Payments | The Contracting Education Academy

October 8, 2018 By AMK

Facing industry pressure, Pentagon backs off contract payment changes

Following a wave of criticism from the defense industry and members of Congress, the Pentagon on Monday backed off proposed changes to how companies receive cash flow on their contracts.

In a statement released at the unusual time of 7:19 PM, Deputy Secretary of Defense Patrick Shanahan said the decision to withdraw the proposed acquisition changes stemmed from a lack of “coordination” inside the department.

“Recently, proposed amendments to the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) were prematurely released, absent full coordination,” Shanahan’s statement read. “As a result, the Department will rescind the proposed amendments. In coordination with industry, the Department will create a revised rule to implement section 831 of the FY2017 NDAA.”

“The department will continue to partner closely with Congress and industry to examine all reform opportunities, ensuring we provide the best value to taxpayers and critical capabilities to military personnel who defend this great Nation,” Shanahan said.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.defensenews.com/pentagon/2018/10/02/facing-industry-pressure-pentagon-backs-off-contract-payment-changes/

December 16, 2013 By AMK

HHS chief seeks investigation into Affordable Health Care website contracts

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Tuesday asked the department’s inspector general to investigate the contracting process behind the government’s botched rollout of the online health insurance exchange in October.

In a letter to Inspector General Daniel Levinson, Sebelius said it’s critical to understand the factors that contributed to the failed launch of HealthCare.gov. “I am requesting that your office undertake a review of the work of our contractors, and the management of and payments to those contractors, in the development of HealthCare.gov,” she wrote.

Specifically, she requested an investigation of the acquisition process; contractor selection and project management; contractor performance and monitoring; and payments to contractors throughout the process.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.nextgov.com/health/2013/12/hhs-chief-seeks-investigation-obamacare-website-contracts/75326

November 15, 2013 By AMK

Poor contracting practices cited at Bureau of Land Management

A government employee who stepped into a contractor’s role is among the targets of a report criticizing contracting practices at the Bureau of Land Management.

The Interior Department office of inspector general says in a recently-released report, dated Sept. 30, that a BLM project officer placed a request to modify a contract, “in effect, representing the contractor.”

The project officer and the contracting officer involved had to be counseled on proper contracting practices, the report says. At the time of the report, the BLM was finalizing guidelines to outline the responsibilities and limitations of contracting officers and project officers.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.fiercegovernment.com/story/poor-contracting-practices-blm/2013-10-29?utm_medium=nl&utm_source=internal

A copy of the Interior Department’s IG report is at: http://www.doi.gov/oig/reports/upload/C-EV-BLM-0007-2011Public.pdf

September 20, 2011 By AMK

Obama wants small businesses paid in 15 days

The government will be paying some small businesses in half the time under a new proposal by President Barack Obama.

Obama announced his new “QuickPay” plan on Sept. 14. It requires agencies to cut checks in 15 days, instead of 30 days, after they receive a valid invoice. The 15-day payments apply only to prime contractors.

“Today I’m ordering all federal agencies to make sure those small-business owners get paid a lot faster than they do now. In many cases, it will be twice as fast. So that puts more money in their pockets quicker, which means they can hire folks quicker,” Obama said Sept. 14 in Raleigh, N.C.

The plan goes into effect immediately.

The administration decided getting cash to companies is necessary in these economic times and moved the payment deadline under the Prompt Payments Act, Jacob Lew, director of the Office of Management and Budget, wrote in a memo released Sept. 14.

“When small contractors get their money in 15 days instead of 30, it results in a permanent infusion of cash flow into their businesses,” Small Business Administration Administrator Karen Mills said in a statement. “Their financial footing gets stronger — permanently.”

Lew is also telling agency officials that by November, they must tell OMB officials when they began paying small businesses in 15 days and the name of the federal official responsible for it.

The government awards nearly $100 billion annually in federal contracts to small firms, and sending money out quickly would help those companies in tough times, officials said.

Rep. Sam Graves (R-Mo.), chairman of the House Small Business Committee, applauded the president’s new plan.

“Small businesses bring more competition and reduced prices to federal contracting, so we should make sure the federal government pays them in a timely manner, especially considering most of them are operating on tight profit margins and trying to do more with less,” he said.

On Sept. 8, Obama said the government could help struggling small-business contractors by sending payments more quickly.

Joe Jordan, associate administrator of government contracting and business development at the SBA, said the 15-day mark benefits small businesses the most while not forcing agencies to change or modify their automated systems or processes.

“It really has a great confidence component,” he said.

“By taking actions that will enable these payments to be made as promptly as possible, we will improve cash flow for small businesses and provide them with a more predictable stream of resources,” Jeffrey Zients, chief performance officer and deputy director for management at OMB, wrote in a new post on OMB’s blog.

About the Author: Matthew Weigelt is a senior writer covering acquisition and procurement for Washington Technology. Published Sept. 14, 2010 at http://washingtontechnology.com/articles/2011/09/14/small-business-15-days-paid.aspx?s=wtdaily_150911

Following a wave of criticism from the defense industry and members of Congress, the Pentagon on Monday backed off proposed changes to how companies receive cash flow on their contracts.

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