Customs Broker Permit User Fee Payment for 2026

On December 2, 2025, U.S. Customs and Border Protection published in the Federal Register (90 FR 55319) Customs Broker Permit User Fee Payment for 2026. The $185.38 fee is due by January 30, 2026.

Garrison Cap Contract Awarded

December 11, 2025, Bernard Cap LLC,* Hialeah, Florida, has been awarded a maximum $18,857,146 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for green service uniform garrison caps. This was a competitive acquisition with six responses received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. The ordering period end date is Dec. 10, 2030. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2026 through 2031 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-26-D-0015).

*Small business

Cold Weather Coveralls Contract Awarded

December 12, 2025, SNC Manufacturing LLC,* Orocovis, Puerto Rico, has been awarded a maximum $15,857,625 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for mechanics cold weather coveralls. This was a competitive acquisition with five responses received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. The ordering period end date is Dec. 12, 2030. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2026 through 2031 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-26-D-0013).

*Small business

Extreme Cold Weather Sleeping Bag System

December 9, 2025, Bestwork Industries for the Blind Inc.,* Cherry Hill, New Jersey, has been awarded a maximum $68,200,000 firm-fixed-price, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for extreme cold weather sleeping bag system. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. The ordering period end date is Dec. 8, 2030. Using military service is Army. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2026 through 2027 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-26-D-B002).

*Small business

Thursday is Thanksgiving Day in America

Agathon Associates, will be closed Thursday, November 27th, in celebration of Thanksgiving Day, a major holiday in the United States. All government offices and most businesses will be closed for the day. Many business, other than retail, will also be closed on Friday, the 28th.

“Whereas it is the duty of all Nations to acknowledge the providence of Almighty God, to obey his will, to be grateful for his benefits, and humbly to implore his protection and favor…I do recommend and assign Thursday the 26th day of November next to be devoted by the People of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being, who is the beneficent Author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be…”-- George Washington, 1789 (from the first National Thanksgiving Day Presidential Proclamation)

The Pilgrims, Puritans, Huguenots, Quakers, Anabaptists, Lutherans, Jews, Catholics, deists, and even atheists who came to America in the colonial period found here freedom not possible in the lands of the Old World where an established church was the norm. Their descendants founded the United States on a radical and untried principle -- no religious establishment and no government interference with religion. What a surprise then to find that the very first Presidential Proclamation issued was Washington’s Thanksgiving Day call to prayer to Almighty God.

Indeed, the only distinctly American holiday is the fourth Thursday in November, which we set aside to thank God for our blessings. Think about it. Christmas is celebrated worldwide, even in some lands where Christians are a small minority. Every nation celebrates New Year’s Day and the various national holidays commemorating great leaders, important battles, and the date of national founding.

Our distinctly American national holiday is a re-enactment -- and re-interpretation for contemporary multi-ethnic and multi-religious American culture -- of that first Thanksgiving in Plymouth, Massachusetts, celebrated by survivors of the Mayflower passage. And, yet, the story is not narrowly the tale of the Pilgrims. Few Americans are literally Mayflower descendants. Most of us do not trace our roots to the the region of England where the Pilgrims came from the. Most of us do not follow their reformed Calvinist religion. Nevertheless, their story is the American story. It is the story of families that left their homeland for a better life in America.

Did your people come here on sailing ships in the 17th, 18th, or 19th century? Or were they part of the big steamship migration of the late 19th and early 20th century that filled Boston with Irish and Italians? Or perhaps you are a more recent immigrant. Whenever your people came here and by whatever means, they, and you, are part of the narrative we re-tell every Thanksgiving Day.

Mallimoda Children’s Pajama Sets Recalled Due to Risk of Serious Injury or Death from Burn Hazard; Violates Mandatory Standards for Children’s Sleepwear; Sold on Amazon by Mallimoda

his recall involves Mallimoda-branded children’s pajama sets. The recalled pajama sets consist of a long-sleeved, button-up shirt with a front pocket and matching pants. The pajamas are trimmed with black piping and have black buttons. The pajama sets were sold in gray/pink, blue, gray/purple, and light green in sizes 3/4T through 13/14 years. “Cotton 100%” and care instructions are printed on the sewn-in side-seam label.

Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled pajama sets and contact Mallimoda for a full refund. Consumers should cut the pajama sets in half and email a photo of the destroyed garments to mallimodarecall@hotmail.com with the consumer’s name and “Recall Proof” in the subject line.

Incidents/Injuries: None reported

Sold At: Amazon from May 2021 through October 2025 for about $31.

Retailer: Hangzhou Lingda Diannao Youxiangongsi, doing business as Mallimoda, of China

Manufactured In: China

Recall number: 26-101

More information and photos HERE.

Combat Uniform Coat and Trouser Contract Awarded

November 21, 2025, PRAK Industries LLC,* Camuy, Puerto Rico, has been awarded a maximum $44,283,084 fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment, indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract for various combat uniform coats and trousers. This was a competitive acquisition with six responses received. This is a five-year contract with no option periods. The ordering period end date is Nov. 20, 2030. Using customers are Navy and Coast Guard. Type of appropriation is fiscal 2026 through 2031 defense working capital funds. The contracting activity is Defense Logistics Agency Troop Support, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (SPE1C1-26-D-0012).

*Small business