Deliver Your News to the World

PSC Urges Appeals Court to Affirm GSA Schedules are Commercial


Arlington, Va. – WEBWIRE

The Professional Services Council filed an amicus brief calling on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit to affirm that orders through the GSA Schedules Program must follow commercial practices.

Contrary to numerous Government Accounting Office decisions, the lower U.S. Court of Federal Claims ruled that orders placed against GSA Schedules are not subject to the same commercial item provisions applicable to the base GSA Schedules contracts and to procurements that specifically announce their intent to follow commercial item procedures set forth in the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

“This is a very significant case for our members, for the industry, and for the long-term success of the GSA Schedules program,” said Alan Chvotkin, PSC’s executive vice president and counsel. “The decision by the Court of Federal Claims exempting orders made against the GSA Schedules program from these bedrock provisions of law cannot be allowed to stand.”

This is the first time an appeals court is being asked to interpret the application of the explicit commercial item provisions of the 1994 Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act and the FAR to orders against the GSA Schedules.

PSC’s amicus brief was prepared in conjunction with Michael Schaengold, a shareholder of PSC member company Greenberg Traurig, LLP, and filed with the Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit on October 27, 2014. On November 7, 2014, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit accepted the PSC filing. A copy of the PSC amicus brief is available here.  Oral arguments before the Court of Appeals are likely to be held in February 2015. 

###

About PSC: PSC is the voice of the government technology and professional services industry. PSC’s more than 375 member companies represent small, medium, and large businesses that provide federal agencies with services of all kinds, including information technology, engineering, logistics, facilities management, operations and maintenance, consulting, international development, scientific, social, environmental services, and more. Together, the trade association’s members employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in all 50 states. Follow PSC on Twitter @PSCSpeaks and @StanSoloway.



WebWireID192794





This news content was configured by WebWire editorial staff. Linking is permitted.

News Release Distribution and Press Release Distribution Services Provided by WebWire.