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GAO Protest Further Delays Government Efforts to Clear Investigations Backlog

Client Alert | 1 min read | 04.04.17

Those hoping the Office of Personnel Management’s IDIQ contract for investigative services for the National Background Investigations Bureau will alleviate the investigations backlog for industry personnel with clearances through the Defense Security Service (DSS) will have to wait a few more months due to two GAO protests filed in February 2017, with a decision to be issued no later than May 24, 2017. The pending IDIQ contract is one of several measures the government has taken to ease the security investigations backlog, following a DSS announcement on January 6, 2017 that it would submit cleared contractor personnel with a TS (and other Tier 5) clearance for periodic reinvestigation every six years, versus the previous five-year standard. The policy extending the reinvestigation period in turn followed DoD guidance that eligible personnel should not be denied access based on an out-of-scope-investigation.

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Client Alert | 2 min read | 07.15.26

CMMC Phase II Suspension Requires Reconsideration of Such Requirements in Solicitations

As discussed in more detail here, the U.S. Department of War (DoW) recently issued a memorandum (Memo 26-P-1023, dated July 13, 2026) directing the immediate suspension of Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification (CMMC) Phase II requirements (Level I and II self assessments are still permitted). Significantly, the memo directs that “all pending and future CMMC implementation milestones across DoW solicitations and contracts are held in abeyance until further notice.” Moreover, the DoW issued a memorandum on implementing these requirements (available here), directing agencies to issue amendments removing CMMC Level 2 and 3 requirements from active solicitations “as soon as practicable.” Contractors should monitor the government’s compliance with this requirement and should be prepared, if needed, to file a bid protest to protect their rights....

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