On September 24, 1965, President Lydon Johnson signed Executive Order 11246, prohibiting employment discrimination by federal contractors and subcontractors based on race, color, sex or national origin, and mandating that contractors undertake affirmative action programs.[i] That Executive Order was modified by President Obama in 2014 to add sexual orientation and gender identity to the list […]
... On September 24, 1965, President Lydon Johnson signed Executive Order 11246, prohibiting employment discrimination by federal contractors and subcontractors based on race, color, sex or national origin, and mandating that contractors undertake affirmative action programs.[i] That Executive Order was modified...
On June 2, 2025, the Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”) issued a notable decision in Telesto Group, LLC v. United States, clarifying when the Court has jurisdiction to hear bid protests involving the Department of Defense’s (“DoD”) use of Other...
AI continues to be the hottest buzzword in government contracting. As Lotus wrote last month, the Trump administration published new guidance on AI acquisition and disclosure for federal agencies. AI acquisition continues to develop in new and interesting ways. It...
Hello everyone, so far Canada (where I was born) is not the 51st state. In other news: GSA Consolidation Executive Order 14240 mandates that GSA submit a plan today, June 18, 2025, to centralize procurement of common goods, services and...
The Directorate of Defense Trade Controls (DDTC) under the Department of State (DoS) and the Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) under the Department of Commerce (DoC) have consistently encouraged companies to submit voluntary self-disclosures to mitigate export control violations....
On April 15, 2025, President Trump issued Executive Order 14275, “Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement.”[i] The Order directs the FAR Council to reduce the size of the FAR by eliminating non-statutory requirements but also maintain the basic necessities for...
The rules surrounding government agency use of artificial intelligence (“AI”) have changed. On April 3rd, 2025, in accordance with President Trump’s January 23rd Executive Order regarding AI, the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) issued M-25-21 and M-25-22, reshaping how...
On May 9th, President Trump issued an executive order titled “Fighting Overcriminalization in Federal Regulations.” Some numbers cited in executive order: The Code of Federal Regulations contains over 48,000 sections, stretching over 175,000 pages, and by some estimates contained hundreds...
There is a new DOGE chief in Washington DC, and he has his sights on the Pentagon. His name is Russell Vought. Vought is the director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB). During his confirmation hearing, he repeatedly...
The American Iron and Steel requirements, initially enacted through the 2014 Consolidated Appropriations Act, requires assistance recipients to use iron and steel products produced in the United States for the construction, alteration, maintenance, or repair of a public water system...
