Suspensions, Debarments Hit 10-Year Low.

• Author: Levy, Frederic
• Position: Government Contracting Insight

On April 18, the Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee released its annual report on its activities across all executive agencies for fiscal year 2020.

While the data are somewhat old, the report nevertheless provides useful insights into suspension and debarment trends relevant to the government contracting community. Below we highlight the report's three biggest takeaways.

First, combined suspensions and debarments in fiscal year 2020 hit their lowest totals since 2010. There were 1,671 combined suspensions and debarments in 2020, down from 1,921 in 2019. The committee partly attributes the decline to the COVID-19 pandemic, including the government's remote or socially distanced workforce, delays in mail service, travel restrictions and postponements in court proceedings.

However, this decline is part of a longer-term trend: suspensions and debarments have declined in five of the last six years and are down 56 percent from the 2014 peak of 2,938.

On an agency level, traditionally active agencies reported the highest number of actions in 2020. The Department of Defense--including all its components--continues to generate a large share of the debarment activity, with 621, or 37 percent, suspensions and debarments in 2020.

Other customarily active agencies again account for a significant share of suspension and debarments, including the Department of Homeland Security with 217 or 13 percent, the Environmental Protection Agency with 164 or 10 percent, and the General Services Administration 75 or 4 percent.

The report does not provide visibility into the extent to which contractor self-policing and disclosures--mandatory or otherwise--account for the decline in suspension and debarment activity. While the committee reports the number of referrals it received, it does not identify referral sources or the number of referrals attributed to a particular source.

Second, in addition to pandemic-created conditions, the Interagency Suspension and Debarment Committee also attributes the decline in suspension and debarment actions to increased agency use of "alternative remedies," which require significant additional time and resources compared to immediate exclusions. Agencies should be commended for striving to use alternative remedies, such as pre-notice letters and administrative agreements, which allow suspension and debarment officials the flexibility to investigate potential present responsibility concerns and protect the government's...