Government Contracting Blog

The Trump administration’s actions on foreign trade has dominated the news cycle for weeks now, largely due to the tariffs announced on foreign goods. However, the scope of the administration’s “America First Trade Policy” goes beyond just foreign tariffs. It is a set of Executive Orders (EO) that utilize existing legislation, namely the Buy American Act (BAA), to change the way that the federal government procures goods and services, with an emphasis on prioritizing domestic goods over foreign goods.

The FoRGED Act is the procurement blueprint for the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2026 and it could mean an end to the Price Reduction Clause for GSA Schedule holders and applicants.

In order to safeguard national security, and protect sensitive information, the federal government has procurement restrictions regarding Information Technology (IT) services and products. Any company that sells IT goods or services to the federal government must abide by these requirements, including GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract holders. These procurement regulations are fast-evolving compared to other facets of government acquisition because of the shifting nature of technology and cyber threats. There are some buzzwords floating around that you may have heard of, such as “covered telecommunications” and “C-SCRM.”

Picture this scenario: you have applied for a GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract and submitted all the required documents, a process that may have taken months. You’ve waited anxiously for GSA to review your proposal. Now, a Contracting Specialist (CS) has emailed you requesting you make major changes to your contract proposal to be considered compliant, and the only way to still be considered for Schedule award is to do this. These types of roadblocks are not always avoidable, but there are steps you can take to minimize the chances of this happening, and methods to best prepare a response when it does.

The rapid evolution of information technology has shaped virtually everything in today’s world, including how the federal government functions. For years, the government has lagged behind industry advancements for various reasons. As the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) puts it:

General Services Administration (GSA) recently released updated guidelines for Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Contractor Teaming Arrangements (CTAs) that clarifies administrative details, expectations on agreement documents, and GSA’s limits on oversight. In light of this, we’ll cover some of the most common points of confusion we see from prospective contractors, including what CTAs are and what they aren’t.