GovCon Intelligence

A government contract cost proposal is more than a pricing spreadsheet. It is a certified financial document built from your accounting system and governed by FAR 15.408 Table 15-2. Getting a single cost element wrong does not lose you points on a scoring rubric. It triggers a DCAA audit of your entire rate structure.

Government contract closeout takes 6 to 36 months depending on contract type. The FAR 4.804 timeline, quick-closeout procedures, and final indirect rate settlement process determine how fast you receive final payment and release retained funds.

An in-house GovCon bookkeeper costs $65,000-$85,000 per year when you add benefits, training, software, and turnover. Outsourced CPA-managed bookkeeping runs $1,500-$3,500 per month and includes DCAA compliance expertise most staff bookkeepers lack.

DCAA audits are not random. Specific contractor behaviors and contract conditions trigger them. These eight red flags tell you exactly what DCAA watches for and how to reduce your audit risk before the notice arrives.

Every dollar your company spends falls into one of two buckets under federal contracting rules: direct or indirect. Classify it wrong, and that single mistake inflates your rates, triggers DCAA findings, and puts your billing at risk.

Over 10,000 federal contracts have been terminated since early 2025. If a termination for convenience notice hits your inbox, the accounting decisions you make in the first 30 days determine how much money you recover.

CMMC compliance costs hit government contractors hard, but the accounting treatment determines whether you recover those dollars or absorb them. Misclassifying a single cost pool turns a recoverable investment into a questioned cost finding.

The Revolutionary FAR Overhaul took effect February 1, 2026, with 37 class deviations reshaping how government contractors handle cost accounting, indirect rates, and compliance documentation. This article translates the legal changes into specific accounting actions your firm needs to take now.

DCAA requires government contractors to maintain specific written accounting policies before the first audit. This checklist covers the 9 policies auditors expect, what each one must contain, and what a deficiency looks like.

The government contractor year-end close is not a bookkeeping exercise. It is the first phase of your incurred cost submission. Every adjusting entry, rate pool reconciliation, and cost reclassification in December through February determines whether your ICS filing six months later survives DCAA review.