Federal construction contractors and subcontractors should immediately review the FY 2021 Corporate Scheduling Announcement List (CSAL) Construction, released on September 1 by the Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP), to see if they have been selected for an upcoming audit.

This CSAL notifies more than 400 construction establishments (locations) of upcoming audits and is the only advance notification to the contractor of the upcoming audit. All of the upcoming audits have been identified as traditional full compliance reviews — as opposed to the more simplified construction compliance checks that were previously listed on the FY 2020 CSAL Construction. Note that OFCCP instructs that each district office must first complete the construction compliance checks on the previous CSAL before starting on the new list, and that “OFCCP does not purge scheduling lists.”

Along with the CSAL, the OFCCP also published the methodology used to determine which contractors were selected for the current pre-audit list. The OFCCP reports that federal contractors account for 75% of the scheduling list while the remaining 25% of the list consists of federally assisted contractors (of which less than 25% are federally assisted subcontractors).

Federal contractors and subcontractors should not miss this window of opportunity to begin preparing for the audit, as OFCCP historically publishes the CSAL a minimum of 45 days before it begins to issue the Office of Management and Budget (OMB)-approved Scheduling Letter, which commences the compliance evaluation process. Upon receipt of the Scheduling Letter, contractors typically have only 30 days to respond to the OFCCP. Federal contractors and subcontractors identified on the CSAL should use this opportunity to ensure their affirmative action programs are legally compliant and evaluate additional compliance efforts required by federal regulations.

The OFCCP has been readying to lean into enforcing compliance for federal construction contractors. The agency is preparing to launch its new Scheduling Letter for construction compliance evaluations, which the OMB recently approved and — consistent with the process that has historically been applied to supply and service compliance evaluations — will require contractors to first provide data and information as part of a desk audit (rather than on-site). In addition, the new Scheduling Letter will request additional and more detailed data and information. To assist with compliance, the OFCCP provides a compilation of resources and best practices for construction contractors and updated its detailed Construction Contractors Technical Assistant Guide.

Faegre Drinker will continue to provide updates on the CSAL and other OFCCP compliance updates.