COVID-19

As a result of novel Coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) and COVID-19, federal and state governments have a sudden and unanticipated need for more goods and services.  Some of those goods and services are highly specialized and specific to Coronavirus and COVID-19.  But governments also have an increased and urgent need to buy otherwise-routine goods and services that have become newly critical in the wake of COVID-19.

All of this means that there are and will be procurements where speed is the priority, and where there is no time for the normal pace and cadence of the procurement process and contract formation.  It also means that resources necessarily will get taken away from routine procurement tasks and reallocated to urgent matters.

Here are a few things to watch for:Continue Reading The Likely Effects of COVID-19 on Contract Awards and Contract Formation

On March 13, the President declared a national emergency in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.  Doing so activated the authorities available to the President under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. §§ 5121-5207 (the “Stafford Act”) to provide federal assistance to state and local governments responding to the emergency, including financial assistance.

The federal assistance is coordinated and provided through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (“FEMA”) under the National Response Framework.  Although the Stafford Act generally does not make funding directly available to private businesses, a large portion of the nearly $50 billion that the President said will be available to FEMA may be used to procure goods and services from contractors assisting the relief effort.Continue Reading State of Emergency: COVID-19, the Stafford Act, and What It All Means for Contractors

As federal agencies adjust their worksites to the realities of the COVID-19 pandemic, these changes will likely have a direct impact on government contractors and their employees who work at those sites.  If the government closes or reduces operations at a site, a contractor may be forced to furlough or reduce the hours of employees.  Some reduction actions could result in an employee who was exempt from overtime payments under the Fair Labor Standards Act (“FLSA”) being reclassified as non-exempt, which would require the employer to pay the employee overtime wages, with negative long-term repercussions.

An employee may volunteer to reduce her salary for any period of time without any FLSA consequences so long as her decision is completely voluntary.  To the extent the employer must impose involuntary reductions on an exempt employee, the following options are available that should not result in the employee being reclassified as non-exempt under FLSA:Continue Reading FLSA Considerations In Response to Government COVID-19-Related Directions

As the fallout from COVID-19 continues, federal contractors in every industry are seeing significant impacts on their ability to perform, ranging from scheduling delays to supply chain interruptions and increased costs of performance.  We previously addressed the rules and regulations governing excusable delays, which permit a contractor to avoid default if a failure to perform arises from causes beyond its control.  This next post addresses key FAR provisions that may entitle a contractor to a price adjustment or other recovery due to changes in contract requirements as a result of the pandemic.
Continue Reading Can I Recover the Added Costs of Work Caused by COVID-19?