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Procurement Collusion Strike Force

Antitrust Division Seal

The Procurement Collusion Strike Force (PCSF) leads a coordinated national response to combat antitrust crimes and related schemes in government procurement, grant, and program funding at all levels of government—Federal, state, and local. The PCSF is comprised of the Antitrust Division of the U.S. Department of Justice, multiple U.S. Attorneys’ Offices around the country, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), and the Inspectors General for multiple Federal agencies.

Training: Strike Force attorneys and agents are available to provide training to other law enforcement agents, auditors, and procurement personnel to assist them in identifying and preventing collusion and fraud in the competitive bidding process.

Enforcement: If collusive conduct is discovered, the Strike Force stands ready to investigate and criminally prosecute the individuals and corporations seeking to unjustly profit from these tragedies.

Collusion and anticompetitive conduct that subvert the competitive bidding process include:

  • Bid rigging: Two or more firms agree to bid in such a way that a designated firm submits the winning bid.
  • Price fixing: Two or more competing sellers agree on what prices to charge, such as by agreeing that they will increase prices a certain amount or that they won't sell below a certain price.
  • Customer or market allocation: Two or more firms agree to split up customers, such as by geographic area, to reduce or eliminate competition.

These agreements are generally secret, and the participants defraud customers by holding themselves out as competitors despite their agreement not to compete. They harm consumers and taxpayers by causing them to pay more for products and services and by depriving them of other byproducts of true competition.

Related document: Preventing and Detecting Bid Rigging, Price Fixing, and Market Allocation in Post-Disaster Rebuilding Projects

As of October 1, 2023:
31K+
Agents and procurement officials trained
100+
Investigations opened
50+
Guilty pleas and trial convictions
$65M+
Fines and restitution

Reporting Possible Violations

The PCSF Tip Center receives and reviews complaints, concerns, and tips regarding individuals and/or organizations potentially engaged in antitrust crimes—such as price fixing, bid rigging, and related schemes—affecting government procurement, grant, and program funding.

If your antitrust concerns do not involve government procurement, grant, and/or program funding, please report your concern to the Antitrust Division’s Complaint Center.

If you do not think your concerns involve the antitrust laws, you may want to visit the Department of Justice site for more information or send a message to the Department of Justice.

Please keep in mind that the Antitrust Division is prohibited from giving legal advice to private individuals.

How to Report Possible Violations

Training on Collusion for Inspectors General and Procurement Officials

The PCSF is committed to working with the Inspectors General of agencies receiving Federal funds, as well as government procurement officials, to train individuals at all levels of the funding process to better deter and detect antitrust crimes affecting government procurement, grant, and program funding.

  • Who needs to be trained?: Federal, state, and local agency procurement and grant officers, as well as agency auditors and investigators.
  • What is the focus of training?: Identifying the red flags of collusion.
  • What are the goals of training?:
    • Prevent collusion and related crimes in the process of awarding contracts and grants.
    • Identify and investigate possible collusion and related crimes relating to contracts or grants that have been awarded for potential criminal prosecution.

To schedule training or request more information, send an email to pcsf@usdoj.gov.

Press Releases and Speeches

Executives Charged with Bid Rigging, Territorial Allocation and Defrauding the U.S. Forest Service After a Wiretap Investigation (December 15, 2023)

Three Military Contractors Sentenced in Procurement Fraud Scheme (December 4, 2023)

Justice Department's Procurement Collusion Strike Force Holds Its First Summit to Discuss Strategies to Combat Emerging Threats (November 17, 2023)

Director Daniel Glad of the Justice Department’s Procurement Collusion Strike Force Delivers Remarks to the National Association of State Procurement Officials’ 10th Annual Law Institute (November 9, 2023)

United States, Mexico, and Canada Launch Joint Initiative To Detect Collusive Schemes Seeking To Exploit The 2026 FIFA World Cup (September 22, 2023)

Director of the Justice Department's Procurement Collusion Strike Force Daniel Glad Delivers Remarks to the Seventh Annual White-Collar Criminal Forum at the University of Richmond Law School (September 14, 2023)

Subcontractor Sentenced to Pay Nearly $9 Million in a Criminal Fine and Restitution for Rigging Bids and Defrauding the U.S. Military (September 12, 2023)

Owners of Military Contracting Companies Sentenced for Bid Rigging in Texas (August 23, 2023)

Former Public Official and California Contractor Sentenced for Bid Rigging and Bribery (April 24, 2023)

Construction Company Owner Sentenced to 78 Months in Prison and Ordered to Pay Nearly $1 Million in Restitution for Rigging Bids and Bribing a Public Official (April 17, 2023)

Former Construction Company President Sentenced for Attempting to Monopolize Highway Construction, Repair Contracts (March 29, 2023)

Military Contractors Convicted for $7 Million Procurement Fraud Scheme (March 29, 2023)

Two Additional Municipal Employees Plead Guilty to Fraud Conspiracy (February 27, 2023)

Insulation Contracting Firm Co-Owner Sentenced to Fifteen Months in Prison and Ordered to Pay more than $1 Million to Victims of Bid Rigging and Fraud (February 14, 2023)

Municipal Employee Pleads Guilty to Wire Fraud Conspiracy (February 2, 2023)

Construction Company Owner Sentenced for Fraud in Securing Millions of Dollars in Contracts Intended for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (January 18, 2023)

Military Contractor Pleads Guilty to Bid Rigging (January 17, 2023)

Justice Department’s Procurement Collusion Strike Force Announces Four New National Law Enforcement Partners as it Enters its Fourth Year (November 15, 2022)

Construction Company Owner Pleads Guilty to Bid Rigging and Bribery (November 14, 2022)

Insulation Contracting Firm Sentenced for Rigging Bids (November 7, 2022)

Executive Pleads Guilty to Criminal Attempted Monopolization (October 31, 2022)

Former Contractor Pleads Guilty to Bid Rigging and Bribery (October 3, 2022)

Insulation Contracting Firm and Co-Owner Sentenced for Rigging Bids and Fraud (September 30, 2022)

Owner of Commercial Flooring Contractor Pleads Guilty to Participating in Kickback Scheme to Defraud a U.S. Army Facility (September 22, 2022)

Former Engineering Executive Sentenced for Rigging Bids and Defrauding North Carolina Department of Transportation (September 8, 2022)

Two Companies Plead Guilty in Bid Rigging Scheme for Insulation Contracts (August 4, 2022)

Military Contractor Pleads Guilty to Rigging Bids for Public Contracts in Texas and Michigan (July 14, 2022)

Construction Company Owner Convicted of Fraud in Securing More Than $240 Million in Contracts Intended for Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Businesses (June 30, 2022)

Military Contractors Indicted for $7 Million Procurement Fraud Scheme (June 23, 2022)

Military Contractor Indicted for $15 Million Bid-Rigging Scheme and Conspiracy to Defraud the United States (May 20, 2022)

Three Florida Men Indicted for Rigging Bids and Defrauding the U.S. Military (April 12, 2022)

Former Caltrans Contract Manager Pleads Guilty to Bid Rigging and Bribery (April 11, 2022)

Inland Empire Man Agrees to Plead Guilty in Bid-Rigging Scheme to Obtain Contracts to Provide Food to Federal Prison Facilities (April 5, 2022)

Contractors Indicted for Rigging Bids on Subcontract Work and Defrauding U.S. Military Bases in South Korea (March 17, 2022)

Minnesota Concrete Company and its CEO Indicted for Rigging Bids for Public Contracts (March 10, 2022)

Former Engineering Executive Convicted of Rigging Bids and Defrauding North Carolina Department of Transportation (February 1, 2022)

Contacts

Daniel W. Glad, Director
Sandra Talbott, Deputy Director
Michael M. Sawers, Assistant Deputy Director
Bryan Serino, Assistant Deputy Director
Jamie Collins, Program Manager

Mailing Address:
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Room 3322
Washington, DC 20530-0001

Phone: 202-514-2401
Fax: 202-616-2645