Made in America

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Just in time for the season of new backpacks, lunch boxes, and school supplies, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has assigned some homework to contractors looking to participate in Federal financial assistance programs for infrastructure. Consistent with its Build America, Buy America Act (BABA) mandates, on August 23, 2023, OMB published a Final Rule revising its Guidance for Grants and Agreements to implement BABA (Final Rule). This Final Rule follows the Proposed Rule of February 9, 2023 (Proposed Rule), which we previously discussed, in which OMB proposed creating a new part 184 in 2 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), and revising 2 CFR 200.322, Domestic preferences for procurements, to implement the requirements in Section 70914 of BABA. With the guidance becoming effective October 23, 2023, contractors should not put off studying these requirements if they want to be prepared for the BABA tests that will undoubtedly come as agencies begin to implement this guidance.Continue Reading Back to School: Time to Study the OMB Final Rule Implementing BABA

Approximately 15 months ago, on November 15, 2021, President Biden signed into law the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), commonly known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The IIJA is one of the Biden administration’s signature legislative achievements to date and provides $1.2 trillion in funding for a broad range of infrastructure projects. A key part of the IIJA is the Build America, Buy America (BABA) Act, which requires that the head of each covered federal agency ensure that “none of the federal funds made available for a Federal financial assistance program for infrastructure may be obligated for a project unless all of the iron, steel, manufactured products, and construction materials used in the project are produced in the United States.” BABA Act at § 70914. The BABA Act required agencies to implement these requirements by May 14, 2022; however, as that deadline came and went, contractors eagerly awaiting opportunities to build the nation’s infrastructure were left wondering how (and when) these requirements would be applied to affected projects.Continue Reading (No Longer) Building a Mystery—Biden Administration Issues Long-Awaited Guidance Implementing BABA Requirements for Infrastructure Projects

After 15 months of quarantines, restrictions, and mandatory home schooling, summer 2021 is luring with escape and excitement across the country.  We all hope for beach days and reunions with loved ones as we (hopefully) paddle toward normalcy once again. However, before setting up the “out-of-office” auto-replies and heading for the sand and surf, Government contractors interested in the implications of the Biden Administration’s January 25, 2021 Executive Order on Ensuring the Future Is Made in All of America by All of America’s Workers (EO) will want to take note of a June 11, 2021 Memorandum from the Office of Management and Budget on Increasing Opportunities for Domestic Sourcing and Reducing the Need for Waivers from Made in America Laws (Memorandum). This Memorandum outlines the wave of changes the Made In America Office (MIAO) is poised to make over the summer of 2021 as it begins to implement the mandates of the EO.
Continue Reading Catching Waves: OMB Issues New Implementation Guidance for Biden Administration Buy American Executive Order

On January 25, 2021, President Biden issued a sweeping Executive Order titled “Ensuring the Future Is Made in All of America by All of America’s Workers” (Order), which is intended to be the first step toward fulfilling his campaign promise to commit to American businesses by strengthening domestic preference rules in government procurement. The Order states the administration’s policy that the US government should “use terms and conditions of Federal financial assistance awards and Federal procurements to maximize the use of goods, products, and materials produced in, and services offered in, the United States.” While this is not a novel policy objective—indeed, the Trump administration articulated similar goals—the Order introduces certain dramatic steps in furtherance of that objective that may ultimately have significant implications for contractors.
Continue Reading Big Changes to Buy American—Biden Issues Broad Executive Order on the Future of Domestic Purchasing in Federal Procurement