Contracting
Lawmakers demand review of VA’s AI-driven contract cuts
Sens. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Angus King, I-Maine, said the use of AI to identify agency contracts for termination “adds an entire new level of unease connected to the decision-making, security, governance, and quality control of the entire process.”
Former USAID official, three contractors plead guilty in $550M bribery scheme
Their decades-long conspiracy involved rigged contracts, NBA tickets, mortgage payments, securities fraud and cash.
AI-driven contract cuts at VA spark concern
Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., the ranking member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee, said DOGE’s use of an AI tool resulted in the “wholesale slashing” of VA contracts.
Agencies’ effort to unwind project labor agreement requirements ‘flatly contradict’ order establishing them, judge says
The Trump administration had sought to neutralize a Biden-era executive order requiring contractors to negotiate with unions ahead of major construction projects with broad exceptions, something specifically barred by the underlying order.
Federal contract employees who alleged discrimination forced to wait as enforcement agency is dismantled
Layoffs are scheduled to take effect at the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs on June 6. Between the reduction in force and separation incentives, the agency’s workforce is expected to shrink by about 90%.
Trump administration releases first wave of acquisition regulation changes
This set of revisions would significantly shrink the Federal Acquisition Regulation, as well as empower contracting officers and acquisition teams to use their "business judgment" in pushing innovation.
‘Biohazard’: Forest Service employees warn cuts having devastating, and disgusting, impacts
DOGE is holding up contracts across government and it's affecting everything from firefighting to toilet cleaning.
The president’s procurement order offers a real opportunity. Let’s not squander it
COMMENTARY | Real change in government procurement can happen, but it’s going to require learning from lessons of the past.
Exclusive
Trump officials explain his plan to make government acquisition great, for once
COMMENTARY | Three senior Trump officials explain why revamping the Federal Acquisition Regulation, and the $1 trillion in government spending it governs each year, is now a top priority.
Trump orders major changes to rules covering $1T in federal spending
The Tuesday mandate — which aims to streamline the way government buys goods and services — was accompanied by a second order requiring agencies to predominantly use commercial products, rather than custom-built.
Federal contract oversight employees contemplate resignation offer, as agency faces layoffs and mission realignment
Employees at the Labor Department’s Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs had less than two weeks to decide whether to opt into the second round of the deferred resignation program.
DOGE guts HHS small business office
Only the Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization executive director remains to advocate for small businesses at the Department of Health and Human Services, which obligated $39 billion in contracts last year.
Featured eBooks
Agencies may have to pay more for late contractor invoices due to Trump payment system overhaul
Stakeholders warned that the late payment issue could prompt companies to avoid doing business with the federal government.
Musk visits and asserts growing influence at GSA
Musk has former employees installed at the government’s HR shop, and several have appeared at its acquisition, tech and real estate agency as well.
Breakneck pace of executive orders and lagging, unclear guidance leave contractors guessing
The Professional Services Council president and CEO said that contractors may not know the criteria spending programs are being reviewed under or who’s doing them while they wait.
Contractors face greater scrutiny from anti-DEI executive orders
President Trump’s actions come with enforcement provisions that encourage employees to report on their companies.
Trump’s proposed cuts to the federal workforce could increase dependency on contractors, experts say
Conversely, Trump’s advisory Department of Government Efficiency plans to push for decreasing spending on federal contracts.
Musk's government roles create 'clear avenues for serious conflicts of interest'
The SpaceX CEO, who leads a company with more than $10 billion in government contracts, is also the face of a new body aimed at getting rid of government waste.
Agencies expect small fiscal 2025 funding increases — at best
The Professional Services Council’s federal budget forecast predicts that fiscal 2025 appropriations will edge up slightly at best or face potential stinging GOP-led cuts.
Oversight of contract security guards at federal buildings is lacking, OIG says
In one notable example from a recent report, a guard at a federal facility told a visitor to place their firearm in a bush to access the building.
Industry execs weigh potential impacts of presidential transition
A group of senior leaders at government contractors outline the challenges and opportunities they see in a second Trump term.
