Calendar of Events | PSC Website
CIDC Now Spotlight
May 2024
You've likely heard the adage, "What a difference a DAY makes," but in this case, it's more like, "What a difference a MONTH makes!" Since our last newsletter, we've achieved remarkable milestones. We hosted a highly successful CIDC on the Hill, drawing over 80 staff and two members of Congress. Additionally, we launched our 2024 CIDC Compendium, engaged in a fruitful meeting with USAID regarding their new IT security regulations (details below), and held discussions with senior USAID officials to stay updated on developments in Ukraine. And let's not forget the outstanding PSC Annual Conference at The Greenbrier last week, which saw a remarkable turnout of 500 attendees. In addition, we released the PSC App, now available to download for both iPhone and Android phones.
This month’s meeting on Thursday, May 16 will be an all-virtual workshop with officials from USAID’s Digital Policy team as they seek to build of the agency’s earlier strategy. USAID now hopes to transition from that strategy to a Digital Policy that will govern the next ten years of digital development at USAID. The Digital Policy will allow the Agency to define an evergreen approach to USAID investments in digital technologies and technology-enabled programming by improving impact and mitigating risk. AID officials hope to have the new Digital Policy shaped by the priorities, experiences, and insights of the broader digital development community and look forward to hearing from CIDC digital experts.
Thanks to the incredible hard work of CIDC’s Procurement Taskforce, we will have two panels at an all-virtual Reverse Industry Day with USAID on May 23 – see below for details.
Our “From the Field” stories this month highlight the impact of ICF and its efforts aimed at assessing the potential personal and environmental harm caused of chemically treated anti-mosquito bed nets re-purposed for use by fisherman in Malawi and how TetraTech has mobilized more that $126 million from the private sector for water sustainability projects.
Please contact me to help us get the word out about the great work CIDC members are doing to make the world a better place.
Paul Foldi Vice President, International Development Affairs
Who: USAID Digital Policy Team Workshop
When: Thursday, May 16 | 12 p.m. - 1 p.m.
Where: This will be an ALL VIRTUAL MEETING
From the Field
Assessing the Impacts of Mosquito Net Fishing in Malawi
By Paola Bernazzani, Kate Minden and Michael Tillotson
Malaria is one of the major sources of morbidity and mortality in Malawi across all age groups. Reducing this burden is both a human and economic development need, recognized by the government of Malawi, USAID, and donors. Universal use of long-lasting insecticidal bednets (LLINs) is a foundation of Malawi’s National Malaria Strategic Plan. To support an environmental assessment of continued long-lasting insecticidal LLINs distribution in Malawi, USAID tasked ICF with quantifying ecological impacts of mosquito net fishing in Lake Malawi and other sensitive water bodies.
Water For the World: The Critical Role of Water Security for Sustainable Development
By Jonathan Annis, Director of Water Security, Sanitation, and Hygiene, Tetra Tech
Water security underpins economic development, human health, food systems, ecosystem services, peace, and national security. Yet, across the world, freshwater resources and sustainable access to safe drinking water, sanitation, and hygiene services (WASH) have never been more threatened. Recognizing the massive funding gap needed to achieve universal access to safe WASH services, Tetra Tech has developed partnerships to mobilize over $126 million in private sector, domestic and other non-USG investment in expanding and strengthening water and WASH service delivery systems.
Berteau Broadcasts Concerns on Proposed FTC Changes to Noncompetes As those avid listeners to Federal News Radio know, PSC speaks with Morning Drive host Tom Temin every other Tuesday, and the transcript is duly posted on FNR’s website. Last week, however, PSC President & CEO David Berteau’s warnings that the FTC’s proposed changes that would ban noncompete agreements would have “deleterious consequences” for U.S contractors were also picked up by the Washington Times and as far away as the Denver Post.
Make Your Voice Heard Speaking of proposed regulatory changes, PSC continues to seek member feedback regarding the following. Please get your comments to Sebastian Herrick by the noted deadline:
M/OAA Briefing for CIDC on AIDAR Updates to Security and IT On April 23, USAID officials from M/OAA provided a detailed and fulsome presentation to CIDC attendees regarding the Final Rule impacting implementing partners. Due to the technical nature and complexity of the issues involved, PSC requested, and USAID agreed, that we record the presentation which is available here, along with the related slide-deck. (Note the recording is for PSC members only, please contact Paul Foldi if you do not have a log-in.)
USAID Webinar on DBA Insurance
On Tuesday, May 21, at 10 a.m., USAID will host its second webinar related to Defense Based Act (DBA) Insurance. Joining USAID will be Starr Insurance to discuss administration and processing. Organizations can register for the event here. To get an overview of DBA insurance, USAID's first webinar is available here. Additional information is also available here. USAID will share a recording of the event with PSC for those unable to make the meeting.
USAID/CIDC Reverse Industry Day
On Thursday, May 23, USAID will host two panels from CIDC’s Procurement Taskforce from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. for a Reverse Industry Day. While the intended audience will be USAID Contracting officials, CIDC members are welcome to attend and listen in as we present our viewpoints from companies of all sizes via this link, no pre-registration is required.
Panel One – Lessons Learned from Procurement Reform Moderator – Jeremy Kanthor (DAI) • Natalia Buniewicz Foley (Chemonics) • Roula Attar (Ecodit) • Tijana Dabic (Making Cents) Panel Two – Burdens Needing Busting Moderator – Allyson Bear (Abt Global) • Jeff Singer (Cadmus) • Pushmeet Bhatia (Palladium) • Jennifer Brinkerhoff (Panagora Group)
14th Annual National Small Business Contracting Summit
This year’s event will be in Charleston, SC from June 11-12 and focuses on the Department of State, with five of the sessions devoted solely to their speakers. USAID, NASA, GSA and the US Army Corps of Engineers will also be presenting.
ACDI/VOCA was recently named a 2024 Top Workplaces Culture Excellence winner, receiving awards for Innovation, Work-Life Flexibility, Compensation & Benefits, Leadership, Purpose & Values.
Chemonics International has been designated a VETS Indexes 3-Star Employer, for their work hiring and retaining veterans, creating veteran-inclusive policies and culture, and supporting military spouses and families.
After many decades working supporting international development at both DAI, and currently as Chief of Staff at Creative, Tim Kernan is retiring.
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March 2024
Welcome to the Ides of March, well almost. But unlike Caesar, we here at PSC have nothing but good tidings to report, with plenty of upcoming important activities and initiatives for our CIDC community. First, a quick look back at a past event – our March 5 conversation with Senator Mark Warner where more than 120 came to hear and discuss the impact of the looming, and now partially averted, government shutdown. Thanks to member engagement, he even extended his time with us.
Speaking of Congress, we are making great strides to filling all the tables for our April 17 CIDC on the Hill Day. This event – which returns to the glory of the spacious Rayburn Foyer – will offer our members a superb opportunity to engage with staff and members of Congress who are as passionate about U.S. foreign assistance as you are. Our expert Government Relations team is working overtime to get the word out to the relevant offices. Additionally, this year we will be releasing our CIDC Compendium that same week - American Development Companies: Addressing the Needs of a World in Crisis. PSC will be promoting the Compendium with a week-long ad blitz in DEVEX as well geo-targeting the Rayburn Building that whole week. Contact me or find more information here. Thanks again to the following companies who have already signed up – it’s still not too late to join them:
Abt Associates
Cadmus
Chemonics
DAI
Deloitte
DT Global
International Development Group
Making Cents
Palladium
Panagora Group
Social Impact
Tetra Tech
A few upcoming meetings to flag. Tomorrow, Friday March 15, USAID will host a joint PSC/InterAction meeting regarding privacy concerns related to Partner Vetting – please register here if you have not yet done so.
Speaking of registering, the Coalition for Racial and Ethnic Equality in Development (CREED, of which CIDC is an Ally and which has many in CIDC partners) has certainly registered with USAID. Administrator Power will be on-hand for CREED’s second anniversary on March 26, starting at 2pm. Register here.
This month's CIDC meeting on March 21 has quite a line-up of speakers who asked to speak with CIDC, with three different presentations. As a result, this will be an ALL VIRTUAL meeting. Also, please note the earlier start time. Our speakers will include USAID Ombudsman Crista Wise, Katies Stohs from USAID’s Office of Compliance, and a deep dive into USAID’s FY25 Budget Proposal with Roman Napoli. Register here.
We will also have an “off cycle” virtual meeting with USAID E&E officials on Ukraine, Tuesday April 23, at 11 a.m. – please register here.
Our “From the Field” stories this month highlight the impact of Abt Global (formerly Abt Associates) and their work in sub-Saharan Africa to bring clean and reliable energy to health facilities and how DAI successfully mobilized more than $1.4 Billion in public and private investment in global development thru AID’s INVEST program.
Crista Wise
Ombudsperson, Bureau for Management's Office of Acquisition and Assistance (M/OAA), USAID
Katie Stohs
Responsibility, Safeguarding and Compliance Division Chief, USAID
Roman Napoli
Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau of Planning, Learning and Resource Management, USAID
When:
Thursday, March 21
Click here to register.
(photo credit: Getty Images)
Abt Global: Working with USAID to Power Health with Clean Energy
Across sub-Saharan Africa, at least 100,000 health facilities lack access to reliable electricity and internet connections. This gap threatens health when clinics can’t keep the lights on for nighttime services or reliably provide patients with oxygen and other life-saving care. Without reliable power, they also can’t refrigerate vaccines and other temperature-sensitive medical commodities or use the digital tools that modern medicine relies on.
DAI: Making Blended Finance Work for Climate
by Sharon D‘Onofrio, Director of Learning for the USAID INVEST project, implemented by DAI.
Blended finance represents more than just a financial strategy; it's a key opportunity to influence the direction of capital flow in response to a shared global challenge—the climate crisis. DAI has been managing the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) INVEST program since 2017, during which time it has become one of the Agency’s largest blended finance initiatives, mobilizing more than $1.4 billion in public and private investment for global development.
More Proposed Regs/More Comments Submitted
Since our last update, PSC has been as busy as ever ensuring that our members’ concerns regarding proposed regulations are heard. In response to the December 26, 2023 DoD Proposed Rule on Cyber Security Maturity Certification (CMMC), PSC submitted nine pages of comments on February 26, 2024.
On March 11, PSC submitted comments regarding proposed FAR changes related to Improving Consistency Between Procurement and Nonprocurement Procedures on Suspension and Debarment released January 9, 2024, including the comment that, PSC believes, “…that the goal of consistency between the FAR and the NCR would be further promoted by revising the FAR to remove the immediate exclusionary effect of proposed debarment (but) PSC does not agree with the Government’s assumptions, within the proposed rule, that there is an increased business risk to the Government in the procurement context than in nonprocurement transactions (e.g., grants, cooperative agreements, contracts of assistance, loans, loan guarantees).”
FY24 Q2 Business Forecast
Thanks again to all the CIDC members who submitted their questions (more than 250!) which PSC forwarded to M/OAA. The next Business Forecast Call/Partner Update will be Tuesday, March 26 at 9:00 am. Be sure to register here for the link.
Abt Associates is now Abt Global.
Deloitte recently published a report: Empowering Women Business Leaders In Africa’s Digital Transformation.
Panagora Group has appointed Ben Feit as their new COO.
Tetra Tech received a Climate Change Business Journal Business Achievement Award in the Climate Change Adaptation and Resilience category for the development of a technology suite of tools to support forest management planning and decision making across target states in India through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Forest-PLUS 2.0 program.
April 2024
Not to steal from Sesame Street, but – today’s edition is brought to you by the numbers 17, 18 and 23.
On April 17, we will have 18 members of our CIDC community highlighting their international development efforts – through our CIDC on the Hill event, our 2024 CIDC Compendium American Development Companies: Addressing the Needs of a World in Crisis – or both.
PLEASE NOTE THAT WE WILL NOT BE MEETING ON OUR
USUAL THIRD THURSDAY
On Tuesday, April 23 we will host two, back-to-back, virtual briefings from USAID. Starting at 10 am, the first will focus on the recently published AIDAR IT and Security guidelines that came out on March 20, 2024 that took the agency almost five years to produce. You can read PSC’s original comments on the proposed changes – that we submitted on May 20, 2019. M/OAA’s Jami Rodgers will be joined by Jasen Anderson from the Policy shop. Then at 11 am, we will be joined by Assistant Administrator for Europe and Eurasia Erin McKee who will provide updates on the agency’s work in Ukraine and the region.
Our “From the Field” stories this month highlight the impact of Palladium and its efforts to turn $35 Million in USAID funding into $650 Million of private sector investment in Kenya and how Amentum continues to assist Ukraine through a variety of USG agencies’ efforts.
When: TUESDAY, April 23
Where: These will be VIRTUAL-ONLY Meetings
Addressing the Needs of Ukraine and Beyond
Amentum serves US foreign policy to help the people of Ukraine across 33 years of independence and prior critical missions that include diplomacy and international development, architecture and engineering, and construction, for example designing the 30-ton cement cap for Chernobyl and safely disarming weaponry according to the international disarmament treaties across 54 projects, with 25 current projects underway.
USAID Funding Can be Catalytic; Here’s How
by Ricardo Michel, Palladium co-CEO
How can you use $35 million of USAID funding to mobilize $650 million of private sector investment? This is what the Kenya Investment Mechanism (KIM) achieved over five years, and the impact on Kenya’s economic landscape, entrepreneurship, innovation, and beyond will be felt long after the life of the project.
We must achieve the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals by 2030, but the funding gap to do so is enormous; far too big for the public sector alone to tackle, and nor should it. Instead, by providing seed funding through investment mechanisms like KIM, USAID and other development agencies can leverage the right finance and investment tools to foster systemic changes and ensure catalytic impact.
USAID Matters
FY 25 Budget Hearings Underway
On April 9, USAID Administrator Power presented the agency’s FY25 budget justification before the Senate Appropriations Foreign Operations Subcommittee – where she noted in her prepared testimony that today, 8 of our 10 largest trading partners were once recipients of U.S. foreign assistance; House Appropriators will hear from her April 11. She had a similar hearing before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee the morning of April 10 and another hearing before the House Foreign Affairs Committee that afternoon.
CIDC Now
February 8, 2024
USAID’s new Procurement Executive Jami Rodgers brings decades of federal contracting experience with him as he assumes his new role – in an agency where he worked from 2012-18. Coming most recently from NASA, he also has years of experience at the Department of Energy and the EPA. Jami will be our speaker on February 15 at our monthly CIDC meeting.
Thanks to all who participated in our Doing Business with the Asian Development Bank event earlier this week. The ADB’s North American Deputy Director, Alain Borghijs, presented us with an excellent overview of the bank’s funding structure, business forecast and application process. You can find his slides here and a recording of the presentation here.
As noted last month, PSC responds to a lot of Federal Regulations, and 2023 was no different. Thanks to member input and hard work in-house, we submitted 34 sets of written comments in 2023. Be sure you’re signed up for the PSC Daily e-newsletter, where our Annual Report will be released soon! You’ll get an inside glimpse of our activities and a reminder of how we serve our members and the role our members play in guiding and engaging with PSC.
Speaking of looking back, a picture from our February 2020 CIDC on the Hill – just weeks before COVID hit – popped up on my phone (see below). This year we will be returning to the Rayburn Foyer for our annual event, on Wednesday, April 17. We are working busily with members and staff from the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the Caucus for Effective Foreign Assistance to make this another successful endeavor. Please click here to reserve your table now. We will also be releasing our CIDC Compendium that same day – be sure to get your company’s story included in “American Development Companies: Addressing the Needs of a World in Crisis” which we will highlight on DEVEX and via microtargeting around Capitol Hill that week as well. Please have your Comms Team join PSC’s VP of Marketing, Cassie Katz, and me on the heels of our monthly meeting at 1pm on Thursday, February 15 to discuss marketing details of the Compendium and layout for our Hill event. Register for the meeting here.
Our “From the Field” stories this month highlight the impact of Q2Impact (formerly QED) and their work in Turkmenistan supporting women community leaders and how URC successfully works in Mali improving child and maternal health through better nutrition access.
Next Up
Thursday, Friday 15; from 12 p.m. – 1 p.m.
Jami Rodgers
USAID
Senior Procurement Executive, Chief Acquisition Officer, and Director for the Office of Acquisition and Assistance
Hybrid – In Person at the PSC Offices in Arlington, VA or Virtual
Click here to register
Thanks to our sponsor:
USAID and Q2 Impact Governance Support Program and Women’s Union of Turkmenistan convene.
Q2 Impact – Empowering Women in Turkmenistan
By Governance Support Program
In countries like Turkmenistan, empowering women decision makers and leadership is a key change factor for enriching society through enhanced governance innovation and solutions. The support Q2 Impact provides to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID)’s Governance Support Program (GSP) is a prime example of influencing better leadership. Especially for women.
Members of the nutrition support group of Kafela village conduct a nutritional demonstration session. Photo credit: USAID Keneya Nieta Activity/URC
URC: Reducing Malnutrition and Increasing Access to Health Care in Mali
Acute malnutrition in children under five years was a significant issue in the Sikasso region in southern Mali in 2018. In response, the technical director of the Mamissa Health Center – a facility created through the support of 14 villages in the Bougouni health district – partnered with Community Health Association executives to help the villages set up their nutrition support groups. These groups screen children for acute malnutrition, facilitate community treatment of moderate cases, and refer serious cases to a community health center.
PSC Matters
David Berteau: White House Bypasses the Rules on Rulemaking
On Tuesday, February 6, PSC President & CEO spoke with Federal News Radio’s Tom Temin, host of FNR’s long-running Federal Drive program. He noted that contractors are questioning how the White House (as part of OFPP’s January 25 guidance memo Increasing Small Business Participation on Multiple-Award Contracts) could ask for compliance with a procurement rule that is not even formally proposed yet.
Member Data Call: Comments on Pay Equity and Transparency
PSC's HR and Labor Policy Committee will host a meeting to collect member input and inform its comments on the Office of Federal Procurement Policy's Proposed Rule: Pay Equity and Transparency in Federal Contracting, a rule that would prohibit contractors and subcontractors from seeking and considering information about job applicants' compensation history when making employment decisions for certain positions.
February 21, 2024 | 11 a.m. - 12 p.m. | Virtual | Register
PSC Submits Comments on Cyber Threat and Incident Reporting and Information Sharing
On February 2, 2024, PSC submitted comments to the FAR Council regarding “Cyber Threat and Incident Reporting and Information Sharing” (FAR Case 2021-017). Comments included the application of this rule to cloud service providers, definitional revisions / changes within the proposed rule, security incident reporting and harmonization, and feedback and industry recommendations on Software Bill of Materials (SBOM) requirements. You can access PSC’s comments here.
PSC Comments on Standardizing Cybersecurity Requirements for Unclassified Federal Information Systems
On February 2, 2024, PSC submitted comments to the FAR Council regarding “Standardizing Cybersecurity Requirements for Unclassified Federal Information Systems” (FAR Case 2021-019). Comments included changes / revisions to several definitions and references, including Federal Information Systems; member feedback on indemnification and liabilities; and multi-factor authentication. You can access PSC’s comments here.
Happy Birthday Water for the World
Nearly 100 partners attended USAID’s Town Hall event to kick off the 10th anniversary of the 2014 Water for the World Act. The event featured Nancy Eslick, USAID Global Water Coordinator and Senior Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Resilience, Environment and Food Security; Sangita Patel, Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Global Health; Jamille Bigio, Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women’s Empowerment; Katie Donohoe, Acting-Deputy Assistant Administrator, Bureau for Africa. You can see a video of their conversation here.
Member News
Appointments
Anna Slother has been promoted to President of Chemonics U.S. Government Operations.
DAI has appointed Tine Knott to the newly created position of EVP for Strategy and Global Operations; she previously served as SVP, U.S. Government Business, succeeding her in that role is Sarah Helmstadter.
ECS appointed Ryan Garner as their new CFO.
Udunopa Abalu has recently joined the Executive Committee of the International Development Group, LLC (IDG), as the Director of New Business.
Publications
Chemonics published a report, How Local Partners are “Meeting the Moment”.
DAI recently published the following report, Localizing Digital Public Goods.
Lisa Viscidi of Deloitte co-authored a report with the Department of State 'Advancing Prosperity and Tackling Climate Change in Central America.’
USAID recently published a Case Study on ECODIT environment work in Cambodia.
Encompass CEO Tessie Catsambas co-authored a book, Evaluation Management: How to Commission and Conduct Evaluations That Matter.
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January 11, 2023
It’s the start of the new year, and CIDC is already hitting the track running. This month, on January 18, we will meet here at CIDC with both Michele Sumilas and Roman Napoli from USAID’s Bureau of Planning, Learning and Resource Management (formerly PPL). These two veteran AID officials will bring a wealth of knowledge and expertise to our conversation on topics ranging from Localization efforts, budget and the current situations in Ukraine and the Middle East. Additionally, CIDC’s Procurement Task Force will meet immediately upon the conclusion of our meeting; USAID’s Industry Liaison Matt Johnson will join us remotely for part of the meeting.
Speaking of expertise, USAID’s new Procurement Executive Jami Rodgers brings decades of federal contracting experience with him as he assumes his new role – in an agency where he worked from 2012-18. Coming most recently from NASA, he also has years of experience at the Department of Energy and the EPA. Jami will be our speaker on February 15.
Please be sure to log in to your PSC account and register for all of the above on the PSC Events Page.
Below you will find PSC’s work – and recognition – in submitting various comments to executive branch on proposed rules; something PSC did 34 times in 2023 – serving as a reminder how critical your input is!
Once again, thanks to all who helped make our 2023 Development Conference such a success. You can read more about the event in our just-released PSC Service Contractor magazine – read here.
Once again, thanks to all who helped make our 2023 Development Conference such a success. You can read more about the event in our just-released PSC Service Contractor magazine, which includes articles on AI written by our staff, as well as one written by ChatGPT- just click on the magazine.
Our “From the Field” stories this month highlight the impact of DT Global and their work to support inclusive climate change adaptation and finance in Fiji and how Cadmus successfully works with USAID’s BEACON program to foster economic development in the Philippines through improved internet access.
Thursday, January 18; from 12 p.m. – 1 p.m. ET
Michele Sumilas and Roman Napoli USAID Bureau of Planning, Learning and Resource Management
PSC Office or Virtual
4401 Wilson Blvd. Suite 1110, Arlington, VA 22203
Please log in and register via PSC’s Events Page
Thanks to our sponsor for this month’s meeting:
How DT Global Supported Inclusive Climate Change Adaptation and Finance in Fiji
From left, Fiji Development Bank Climate and Eco Finance Manager Setaita Tamanikaiyaroi and Fiji Development Bank Chief Executive Officer Saud Minam.
Credit: USAID Climate Ready
By: USAID Climate Ready Staff
Climate change amplifies a society’s existing inequalities and poses unique threats to the livelihoods, health, and safety of women, children, and other marginalized groups. For example, during prolonged droughts, women and girls often need to travel greater distances to get water and firewood for their families, increasing their risks of being physically and sexually violated. In fact, reports have shown that incidences of attacks, abuse, sexual harassment, and violence on young girls, children, women, people with disabilities, and lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and, intersex people double during and after a natural disaster.
BEACON Chief of Party John Garrity addresses that community of Dingalan, Aurora at an April 23, 2023 public demonstration of the Introducing Non-Geostationary Satellite Constellations Test Deployments to Improve Internet Services (INCENTIVISE) Project.
Cadmus: Fostering Economic Development in Remote Areas in the Philippines through Improved Internet Access
The internet has become a fundamental resource in the digital age, allowing people to connect, communicate, and collaborate anytime and anywhere. Information and Communication Technology (ICT), broadband in particular, has emerged as the most important tool to respond to the challenges posed by the new realities emphasized by the COVID-19 pandemic in delivering education, governance, health, and business services and improving overall livelihood. It is through consistent access to ICT related services that countries can ensure access to information, services, and markets, and to enhance global competitiveness.
PSC Government Affairs Committee Meeting with China Committee Staff
On Friday, February 2, at noon, PSC will host a bipartisan meeting with Professional Staff Member James Cunningham and General Counsel David Dorfman from the of the House Select Committee on Strategic Competition between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party – aka The China Committee. This meeting is an excellent opportunity for PSC member companies to discuss their issues with current and proposed regulations governing industry as it relates to legislation on China and Chinese companies. In addition to raising the impact of Sec. 889, we hope companies will provide input and feedback on their recently released report, “Reset, Prevent, Build: A Strategy to Win America’s Economic Competition with the Chinese Communist party.” The report is bipartisan and reflects nearly 150 policy recommendations that the committee may utilize to influence and create new legislation during the second session of the 118th Congress. You can read the report here: reset-prevent-build-scc-report.pdf (house.gov)
PSC Input Recognized in Final Rule
PSC responds to a lot of Federal Regulations, and 2023 was no different. Thanks to member input and hard work in-house, we submitted 34 sets of written comments in 2023; see below for a typical example. What is not always typical, but is always worth noting, is when PSC gets mentioned in the Final Rule. That’s exactly what happened on December 14, when the Department of Labor quoted extensively PSC’s input in its Final Rule on “Nondisplacement of Qualified Workers Under Service Contracts.” This document also provides clarification on how the definition of same or similar work would be applied to Multiple Agency Contracts, as requested by PSC. It also states that the Government did not include a formal reconsideration process for location continuity and agency exceptions, which PSC highlighted as problematic.
PSC Comments on OMB AI Memo
On December 4, 2023, PSC provided comments on an OMB draft memo, "Advancing Governance, Innovation, and Risk Management for Agency Use of Artificial Intelligence." PSC noted AI policies will impact both federal programs and their contracting partners and offered to facilitate future engagement to deepen all stakeholders' understanding of AI's potential opportunities and limits. Based on member feedback, PSC also commented on specific questions and language related to the draft memo. Click here to access PSC's comments.
Thank You Development 2023 Sponsors!
November 9, 2023 saw CIDC host its eleventh annual conference, at the Westin Hotel in Ballston with 200+ in attendance and over 50 attending virtually. Read more about the highlights from the 11th Annual Development Conference in the latest edition of the PSC Service Contractor Magazine here.
USAID Gets an IG
On Monday, December 18, by voice vote the Senate confirmed Paul Martin as the Agency’s newest Inspector General – filling a vacancy that had been left open since Ann Calvaresi Barr retired in January 2021. The Department of State IG position is still being filled in an Acting capacity.
Upcoming USAID Meetings/Info
Department of State Matters
Recent/Upcoming Events:
On December 12, Department of State Industry Liaison held the FY24 Q1 Virtual Industry Day with representatives from their OSDBU, AQM, OBO, and OPE offices. You can find the presentation slide deck here and the recording here. Department of State Industry Liaison will hold an in-person FY24 Q2 Industry Day on February 5 in Atlanta, GA. Please follow them on LinkedIn for more information.
State’s OSDBU notes the following upcoming meetings: