Womble Bond Dickinson attorneys Matt Koehl and Gary Campbell have worked with Practical Law to develop a series of helpful materials for federal government contractors to help them comply with the Buy American Act of 1933 (BAA) and Trade Agreements Act of 1979 (TAA).

These materials include:

  • An article on "Country of Origin Requirements in US Government Contracts". The US federal government prefers to award procurement contracts to domestic companies (most notably under the BAA). However, the US also has signed a number of free trade agreements that call for reciprocal non-discrimination in government procurement among the signatories to these agreements. Koehl and Campbell untangle this overlapping, seemingly contradictory, set of requirements in this in-depth article. Click here to read "Buying American: Country of Origin Requirements in US Government Contracts".
  • A checklist of best practices for federal government contractors to ensure compliance with the Buy American Act (BAA). This checklist also examines common BAA non-compliance scenarios for federal government contractors to avoid. Click here to read the "Buy American Act: Common Non-Compliance Scenarios and Best Practices for Federal Government Contractors Checklist".
  • A standard BAA certificate of compliance that government contractors are required to submit on their Bids and offers on BAA-covered procurements. This standard document has integrated notes with important explanations and drafting tips. Click here to access the "Buy American Act Certificate".
  • A checklist of best practices for federal government contractors to help ensure compliance with the TAA. This checklist also examines common TAA non-compliance scenarios for federal government contractors to avoid. Click here to read the "Trade Agreements Act: Common Non-Compliance Scenarios and Best Practices for Federal Government Contractors Checklist".
  • A standard TAA certificate of compliance that government contractors are required to submit with their bids and offers on TAA-covered procurements. This standard document has integrated notes with important explanations and drafting tips. Click here to access the "Trade Agreements Act Certificate".

Matt Koehl is a veteran government contracts lawyer with more than 20 years of private law firm and senior in-house law department experience. He represents commercial and defense contractors across a broad range of industries, with a particular emphasis on matters relating to the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) program.

Gary Campbell has spent his entire career representing government contractors, both in private practice and as in-house counsel to a Fortune 100 aerospace and defense company. He regularly counsels his clients on a broad range of government contracts issues, including transactional matters, such as proposal responses and contract negotiations; ethics and compliance issues; internal investigations and government audits; mergers and acquisitions; protests and business disputes.

The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.