A new rule gives contractors the right to review information before it is made public on FAPIIS, the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System. But the contractor will have only seven days to file an objection.

FAPIIS, once referred to as the government’s “bad boy” list, contains information ranging from suspensions and debarments to criminal, civil and administrative actions against a contractor. It was originally designed as a one-stop to help contracting officers determine whether a company was responsible. But in 2010 Congress ordered that most of the information be open to the public.

A 2011 interim rule put FAPIIS on public view, except for past performance ratings. Now the Federal Acquisition Regulation councils have amended the rule after industry groups objected that the public database might include some information, such as proprietary information, that is exempt from public release under the Freedom of Information Act.

The final rule, effective Jan. 3, provides that a contractor can see any information before it is posted publicly, and the contractor has seven days to object that the information is protected by FOIA.

The FAR councils wrote, “The Councils recognize the risk to contractors if the data is made public prior to offering the contractor a chance to review.”

However, the final rule does not say what happens if the contractor objects and the agency decides that the objection has no merit.

The Venable law firm commented, “[T]he final rule completely avoids any discussion of when information deemed not exempt under FOIA by the agency might be re-posted. If a contractor objects to the agency’s FOIA exemption determination, the rule does not explain how the re-posting of information should be handled in the event the contractor files an appeal or a reverse-FOIA lawsuit.”

Venable says contractors should provide their side of the story to explain any derogatory information that is posted on FAIIS. They should make sure their salespeople and customers are aware of the information, and are able to deal with questions about any FAPIIS posting.