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ASBCA shoots down DCAA overreach on responsibility to manage subcontractors

A prime contractor is responsible for managing its subcontractors, but what exactly does that require?

In a recent decision, the answer of the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals was: not nearly as much as DCAA claimed.

In Lockheed Martin Integrated Sys., Inc., ASBCA Nos. 59508, 59509, the Board ruled on a Government claim seeking more than $100 million from LMIS for allegedly breaching an obligation to manage subcontracts. In DCAA’s reading, this obligation was extensive and required a number of concrete actions by the prime contractor.

After auditing three LMIS contracts, DCAA questioned $103 million in subcontract costs. DCAA claimed that, for the costs to be allowable, LMIS had to provide documents showing it had: (1) reviewed subcontractor resumes to confirm personnel qualifications; (2) reviewed subcontractor timesheets to confirm the accuracy of invoiced hours; and (3) tried to obtain incurred cost submissions from its subcontractors, contacting “the Government” for “assistance” if the subcontractors refused.  DCAA claimed it could find no subcontract costs allowable “[w]ithout an incurred cost submission from the subcontractor,” which was the prime contractor’s responsibility to obtain.

Keep reading this article at: https://www.insidegovernmentcontracts.com/2017/01/asbca-shoots-dcaa-overreach-responsibility-manage-subcontractors/

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GSA to agencies: Don’t use FedRAMP to screen-out potential bidders

Some federal agencies are beginning to require that contracting vendors have FedRAMP authorizations before bidding on cloud computing contracts.

FedRAMPAt first blush, it seems like a good thing that agencies would require contractors to adhere to the Federal Risk and Authorization Management Act, the government’s standardized approach to ensuring security in cloud computing.

Yet because FedRAMP is still only a few years old, making compliance with FedRAMP a prerequisite to bidding on contracts could limit competition.

“Agencies – contracting officers – are starting to require FedRAMP authorizations as a condition for bidding on work,” said Stan Kaczmarczyk, director of the Cloud Computing Services Program Management Office in the General Services Administration’s Federal Acquisition Service.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.nextgov.com/emerging-tech/emerging-tech-blog/2015/06/gsa-agencies-dont-use-fedramp-screen-out-potential-bidders/114256

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IG: USPS should rescind its facilities contract delegation

The Postal Service should rescind its facilities contract delegation because the contracting officers aren’t required to meet professional qualifications or establish competition requirements, an Aug. 5 USPS inspector general report says.

USPS’s Supply Management office is responsible for approving contracts to acquire goods and services, but they can delegate contracting authority to personnel outside of Supply Management, the report says.

In September 2013, the Postal Service reported six delegations. And though five of those delegations have performed well, the facilities delegation hasn’t, the IG says.

Facilities did not require contracting officers to meet professional qualifications or establish sufficient competition requirements for contracts, the report says. Also, the facilities delegation could not identify its active contracts and did not timely submit the required annual reports.

Keep reading this article at: http://www.fiercegovernment.com/story/ig-usps-should-rescind-its-facilities-contract-delegation/2014-08-12

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