In Honor of Memorial Day
This Memorial Day weekend, the Coalition honors the brave men and women who gave their lives in service to our nation. We remember their sacrifice with deep gratitude and respect and encourage everyone to take time to honor all service members, veterans, and contractor personnel who have fallen in defense of freedom.
The Coalition wishes you and your loved ones a meaningful Memorial Day as we reflect on and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to our country.
In light of Memorial Day weekend, there will be no Tuesday Tracker on May 26. Regular publication of the Tuesday Tracker will resume the week of June 1.
2025 Coalition Year in Review
The Coalition for Common Sense in Government Procurement’s 2025 Year in Review is now available for download!
The 2025 Year in Review highlights the priorities and activities that the Coalition pursued on behalf of members from the past year. In 2025, we focused on a number of acquisition policy initiatives, providing feedback to the Federal Government on the acquisition strategy for several key programs and initiatives.
We are excited to support more efficiency, effectiveness and cost savings in the Federal procurement system than ever before in 2026.
View the 2025 Year in Review here.
Coalition Contract Duplication Survey
The Coalition has launched a survey focused on identifying potential duplication across contracts governmentwide.
The purpose of the survey is to gather member feedback from industry about the cost of contract duplication, including bid proposals and contract management costs. Insights from the survey will help inform ongoing discussions around contract alignment, consolidation, and best practices. Survey results will be shared with key government stakeholders.
Members are encouraged to participate. Survey responses will be treated as non-attributable, and individual company information will not be shared with the Government.
Access the survey here. Responses are due by COB Friday, June 6. If you have any questions, please contact Michael Hanafin at mhanafin@thecgp.org.
2026 Spring Training Conference Survey
Thank you to everyone who attended the Coalition’s 2026 Spring Training Conference: The Revolutionary Federal Market Continued.
We value your feedback and invite you to complete a brief survey to help inform the planning of future conferences.
To complete the survey, click here.
If you have any questions, please contact Michael Hanafin at mhanafin@thecgp.org.
Congratulations to the Mobile App Challenge Winners!
Congratulations to the winners of the 2026 Spring Training Conference Mobile App Challenge!
The Mobile App Challenge ended in a tie for first place between Sequince Sackey of Golden State Medical and Tyler Evoniuk of Becton Dickinson, who will each receive a prize!
Thank you to everyone who participated in the conference app challenges and engaged throughout the event. We appreciate your enthusiasm and participation.
The Coalition also extends its thanks to our Mobile App Sponsor, Veterans Healthcare Supply Solutions (VHSS), for supporting the conference app experience for all of our conference attendees.
Registration Now Open! Joseph P. Caggiano Memorial Golf Tournament, Aug. 19
Calling all golfers! Registration for the the Coalition’s Annual Joseph P. Caggiano Memorial Charity Golf Tournament is now open. The tournament will take place on August 19, 2026 at the beautiful Whiskey Creek Golf Club in Ijamsville, MD. This event attracts a dedicated group of players of all skill levels eager to enjoy some friendly competition and a round of golf with friends and colleagues while supporting a wonderful cause for our veterans.
Proceeds from this year’s golf tournament will once again support Paws for Purple Hearts (PPH). PPH improves the lives of veterans and wounded service members facing mobility challenges and trauma-related conditions through assistance dogs and canine-assisted therapeutic programs. To date, PPH has supported over 20,000 veterans and wounded service members across the country.
The tournament also supports The Coalition Endowed Scholarship Fund at The George Washington University Law School. This fund assists qualified veterans pursuing graduate studies in U.S. government procurement, helping them build careers in federal acquisition and continue their service to the nation in a new way.
Sponsorship opportunities are available for the Joseph P. Caggiano Memorial Golf Tournament. Learn more about these opportunities here. For any questions on sponsorships, please contact Heather Tarpley at htarpley@thecgp.org.
To register for the tournament, click here. For any assistance with registration, please contact Mady Whiting at mady.whiting@thecgp.org.
We look forward to seeing you in August!
Thank You to Our Current Sponsors!
Army Extends MAPS Proposal Deadline to June 22
On May 20, the Army issued Amendment 007 to the solicitation for the Marketplace for the Acquisition of Professional Services (MAPS) contract vehicle (Solicitation W15P7T26RA006), extending the proposal submission deadline to 12:00 PM (ET) on Monday, June 22, 2026.
According to the notice, the sole purpose of Amendment 007 is to extend the due date for proposals. The Army also stated that a substantive Amendment 008 will be issued at a later date and encouraged industry to continue monitoring SAM.gov for additional updates related to the procurement.
The extension follows a series of recent developments surrounding the MAPS solicitation, including multiple protests currently pending before the Government Accountability Office. Several of the protests have raised concerns regarding alleged ambiguities in the solicitation and responses provided during the Q&A process, as well as aspects of the Army’s past performance evaluation methodology.
GSA Announces First Phase II OASIS+ Awardee Selections
On May 12, GSA’s Office of Acquisition Solutions Development (ASD) announced the first Phase II awardee selections for the OASIS+ multiple-award, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity (IDIQ), Best-in-Class (BIC) multi-agency contract (MAC) program on SAM.gov and the OASIS+ Solicitations (Continuously Open) page. According to GSA, formal awards and notices to proceed (NTPs) are expected to be issued to qualified contractors on or about May 22, 2026, pending completion of final legal reviews.
The Phase II awards expand upon the eight domains awarded during Phase I of the OASIS+ program. The additional domains included in the expanded scope are Financial Services, Human Capital, Marketing and Public Relations, Social Services, and Business Administration.
GSA also noted that it continues to release responses to Request for Proposal (RFP) questions considered broadly beneficial and relevant through the OASIS+ Solicitations (Continuously Open) page. Questions related to the Phase II award announcements may be submitted to the OASIS+ Contracting Officers at oasisplusmods@gsa.gov.
Award announcements are available for the following contract categories:
- Unrestricted (UR)
- Total Small Business (SB)
- SBA-Certified 8(a) SB (8(a))
- SBA-Certified Service Disabled Veteran-Owned SB (SDVOSB)
- SBA-Certified HUBZone SB (HZ)
- SBA-Certified Woman-Owned SB (WOSB)
HHS, GSA Eye New Grants Management Services SIN
ExecutiveGov reports that Andrea Sampanis, the Director of the Grants Quality Service Management Office (QSMO) at the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), discussed plans for a new grants management services Special Item Number (SIN) during a recent Grants QSMO industry day event.
The proposed SIN, identified as 518210GM, is expected to be introduced through upcoming Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Refresh 32. The SIN would include categories covering grants management support and technology services, including audit support, transaction processing services, subrecipient monitoring, and notice of funding opportunity simplification support. Another category would focus on grants management technology operations, including operations and maintenance support, help desk services, and system integration and implementation support.
According to Sampanis, the SIN is intended to help agencies identify vendors that already meet federal grants management standards and requirements, helping to streamline the acquisition process and support more consistent purchasing practices. Sampanis also noted that the SIN is expected to support cooperative purchasing eligibility, allowing state, local, tribal, and territorial governments to utilize the offering as well.
GSA Reports Successful Implementation of AI Through OneGov Initiative
Government Executive reports that GSA’s OneGov initiative is expanding federal access to artificial intelligence (AI) tools, with more than 120 AI-related orders placed and roughly 3.4 million federal users.
GSA official Birgit Smeltzer said that multiple agencies including the Departments of Health and Human Services, Veterans Affairs, Transportation, and State, have already adopted AI offerings through OneGov. Deputy Administrator Mike Lynch added that the initiative has generated approximately $1.15 billion in savings through negotiated discounts on AI and software products, describing OneGov as a “force multiplier” that will continue expanding as agencies build on early AI experimentation through USAi.gov.
GSA Announces OneGov Agreement with Snowflake
GSA announced a new OneGov agreement with Snowflake for its shared cloud-based data platform. Under the agreement, all new U.S. Snowflake federal customers will automatically receive a 20 percent discount on computer services and a 26.67 percent discount on storage services, with opportunities for additional discounts as usage increases.
The one-year agreement will be available through September 30, 2027, under GSA’s Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) program as part of the broader OneGov initiative.
OMB Plans Public Release of Federal IT Contract Data
FedScoop reports that the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) plans to publicly share some of the information technology (IT) contract data it is collecting from agencies and vendors, according to Federal Chief Information Officer (CIO) Greg Barbaccia. The initiative stems from a March memo requiring agency CIOs to submit monthly reports on approved technology contracts, pricing, and vendor services.
OMB also plans to use AI and trained models to analyze the data for trends and correlations. The effort comes as the Federal Government prepares to revamp the Federal IT Dashboard, which Barbaccia said will transition in April 2026 to a more streamlined system focused on statutorily required public IT spending data.
While the initiative initially faced criticism for lacking transparency commitments, Barbaccia said the Administration fully intends to make portions of the information public, calling it “the citizens’ data.” However, he noted that OMB is still determining how much data can responsibly be shared and in what format. He also said the current reporting requirements, which are set to run through September 2026, will likely be extended and refined to reduce unnecessary administrative burden on agencies.
According to Barbaccia, the effort originated from a contract review process developed during the Department of Transportation’s IT consolidation initiative led by DOT CIO Pavan Pidugu.
NIST Plans Draft AI Cybersecurity Guidance This Summer
According to NextGov, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) plans to publish draft AI cybersecurity guidance this summer. Victoria Pillitteri, Manager of NIST’s Security Engineering and Risk Management Group, discussed the forthcoming guidance at a recent conference.
The draft AI cybersecurity framework profile is expected to be accompanied by two sets of control overlays, which provide more tailored cybersecurity baselines for specific AI systems. Draft overlay guidance for predictive AI is expected this summer, while guidance focused on agentic AI systems is anticipated in late summer or early fall.
Pillitteri noted the Administration’s emphasis on speed and innovation, stating that “everything does have to move faster.” NIST plans to finalize the guidance by 2027. The Security Engineering and Risk Management Group is developing the guidance in partnership with NIST’s Center for AI Standards and Innovation (CAISI).
FedRAMP Expands Modernization Effort with New Cybersecurity Service
Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP) Director Pete Waterman recently spoke with MeriTalk about the new FedRAMP Cybersecurity Service and the future of the FedRAMP 20x initiative. The FedRAMP Cybersecurity Service aims to bring private sector technologists into government for two-year assignments supporting the FedRAMP program. According to Waterman, the initiative is intended to help “massively expand FedRAMP’s program certification” capabilities in the coming years.
Participants will spend their first year working within FedRAMP to gain a deeper understanding of the program before transitioning in their second year to another federal agency’s cybersecurity team to support cloud adoption and coordination with FedRAMP. Waterman plans to hire an initial cohort of 15 individuals and noted that, if successful, the effort could expand further.
The Cybersecurity Service will also support the ongoing FedRAMP 20x initiative, which seeks to replace traditional compliance reviews with automated, continuous monitoring of key security indicators. According to Waterman, the new approach has demonstrated the “ability to maintain a solid throughput with a relatively smaller team.” Waterman also noted that FedRAMP 20x could provide agencies with greater flexibility to adopt and retire cloud services more efficiently.
In addition, he identified the machine-readable data submitted through the 20x program as a potential “sleeper metric,” offering agencies unprecedented insight into commercial cloud security practices.
GSA Highlights Challenges Facing Federal Building Portfolio
According to Federal News Network, GSA is warning lawmakers that a growing maintenance backlog is leaving many federal buildings in deteriorating condition. GSA Administrator Edward C. Forst recently told the Senate Appropriations Committee that roughly half of GSA’s portfolio is considered to be in “fair” or “poor” condition. A recent report from the Public Buildings Reform Board estimates that GSA now faces a $50 billion backlog in maintenance and repair projects.
Administrator Forst noted that many GSA-owned buildings are more than 50 years old and increasingly experiencing infrastructure failures. He also highlighted long-term funding challenges affecting the Federal Buildings Fund.
GSA is currently accelerating efforts to reduce and consolidate the federal real estate footprint. The agency is seeking Congressional approval for a $450 million optimization fund to support the disposal of underutilized buildings and continues to pursue agency relocations and consolidations across the Federal Government. Administrator Forst also urged Congress to streamline approval processes for repair and alteration projects, noting that approvals for larger projects currently take an average of 435 days before work can begin.
VA Publishes “Made in America” Requirement for PPE
On May 12, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) published a class deviation for the VAAR implementing the Make Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) in America Act. The deviation addresses the requirement for domestically grown, reprocessed, reused, or produced PPE, including the materials and components of the PPE. Effective immediately, any VA contract for the procurement of PPE shall:
- be issued for a base period of performance of at least 2 years, plus all option periods necessary, to incentivize investment in the production of PPE and the materials and components thereof in the United States; and,
- be for PPE, including the materials and components thereof, that is grown, reprocessed, reused, or produced in the United States.
Examples of PPE provided in the deviation are surgical masks, respirator masks, powered air purifying respirators, face shields, gloves, and other gear or clothing used to protect an individual from the transmission of disease.
The class deviation applies to all supply contracts, orders, or other procurements for PPE, including micro-purchases. It is effective immediately.
Off the Shelf: Procurement Priorities for the NDAA
Tim Brennan, President of the Center for Procurement Advocacy, joined Off the Shelf for an update on the Hill.
Brennan discusses Congress’ current focus on acquisition policy and outlines several of the key procurement priorities shaping this year’s National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA).
In particular, Brennan addresses the growing divide between the Department of War’s acquisition authorities and those available to civilian agencies, noting that there may be an opportunity this year to narrow the gap.
Brennan also shares his thoughts on the Congressional calendar, including insights regarding the timing of key legislative activity, potential reconciliation efforts, and this year’s NDAA process.
Listen to the full interview here.
Legal Corner: Challenging a CICA Stay Override? The Federal Circuit Confirms You Don’t Need to Prove Irreparable Harm
Authored by By Evan Williams & Jane Han; Fox Rothschild LLP
In Life Science Logistics, LLC v. United States,[1] the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit (“Federal Circuit”) affirmed that a disappointed bidder challenging an agency’s override of a Competition in Contracting Act (“CICA”) stay must only show the override was arbitrary and capricious. The court rejected the government’s argument that the plaintiff must also satisfy the traditional four-factor test for preliminary injunctions—likelihood of success on the merits, irreparable harm, balance of equities, and benefit to the public. The decision is a significant win for government contractors.
What is a CICA Stay?
A CICA stay is an automatic pause on the performance or award of a federal contract, triggered when a disappointed bidder files a timely protest with the Government Accountability Office (“GAO”).[2] The stay preserves the status quo, preventing the agency from authorizing contract performance while the GAO evaluates the protest—a process that can last up to 100 days. Congress designed the CICA stay to be automatic, such that protestor need do nothing more than file a timely written GAO protest to trigger it.
CICA does, however, permit an agency to override the automatic stay. Under 31 U.S.C. § 3553(d)(3)(C), the head of the procuring activity may authorize performance of the contract notwithstanding a pending protest upon a written finding that “performance of the contract is in the best interests of the United States;” or that “urgent and compelling circumstances that significantly affect interests of the United States will not permit waiting for the decision of the [GAO] concerning the protest.”
Background
The Life Science Logistics, LLC (“LSL”) decision arose from a General Services Administration (“GSA”) procurement of the Strategic National Stockpile (“SNS”), which is a nationwide network of facilities for the storage and deployment of medicines, vaccines, and medical supplies, managed by the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response within the Department of Health and Human Services.
When GSA issued a solicitation for a 10-year contract to service the SNS warehouse in the National Capitol Region (“NCR Contract”), LSL and one competitor, Integrated Quality Solutions LLC (“IQS”), submitted bids. GSA awarded the NCR Contract to IQS, and LSL promptly protested at the GAO.
After GSA took corrective action, it nevertheless awarded the contract to IQS for a second and then a third time. In response to LSL’s third protest, however, GSA decided to override the stay, issuing a Determination and Findings (“D&F”) asserting that “urgent and compelling circumstances” existed and that overriding the stay was “in the best interest of the United States.”
LSL subsequently filed suit in the Court of Federal Claims (“COFC”), alleging that the override was arbitrary and capricious in violation of the Administrative Procedure Act (“APA”). The COFC ruled in LSL’s favor, issuing a declaratory judgment that the override was arbitrary and capricious.
Critically, the COFC rejected the government’s argument that LSL was required to prove entitlement to injunctive relief. The government timely appealed to the Federal Circuit, and ten days later, the GAO sustained LSL’s third protest, leading GSA to withdraw the override.
The Mootness Question: “Capable of Repetition Yet Evading Review”
Because GSA withdrew the CICA stay override shortly after the COFC’s decision, LSL argued the appeal was moot and should be dismissed for lack of jurisdiction. The Federal Circuit disagreed, finding that the dispute fell within the well-established exception to the mootness doctrine for issues that are “[1] capable of repetition yet [2] evading review.”
On the “capable of repetition” prong, the court concluded it was “entirely reasonable to expect that the government and LSL will spar over an agency override of a CICA stay again in the future.” The court reasoned that, because LSL is the largest player in an unusually tight market, LSL will, with near certainty, bid on future SNS contracts and will, with near certainty, protest an award to one of its competitors if not selected as the winning bidder.
On the “evading review” prong, the court explained that it had already determined the issue in NIKA Technologies, Inc. v. United States, 987 F.3d 1025 (Fed. Cir. 2021). CICA stays and overrides are limited by statute to a maximum duration of 100 days, and as the Federal Circuit recognized in NIKA, litigating a CICA dispute “in 100 days is unrealistic, if not impossible.”
The Merits: No Four-Factor Test Required
Turning to the central question, the Federal Circuit held that the COFC did not err when it granted declaratory relief without requiring LSL to satisfy the traditional four-factor test for preliminary injunctions.
The Federal Circuit found “[t]here is no place in this statutory regime for courts to superimpose the judge-made four-factor test governing equitable relief as an additional burden on the protestor,” and emphasized that Congress imposed no burden whatsoever on the protestor in CICA; filing a written protest alone triggers the automatic stay. The court went on to explain that it therefore “cannot have been Congress’ intent to require a protestor whose automatic stay has been overridden by arbitrary and capricious government action to have to prove to a court – in addition to the unlawfulness of the override – that the protestor faces irreparable harm, the equities are in its favor, and the public would benefit from granting the relief requested.” The court reasoned that to hold otherwise, “would undesirably incentivize the government to override more (if not all) CICA stays.”
The Declaratory Relief Is Not “Coercive”
Finally, the government argued that declaratory relief in this context was impermissibly coercive because it functioned like a preliminary injunction. The Federal Circuit rejected that contention, explaining that any alleged coercive effect arose from CICA itself and not from the court’s declaratory judgment.
Key Takeaways
The Life Science Logistics, LLC decision clarifies that government contractors challenging a CICA stay override need only demonstrate that the agency’s decision was arbitrary and capricious. In reaching this conclusion, the court found that protestors are not also required to satisfy the traditional four‑factor test for injunctive relief, including showings of likelihood of success, irreparable harm, balance of equities, and public interest. Accordingly, this decision affirmed that the automatic stay is a core component of the GAO protest process and will not be circumvented by heightened judicial standards.
For government contractors, this decision is critically important as it means that the statutory protection Congress designed to maintain the status quo during a protest cannot be easily cast aside. Had the Federal Circuit ruled otherwise, agencies may have been incentivized to override CICA stays as a matter of course, knowing that protestors would face the steep burden of proving irreparable harm and favorable equities on top of showing the override was unlawful. Such a ruling could have transformed the nature of the automatic CICA stay.
In sum, even where an agency decides to override the stay, a protestor will be able to contest the reasonableness of that decision without having to overcome additional judicially created hurdles.
[1] No. 2024-1522, April 15, 2026 (Fed. Cir.).
[2] For a more detailed discussion of the CICA stay framework, see our prior blog post, “CICA Stay Preserved: COFC Rules in Favor of Protester, Applies Equitable Tolling.”
VA Reports Progress on Electronic Health Record Modernization
FedScoop reports that Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Secretary Doug Collins told lawmakers this week that the VA’s Electronic Health Record Modernization (EHRM) effort is now showing significant progress, with agency leaders increasingly requesting accelerated deployment timelines for the updated system.
During recent congressional budget hearings, Collins stated that the upgraded electronic health record system is “actually working” and emphasized the importance of the modernization effort for improving coordination across VA facilities and community care providers. Collins also stressed that there is “no going back” on the EHRM initiative and called for continued funding support moving forward.
The VA is requesting $4.2 billion for EHR modernization, representing an increase of nearly 25% over the prior year. According to VA Chief Financial Officer Richard Topping, each modernization site costs approximately $65 million in addition to broader program expenses.
The modernization effort is intended to improve interoperability and allow veterans’ health records to move more efficiently between federal agencies and private-sector healthcare providers. Collins noted that the VA’s legacy systems currently limit communication and interoperability capabilities.
According to the VA’s current timeline, 19 sites are expected to be updated by the end of this year, followed by 26 additional sites next year and 28 VA Medical Centers in 2028, with full deployment potentially completed by 2031.