Redstone Government Consulting Blog | Contracts & Subcontracts Administration

A little background – On April 15, 2025, Executive Order 14275, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement, was issued. The intent of this order was to make revolutionary changes to the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) to make the federal acquisition process more efficient and cost-effective. Section 2 states, “It is the policy of the United States to create the most agile, effective, and efficient procurement system possible. Removing undue barriers, such as unnecessary regulations, while simultaneously allowing for the expansion of the national and defense industrial bases is paramount. Accordingly, the FAR should contain only provisions required by statute or essential to sound procurement, and any FAR provisions that do not advance these objectives should be removed.”

Topics: Compliant Accounting Infrastructure, Proposal Cost Volume Development & Pricing, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, DFARS Business Systems, DCAA Audit Support, Contractor Purchasing System Review (CPSR), Government Regulations, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Commercial Item Determination

Government contracting can be volatile at times, with programs being at risk, under a stop-work order, or even canceled. This can create challenges to the back-office maintenance of the contracts in your Deltek Costpoint environment. In this article, we will discuss how to navigate these challenges properly. We’ll also explore key tools and best practices in Deltek Costpoint to help streamline your contract close-out process. Our goal is to help you mitigate potential risk and maintain project control in your system.

Topics: Compliant Accounting Infrastructure, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, DCAA Audit Support, Deltek Costpoint, REAs, Claims & Terminations

Income, earnings, and proceeds are various synonyms for the term “revenue,” but regardless of the terminology, the revenue recognized and reported is a strong indicator of business performance and stability. In this article, we will discuss Deltek Costpoint’s Revenue Worksheet and the benefits of utilizing it in recognizing revenue, calculating accurate bills, and identifying project discrepancies.

Topics: Compliant Accounting Infrastructure, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, DCAA Audit Support, Deltek Costpoint

In May of 2023, Ms. Jamie Brabston, Director and Legal Counsel at Redstone GCI, wrote an article addressing the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) requirements expected of contractors receiving contracts for supplies and services from the federal government. These requirements are implemented through FAR 52.203-13, Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct, which is included in contracts and subcontracts expected to exceed $6M, and the period of performance is 120 days or longer.

Topics: Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, Government Compliance Training, DFARS Business Systems, Human Resources, Government Regulations, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Grants & Cooperative Agreements (2 CFR 200), Organizational Change Management Consulting

History of Tariffs

While import tariffs may seem unfamiliar due to historically low rates in recent decades, they have long played a significant role in U.S. economic policy-serving purposes such as revenue generation, industry support, and protectionism. Historically, high tariffs have often coincided with periods of economic and political instability, whereas lower tariffs have typically supported international engagement and economic growth. Since World War II and the creation of GATT and the WTO, the U.S. has generally maintained lower average tariff rates.

Topics: Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, Government Regulations, Export & Import, Material Management & Accounting System (MMAS), Manufacturing Operations Consulting

President Trump issued several executive orders addressing tariffs. American First Trade Policy dated January 20, 2025 and Modifying Reciprocal Tariff Rates to Reflect Trading Partner Retaliation and Alignment dated April 9, 2025. In addition, he has also issued a 90-day pause to some countries and is planning to reduce tariffs on certain industries such as US auto tariffs (see Amendments to Adjusting Imports of Automobiles and Automobile Parts into the United States dated April 29, 2025). It is clear that tariffs are impacting the supply chain and government contractors.

Topics: Compliant Accounting Infrastructure, Proposal Cost Volume Development & Pricing, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, DFARS Business Systems, Contractor Purchasing System Review (CPSR), Government Regulations, Export & Import, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Manufacturing Operations Consulting

Well one of the endless numbers of administratively burdensome requirements the Federal Government places on your contracts may just be the silver bullet you need. Review your contracts and look for FAR 52.225-8, Duty-Free Entry, and DFARS 252.225-7013, Duty-Free Entry.

Topics: Proposal Cost Volume Development & Pricing, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, DFARS Business Systems, Contractor Purchasing System Review (CPSR), Government Regulations, Export & Import, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)

President Trump has signed several Executive Orders (EO) addressing ways to improve the acquisition process through simplifying the regulations, utilizing competitive marketplace and commercially available products and services, consolidating procurements at General Services Administration (GSA), and now overhauling the Department of Defense acquisition processes.

Topics: Proposal Cost Volume Development & Pricing, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, Government Regulations, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Commercial Item Determination

Terminated contracts do not relieve a contractor from dispositioning and closing out Government property. This will become a bigger issue as more and more agencies receive funding cuts or contracts are simply terminated.

Topics: Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, DFARS Business Systems, DCAA Audit Support, Government Regulations, Government Property Management, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)

On April 9, 2025, President Trump signed the Executive Order (EO), Modernizing Defense Acquisitions and Spurring Innovation in the Defense Industrial Base. The EO indicated that the factory floor is as significant as the battlefield, and the current defense acquisition system must have a comprehensive overhaul to deliver state-of-the-art capabilities at speed and scale.

Topics: Proposal Cost Volume Development & Pricing, Contracts & Subcontracts Administration, Contractor Purchasing System Review (CPSR), Government Regulations, Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Commercial Item Determination