DOD agencies could risk losing some of the money they’ve already been appropriated if it is not spent or committed soon, according to knowledgeable sources with whom Allen Federal has spoken.  These agencies are not accustomed to receiving their full-year appropriations relatively close to on-time and, as such, had not planned to commit appropriated money until later in the fiscal year – about the time they’ve received it the past two fiscal years.  Acquisition offices recently finished all of the work needed to get FY’18 money full accounted for, but now must work quickly on FY’19 money.  If not, DOD financial officials may sweep uncommitted money from certain accounts beginning in mid to late March.This presents an opportunity for contractors who have small or “ready to go” projects that DOD customers can act on quickly.  The more these projects match with overall DOD priorities like security, cyber, cloud, and mission support, the better your chances for closing short term business.  It may be, however, that easier to execute projects that don’t precisely align with priorities will be funded as program managers race to commit dollars before they are lost.  Indeed, failure to spend allocated dollars now may mean that offices receive reduced allocations in future years.  As such, the pressure could be on.  Make sure that your DOD teams are speaking with customers about “shovel ready” projects that can meet real needs quickly.  You can help your customer and yourself.