FOOTNOTES 1. Defense Procurement Circular No. 76.6, 1/31/77. 2. GSA Bulletin FPR 27 dated 6/2/77. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. For all service contracts under $2,500, the Act prescribes that minimum wages are to be paid under the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act. Report of the Commission on Government Procurement, GAO Letter Report B-166159 to the Office of Secretary "Forward Look" A Study to Improve Management of the Department of Defense Contract Administration Mission, Office of the Assistant Secretary of Defense (Installations and Logistics), undated, pp. 76 and 77. Armed Services Procurement Regulation, Appendix K, U.S. Office of Management and Budget, Basic Plan for the Federal Assistance Review (FAR) Program, 3d Year, July 1, 1971, pp. 1-2 and D 16. III. CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION The study projects in this chapter address selected facets of contract administration in the post-award phase of the procurement process. In this phase, excessive paperwork and red tape are created both in managing the specific terms and conditions of a contract and in adhering to complex legislative and regulatory requirements. Cross-Servicing of Contract Administration Project Summary Field contract administration services include the pre-award evaluations of bids and contractor capabilities, as well as post-award actions such as production surveillance, quality assurance, and property administration. Several Federal agencies maintain field contract administration offices. Generally, each field contract administration office serves its own agency or department. Each has its own forms and procedures, and it is not unusual for a contractor to deal with two or more divergent systems simultaneously. The Commission believes that actions can be taken that would enable these offices to provide support to all Federal agencies. Background Several Federal agencies maintain field organizations to provide support to their purchasing activities. Their location, "at or near" contractors' facilities, provides the needed expertise in close proximity to the point of contractor performance. To the extent of their capabilities, these field organizations should be available to all Federal agencies for field support services. The continuing administration of a contract after award is a vital and integral part of the procurement Once a contract has been awarded, there process. as the may be a need to obtain information in such areas contractor's financial status, production capability or status, quality control performance, and compliance with other contract requirements. There is also a need to assist the buying offices in preaward bid evaluations. These support functions collectively or in part constitute field contract administration. The field organizations, because of their proximity to the plant and their continuing liaison and in-plant visits, develop a level of expertise and intimate knowledge concerning a given contractor's plant operation and output which is not normally available at the purchasing office. Despite this available expertise, effective cross-servicing in contract This results administration has been the exception rather than the rule. in duplication and overlap of responsibilities among Government personnel. Representatives of more than one If the ASPR and FPR were agency frequently visit the same plant site for purposes 92-577 O - 77-8 potential for elimination of the redundancies, duplication of effort, and paperwork burden that now exist in this field. levels. Differences in procedural guidance serve to inhibit completion of cross-servicing arrangements among agencies. The result is duplicative demands placed upon the private sector, proliferation of supplementary procedural guidance, and use of similar forms at many management and operating Though CFPP directives ultimately will provide more uniformity in the procurement regulations, there is a specific need for regulations that will insure that one agency is available to provide on-site contract administration assistance for all agencies in a given plant. By such cross-servicing, the Commission believes that the paperwork burden currently placed on both the private sector and the Government can be drastically reduced. Summary of Findings In an effort to determine a viable approach to contract administration cross-servicing, the Commission conducted interviews with Federal purchasing activities to analyze current procedures used for pre-award and post-award contract administration, the degree to which cross-servicing programs are in effect, and the barriers to greater use of other agencies' field contract administration resources. It was found that two basic concepts normally are employed. One involves the use of a nationwide formal field organization and work force. Such organizations are used by the Offices of Minority Business formance of all or part of the required post-award contract administration functions. |