Department of Defense

Massachusetts aims to be the “cornerstone of the defense industry,” with Governor Maura Healey announcing nearly $47 million in government funding for defense-related projects.  Last year, the Department of Defense ranked Massachusetts ninth out of the top ten states in total Defense spending in FY2023, and the state is aiming…

Continue Reading Massachusetts Seeks to Expand Defense Footprint with Nearly $47 Million in New Projects

This is the seventh blog in a series of Covington blogs on cybersecurity policies, executive orders (“EOs”), and other actions of the Trump Administration.  The sixth blog is available here and our initial blog is available here.  This blog describes key cybersecurity developments that took place in August, September…

Continue Reading August, September, and October 2025 Cybersecurity Developments Under the Trump Administration

Now that the final Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Program and Procurement Rules have been issued by the Department of War (DoW) (see our CMMC Toolkit for in-depth analysis of these Rules) and the CMMC Program is set to begin in earnest, there is some uncertainty in industry as to…

Continue Reading How Will DoW Determine Which Level of CMMC Applies to My Agreement?

This blog post discusses the Department of Defense’s (“DoD”) new cybersecurity rule that imposes certain cybersecurity requirements on relevant DoD contractors and subcontractors. The post will be of interest to all DoD contractors, subcontractors, and possibly affiliates of contractors that may be impacted by the new rule’s cybersecurity requirements.

On…

Continue Reading Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Program Procurement Final Rule Announced

This is part of an ongoing series of Covington blogs on the AI policies, executive orders, and other actions of the Trump Administration.  This blog describes AI actions taken by the Trump Administration in July 2025, and prior articles in this series are available here.

White House Issues AI…

Continue Reading July 2025 AI Developments Under the Trump Administration

The Defense Production Act (DPA) has long been viewed as the primary federal mechanism for managing and supporting defense production.  Since it was enacted in September 1950—just months after the Korean War began—the DPA has armed the President with wartime-style powers to prioritize contracts, allocate scarce materials, and finance surge defense production capacity.  These DPA industrial authorities are subject to periodic reauthorization, with the current sunset set for September 30, 2025.  While the reauthorization of the DPA remains pending, the Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) has advanced a new NDAA provision that would convert the extant Industrial Base Fund (IBF) (10 U.S.C. section 4817) into a Pentagon-controlled toolkit that closely mirrors—but is not identical to—DPA’s Title III authorities.  The introduction of section 849A of the FY 2026 NDAA suggests that the SASC is no longer willing to entrust the re-armament of the Pentagon and revitalization of the Defense Industrial Base (DIB) solely to reauthorization of the DPA—a process that lives or dies in other committees’ jurisdictions. Continue Reading Forging a Modern Strategic Production Base:  Senate Proposes Stand-Alone Defense-Production Powers for the Pentagon

On July 23, the White House released its AI Action Plan, outlining the key priorities of the Trump Administration’s AI policy agenda.  In parallel, President Trump signed three AI executive orders directing the Executive Branch to implement the AI Action Plan’s policies on “Preventing Woke AI in…

Continue Reading Trump Administration Issues AI Action Plan and Series of AI Executive Orders

The Department of Defense (“DOD”) is responsible for almost half of the federal government’s discretionary spending and spends more on contracting than all other federal agencies combined, obligating about $445 billion in fiscal year 2024. Given the renewed focus on fraud detection and prevention across the U.S. government – as highlighted both by the efforts of the Department of Government Efficiency (“DOGE”) and by recent congressional committee hearings focused on reducing waste, fraud, and abuse – the issue of fraud in DOD has become increasingly relevant.

On June 4, 2025, the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform’s Subcommittee on Government Operations held a hearing titled “Safeguarding Procurement: Examining Fraud Risk Management in the Department of Defense,” during which congressional members examined strategies to combat fraud in DOD – including procurement fraud – and the steps the department is taking to address the problem.Continue Reading Fraud Prevention in Focus: Examining DOD’s Risk Management Strategies

As part of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (“OBBBA”) signed into law by the President on July 4th, Congress made approximately $150 billion in appropriations to support defense and national security priorities.  As detailed further below, OBBBA touches on many different defense industries and sectors—including the maritime industry, missile systems, space and satellite technologies, nuclear technologies, and artificial intelligence and other advanced technologies.  Further, the OBBBA appropriates significant funding to support strategic investments in the defense industrial base and provides the Department of Defense (“DoD”) with an extended timeline (until 2029) to execute these investments.  Existing government contractors, and advanced technology providers interested in becoming contractors, should closely monitor the implementation of these OBBBA provisions, which will shape DoD opportunities for years to come.Continue Reading One Big Beautiful Bill Act makes $150B investment in Defense

The Trump Administration continues to focus on procurement reform aimed at increasing acquisition efficiency, including through the “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul” and reinforced preference for commercial products. Now, with the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) introducing a defense procurement reform bill, it is clear that HASC leadership is also targeting increased efficiency as a key goal of the Fiscal Year 2026 National Defense Authorization Act (FY26 NDAA). We cover the bill’s key proposals and their potential impact on defense contractors below.Continue Reading SPEEDing up Procurement?: House Armed Services Bill Seeks to Reform Defense Acquisition