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Flawed Discussions Nixes Award

Client Alert | less than 1 min read | 06.11.12

In KPMG LLP (May 21, 2012), GAO sustained a challenge to CIA's conduct of discussions, finding the agency misleadingly informed KPMG that proposals should include resumes for all proposed personnel, yet the awardee proposed – and CIA accepted – only representative resumes, which allowed the awardee to offer a lower cost. GAO also found CIA's cost realism evaluation inadequate, stressing that CIA's evaluation documentation reflected "no meaningful consideration" of whether cost reductions associated with the awardee’s technical approach would actually occur.

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Client Alert | 1 min read | 04.18.24

GSA Clarifies Permissibility of Upfront Payments for Software-as-a-Service Offerings

On March 15, 2024, the General Services Administration (GSA) issued Acquisition Letter MV-2024-01 providing guidance to GSA contracting officers on the use of upfront payments for acquisitions of cloud-based Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).  Specifically, this acquisition letter clarifies that despite statutory prohibitions against the use of “advance” payments outside of narrowly-prescribed circumstances, upfront payments for SaaS licenses do not constitute an “advance” payment subject to these restrictions when made under the following conditions:...