If you have questions concerning the content below, please visit this link.
|
Upcoming Events: Register to attend PilieroMazza’s upcoming events here. Recent Thought Leadership: Check out PilieroMazza’s recent client alerts and blogs here. Podcasts: Listen to PilieroMazza’s podcasts GovCon Live! here, Clocking in with PilieroMazza here, and Ex Rel. Radio here. |
Trump’s Executive Order on IIJA and IRA Contracts: Maximizing Cost Recovery for Government Contractors, PilieroMazza Client Alert, Jessica A. duHoffmann, Lauren Brier, Jacqueline K. Unger, Aaron A. Kor
On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed an executive order entitled “Unleashing American Energy” (the Executive Order) aimed at reversing many of the Biden Administration’s clean energy and climate-related actions. The Executive Order will have significant impacts on many contracts (as well as grants, cooperative agreements, loans, and other awards) that are funded by either the Infrastructure Investments and Jobs Act of 2021 (IIJA) or the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA). Given the Executive Order and its wide-ranging impacts on federal, state, and local projects, PilieroMazza provides important steps for potentially affected contractors and other fund recipients to improve their ability to recover costs in the future, if necessary. Register here for our webinar “Government Contracts and New Mandates: Executive Orders and Cost Recovery Strategies Explained.” Read more here.
General Services Administration (GSA) Memorandum: Policy Statement Regarding Intent to Suspend Enforcement of Contractual DEI Terms in Existing Agreements
On January 22, GSA issued a memorandum and announced that it will, effective immediately, cease enforcement of contract clauses, provisions, terms, and conditions related to diversity, equity, and inclusion. Read more here.
Small Business Administration (SBA) Press Release: SBA Administrator Guzman Outlines New MySBA Digital Experience Transforming How Business Owners Interact with SBA
On January 17, SBA announced a new MySBA digital platform. After making improvements to MySBA Loans, MySBA Certifications, and MySBA Learning, the SBA is now moving toward a single sign-on MySBA platform that will deliver a seamless experience for users. Read more here.
Government Accountability Office (GAO) Press Release:
- Ongoing Weaknesses Prevent GAO from Providing Opinion on U.S. Government’s Financial Statements: On January 16, GAO announced that it was unable to provide an opinion on the reliability of the federal government’s consolidated financial statements for fiscal years 2024 and 2023. This year’s audit report stresses the need to address serious deficiencies in federal financial management and address the federal government’s unsustainable long-term fiscal path. Read more here.
- GAO Calls for Urgent Action to Address IT Acquisition and Management Challenges: On January 23, GAO announced that it issued a report identifying major challenges to federal IT acquisitions and management, as well as critical actions the government needs to take to implement effective and cost-efficient mission-critical IT systems and operations. Read more here.
Department of Defense (DOD) News Release: DOD Releases the Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 Strategic Management Plan: Annual Performance Report (APR)
On January 17, DOD announced the release of the FY 2024 APR, which reviews DOD’s progress in achieving its strategic priorities and objectives. Over the last two years, DOD Components have focused on aligning its strategic ends and resources. DOD believes it has improved oversight and governance mechanisms, streamlined processes, and championed a culture of proactive performance tracking and monitoring to inform executive decision-making. The result is enhanced accountability and visibility using authoritative data. Read more here.
Manhattan Institute Issue Brief: Reform Proposals for the National Institutes of Health (NIH)
On January 27, the Manhattan Institute released an issue brief to “reform” its interest in diversity and halt programs that “violate” the principles that promote diversity. NIH proposes six reforms: (1) rescind the notice of NIH’s interest in diversity and replace it with an interest in halting existing programs; (2) decentralize research on sex-related distress and treatment; (3) halt funding of research examining sex-trait modification procedures in pediatric populations and replace it with researching detransitions and medical “harm” resulting from transitions; (4) remove gender-affirming language; (5) stop cultural training; and (6) rescind guidance about working with LGBTQI participants for research. Read more here.
US Foreign Aid Freeze Is Upending Global Aid and the Work of Contractors, CNN
The extent of the impacts of the Trump administration’s sudden 90-day freeze of almost all foreign aid is still unclear almost a week on, as officials and aid workers overseas try to make sense of which activities must be suspended. The suspension of foreign aid was outlined in a diplomatic cable from Secretary of State Marco Rubio last Friday. Read more here.
VA to Nix $6.1M In Contracts Under Trump’s DEI Order, Law360
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs announced that it has placed dozens of employees on paid leave and will cancel $6.1 million worth of contracts as part of efforts to root out diversity, equity and inclusion activities. Read more here (subscription required).
White House Collects Lists of Federal DEI Office Employees as Punishments Begin, Government Executive
At least some federal agencies have placed their employees working on diversity and inclusion issues on paid administrative leave as the Trump administration is instructing them to begin the layoffs process immediately. Agencies are starting to take action against DEI-tasked employees and pass lists of those workers on to OPM and the White House. Read more here.
Small Vendors Set Records for Federal Procurement in Fiscal 2024, Bloomberg Government
Governmentwide small business procurement set new records in fiscal 2024, with the highest annual spending and largest share of federal procurement. Read more here (subscription required).
Memo Details DOD’s 10-Day Social-Media Pause, Defense One
Most Defense Department social-media accounts will stop posting from January 25 to February 3, according to a memorandum issued by the chief of staff to the defense secretary. The memorandum was released by a defense official one day after the news of the upcoming pause was reported. Read more here.
NSF and NIH Grant Reviews Still on Hold After White House Rescinds Memo, Inside Higher Ed
Trump reversed an order requiring federal agencies to freeze grants and loans, but programs at odds with his executive orders remain at risk of losing funding. Read more here (subscription required).
Upcoming Government Contract Presentations
TRAINING: Unlocking the Secrets of Debriefings, Government Evaluation of Proposals and Protests, February 5, 2025, Aaron A. Kor, Eric Valle
TRAINING: Joint Venture and Mentor-Protege Bidding Strategies, February 6, 2025, Peter B. Ford, Meghan F. Leemon
CONFERENCE: Meet the Experts: Joint Venture Bidding Strategies for 8(a) Firms, 02.11.25, Meghan F. Leemon
CONFERENCE: Meet the Experts: Mentor-Protégé Bidding Strategies for 8(a) Firms, 02.11.25, Meghan F. Leemon
PM WEBINAR: Government Contracts and New Mandates: Executive Orders and Cost Recovery Strategies Explained, February 12, 2025, Lauren Brier, Jacqueline K. Unger
CONFERENCE: Subcontracting Essentials for 8(a) Contractors, February 12, 2025, Isaias “Cy” Alba, IV, Nichole D. Atallah, Meghan F. Leemon
TRAINING: SBA Regulatory Updates, March 4, 2025, Isaias “Cy” Alba, IV
TRAINING: Unlocking the Secrets of Debriefings, Government Evaluation of Proposals and Protests
March 13, 2025, Katherine B. Burrows, Eric Valle
Executive Order Targets Affirmative Action Programs: New Compliance Requirements for Government Contractors, PilieroMazza Client Alert, Sarah L. Nash, Nichole D. Atallah, Sara N. Strosser
Just days into taking office, President Trump delivered on his campaign promises to dismantle DEI programs in federal agencies. On January 20 and 21, President Trump issued two such executive orders targeting DEI and affirmative action-based programs for agencies and government contractors. PilieroMazza previously wrote about Trump’s Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing Executive Order for contractors who may perform work on DEI contracts, available here . This article focuses on the Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity Executive Order (the Order). PilieroMazza reviews the Order’s requirements below and explains what steps contractors should take to avoid non-compliance. Read more here.
Trump’s Executive Order Shuts Down Federal DEI Programs: Key Steps for Federal Contractors to Improve Cost Recovery, PilieroMazza Client Alert, Lauren Brier, Sarah L. Nash
On January 20, 2025, President Trump signed the executive order, Ending Radical and Wasteful Government DEI Programs and Preferencing (DEI Executive Order), putting an end to diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) programs within the federal government. Given the DEI Executive Order and the potential impact it may have on current federal contracts, PilieroMazza put together the following key steps for federal contractors who received and/or expect to receive termination-related directives from their customers, as well as ways to improve their ability to recover costs. Read more here.
Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Final Rule: Prevailing Rate Systems; Change in Criteria for Defining Appropriated Fund
On January 21, OPM published a final rule to change the regulatory criteria used to define Federal Wage System (FWS) wage area boundaries and make changes in certain wage areas. The purpose of this change, which affects approximately ten percent of the FWS workforce, is to make the FWS wage area criteria more similar to the General Schedule (GS) locality pay area criteria. The rule is available here and will be effective October 1, 2025.
Department of Defense (DOD) News Release: DOD Talent Chief Aims to Reform Hiring to Attract Gen Z
At a recent panel discussion on government talent acquisition, Brynt Parmeter, the Defense Department’s chief talent management officer, underscored the urgent need to attract members of Generation Z to civilian defense careers. Read more here.
Upcoming Labor & Employment Presentations
CONFERENCE: Ins and Outs of the Service Contract Act for 8(a) Contractors, February 12, 2025, Nichole D. Atallah
SEMINAR: Key Labor & Employment Rules, February 25, 2025, Nichole D. Atallah
CONFERENCE: Navigating HR Laws in the DMV Area: Your Must-Have Cheat Sheet (For Federal Contractors & More), February 25, 2025, Sarah L. Nash
TRAINING: Labor Rules & Regulations: Federal Market Compliance, February 26, 2025, Sarah L. Nash
BUSINESS & TRANSACTIONS / CORPORATE & ORGANIZATIONAL GOVERNANCE / GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS
Corporate Transparency Act, Part 8: Supreme Court Weighs In; Voluntary Reporting Remains, PilieroMazza Client Alert, Meghan F. Leemon, Abigail “Abby” L. Baker, Cole R. Fox
On January 23, 2025, the U.S. Supreme Court stayed the preliminary injunction issued by the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas in Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc., which halted reporting under the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). However, a separate nationwide injunction issued in another CTA case remains in effect. Thus, the CTA’s reporting requirements are still not in effect, though voluntary reporting remains. Please visit this link to access Parts 1-7 in this series. Read more here.
Companies Prepare for ‘Avalanche’ of State Data Privacy Measures, Bloomberg Government
Differing requirements for how businesses collect and use consumer data are likely to expand this year through comprehensive privacy legislation filed in at least seven states. Read more here (subscription required).