Thursday, May 31, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 30 & 31, 2012

Happy Thursday! Today, a special double edition of Daily Intel bringing you news you may have missed from yesterday and today. 

NextGov: Budget and Staff Pressures are Reshaping the Federal Cybersecurity Market

Politico: Cyberthreats turn into megabucks for defense companies

Bloomberg Government: September Spending Spree Takes on New Urgency: BGOV Insight (subscription required) http://bit.ly/JTCewr

CNN: Defense official says automatic cuts will cause 'absurdities'

Bloomberg Government: Pay Pushing $1 Million at U.S.-Funded Groups Spurs Call for Caps (subscription required) http://bit.ly/MbSaz6





Tuesday, May 29, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 29, 2012


Happy Tuesday! In today's news...

Fox Business: Are 2013 Budget Cuts Hurting Business? 

Washington Post: The high cost of savings

Washington Post: Contractors air concerns about hiring proposal

Federal Times: DoD's contract audit agency hobbled by backlog

Wall Street Journal: Afghan Dam Saga Reflects U.S. Travails

Friday, May 25, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 25, 2012


Happy Friday! In today's news...

Federal News Radio: Senate confirms wave of DoD nominees, new OFPP administrator
http://bit.ly/KoEXiu

Defense News: Think Tank Calls for Major U.S. Defense Reductions
http://bit.ly/Lv1eJ1

Washington Post: Investigators want explanation of alleged overbilling in Afghanistan
http://wapo.st/Kg4NXf              

FCW: Bills would establish higher small-biz contracting goals
http://bit.ly/JyajBK

DoDBuzz: Senate leader ‘not backing off’ sequestration
http://bit.ly/KoF4dX

Thursday, May 24, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 24, 2012


In today's news...

Washington Post: John F. Sopko, veteran investigator, nominated to fill Afghanistan special inspector general post

The Hill: Pentagon worried about fake weapons parts from overseas

Washington Technology: Budget uncertainty puts damper on contractor stocks

AOL Government: VanRoekel Argues For Government's Mobile Opportunity

Federal Times: Survey: Feds see short-term goals as barrier to sustainability efforts



Wednesday, May 23, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 23, 2012


Happy Wednesday! In today's news...

NPR/Morning Edition: Afghan Public Protection Force Replaces Contractors

Federal News Radio: Buying commercial in DoD: Pentagon struggles to stay away from customization

Washington Business Journal: Small businesses with outside investors could qualify for set-aside federal research funds

FCW: OMB's digital strategy expected imminently

Government Executive: Agencies told to assume the worst in budget requests

Federal Times: Sharing IT gets more attractive as budgets shrink


Tuesday, May 22, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 22, 2012


After a brief hiatus, we're back with your rundown of news you can use about the government contracting industry. 

Washington Times: Defense contractors eye cuts to jobs, plants 

Washington Post: Doubling direct foreign aid could bite U.S. vendors

Defense News: Dispute Brews Over Changes to Commercial Acquisition Process

Federal News Radio: OMB directs agencies to cut 5 percent from 2014 budgets

Washington Post: Tension is common in federal employee-contractor relationships | #FedBuzz

Federal News Radio: House OKs $642 billion defense bill

Friday, May 18, 2012

Contractors Feel the Fiscal Pinch


In recent weeks, there has been a cry from some on the Hill and from some federal employee unions that government contractors aren’t suffering enough in the current fiscal austerity environment. They point to federal government pay and hiring freezes as examples of the unfairness. But this rhetoric ignores basic facts about the contractors’ lot

In a recent column in BNA’s Federal Contracts Report, PSC Vice President of Government Relations Roger Jordan details exactly how government contractors have felt the pinch of the government's austerity budgets. Jordon concludes that, as a result of direct government actions to reduce federal spending on services contracts, “contractors have already borne a far greater brunt of the [austerity] reductions than has the federal workforce, and all indications are that this will continue to be the case.”

Read Jordan's column, reproduced with BNA’s permission, here

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 18, 2012

Happy Friday! Before heading off to enjoy the weekend, check out today's news.

Washington Post: Feds, contractors face challenges

Federal News Radio: Budget official picked for top cybersecurity post

Bloomberg Government: General Dynamics Jobs Growth Bucks Defense Trend: BGOV Barometer
http://bit.ly/JlBDb2 (subscription required)

Federal News Radio: SBA issues proposed rules for small-biz participation in multiple-award contracts

Federal News Radio: OMB begins to clarify industry's role in shared services

FCW: Head of VA Acquisition Academy to step down


Thursday, May 17, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 17, 2012

In today's news...

Government Executive: Obama procurement chief nominee clears Senate panel

FCW: VA's Frye stirs debate with reverse auction explanation

Washington Post: White House’s cybersecurity official retiring

Washington Business Journal: Defense authorization bill could bar private security contractors from Afghanistan

Wednesday, May 16, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 16, 2012


In today's news...

Washington Business Journal: Central Contractor Registration system to shut down May 23

Washington Business Journal: White House opposes measure to up small business contracting goals

FCW: Defense bill could alter approach to suspension and debarment

Associated Press (via Federal News Radio): White House threatens veto of House defense bill http://bit.ly/J8f4p3

Foreign Policy: Flournoy: Defense sequestration won’t be solved until after election

Reuters: Senate committee approves seven Pentagon nominees

FCW: DOD’s proposed acquisition rule changes faltering in Congress

Federal News Radio: Big Data creates big challenges for agencies

Bloomberg Government (via Federal News Radio): Big MACs: Fixed Price Deals Lag

Tuesday, May 15, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 15, 2012


Happy Tuesday! In today's news...

Washington Post: Taxmageddon sparks rising anxiety

Federal News Radio: CIO Council prepares new talent pool for IT hiring 

FCW: Expert: New travel, conference limits may threaten transparency

AFP: Pentagon defends Afghan local police program

Government Executive: State Department denies negative report on Iraq police training

Washington Business Journal: Feds trim wait time for security clearances

FCW: GSA unveils list of FedRAMP third-party assessment organizations


Monday, May 14, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 14, 2012


After a brief hiatus, we’re back with all the news you can use about the federal government and its procurement system. 


Washington Post: Pentagon to expand cybersecurity program for defense contractors

Washington Technology: Defense bill brings insights to insourcing

Federal News Radio: House drops DoD request to change definition of commercial products

Federal Times: Amid veto threat, House passes spending bill

Federal Times: Agencies press vendors to cut prices - or else 

AoL Government: Testimony Points To Innovation As Remedy To Tech Challenges

Government Executive: OMB instructs agencies to further cut travel and conferences

Washington Post: Minority contracts fall for first time in decade


Wednesday, May 9, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 9, 2012


In today's news...

Federal Times: New rule would protect jobs of many contractor employees 

FCW: DOD could lose funding over service contract inventories

FCW: Defense Authorization begins its long journey through the House

FCW: Defense bill would boost small business contracting goal

The Hill: GOP lawmakers split as House votes down $1.4B in spending cuts

Government Executive: Cabinet secretaries jab the media and Congress

Tuesday, May 8, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 8, 2012



In today's news...

Washington Post: Republicans seek to add more in defense spending

CQ: Defense Authorization Provision Would Prohibit Use of Afghan Contractors to Protect U.S. Troops
http://bit.ly/JtTmrT (subscription required)

CQ: House GOP’s Plan to Avert ‘Sequester’ Takes Step Forward 
http://bit.ly/IICf9E (subscription required)

Daily Caller: Government ‘insourcing’ is financially and ethically wrong

Federal News Radio: Defense bill lets feds in national security jobs rotate between agencies

AOL Government: Cybersecurity: Top Secret System Compromised

Monday, May 7, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 7, 2012



Happy Monday! In today's news...

Federal News Radio: OFPP dispels 8 more agency, vendor communications myths

Washington Times: Defense budget casualties light on civilian side

Federal News Radio: Army tries to improve and cut back on service contracting

FCW: DOD looks to enterprise IT strategy for savings and efficiency
Related: FCW: By the numbers: Defense IT spending

Washington Post: ‘Sammie’ award finalists named from federal workforce

Federal Times: Civilian workforce critical to Army's success

Friday, May 4, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 4, 2012


Happy Friday! In today's news...

New York Times: U.S. Study Cites Worries on Readiness for Cyberattacks http://nyti.ms/IJnjZy

FCW: Crafting better jobs for young contracting professionals http://bit.ly/L6xC9v

FCW: OMB to unveil new digital, future-ready roadmap http://bit.ly/KzR5ec

Federal Contracts Report: GSA Proposes Rule on Nondisplacement Of Workers Under Federal Service Contracts http://bit.ly/J7a16W (subscription required)
Related: Federal Register: Federal Acquisition Regulation; Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts http://1.usa.gov/IJZaAX
Federal News Radio: Senate Dems. call for service-contracting cap, but industry cries foul


Thursday, May 3, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 3, 2012



Everyday SmartContracting brings you the news intel you may have missed regarding our industry.  In today's news...

Federal News Radio: Sequestration would mean 12.1 percent cut to agency spending

Government Executive: Air Force chief talks of shrinking budgets, post-Iraq exhaustion


Federal News Radio: DoD, DHS officials keep pressure on Congress for new cyber laws

OMB Blog: Introducing the IT Shared Services Strategy

Washington Post: Defense procurement problems won’t go away

Washington Technology: Congress wants contractor cuts along with workforce caps 






Wednesday, May 2, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 2, 2012


Everyday SmartContracting brings you the news intel you may have missed regarding our industry.  In today's news...

Federal Times: Senators call for contractor cuts to match DoD workforce cuts 
         
Federal News Radio: DoD calls off annual procurement conference

GovExec: Obama seeks to harmonize international regulations

BGov: House Cybersecurity Bill Lacks Proper Incentives: BGOV Insight (subscription required)

CQ: Van Hollen Doesn’t Expect Deal on Budget, Taxes Before Lame Duck ( subscription required )

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

SmartContracting Daily Intel for May 1, 2012


Everyday SmartContracting brings you the news intel you may have missed regarding our industry.  In today's news...

Defense News: DoD Seeks New Commercial Buying Rules

Federal Times: News Digest: Industry group opposes new research center 

FCW: Industry wants agencies in control, not mandates 

New York Times: Agency Scandal Highlights Conference Contracts

Federal News Radio: FAA's low marks cast more doubt on 'NextGen': BGOV Insight