Alston & Bird Government Contracts Blog

Andrew Howard

About Andrew Howard

Andy Howard is a partner in the firm’s Construction & Government Contracts Group who represents clients across a wide range of industries, including construction, health care, aerospace, energy and technology. Andy’s practice involves representing construction industry professionals and federal, state and local government contractors.

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The Moving America Forward Act: If Passed, Will Result in Increased Opportunities for Infrastructure Work and Contracting With the Federal Government

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Last month, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Moving America Forward Act (H.R. 2). Its purpose is to invest in American infrastructure and to create jobs in the aftermath of the COVID-19 crisis. As of this posting the bill is now in the Senate.  The President has expressed opposition to the bill’s passage, despite general statements of support for rebuilding America’s infrastructure. If it passes in the Senate and is signed into law by the President, the Act could result in the investment of more than $1.5 trillion in: (1) rebuilding highways, bridges, transit and rail facilities; [...]Read more

President Invokes Wartime Production Law to Require Commercial Businesses to Prioritize Manufacturing & Delivery of Goods to Combat Coronavirus Pandemic

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At a news conference this morning, March 18, 2020, President Trump announced he was invoking the Defense Production Act of 1950 (“DPA”) to thwart the Coronavirus pandemic. Among numerous broad powers, this 1950 law authorizes the President to force commercial entities to prioritize and accept contracts for materials and services deemed necessary to promote the national defense. While initially passed to ensure the nation’s wartime readiness following the Korean War, Congress has greatly expanded the scope of the law to include – within the meaning of “national defense” – emergency [...]Read more

Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media: Enhanced FOIA Protection for Contractors’ “Confidential” Commercial or Financial Information

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For the last 55 years nearly all federal agencies and courts tasked with determining whether a contractor’s “commercial or financial” information is “confidential” for purposes of exemption from public disclosure under the Freedom of Information Act have had to evaluate – among other things – whether disclosure of the information likely would cause substantial harm to the competitive position of the person from whom the information was obtained. In Food Marketing Institute v. Argus Leader Media, 588 U.S. ___ (2019), the Supreme Court rejected this decades-long “competitive harm” [...]Read more

Davis-Bacon Act Repeal Efforts Renewed

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Republican members of Congress have renewed steps to repeal the Davis–Bacon Act, which sets the prevailing wage requirements for workers employed under federally funded or assisted contracts for the construction, alteration, or repair of public works. In January, Senator Jeff Flake (R-AZ) introduced the Transportation Investment Recalibration to Equality (TIRE) Act that would suspend the Davis–Bacon Act’s provision that workers on federal contracts be paid a prevailing wage for all federal highway construction projects. Additionally, Senator Mike Lee (R-UT) and Representative Steve King (R-IA) [...]Read more

Supreme Court to Rule on the Implied Certification Theory

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The U.S. Supreme Court has scheduled oral arguments in a case that will have significant implications for cases brought under the False Claims Act (FCA). In Universal Health Services v. United States ex rel. Escobar, No. 15-7, the Court will hear argument on two important questions. First, whether the “implied certification” theory of legal falsity is viable under the FCA, a question on which the circuit courts of appeal are divided. If the Court concludes the implied certification theory is viable, then the second issue it will consider is whether government contractors’ reimbursement claims [...]Read more