Utilities React to Confusing Buy America Restrictions
Client Alert | 1 min read | 07.17.13
As a result of recent changes in the Moving Ahead for Progress in the 21st Century Act (MAP-21) and how those changes are being implemented by federal and state agencies, utilities are now facing expanded application of two longstanding, but different, Buy America provisions of the Federal Highway Administration and the Federal Transit Administration on the use of foreign iron, steel, and manufactured goods on relocation agreements with state agencies. Utility industry representatives have objected and requested that DOT clarify the requirements, establish consistent, DOT-wide Buy America provisions, and implement a transition period during which the restrictions would not apply, and CALTRANS, a California state agency, has sought a waiver for a significant project, prompting a spectrum of thoughtful comments.
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Client Alert | 2 min read | 12.19.25
GAO Cautions Agencies—Over-Redact at Your Own Peril
Bid protest practitioners in recent years have witnessed agencies’ increasing efforts to limit the production of documents and information in response to Government Accountability Office (GAO) bid protests—often will little pushback from GAO. This practice has underscored the notable difference in the scope of bid protest records before GAO versus the Court of Federal Claims. However, in Tiger Natural Gas, Inc., B-423744, Dec. 10, 2025, 2025 CPD ¶ __, GAO made clear that there are limits to the scope of redactions, and GAO will sustain a protest where there is insufficient evidence that the agency’s actions were reasonable.
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