Compliance Stuff

The FAR Council recently issued  much-anticipated guidance  implementing Executive Order (EO) 14398, “Addressing DEI Discrimination by Federal Contractors.” 00:00 11:12 Quick Hits New clause FAR 52.222-90 declares contractor compliance “material” to the government’s payment decisions, creating direct False Claims Act liability for contractors who maintain prohibited programs. Agencies must bilaterally modify existing contracts to include the new clause by July 24, 2026 , and if a contractor refuses, agencies are told to consider whether the contract should be terminated for convenience. Prime contractors must flow the clause down to all tiers and report any subcontractor’s “known or reasonably knowable” violations to the contracting officer. While  EO 14398 , issued in March 2026, set the policy stage, this  new memorandum  provides the technical architecture and aggressive deadlines that federal contractors and subcontractors must navigate immediately. Below, w...

On January 22, 2026, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) voted 2–1 to rescind its “Enforcement Guidance on Harassment in the Workplace” (guidance) , which was approved in 2024. [1]  At issue in the guidance was its definition of sex-based harassment under Title VII, which included “repeated and intentional use of a name or pronoun inconsistent with the individual’s known gender identity (misgendering); or the denial of access to a bathroom or other sex-segregated facility consistent with the individual’s gender identity.” [2] The rescission of this guidance is consistent with EEOC Chair Andrea Lucas’s vocal opposition to it dating back to 2024. She dissented from the guidance when it was first issued, criticizing the bathroom-access and pronoun portions based on her belief that they “eliminate single-sex workplace facilities” and “impinge on women’s (and indeed, all employees’) rights to freedom of speech and belief.” [3]  After President Donald Trump appoi...