The False Claims Act is the government's primary tool for redressing fraud against the United States. A party violates the Act when they knowingly submit a false claim for payment to the government. If a party is found to have violated the False Claims Act, they could be liable for significant treble damages and civil fines. Needless to say, government contractors, who regularly submit claims for payment to the government, must keep up with False Claims Act trends.

In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Tirzah Lollar and Christian Sheehan of Arnold & Porter examine recent False Claims Act developments. They discuss how the Trump Administration has impacted False Claims Act enforcement, a recent constitutional challenge to the Act's qui tam provision, and they provide an update on the Department of Justice's Civil Cyber Fraud Initiative.

The Trump administration has issued over 80 executive orders, directing agencies to freeze funding on contracts and grants. This has resulted in stop work orders and terminations, leaving contractors and grantees in limbo. While these executive orders have affected all contractors and grantees, they have a potentially pernicious effect on nonprofits.

In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Kristen Ittig and Jim Joseph of Arnold & Porter examine how Trump's executive orders are impacting nonprofit contractors and grantees. Among other things, they discuss the orders that could affect nonprofits, the illegality doctrine, and the potential risks to nonprofits' tax-exempt status.

Every year Congress must pass the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The NDAA adjusts DoD budget priorities based on what's happening around the world and current military needs. Thus, the NDAA is a guide to the issues that will impact defense contracting in the coming year.

In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Marne Marotta, Adrienne Jackson, and Sara Linder of Arnold & Porter discuss the status of the 2025 NDAA bills pending in the House and Senate, provisions in the bills that could impact government contractors, and some notable amendments. They also predict where things are headed with each bill over the next few months.

Last month, Congress began considering the American Privacy Rights Act, or the APRA. The bill has rare bipartisan support and could pass this year.  If Congress enacts the APRA, it will establish the first national privacy and data security standard for the United States.   In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Ron Lee, Amy Davenport, James Courtney, and Jami Vibbert from Arnold & Porter discuss what’s in the APRA, whether it can pass, and what it means for government contractors.

Enacted in 2021, the Corporate Transparency Act is intended to reduce illicit activity, including tax fraud, money laundering, and the funding of terrorist activity. 

What does this mean for government contractors? 

In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, co-host Mike McGill sits down with his Arnold & Porter colleague Naomi Hartman, a partner in the firm's corporate and finance practice group. Mike and Naomi discuss the intention of the CTA, which entities are covered, and what information companies may need to provide the government.

Show notes

• Arnold & Porter: Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting
• FINCEN: Beneficial Ownership Information

The Department of Justice has released its report on False Claims Act enforcement for fiscal year 2023. Did recoveries increase? What's the story behind the numbers?

In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Pub K Group Managing Editor Bill Olver speaks with Arnold & Porter Partners Tirzah Lollar and Christian Sheehan about DOJ's FCA recoveries, as well as developments following the Supreme Court's decision in Polansky, which raised questions about the constitutionality of the qui tam provisions of the FCA.

 

Show notes

DOJ’s FY23 FCA Stats Show Bounce Back From Last Year’s Low With Record Number of Cases Initiated by DOJ | FCA Qui Notes | Blogs | Arnold & Porter (arnoldporter.com)

Each year, Congress takes up the National Defense Authorization Act, which sets out budget and policy priorities for the Department of Defense. This bill is one of very few pieces of legislation that must pass every year.

In this episode, defense and policy experts from Arnold and Porter discuss the passage of this year's NDAA and some important policy considerations for defense contractors. The firm's Chuck Blanchard, Adrienne Jackson, and Yuvaraj Sivalingam will discuss:

• Notable provisions related to contracting and procurement, including new disclosure requirements and small business matters
• Contracting restrictions on doing business with “covered countries”, including China, Russia, and Iran
• Language governing supply chain and critical minerals issues
• Buy America provisions
• Artificial Intelligence, cyber, and quantum information science and technology directives and investments

At the end of December, the Department of Defense published its proposed rule implementing the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification. This long-anticipated issuance answered many - but not all - of the questions about how the department will implement the program. In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Arnold and Porter's Ronald Lee and Tom Pettit discuss the proposed rule and address some of those questions contractors may be asking:

• What should contractors focus on immediately?
• What did the rule resolve and what was left uncertain?
• How should subcontractors approach the proposed rule?
• Can a contractor (or DIDBCAP for Level 3) ever affirm compliance if the contractor IT system is not in full compliance?
• How can a contractor lose a self-certification or certification assessment?

Show Notes

Department of Defense Issues CMMC 2.0 Proposed Rule | Advisories | Arnold & Porter (arnoldporter.com)

Pub K’s Government Contracts Annual Review 2024

What's in store for contractors in 2024? Arnold & Porter legal and policy experts pull out their crystal ball to forecast developments in many important topics.

• Christian Sheehan and Jayce Born on False Claims Act constitutionality
• Ron Lee on the Cybersecurity Maturity Model Certification implementing regulations
• Tom Pettit on a recent proposed rule on cyber incident reporting and information sharing
• Chuck Blanchard on supply chain regulations and Federal Acquisition Security Council removal orders
• Stuart Turner on nontraditional bid proposal evaluation processes and how to challenge them

Show Notes
1:20 - False Claims Act constitutionality
11:00 - CMMC implementing regulations
17:30 - Proposed rule on cyber incident reporting and information sharing
24:15 - Supply chain regulations and FASC removal orders
28:30 - Nontraditional bid proposal evaluation processes and how to challenge them

Pub K’s Government Contracts Annual Review 2024

In Ultima Services v. the Department of Agriculture, a federal district court held that the Small Business Administration’s reliance on the rebuttable presumption of disadvantage for its 8(a) business development program violated the Fourteenth Amendment’s Equal Protection clause. That decision created a cascade of developments, as SBA froze new 8(a) applications, and then issued clarifying guidance to 8(a) participants.

To examine this and other developments, Arnold & Porter partner Mike McGill is joined by Senior Associate Tom Pettit.

For additional reading on these topics, please visit Pub K Group online. 

After weeks of drama and legislative inaction, the House of Representatives finally has a new speaker as Representative Mike Johnson of Louisiana unexpectedly rose to the highest office in the chamber. As Congress faces fast-approaching deadlines for FY2024 appropriations and the National Defense Authorization act, how will Speaker Johnson move this must-pass legislation through a contentious House and Democratic Senate?

In this episode of Bona Fide Needs, Arnold & Porter Partner Mark Epley and Policy Advisor Jessica Monahan discuss how we got here, the prospects for FY2024 spending bills and the NDAA, reactions from the Senate, what contractors should be doing, and how the 2024 election may impact further legislation.

 

0:00 - Introduction
0:45 - Headlines
11:30 - Interview
13:00 - How Mike Johnson ascended to the Speakership
16:45 - The must-pass bills before Congress
21:00 - The Speaker's plan for moving legislation
29:00 - Action in the Senate
34:00 - What contractors should be doing
36:30 - The impact of the 2024 election on upcoming legislation
43:30 - Wrap-up

For links to articles and blog posts discussing the topics in this month's podcast, visit Pub K online.