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.
Agency Violations of the Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing
Two recent cases at the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“Board”) demonstrate the importance and reach of the covenant (implied duty) of good faith and fair dealing.” This duty has been described by the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit as follows:...
GAO: Agency Mistakes in Bid Protests
For nearly a century, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and its predecessor, the General Accounting Office, have provided an independent, impartial, and objective forum for bid protests on federal government solicitations and contracts. A bid protest is a...
Alleged “Final Contracting Officer Decision” Does Not Cure Absence of Required Certification
The Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals recently considered a contractor’s claim for $381,000 for the return of liquidated damages as well as a time extension. Areyana Group of Const. Co., ASBCA No. 60648, May 11, 2018. The Board held that even though a project...
ALLOWING ONLY 44 MINUTES TO RESPOND TO A SOLICITATION?
You may think that allowing offerors only 44 minutes to respond to a solicitation for quotations is too short a time, but the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) held that it was acceptable where emergency circumstances in connection with inclement weather...
One Year is the Deadline for Submitting Termination for Convenience Settlement Proposals
During the Civil War, at the famous Andersonville Prison, on the inside of the stockade and twenty feet from it, there was a deadline established, over which no prisoner was allowed to go, day or night, under penalty of being shot. By the 1900s, the word “deadline”...
FINAL DECISION MUST SOLELY ASSERT FRAUD TO DEFEAT BOARD JURISDICTION
The Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals refused to dismiss appeals for lack of jurisdiction where the government had argued that the final decisions of the contracting officer were invalid because the decision’s basis for denying the claims purportedly was a...
WHEN SHOULD THE GOVERNMENT BE REQUIRED TO FILE A COMPLAINT AT THE BOARDS OF CONTRACT APPEALS?
The rules of the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals (“ASBCA”) and the Civilian Board of Contract Appeals (“CBCA”) require that within 30 days after the docketing of an appeal, the appellant [contractor] must file a complaint setting forth its claims in simple,...
WHEN WILL BOARDS HAVE JURISDICTION TO ADJUDICATE MATTERS THAT RELATE TO SERVICE CONTRACT ACT ISSUES?
There is an interesting question of whether or not the Boards of Contract Appeals (as opposed to the Department of Labor, or DOL) have jurisdiction over certain matters involving the Service Contract Act, 41 U.S.C. Chapter 67. A recent case, Alcazar Trades, Inc., CBCA...
UNTIMELY CLAIMS: EQUITABLE TOLLING OR EXCUSABLE NEGLECT?
A recent Armed Services Board Case gave some insight on the 6-year statute of limitations for filing claims under the Contract Disputes Act (“CDA”), explaining the circumstances under which equitable tolling could operate to extend the 6 years. Unfortunately, it did...
WHEN IS A TASK ORDER OUT OF SCOPE?
Two recent Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) bid protest decisions are interesting because in both cases, the GAO held that a task order issued by the agency was outside the scope of either the underlying Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (“IDIQ”)...