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48 Procurement Law. 1 (2012-2013)

handle is hein.journals/procurlw48 and id is 1 raw text is: As Suspension and Debarment Grows the National Discourse, We Should Not Lose Sight of Broader Procurement Fraud Remedies By DAVID ROBBINS As the government pro- curement fraud commu- nity, contractors, and the private bar react to increas- ing congressional interest into the numbers of suspen- sions and debarments that federal agencies issue, there is some concern that we are losing sight of the gov- ernment's ability to engage an integrated remedies ap- proach coordinating all applicable remedies-civil, crimi- nal, contractual, and administrative-in every case. The US Air Force has an effective procurement fraud remedies program that facilitates this coordination and requires consideration of every applicable remedy in every case.1 By focusing too heavily on suspension and debarment, we run the risk of becoming reactive in our procurement fraud remedies approach. For agencies without well-es- tablished procurement fraud remedies programs, suspen- sions and debarments are lagging indicators of the relative David Robbins is the acting deputy general counsel (Contractor Responsibility) for the United States Air Force. He also serves as the acting suspending and debarring official. He is a former assistant deputy general counsel (Contractor Responsibility) and the former director for the Air Force Office of Procurement Fraud Remedies. The author writes in his personal capacity and his views do not necessarily reflect the views of others in his office, the US Air Force or the Department of Defense. Contact him at david robbins@pentagon.af.mil. Alix Schroeder, a Student Career Experience Program intern from George Washington School of Law, was an invaluable contributor to this article. Contact her at alix.schroeder@pentagon.af.ml. effectiveness of the programs. By comparison, trends in monetary recoveries to affected programs are leading in- dicators. Many agencies focus almost exclusively on debar- ments after the conclusion of civil or criminal cases, which means the allegations of wrongdoing are generally years old. Not only does that risk taking the present out of the present responsibility inquiry following the conclusion of a judicial case, but the delay associated with this approach harms the ability of agencies impacted by procurement fraud to return money to affected programs. To the extent that overall numbers of suspensions, de- barments, and proposed debarments are useful metrics, they are helpful tools to separate agencies into general tiers of procurement fraud program activity. Specifically, agen- cies with high procurement spends and a few hundred continued on page 24 News from the Chair Suspension and Debarment Trends Developments at FAA Office of Dispute Resolution for Acquisition Responsive or Responsibility When Rejecting a Bidder? Reimbursement of GOA Protest Costs: Is Timing of Corrective Action Dispositive? Section Awards 2 3 11 14 20 26

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