Acquisition
Rule would make using SmartBuy mandatory
If approved, the rule would require contracting officers to seek out software or software services through a SmartBuy agreement, provided that it represents the best value.
Acquisition
Aronie: The danger of discounts
Contractors should think before discounting their schedule prices on blanket purchase agreements
Acquisition
FCW Forum: Too many contractors?
Over-reliance on contractors threatens to erode institutional knowledge, readers say.
Acquisition
Letter: Don't make gender a contracting issue
Giving women business owners special breaks is reverse discrimination, a reader says.
Acquisition
Legislation: Give service-disabled business owners priority
The House passed a bill that would also help women business owners secure government contracts.
Acquisition
New protests stall FedBizOpps
Losing vendors repeat the claim that GSA continues to be wrong in evaluating bids.
Acquisition
Congress looks for price fix
Lawmakers want to curb use of time-and-materials contracts by Defense Department.
Acquisition
Web extra: Waxman on competition in federal contracting
Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, talked about the state of competition in federal contracting in an e-mail interview with Federal Computer Week reporter Matthew Weigelt.FCW: Describe the state of competition in contracting today. Are you concerned?Waxman: I am very concerned about the state of competition in contracting today. Full and open competition has declined sharply under the Bush administration. Between 2000 and 2006, the dollar value of…
Acquisition
As population grows, Texas city readies tech infrastructure
Bee Cave plans to install a Gigabit Ethernet network, a document management system and a backup plan built around a virtual tape library.
Acquisition
Speedy interagency contracts face possible new restrictions
Proposed acquisition rules could make interagency contracts less attractive
Acquisition
Kelman: Inconvenient truths
Getting a demoralized contracting community back on track is possible with good leadership
Acquisition
GSA, Army sign enterprise license deals for IT asset management
Agencies buying asset management software could save more than 50 percent off GSA schedule prices.
Acquisition
Industry to evaluate GSA's grasp on info protection services
The agency wants to put individual services, such as credit monitoring and independent risk analysis, into one contract.
Acquisition
Bush: Provisions in small-biz bill 'constitutionally suspect'
The legislation would allow agencies to confine competition for some contracts to women business owners in male-dominated industries, and it would raise the net worth business owners can have and still be eligible for the 8(a) program.
Acquisition
Acquisition reform proves slow-going, panelists say
The current political environment makes agency officials wary of trying innovative contracting methods, according to a panel at the Executive Leadership Conference.
Acquisition
Grassley: Sun controversy a sign of deeper contracting problems
GSA officials take issue with the senator's perspective, saying the now-expired contract with Sun was "not the example of contracting irregularities that some have hoped."
Acquisition