Govconlaw Blog
SBA Merges Its Mentor-Protégé Programs and Makes Numerous Other Changes to the Small Business Program
By: Lori Lange
Published Date: October 22, 2020
Effective November 16, 2020, the Small Business Administration (SBA) will be merging the 8(a) Business Development Mentor-Protégé Program into the All Small Mentor-Protégé Program, resulting in numerous changes to the program that small businesses must be aware of. 85 FR 66146 (Oct. 16, 2020). Originally established in 1998, the 8(a) Mentor-Protégé Program incentivizes mentor companies to provide various types of [...] Read More
Contractors Need to Be Cautious in Taking Exceptions to Solicitation Terms
By: Lori Lange
Published Date: October 19, 2020
It is well established that a procuring agency may only accept an offer that conforms to the material terms of the solicitation. A solicitation term is material where it has more than a negligible impact on the price, quantity, quality, or delivery. Generally, the requirement to propose fixed prices is a material term. Where a solicitation requests proposals on a [...] Read More
Employers Beware: DOL May Debar More Employers Who Violate Foreign Labor Programs
By: Lori Lange
Published Date: October 12, 2020
Employers who use foreign labor should be aware that the Department of Labor (DOL) may be seeking to debar more persons who violate foreign labor programs in the near future. Recently, DOL's Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued a report criticizing DOL's debarment process for employers who commit visa program fraud and abuse. Although previous OIG investigations found that foreign labor [...] Read More
GAO Finds Brand Name Procurement Impermissible
By: Lori Lange
Published Date: October 8, 2020
Competition is a fundamental principle of federal procurements. The Government is not permitted to limit a procurement to brand name items unless the particular brand name product or service has a feature that is essential to the Government's requirements and the Government's market research indicates that other companies' similar products or services lack that essential feature, do not meet the agency's [...] Read More
DOL to Revise Interpretation of Who Is an Independent Contractor
By: Lori Lange
Published Date: October 5, 2020
The Department of Labor (DOL) recently published a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking on its decision to revise its interpretation of whether workers are employees or independent contractors under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA). 85 FR 60600 (Sep. 25, 2020). FLSA requires covered employers to pay their nonexempt employees at least the federal minimum wage for every hour worked and [...] Read More
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