Alston & Bird Government Contracts Blog

Bid Protests & Public Contract Award-Related Representations

Biden’s Infrastructure Funding Comes with Strings Attached

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President Biden’s long-awaited Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was passed by Congress and signed into law in November 2021. While the new law brings about new sources of revenue and opportunities for contractors, particularly those involved in complex construction projects such as roads, bridge and tunnels, traditional and renewable energy, drinking and wastewater delivery, and information technology infrastructure, these new sources of revenue are likely to come with strings attached. With the creation of the Made in America Office, whose purpose will be to monitor contractors’ compliance [...]Read more

Is There a Road Forward for Biden’s Infrastructure Plans?

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On March 31, 2021 President Biden unveiled his American Jobs Plan in the form of two massive spending and tax proposals. Policy makers in Washington are actively debating and preparing to legislate based on these proposals. The first proposal, totaling $2.3 trillion, is focused on traditional infrastructure improvements, broadly defined, and includes highways, bridges, ports, airports, and transit; broadband; clean water; electric-grid upgrades; upgrades to residential, commercial, school, and federal buildings; investments in the care economy to raise wages and expand services; and investments [...]Read more

Alston & Bird 2018 GovCon Briefing and CLE: Washington, D.C.

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On October 24, the Government Contracts team at Alston & Bird hosted its inaugural briefing in Washington, D.C. discussing the latest developments and industry updates in the government contracts space.  Presenters included Jeff Belkin, Jeniffer Roberts, Jessica Sharron, Jeremy Silverman, Andy Howard, Mike Mortorano and Katherine Veeder. The topics addressed were a variety of industry developments and key areas that are particularly salient in the current GovCon market.  Jeremy Silverman and Jeniffer Roberts provided a valuable bridge between the GovCon world and the M&A market by [...]Read more

UnitedHealthcare Wins Medicaid Bid Protest Case

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On April 10, 2018, the Pennsylvania Commonwealth Court ruled in favor of our client, UnitedHealthcare, in their case against the state Department of Human Services (DHS) for violating the state’s procurement code during a 2015 bid process for the $12 billion in Medicaid physical health services contracts. UnitedHealthcare, a Medicaid provider in the state at the time but not reselected for any areas, protested the bid selections after the discovery of a secret December 2016 meeting of state officials and two top executives of another bidder who ultimately won a contract. The DHS denied UnitedHealthcare’s [...]Read more

Are More Constitutional Challenges to State DBE Contracting Programs On the Way?

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An Illinois construction company is petitioning the U.S. Supreme Court to decide whether it has standing to challenge as unconstitutional a state’s implementation of a disadvantaged business enterprise (DBE) participation goal in connection with a road project. If sustained, the company’s challenge would have far-reaching implications, including opening the door for other disappointed bidders to prosecute constitutional challenges to states’ implementation of mandatory disadvantaged business contracting programs. In 2009, the Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) sought bids for [...]Read more