What you need to know as DOD ramps up procurement fraud investigations

Source: WashingtonTech

Fraud, waste and abuse risks are making headlines again in Department of Defense contracting. On Sept. 20, 2021, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) released its report “DOD Fraud Risk Management: Actions Needed to Enhance Department-Wide Approach, Focusing on Procurement Fraud Risks” (GAO-21-309) to congressional committees. To summarize, GAO concluded that DOD needed to take additional actions to enhance its approach to procurement fraud risks. However, considering the publicity the report is generating on Capitol Hill, this report may have implications well beyond the specific recommendations presented.

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Biden Administration Announces More Actions to Help Small Businesses Win Contracts

Source: GOVEXEC

The White House announced on Thursday more actions to help small businesses get involved with federal contracting, particularly by increasing agencies’ accountability and transparency.

President Biden announced in June he seeks to double the share of contracts that go to small, disadvantaged businesses by fiscal 2025 as part of his administration’s goal to narrow the racial wealth gap. Also on November 18, the administration released an outline of its president’s management agenda that prioritizes creating more opportunities for underserved entrepreneurs and all businesses in the federal marketplace. The new actions build on these initiatives.

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Federal Contractors Vaccine Mandate: What Government Contractors Need to Know

Source: JDSUPRA

The implementation of President Biden’s September 9, 2021 Executive Order regarding COVID-19 vaccine and safe workplace requirements for federal contractors has caused confusion and prompted numerous questions from federal contractors and their employees. The FAR Council and the Safer Federal Workforce Task Force continue to roll out additional guidance on the new vaccine mandate and related class deviations, which government contractors and subcontractors must follow closely so they can prepare their own workplace procedures to ensure timely and ongoing compliance. These compliance requirements include, but are not limited to, the current requirement to have all covered contractor employees fully vaccinated by January 18, 2022.

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