Overhead Pool Flunks "Homogeneity" Test Absent "Benefit" To The Government
Client Alert | 1 min read | 02.23.06
In AM General LLC (Feb. 2, 2006) the ASBCA decided that a contract awarded pursuant to a partial waiver of the Truth in Negotiations Act was nevertheless fully covered by the requirements of the Cost Accounting Standards and that the contractor's creation of a single overhead pool combining military and commercial production was, in the context of that case, a violation of the homogeneity requirements of CAS 418 on the ground that the military business did not "benefit" from the costs of a facility housing only commercial production activities. Subsequent changes to the regulations have reduced risk that a contractor might be exempt from TINA and not from CAS, but the board's conclusion on the meaning of "homogeneous" cost pools is inconsistent with both the text and the drafting history of CAS 418 and could create significant issues for many contractors.
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Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.21.25
On November 7, 2025, in Thornton v. National Academy of Sciences, No. 25-cv-2155, 2025 WL 3123732 (D.D.C. Nov. 7, 2025), the District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a False Claims Act (FCA) retaliation complaint on the basis that the plaintiff’s allegations that he was fired after blowing the whistle on purported illegally discriminatory use of federal funding was not sufficient to support his FCA claim. This case appears to be one of the first filed, and subsequently dismissed, following Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s announcement of the creation of the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative on May 19, 2025, which “strongly encourages” private individuals to file lawsuits under the FCA relating to purportedly discriminatory and illegal use of federal funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in violation of Executive Order 14173, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (Jan. 21, 2025). In this case, the court dismissed the FCA retaliation claim and rejected the argument that an organization could violate the FCA merely by “engaging in discriminatory conduct while conducting a federally funded study.” The analysis in Thornton could be a sign of how forthcoming arguments of retaliation based on reporting allegedly fraudulent DEI activity will be analyzed in the future.
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.20.25
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.20.25
Client Alert | 6 min read | 11.19.25
