President Trump has issued two new Executive Orders (“EOs”) that seek to reshape federal procurement. The much anticipated “Restoring Common Sense To Federal Procurement” EO (the “FAR Reform EO”) seeks to “create the most agile, effective, and efficient procurement system possible” by revising the Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR”)
Continue Reading Trump Administration Issues Two Executive Orders Seeking To Remake Federal Procurement
Trump Administration Issues Executive Order Aimed At Modernizing Defense Acquisitions And Spurring Innovation
On April 9, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order (“EO”), “Modernizing Defense Acquisitions and Spurring Innovation In the Defense Industrial Base,” that may have significant implications for federal government contractors doing business with the Department of Defense (“DoD”), and particularly those with touchpoints to Major Defense Acquisition Programs (“MDAPs”).Continue Reading Trump Administration Issues Executive Order Aimed At Modernizing Defense Acquisitions And Spurring Innovation
Renewed Effort to Support Commercial Shipbuilding Capacity and the Domestic Maritime Industry
On April 9th, President Trump issued the Restoring America’s Maritime Dominance Executive Order (“Maritime EO”), which declares that “[i]t is the policy of the United States to revitalize and rebuild domestic maritime industries and workforce to promote national security and economic prosperity.” The Maritime EO aims to improve the nation’s commercial shipbuilding capacity and bolster the maritime workforce. The four corners of the Maritime EO primarily take two key steps—(1) directing the National Security Adviser to prepare a Maritime Action Plan (“MAP”) to revitalize domestic maritime industries and (2) imposing a series of trade-related measures to bolster domestic shipping. The Fact Sheet accompanying the Maritime EO further notes that President Trump has established a new Office of Maritime and Industrial Capacity at the National Security Council, which presumably will help coordinate implementation of the Maritime EO.
While much remains to be seen on how the Maritime EO will be implemented, it is clear that the Trump administration intends to take a multifaceted approach to supporting the domestic maritime industry. In this regard, the EO tracks and builds upon the SHIPS for America Act of 2024 (“SHIPS Act”), proposed legislation that garnered broad bipartisan support last year after its initial introduction in Congress. The SHIPS Act was co-sponsored by then-Rep. Michael Waltz, who as the current National Security Adviser has principal responsibility for managing the development of the MAP that forms the backbone for the EO and its policy objectives. Especially in light of the legislative momentum in this area, we expect that this initial action and any subsequent executive and legislative actions will be of significant interest to a wide range of U.S. businesses, including ship builders and their suppliers.Continue Reading Renewed Effort to Support Commercial Shipbuilding Capacity and the Domestic Maritime Industry
New Executive Actions Address the Defense Acquisition System, U.S. Maritime Industries, Foreign Military Sales, and “Unlawful” Regulations
President Trump issued a series of executive orders (“EOs”) and presidential memoranda on Wednesday, April 9, that could impact government contractors across a broad range of industries. Among other initiatives, these executive actions seek to reform the defense acquisition system, reinvigorate the U.S. maritime industry, and streamline foreign military sales. The actions also reflect President Trump’s goal of catalyzing innovation and economic growth by reducing regulatory burdens, both in general and in the energy industry specifically.
We briefly summarize below the six April 9 executive actions most likely to impact government contractors.Continue Reading New Executive Actions Address the Defense Acquisition System, U.S. Maritime Industries, Foreign Military Sales, and “Unlawful” Regulations
New Executive Order Targets Reforms to Foreign Military Sales
On April 9th, President Trump signed an Executive Order titled “Reforming Foreign Defense Sales To Improve Speed And Accountability” (“the FMS EO”). The FMS EO directs the Departments of Defense and State to reform the foreign defense sales system with the goal of “simultaneously strengthen[ing] the security capabilities of our allies and invigorat[ing] our own defense industrial base.”
The EO’s policy goals likely will receive bi-partisan support, as both the Biden administration and the first Trump administration oversaw record transfers of U.S. defense articles and services to foreign allies. Indeed, the FMS EO comes just a few months after the Department of State reported that the final year of the Biden administration saw the “highest ever annual total of sales and assistance provided to our allies and partners,” with a total value of $117.9 billion in sales under the Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program, a 45.7% increase from FY 2023. Moreover, many of the policy goals align generally with recommendations the House Foreign Affairs Committee’s TIGER Task Force issued last year.
On the other hand, the FMS EO would reduce Congressional review and export restrictions on the transfer of certain sensitive defense articles, expand the ability of foreign allies to procure defense items directly from U.S. contractors through direct commercial contracts, and place a new emphasis on cost and burden-sharing by allies. These measures are more likely to encounter resistance. Continue Reading New Executive Order Targets Reforms to Foreign Military Sales
Trump Administration Issues Executive Orders that Seek to Shape CHIPS Program and Promote Domestic Mineral Production
President Trump recently issued two separate Executive Orders (EOs) that will have implications for how federal agencies seek to promote the administration’s goal of attracting domestic and foreign investment to industrial projects in the United States, with particular implications for the semiconductor and critical minerals industries.
- An EO on March 31st establishes an “Investment Accelerator” office within the Department of Commerce that will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the CHIPS Program—including the negotiation of agreements under the CHIPS Act. This office will also provide technical and regulatory support for investors, and seek to facilitate research collaborations between private industry and national labs.
- An earlier EO issued on March 20th seeks to mobilize federal lending and leasing authorities at the Department of Defense (DoD), the U.S. International Development Finance Corporation (DFC), and other federal agencies to support the development of domestic critical mineral projects. Per an accompanying fact sheet, the White House is taking a broad interpretation of covered minerals under this March 20th Order and will seek to include materials such as coal.
Both EOs are notable efforts by the White House to align federal spending and financial assistance programs with the Trump Administration’s priorities, which have variously included calls to promote self-sufficiency in critical materials and promoting “energy independence” and “energy dominance.” These efforts come against a backdrop under which the Administration is also pursuing the use of tariffs to promote U.S. manufacturing, and taking steps to review and in some cases modify or terminate infrastructure or energy-related grants from the Biden-era. More details are provided below. Continue Reading Trump Administration Issues Executive Orders that Seek to Shape CHIPS Program and Promote Domestic Mineral Production
DoD’s Office of Strategic Capital Reports Significant Interest in Domestic Manufacturing Loan Program
On April 1, the Office of Strategic Capital (OSC) announced that it received more than 200 applications, totaling over $8.9 billion in financing requests, across 38 states for the inaugural solicitation under OSC’s Domestic Manufacturing Loan Program. As covered in a prior post, under the Notice of Funding Availability (NOFA) released last fall, OSC plans to loan up to $984 million to eligible companies to expand the U.S. industrial base, with individual loans ranging between $10 million to $150 million. These OSC loans will support advanced manufacturing, cybersecurity, decision science, edge computing, mesh networks, microelectronics, solar, and quantum computing technologies, and eligible investments must have both a defense and a commercial application. Continue Reading DoD’s Office of Strategic Capital Reports Significant Interest in Domestic Manufacturing Loan Program