On May 14, the President issued an Executive Order (EO) delegating funding and loan authority under Title III of the Defense Production Act (DPA) to the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to support domestic production of strategic resources to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak and strengthen domestic supply chains. The DFC’s loan authority
Coronavirus Update: FEMA to Release New Emergency Management Priorities and Allocation System to Govern FEMA DPA Title I Activities
On May 13, 2020, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will publish an interim final rule establishing the Emergency Management Priorities and Allocation System (EMPAS) pursuant to Title I of the Defense Production Act (DPA). As drafted, EMPAS will apply beyond the current COVID-19 context and will become part of the Federal Priority and Allocations
Coronavirus Update: DPA Authority Delegated to Department of Agriculture to Combat Food Supply Chain Threat
On April 28, the President signed an Executive Order on Delegating Authority Under the DPA with Respect to Food Supply Chain Resources During the National Emergency Caused by the Outbreak of COVID-19. The new EO delegates to the Department of Agriculture (“the Department”) Defense Production Act (DPA) Title I priorities and allocation authority with
COVID-19 Effects on Cleared Contractors
On March 30, 2020, the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency (DCSA) published COVID-19 NISP Guidance to describe for cleared industry how DCSA will conduct its oversight mission during the pandemic. That guidance includes, among other things:
- DCSA has suspended all enhanced security vulnerability assessments (ESVA) and other on-site activities. DCSA Industrial Security Representatives (ISR) will
Follow Up: White House Issues Order under Defense Production Act as Part of COVID Response
On March 23, 2020, the President signed an “Executive Order on Preventing Hoarding of Health and Medical Resources to Respond to the Spread of COVID-19” delegating additional authorities under the Defense Production Act of 1950 (“DPA”), which builds on Executive Order (EO) No. 13909, issued March 18, 2020, which we discussed here.
White House Issues Order under Defense Production Act as Part of COVID Response
On March 18, 2020, President Trump significantly expanded the authority delegated to the Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) in his “Executive Order on Prioritizing and Allocating Health and Medical Resources to Respond to the Spread of Covid-19.” The Order is based on a finding that, “to ensure that our healthcare system
So Little Time — Challenging Insufficient Proposal Revision Response Times
In a prior alert, we discussed the recently published decision in MCR Fed., LLC, B-416654.2, Dec. 18, 2018 where GAO held that the agency failed to provide the protester with a sufficient amount of time to submit its final proposal revisions. That decision was noteworthy because GAO rarely finds even very short response times
Recent GAO Decision Permits One-sided Discussions as Agency Corrective Action
In a prior alert, we highlighted the unusual remedy ordered in Caddell Construction Co. v. U.S., in which the Court of Federal Claims nullified the award of a construction contract and ordered the agency to reopen discussions with only one firm. The court explained that the unusual remedy was appropriate because misleading discussions had
Section 809 Panel Proposes Significant Curtailing of Pre-Award and GAO/COFC Protest Process for Commercial-Item Acquisitions
Much that has been written about the bid protest reforms in the Section 809 Panel’s final report has focused on Recommendations 66-69, which expressly address (and propose changes to) the protest process at the U.S. Government Accountability Office (“GAO”) and the Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”). But the 809 Panel’s most impactful recommended changes to
All Things Protest: Classified Edition
Crowell & Moring’s “All Things Protest” podcast keeps you up to date on major trends in bid protest litigation, key developments in high-profile cases, and best practices in state and federal procurement. In this episode, host Rob Sneckenberg interviews Senior Counsel Mark Ries about the nuanced procedural and substantive considerations for protests involving classified information.