Policy
FAR and DFARS rulemaking, executive orders, and acquisition policy shifts — explained in plain English.
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Policy
White House Moves to Strip AI Vendors' Veto Power Over How Agencies Use Their Technology
Draft White House policy language would establish that elected government — not private AI companies — determines lawful use of technology under federal contracts. The move follows the Anthropic/DoD dispute and a broader renegotiation of AI safety testing access at Commerce.
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Policy
Army's $253B FY2027 Budget Boosts R&D by $2.1B — What Gets Funded and What Gets Cut
The Army's FY2027 budget request totals $252.9 billion, with R&D rising 12.9% to $18.7B. The increases target drone fleets, next-generation weapons, and 18,300 new soldiers. Financial management and audit readiness funding is quietly declining — a red flag for oversight-focused contractors.
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Policy
NGA Stands Up Rapid Capabilities Office, Promises AI Blueprint — and Explicitly Invites Risk-Taking
At the GEOINT Symposium in Aurora, Colorado, NGA Director Lt. Gen. Michele Bredenkamp announced a new Rapid Capabilities Office with a mandate to bypass traditional acquisition timelines. Director Chris Parrett: 'We're not going to wait on the perfect solution.' An AI Blueprint is coming within weeks.
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Policy
SBA Is Moving the Small Business Contracting Goalpost — and Most Firms Don't Know It Yet
The Small Business Administration quietly revised how it grades agency small business performance in early 2026. New factors emphasize veteran contracting, de-emphasize 8(a) sole-source awards, and rename categories. With 1,000 firms suspended and only 65 new 8(a) entrants in 2025, the program is under its most severe pressure in decades.
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Policy
CISA's CI Fortify Initiative Puts Critical Infrastructure Operators — and Their Contractors — on Notice
CISA launched CI Fortify on May 5-6, 2026 — a new initiative requiring critical infrastructure operators to plan for isolation-mode operations and manual recovery from cyberattacks. ICS/SCADA vendors, MSPs, and security integrators are explicitly called out as essential partners.
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Policy
NDAA Section 875 — DoD COs may withhold up to 5% from incumbents whose protests get tossed
FY2026 NDAA (signed Dec. 18, 2025) §875 directs DoD to amend DFARS so contracting officers may withhold up to 5% of contract payments from incumbents whose GAO protests are dismissed for lacking any reasonable basis. Implementing rules due by June 16, 2026.
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Policy
CMMC 2.0 Level 2 enforcement goes live — DoD contracts issued after April 2026 must include the clause
DoD has begun inserting the CMMC 2.0 Level 2 certification clause into new contracts covering Controlled Unclassified Information following the December 2024 final rule. Contractors without a completed third-party assessment risk award delays and contract loss.
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Policy
Trump EO 14398 (anti-DEI clause) hits federal contracts April 24, 2026 — Maryland lawsuit filed within 4 days
EO 14398 (March 26, 2026) requires anti-DEI clauses in federal contracts. New solicitations from April 24, 2026; existing contracts get bilateral modification by July 24, 2026. National Association of Diversity Officers in Higher Education + others filed Maryland district court challenge April 20, 2026.
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Policy
OMB memo orders agencies to catalog AI use in contracts — contractors may face disclosure requests
The Office of Management and Budget has issued a memorandum directing all federal agencies to complete inventories of artificial intelligence use in contract performance by September 30, 2026, and to require contractors on high-risk programs to provide AI use disclosures. The memo builds on the January 2025 OMB AI governance framework.
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Policy
FY2026 appropriations enacted late January 2026 — final minibus closes shutdown door
Bipartisan late-January 2026 deal funded every federal agency for FY2026. Final minibus covered DoD, DOL, HHS, Education, DHS, DOT, HUD. Federal contractors don't get back pay during shutdowns — agencies catching up on award flow now.
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Policy
DOGE termination tracker: 10,000+ contracts, ~$71B cancelled or restructured by 2026
Independent trackers (HigherGov, GovSpend, Fed-Spend, G2Xchange) report 10,000+ DOGE contract terminations valued ~$71B (some estimates go to $85B). USAID, Education, FEMA, and consulting/DEI work hit hardest.
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Policy
Revolutionary FAR Overhaul status: 25% page cut, 484 pages eliminated, 2,724 'must-do' clauses removed
Six-month progress report: FAR text reduced 25%, 484 pages eliminated, 2,724 mandatory requirements stripped. Implementation continues via rolling agency class deviations through 2026; formal rulemaking in FY26.
