Public Contracting Institute Blog
The Public Contracting Institute blog supplement our govcon training offerings with insightful articles written by leading professionals across the government contracts industry. Our professionals publish articles on topics on government contracts administration, accounting, bids/proposals, disputes, claims, and much more. For more inforamation about our blog, reach out to seminars@publiccontractinginstitute.com.
Additionally, look for the PCI Practical Matters Podcast, coming soon! It will cover the latest news in our industry, along with insightful commentary on the most important topics in Government Contracting.
FAILURE TO PROSECUTE A CASE AT THE BOARDS
Both the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“ASBCA”) and the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (“CBCA”) have a failure to prosecute rule. Both are simple: if a party fails to file required documents, or take other required actions, the board may dismiss a...
PLAIN LANGUAGE DESCRIPTIONS (GOLD NUGGETS) A SNAP-SHOT SYNOPSIS FOR CONTRACTING PROFESSIONALS
Illustrations and Supporting Materials DESCRIBING YOUR “Need” The “Statement of Work”; “Performance Work Statement”; “Specification” whatever form selected for the description of the Government’s need, this document is the life force (heart-beat) of the FAR governed...
OFFER SUBMITTED IN NAME OF THE PRODUCT IS NONRESPONSIVE
Recently, in a small business set-aside, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) confirmed an agency’s finding that a protester’s quotation was nonresponsive because it was submitted in the name of the product, not the company’s name. Innovative Quality...
SOURCE SELECTION” AND “EVALUATION
Source Selection Decision Document | Source Selection Non-Cost Factor Rating Form Are FAR “source selection” procedures and “evaluation” procedures the same concepts? The selected acquisition procedure prescribes the fitting distinction. FAR Part 15 prescribes the...
PLAIN MEANING RULE
The Contract Disputes Act permits either the government (with the prior approval of the Attorney General) or the contractor to appeal the decision of a Board of Contract Appeals (41 U.S.C. §7107(a)). Appeals are taken to the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit. ...
TERMINATION FOR CAUSE OR DEFAULT ARE GOVERNMENT CLAIMS, NOT SUBJECT TO PRESENTMENT TO CONTRACTING OFFICER
By Richard D. Lieberman, Consultant Neither a termination for default, nor a termination for cause must be presented to the contracting officer (“CO”) prior to appealing to the Board of Contract Appeals or the Court of Federal Claims. SkyQuest Aviation, LLC, ASBCA...
UNLESS PROTESTER ASKS QUESTIONS IN EXTENDED DEBRIEF THE 5 DAY REQUIREMENT IN CICA APPLIES
By Richard D. Lieberman, Consultant A protester filed a bid protest on a Defense Department procurement at the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) six days after receiving a written debriefing. The GAO denied the stay as untimely, but the Court of Federal Claims...
TERMINATING AN AWARD IF A SIZE DETERMINATION FINDS AN AWARDEE “NOT SMALL”
By Richard D. Lieberman, Consultant Suppose a size determination ultimately finds a contractor is “not small” but the award has already been made? (This is a distinct possibility given the timing of size protests). What can the agency do at that time? Amaze Tech....
Did You Know? Fun with the FAR Session 12
By Brett Egusa, Senior Legal Editor at Thomson Reuters Today we learned that the Federal Government has many unique and flexible contracting methods that it can use to fulfill special procurement needs. Under FAR 17.1 and 17.2, for example, we learn that the...
CAN A REQUEST FOR EQUITABLE ADJUSTMENT BE CONSIDERED A CLAIM?
By Richard D. Lieberman, Consultant Readers of this blog understand that there can be a difference between a Request for Equitable Adjustment (“REA”) and a claim under the Contract Disputes Act (“CDA”). But there frequently are situations where a contractor submits...
