DCMA

The Inspector General (“IG”) of the Department of Defense issued a report on October 1, 2015, sharply criticizing the performance of Defense Contract Management Agency (“DCMA”) contracting officers.  In a sample of 21 business system deficiency reports (collected from the 164 reports filed between July 2012 and June 2013) the IG investigation found none that fully complied with DCMA’s obligations under the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement.  The overwhelming majority of the reports were deficient in multiple respects, and many of them were severely untimely.

Should government contractors celebrate this public admonishment from the IG?  Probably not.

Although the investigation alleges serious lapses in the timeliness and sufficiency of DCMA’s reports, it rests on the presumption that DCMA needs to be more aggressive in identifying and correcting deficiencies.  The report does not suggest, for example, that the DCMA’s delays result from overzealous investigations or excessive focus on insignificant concerns.  Instead, the report calls for reforms that would increase the incentives for DCMA contracting officers and Defense Contract Audit Agency (“DCAA”) auditors to take swift, aggressive action.    
Continue Reading Defense IG’s Criticism of DCMA Is Cold Comfort for Government Contractors

On July 15, 2014, the U.S. Department of Defense (“DOD”) issued a proposed rule that imposes new requirements for third-party audits of three contractor business systems, as well as a requirement for contractors to self-report deficiencies uncovered in these audits or in internal reviews of these business systems. The three business systems at issue are