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.
Fun with the DFARS Parts 219, 222, & 223
The first part of Subpart 219.2 can function as a guide for small businesses working on DoD contracts for what they should expect the contracting agency to do, since it contains the standards to which the contracting agency will be held. DFARS 219.201. Because of the...
Fun with the DFARS Parts 216, 217, & 218
If a contractor and contracting officer wish to use a cost-plus-award-fee contract, they must refer to DFARS Part 216.405-2 and PGI 216.405-2. In the wake of allegations of contractors being paid unearned award fees, contractors must be particularly careful to follow...
Fun with the DFARS Part 215
Per DFARS Subpart 215.371-2, contracting officers must promote competition, especially in the context of receipt of only one offer. However, even if more than one offer is received, the prices offered are not automatically fair or reasonable. Thus, contracting...
CLAIM DOES NOT ACCRUE UNTIL “SUM CERTAIN” IS KNOWN BY CONTRACTOR
The Federal Circuit recently clarified that a contractor’s claim does not accrue until the exact amount (“sum certain”) of the claim is known to the contractor. Kellogg Brown & Root Serv., Inc. v. Murphy, No. 2015-1148 (Fed. Cir. May 18, 2016), 2016 WL 2893218....
FAILURE TO ACKNOWLEDGE A MATERIAL AMENDMENT-WHAT IS MATERIAL, AND HOW DO I MAKE NO MISTAKES?
For as long as this writer can remember, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) has hewed to a hard and fast rule about amendments to solicitations: an offeror’s failure to acknowledge a material amendment makes the proposal (or bid) unacceptable and the...
Fun with the FAR Parts 36, 37, 41, & 48
1. Contracting officers are required to procure architect-engineer services under FAR Part 15 negotiation procedures. FAR 36.103. 2. Contracts for the construction of a project shall not be awarded to the firm that designed the project, or to that firm’s subsidiaries...
Fun with the FAR Parts 34 & 35
1. The stages of a FAR Part 34 -Major System Acquisition are: Concept Formulation Demonstration & Validation Full-Scale Development Production FAR 34.005-3, -4, -5, and -6. 2. EVMS reports must be submitted by contractors on a monthly basis. FAR 34.201(c). 3. During...
Fun with the FAR Part 33
1. For purposes of FAR Part 33, the word “day” means “calendar day”. FAR 33.101. 2. An offeror can file a contract award protest at one of three venues: the agency that issued the solicitation, the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) or the U.S. Court of Federal...
ONCE AGAIN: RECURRING AGENCY MISTAKES IN DISCUSSIONS
A recent blog identified “Six Recurring Agency Mistakes in Discussions.” One of the frequently repeated mistakes (conducting unequal discussions) was again repeated in a recently sustained Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) protest decision, Deloitte Consulting,...
THE FAR UNBALANCING ACT
The Government Accountability Office (GAO) has considered numerous protests alleging that an offeror’s bid was “unbalanced.” Only a small number of these protests have been sustained. In Al-Tahouna Al-Ahliah Gen. Trading & Contracting Co, WLL, et al, B-412769 et...
