You are reading the November 2024 Update of the Bass, Berry & Sims Enforcement Roundup, where we bring notable enforcement actions, policy changes, interesting news articles, and a bit of our insight to your inbox.
Continue Reading International Trade Enforcement Roundup – November 2024
On November 5, the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit held that the president lacks the authority under the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act (FPASA or Act) to impose a $15 minimum wage on federal contractors and remanded the case to the district court to reconsider in light of the Ninth Circuit’s decision. For decades administrations have used FPASA to implement social policy under the guise of government procurement rules, and courts have typically upheld these actions.
Continue Reading Ninth Circuit Deflates Contractor Minimum Wage MandateI’m excited to kick off the American Conference Institute’s 14th Annual Advanced Forum on Global Export Controls with a pre-conference workshop on February 24, 2025, from 1:30–5:00 PM. Together with Sarah York, Senior Counsel for International Trade Compliance at GE Aerospace, I’ll lead Workshop B – An Updated Roadmap on Making High Stakes, Time-Sensitive Decisions.
This interactive, small-group session will tackle critical compliance challenges, including:
Continue Reading Join Us for a Pre-Conference Workshop at the Global Export Controls ForumSpace has become central to protecting U.S. national security interests as Americans increasingly rely on space-based services to support everyday life. As a result, the U.S. government has bolstered investment in the space sector creating a wealth of opportunities for contractors. For example, the U.S. Department of Defense’s (DoD) budget request for fiscal year 2025 is seeking $33.7 billion for space programs.
Continue Reading “Small” Space Companies: Growth Comes at a CostJoin me on December 3 for a webinar where I’ll dive into why small GovCon businesses with set-aside designations could be particularly attractive for acquisition in 2025. If you’re looking to enter the full and open market, acquiring a set-aside company may be a strategic path to hitting that elusive $100 million revenue target before selling.
Continue Reading Register Now | Small Businesses as Inorganic Growth Targets WebinarAfter numerous fits and starts, on October 14, the Department of Defense (DoD) published a final rule implementing the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) program. Borne from documented deficiencies in the implementation of DoD-mandated security controls throughout the defense supply chain, the new CMMC program is a verification requirement to ensure contractors are complying with cybersecurity requirements at FAR 52.204-21, DFARS 252.204-7012, and DFARS 252.204-7020. Importantly, beginning in 2025 DoD RFPs will mandate the CMMC level contractors must meet in order to be eligible for award.
Continue Reading DoD Announces Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification 2.0 Final Rule (Finally!)
You are reading the October 2024 Update of the Bass, Berry & Sims Enforcement Roundup, where we bring notable enforcement actions, policy changes, interesting news articles, and a bit of our insight to your inbox.
Continue Reading International Trade Enforcement Roundup – October 2024
Join us for a webinar on navigating the DoD’s new CMMC compliance requirements, implementation timeline, and key cybersecurity controls contractors need to meet eligibility for contract awards.
Continue Reading Webinar | CMMC is Here (Finally!): What Contractors Should Know
As we detailed in a previous blog, on October 3, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a strategic plan to “safeguard[] the integrity of HHS grants and contracts.” The plan comes after the HHS-OIG found “gaps in HHS oversight of grants and contracts—gaps that allow HHS funds to be misspent, programs to fall short of their promise, and people to be put at risk.”
Continue Reading HHS-OIG Set To Intensify Scrutiny of Grants and Contract Compliance: How to PrepareOn October 3, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a strategic plan for improving oversight of public grants and contracts “to strengthen compliance with HHS award requirements; promote award practices that achieve program outcomes; and mitigate fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement.” This comes as grant fraud related to awards by HHS and other agencies routinely makes the news. For example, in July Janet Mello was sentenced to 15 years in prison for stealing over $100 million from a U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)/Department of Defense (DoD) grant program aimed at helping military families. Similarly, fraud stemming from the Paycheck Protection Act has been dubbed the “biggest fraud in a generation.”
Continue Reading HHS’ Office of Inspector General Announces New Strategic Plan: What Contractors Should Know