Tag: Federal Acquisition Regulation

Webinar: Impacts on Government Contractors: 180 Days of the Trump Administration—Quick Hits on Executive Orders, Actions, and Policies

Blank Rome-Hosted Live Webinar
July 29, 2025
12:00–1:00 p.m. EDT | 9:00–10:00 a.m. PDT


Please join Blank Rome Government Contracts attorneys Justin A. Chiarodo, Dominique L. Casimir, Robyn N. Burrows, and Sara N. Gerber for this timely webinar with key updates for government contractors navigating the first 180 days of the Trump Administration, and the days ahead.

Topics include:

  • Civil rights enforcement / diversity, equity, and inclusion
  • Federal Acquisition Regulation update
  • Contract and grant terminations 

This session is part of Blank Rome’s summer live webinar series 180 Days of the Trump Administration—Quick Hits on Executive Orders, Actions, and Policies (ending on Wednesday, August, 13, 2025), where our interdisciplinary Trump Administration Resource Team is unpacking the most pressing legal, regulatory, and policy developments from the Trump administration’s first 180 days.

Click here to register for the July 29 government contractor session and for any future sessions: Summer 2025- Trump 180 Day Webinar Series | RSVP Blank.

You may also view any past sessions on demand here: On-Demand Webinar Series: 180 Days of the Trump Administration.

FAR on the Chopping Block: Potential Impacts on Protests

Elizabeth N. Jochum and Robyn N. Burrows ●

As those in the federal contracting community wait anxiously for rumored and hinted at changes to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”), we are beginning to evaluate how certain of those changes might most impact our clients. In the first of a series engaging in some mild—or wild, depending on your outlook—speculation about these potential changes, we take a look at how the removal of certain FAR requirements might impact bid protests.

One of the cardinal rules of bid protests is that protests not alleging solicitation improprieties must be filed no later than 10 days after the basis of protest is known or should have been known. 4 C.F.R. § 21.2(b). There is a key exception, however—for procurements under which a debriefing is requested. If requested, a debriefing is required, and the initial protest cannot be filed before the debriefing date offered and must be filed no later than 10 days after the debriefing concludes. In other words, a protester’s timeliness clock does not start ticking until the debriefing concludes.

Continue reading “FAR on the Chopping Block: Potential Impacts on Protests”

Deadline Looms for the Submission of Comments on FAR Council’s Proposed Rule Updating Federal Debarment Procedures


Dominique L. Casimir and Patrick F. Collins ●

Introduction

The United States spends hundreds of billions of dollars annually on government contracts, grants, and other forms of federal assistance. Although most entities that receive these awards are good business partners, the government must protect itself from those that lack integrity. One of the ways the government does this is by imposing suspension or debarment, which renders an entity broadly ineligible to receive federal awards for a specified period.

The suspension and debarment regulations at Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) Subpart 9.4 (which apply to procurement contracts) and at 2 C.F.R. Part 180, known as the Nonprocurement Common Rule (“NCR”) (which apply to nonprocurement transactions such as grants) have remained relatively unchanged for many years. But change may be on the horizon, as the FAR Council recently issued a proposed rule that aims to better harmonize the two regulatory regimes. The period for public comment closes on March 11, 2024—one week from today. Rulemaking is infrequent in this area, so the final rule will be highly anticipated.

Continue reading “Deadline Looms for the Submission of Comments on FAR Council’s Proposed Rule Updating Federal Debarment Procedures”

New DOD Class Deviation Changes Debriefing Process

Scott Arnold

The United States Department of Defense (“DOD”) has amended the process for debriefings required under Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”) 15.506 to allow for offeror questions related to the debriefing. Offerors are allowed up to two business days following a debriefing to submit written questions, and the agency has up to five business days after receipt of the questions to submit written responses. The agency must hold the debriefing open until it delivers its written responses to the disappointed offeror. The new process applies to all DOD debriefings required under FAR 15.506.

The purpose of this new rule implementing section 818 of the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act (“NDAA”) is to improve the quality of debriefings and reduce the number of situations where disappointed offerors feel compelled to protest because the information they receive in debriefings is insufficiently detailed to convince them that the selection decision was fair. More fulsome debriefings should allow offerors to make more informed decisions about whether to protest. Continue reading “New DOD Class Deviation Changes Debriefing Process”