, at numbers 43 through 45. The panel recommended the following:

  • Rec. 43: Revise acquisition regulations to enable more flexible and effective procurement of consumption-based solutions.
  • Rec. 44: Exempt DoD from Clinger-Cohen Act provisions in Title 40.
  • Rec. 45: Create a pilot program for contracting directly with IT consultants through an online talent marketplace.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/good-news-for-new-tech-panel-recommends-46249/

GSA rescinds all awards made on $15 billion Alliant 2 Small Business contract

By

The government rescinded all awards made in the $15B Alliant 2 Small Business governmentwide acquisition contract for IT services procurement last week.

The move follows an order from the Court of Federal Claims that the General Services Administration must rescore every submission it received to address errors raised in protest from Virginia-based technology company, Citizant Inc.

The Alliant 2 SB is part of one of the largest federal IT opportunities of the decade. In February 2018, GSA announced its award to 81 small business, which federal agencies would be able to access for integrated IT solutions around their “current and evolving needs.” After the announcement, protests from dissatisfied bidders ensued.

In March 2018, Citizant, Inc. protested the bid to the Government Accountability Office. GAO dismissed the file in May 2018, but Citizant took complaints to court and won this week, resulting in the rescission.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/cio-briefing/2019/03/gsa-rescinds-all-awards-made-15b-alliant-2-small-business-contract/155869/

Contractors and advocacy groups push back on states’ efforts to mandate surveillance software

By

A broad coalition of 14 organizations representing state contractors and issue advocacy groups released an open letter last week opposing legislation that has cropped up in over 30 state legislatures that, if passed, would require government contractors to purchase and install monitoring software.

While varying somewhat from state-to-state, the bills typically require the software to take very specific actions, such as screenshots of all “state-funded activity at least once every three (3) minutes” and logging of “keystroke and mouse event frequency.”  The legislation also demands contractors store that data for years to come.

The groups that signed onto the letter represent contractors in wide-ranging professions, including accountants, technologists and engineers, as well as the health industry and an association representing state legislators. In the letter, they state that the requirements in the bills carry “significant” privacy and data security risks.

“At a time when most states and businesses have worked together to implement stronger data protection standards, this legislation would undermine existing progress, raise costs, and needlessly expose public and private information to new threat vectors,” they wrote.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/policy/2019/03/contractors-and-advocacy-groups-push-back-state-efforts-mandate-surveillance-software/155818/

Fed watchdog wants DoD to have better insight into contractors’ safety records

By

The U.S. Government Accountability Office, a congressional “watchdog,” has issued recommendations to the U.S. Department of Labor’s OSHA and the Department of Defense aimed at helping them better track defense contractor safety violations. GAO was tasked with reviewing safety and health records of contractors and how they were handled by DoD, the largest contracting agency in the government, with $320 billion in contracts in 2017.

The GAO report noted that OSHA’s inspection data does not include a corporate identification number, which means “website users will likely have difficulty obtaining accurate information on individual companies’ previous violations,” such as whether the violations occurred on defense projects. DoD also may be missing opportunities to consider a company’s safety performance when awarding contracts, it continued, because only a few parts of the agency rate contractors in this category.

GAO recommends that OSHA consider requiring a corporate identification number as part of the information it collects during an inspection, and that DoD officials use OSHA’s website to find contractor safety information and consider requiring a safety performance rating for contractors engaging in construction and other risky types of work.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.constructiondive.com/news/fed-watchdog-wants-dod-to-have-better-insight-into-contractors-safety-reco/550792/

Contract appeals board recognizes that discovery may uncover new claims

By

In Amec Foster Wheeler Environment & Infrastructure, Inc. v. Department of the Interior, CBCA 5168 et al. (Feb. 27, 2019), the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (CBCA or Board) recently reiterated that a contractor need not assert every conceivable legal theory of relief as soon as it encounters an unforeseen condition on a construction project.

Rather, a contractor may later be able timely to assert additional claims under distinct theories based on operative facts learned during discovery. Apropos of recently celebrated St. Patrick’s Day, this case indicates that discovery may be the rainbow that leads a contractor to a bigger pot of gold, i.e., operative facts that permit assertion of more valuable claims based on alternative legal theories.

The Case

In 2011, the National Park Service awarded Amec a contract to repair parts of the Alcatraz Cellhouse in the historic prison on Alcatraz Island. In January 2016, Amec appealed a contracting officer’s decision denying an equitable adjustment and schedule extension under theories of constructive change and breach of the duty of good faith and fair dealing. The Board docketed that appeal as CBCA 5168.

During discovery, Amec decided to allege alternative grounds for relief. Indeed, in August 2018, Amec submitted a new claim for more money than it sought in the already docketed appeal — based on different operative facts and under the distinct theories of superior knowledge and negligent estimates. Amec appealed the denial of that second claim to the Board, which was docketed as CBCA 6298 and consolidated with CBCA 5168.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.insidegovernmentcontracts.com/2019/03/cbca-recognizes-that-discovery-may-uncover-new-claims/

Mass changes coming to all GSA Schedule contracts; webinar to be held on April 10

By

The General Services Administration (GSA) is planning to “refresh” all GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) solicitations and issue a mass modification to existing contracts in April.  The changes include:

  • Updating proposal instructions to require order status on GSA Advantage! Orders.
  • Updating proposal instructions related to Section 508 Standards and information.
  • Incorporating new Service Contract Act (SCA) Wage Determinations.
  • Updating AbilityOne “Essentially the Same” Proposal Instructions.
  • Incorporating minor updates from FAC 2019-01 (defining “recruitment fees” in relationship to Combating Trafficking in Persons rules), as applicable.

In addition, individual Schedules may be updated with additional clauses or provisions to make clarifications, administrative corrections, and other required changes.

GSA will issue a bilateral modification to apply the changes to existing MAS contracts.  Contractors will have 90 days to accept the mass modification.

Please see Draft Significant Changes document for more detailed information on the upcoming refresh.

Note: This is the final set of solicitation refreshes before GSA consolidates the 24 existing MAS solicitations into a single Schedule for products and services. To learn more about MAS Transformation, read GSA’s Nov. 27, 2018 press release.

Webinar Offered

Register now for GSA’s April 10, 2019 public webinar about upcoming changes to MAS solicitations. This webinar will be in a listen-only format with the ability for participants to ask questions via an online chat function.

●         Date: Wednesday April 10, 2019

●         Time:  1:00 pm – 2:00 pm Eastern Time

●         Registration Link

 

Former Army colonel pleads guilty to role in Fort Gordon fraud, kickback scheme

By

A former active-duty U.S. Army colonel has pled guilty to accepting bribes in return for helping steer military contracts to a business fraudulently claiming status as a small business.

Anthony R. Williams of Vienna, VA, pled guilty to Conspiracy to Commit Bribery and felony conflict of interest in U.S. District Court, said Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia.

Williams faces a sentence of up to five years in prison, and has agreed to forfeit more than $1.2 million in proceeds derived from the scheme.

According to court documents and evidence entered during court proceedings, Williams, while serving as a colonel in the U.S. Army, accepted bribes to steer federal procurement contracts to the CREC Group, a company owned by Calvin Devear Lawyer, a retired U.S. Army colonel. The CREC Group had received Small Business Administration (SBA) status as a small, disadvantaged business based on false representations from Lawyer and from Dwayne Oswald Fulton, then an employee of a defense contractor.

Lawyer previously pled guilty in the case and is serving a 60-month prison sentence, while co-conspirator, Anthony Roper, a former active duty U.S. Army colonel at Fort Gordon, also pled guilty and is serving a 60-month sentence.

The cases were investigated by the United States Army Criminal Investigations Division (CID), the Defense Criminal Investigative Service (DCIS), the Small Business Administration’s Office of Inspector General, and the United States Attorney’s Office.

Source: https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdga/pr/former-army-colonel-pleads-guilty-role-fort-gordon-fraud-kickback-scheme

Bribery, fraud indictment issued for $15 million in set-asides for disabled-veteran and other small businesses

By

Five men have been charged in a 71-count indictment with engaging in conspiracies to defraud several federal agencies by paying bribes and fraudulently obtaining at least $15 million in government contracts they were not entitled to though disabled-veteran set asides and other small business programs.

Indicted are: James A. Clark of Chipley, Florida, who owned several businesses, including Enola Contracting Services, Inc.; Eric L. Hogan of Bonaire, Georgia, who owned P&E Construction, LLC; Kenneth A. Latham of Albany, Georgia, who was employed by the U.S. Navy as a civilian engineering technician; James K. Alford, 55, of Bowling Green, Kentucky, who owned K&S Constructors, Inc., and Harvey Daniels, Jr. of Marianna, Florida, who owned HDJ Security, Inc.

The charges include conspiracy to commit honest services wire fraud, conspiracy to commit wire fraud, wire fraud, conspiracy to submit false claims, false claims and major fraud.

Construction projects detailed in the indictment include contracts at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia, the VA Medical Center in Louisville, Kentucky, and the NASA Plum Brook Station near Sandusky, Ohio.

According to the indictment:

  • Federal departments and agencies, as directed by Congress, work with the Small Business Administration to award portions of contracts to small businesses, with specific goals for small disadvantaged business, including service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses.
  • Businesses must register and meet a number of criteria to be classified as small disadvantaged business – also known as the 8(a) program – such as being at least 51 percent owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals. Businesses must also meet a number of criteria to be classified as a service-disabled veteran-owned small business, such as being at least 51 percent owned by a veteran with a service-connected disability who controls the management and daily operations of the company. Service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses are permitted to enter into joint ventures with other companies but must meet specific requirements to do so.
  • The defendants and others engaged in several criminal schemes designed to deprive the government of its right to honest services of its employees through bribes and kickbacks, and to submit false claims and defraud the United States by obtaining government contracts set aside for qualified companies to which they were otherwise ineligible to obtain by fraudulently using proxy and pass-through companies.
  • P&E, through Hogan and Clark, made false statements, misrepresentations and omissions of facts. Hogan on several occasions certified P&E was a service-disabled veteran-owned small business. It also registered as a joint venture with Enola, with Hogan listed as president and Clark as vice president of the joint venture. HDJ Security was enrolled in the 8(a) program. Daniels self-identified as the president of HDJ, the sole owner of the company and to be socially disadvantaged.

In one scheme, Latham accepted a series of bribes and kickbacks from Hogan and Clark – including cash, meals, a hunting trip,  a fence, and an all-terrain vehicle – in return for Latham using his official position with the Navy to benefit Hogan, Clark and their businesses. These benefits included assistance in finding and securing government contracts, approval of invoices for payments to pass-through companies used by Hogan and Clark to obtain set-aside contracts for which their companies were not otherwise eligible, and concealing Clark and Hogan’s use of pass-through companies to obtain bonding.

Another scheme involved defrauding the VA and the TK by fraudulently representing that P&E and Hogan independently qualified for the service-disabled veteran-owned small business program despite Clark’s involvement in providing bonding for and equity ownership in P&E.

Clark, Hogan, Alford, Daniels and others defrauded the government by using purported service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses and 8(a) businesses as proxies to bid on and obtain set-aside contracts.

Arrow Construction, which was registered in the 8(a) program, was awarded a $2.8 million contract for work at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia, in September 2011. Clark and Arrow officials Kent Reynolds and Jennifer Dillard agreed that about 90 percent of the value of the contract was passed through to Clark and Enola, in violation of the 8(a) program.

HDJ was awarded a contract for work at the Marine Corps Logistics Base in Albany, Georgia, in September 2012. HDJ was paid approximately $2.6 million. Clark, Hogan and Daniels agreed to pass through approximately 95 percent of the value of the contract to Clark, Hogan, Enola and P&E, in violation of the terms of the 8(a) program.

The VA in June 2011 awarded a contract to P&E Construction for work at the VA Medical Center in Louisville, Kentucky. The VA paid P&E approximately $4.5 million that the company would not have received if the VA knew P&E was acting as a pass-through for K&S and that it was back-bonded by Clark and Enola.

P&E submitted a winning bid in February 2013 for a contract for construction services at the NASA Plum Brook Station near Sandusky, Ohio. NASA paid P&E approximately $5.6 million that the company would not have received if NASA knew it was acting as a pass-through for K&S and that P&E was back-bonded by Clark and Enola.

If convicted, the defendants’ sentences will be determined by the Court after review of factors unique to this case, including the defendant’s prior criminal record, if any, the defendant’s role in the offense and the characteristics of the violation.  In all cases the sentence will not exceed the statutory maximum and in most cases it will be less than the maximum.

This case was investigated by National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s Office of Inspector General, the Defense Criminal Investigative Service, Naval Criminal Investigative Service, Department of Veterans Affairs’ Office of Inspector General, Small Business Administration’s Office of Inspector General, the Defense Contract Audit Agency, and the Air Force Office of Special Investigations.

Readers are reminded that an indictment is only a charge and is not evidence of guilt.  A defendant is entitled to a fair trial in which it will be the government’s burden to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.

GAO report calls for ‘enhanced information’ on DoD contractors’ safety records

By

Nearly 4 out of 5 Department of Defense manufacturing or construction contractors inspected by OSHA or state agencies over a recent five-year period were cited for at least one safety or health violation, according to a new report from the Government Accountability Office.

Researchers used federal data to examine previous safety and health violations of 192 selected companies with DoD contracts in fiscal year 2017, as well as how DoD and its components addressed contractor workplace safety and health during the acquisition process.

Of the 192 companies, 106 had been inspected by OSHA or state agencies between FYs 2013 and 2017. The inspections resulted in 83 being cited for at least one violation (78.3 percent) and 52 cited for at least one serious violation (49 percent). Three were cited for at least one repeat violation.

GAO concluded that OSHA “doesn’t collect data that could be used to match federal contracts with violations, so it’s not always possible to know whether the violations occurred on defense contracts. Also, oOD doesn’t always require contractors to be rated on safety.”

GAO made three recommendations to increase the use and availability of information regarding defense contract worker safety.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.safetyandhealthmagazine.com/articles/18144-gao-report-calls-for-enhanced-information-on-dod-contractors-safety-records

Federal contractor numbering system gets first new managing vendor after 20 years

By

A new vendor is taking over management of the vendor verification system run through the General Services Administration, ending a 20-year dynasty for the company that established the Data Universal Numbering System, or DUNS.

Through the Integrated Award Environment, GSA issues each vendor or organization that does business with the government a unique DUNS number. The system has been managed by Dun & Bradstreet since it was created in 1962 and the company has held the contract with GSA since DUNS became part of the Federal Acquisition Regulation in 1998.

After opening the contract to competitive bids last year, GSA announced Monday that a new vendor, Ernst & Young, would be taking over the entity validation system.

The new deal includes a one-year base period, with four one-year options, which, if exercised, would make the contract worth a total of $41.8 million.

With the introduction of a new vendor, GSA is taking the opportunity to reengineer the system. The DUNS number will be phased out over the coming months and replaced by the System for Award Management Managed Identifier, or SAMMI, number.

The standards for how that system will work are currently being hammered out by an interagency working group, a GSA spokesperson told Nextgov.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.nextgov.com/analytics-data/2019/03/federal-contractor-numbering-system-gets-first-new-managing-vendor-after-20-years/155678/

Contracting News

Read More

Contracting Tips

Read More

GTPAC News

Read More

Georgia Tech News

Read More