TechWonk Blog Subsection
TechWonk Blog
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A Series Examining the Implications of the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulation Reform Effort Federal acquisitions of commercial technologies are frequently criticized as being slower, more complicated, and more costly than similar acquisitions in the private sector. The recent Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Overhaul (RFO) attempts to tackle these longstanding criticisms by reducing [...]
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The longest government shutdown in U.S. history has ended. Full or even partial government 鈥渟hutdowns鈥� can impact agency missions and the delivery of efficient and reliable government services. A lapse in appropriations can impact government acquisitions through delays, project disruptions, and staffing challenges. As government agencies reopen, acquisition professionals will likely spend the coming [...]
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A Series Examining the Implications of the U.S. Federal Acquisition Regulation Reform Effort The U.S. government鈥檚 monumental effort to overhaul the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 鈥� the playbook for how the government buys goods and services 鈥� is coming to a close. Soon, the Federal Acquisition Regulatory (FAR) Council will publish the results of its months-long effort to reduce existing regulations [...]
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41 years old. 2,600+ pages. 53 Parts. What do these numbers have in common? They all describe the current Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), the comprehensive regulatory framework used by the U.S. government to buy goods, services, and solutions. The FAR, combined with individual agency supplemental regulations, policies, and procedures, reflects a decades-old corpus of statutory requirements, standardized [...]
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Section 5949 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2023 represents one of the most comprehensive supply chain restrictions applied to U.S. government contracts. This section prohibits the government from directly buying or using semiconductors鈥攚hich are necessary to power everything from computers to cars鈥攆rom certain Chinese companies (and potentially other yet-to-be-named [...]
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On October 23, the Biden Administration鈥檚 final guidance on applying Build America, Buy America requirements for infrastructure projects that receive federal financial assistance will go into effect. These rules aim to clarify what makes a U.S.-made product for the purposes of participating in the administration鈥檚 ambitious infrastructure agenda 鈥� an agenda that includes significant investments the [...]
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The U.S. federal policy landscape has become increasingly intertwined with the products and services the U.S. government needs to operate. Today鈥檚 federal contracting officers must specialize in negotiating contract terms and conditions, but also award contracts that facilitate important socioeconomic, cybersecurity, public health, sustainability, and other government-wide policy priorities. While [...]
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Federal contractors play a vital role in ensuring the U.S. government has access to the innovative technology solutions necessary for mission performance. So do those who serve as federal contracting officers within agencies. The acquisition of today鈥檚 modern products and services鈥攅specially complex information technology solutions鈥攔equires highly sophisticated and well-trained teams with superior [...]
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Building on the Supreme Court鈥檚 historic decision to protect LGBTQ+ workers in the federal workplace and President Biden鈥檚 recent Executive Order expanding on those protections, those of us in the tech industry and the larger tech community are more committed than ever to continuing to fight for equity in the workplace. From advocating for passage of the Equality Act to implementing much-needed reforms [...]
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In the early months of the Biden Administration, the federal government contracting world has received significant attention. While it is generally well-known that the government uses private sector contracts for innovative products and services, federal contracts are now being used as the catalyst to drive important policy changes in areas including racial equity, climate change, and most recently, [...]