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GAO Takes Exception to Agency’s Rejection of Bid Under Buy American Act

Client Alert | 1 min read | 09.13.18

In Addison Construction Company, GAO sustained a protest challenging the Department of Energy’s (DOE) rejection as nonresponsive of a bid that sought an exception to Buy American Act (the Act) requirements without providing certain information called for by FAR 52.225-9 and 52.225-10 (the clauses relevant to the exception request). While GAO acknowledged that the protester failed to provide certain required information, GAO nonetheless held that DOE could not simply reject the bid. Instead, because the protester provided sufficient information for DOE to understand the basis for the request, and because the omission of the information provided the protestor with no competitive advantage, GAO held that DOE was required to investigate whether an exception was appropriate. While the decision appears to flip the obligation that offerors submit well-written complete proposals, the decision is limited to the Act itself and the clauses at issue, which GAO held do not “require[] an agency to reject a bid as nonresponsive” in the face of missing information. As such, protestors should take heed that this case about exceptions to the rule represents the exception, not the rule.

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Client Alert | 3 min read | 09.13.24

SEC Disbands its Climate and ESG Enforcement Task Force

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has reportedly recently dissolved its Climate and ESG Enforcement Task Force (the Task Force). The Task Force was part of SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s broader push to increase investors’ access to environmental, social, and governance (“ESG”) information about public companies and registered investment companies. The dissolution of the Climate and ESG Enforcement Task Force comes after three years marked by industry resistance and a mixed record in the courts. Prior to the Task Force’s dissolution, the agency removed ESG from its annual Examination Priorities Report, which provides areas of particular focus during SEC examinations. While the Task Force has been dissolved, the SEC is still pursuing a number of its proposed ESG and climate-related rules....