PART 617 - SPECIAL CONTRACTING METHODS
PART 617 - SPECIAL CONTRACTING METHODS
Subpart 617.1 - Multiyear Contracting
(b) The Procurement Executive is the agency head for the purpose of FAR 17.104(b).
(d) Every multiyear contract shall comply with FAR 17.104(c), unless an exception is approved through the budget process in coordination with the cognizant financial management office/comptroller.
• Congressional notification.
(a) The Procurement Executive is the agency head for the purposes of FAR 17.108(a).
"Evaluated option" means an option that is evaluated for award purposes by adding the total price for the option(s) to the total price for the basic requirement.
"Priced option" means an option where the amount for the option is specified in or is reasonably determinable from the terms of the basic contract, as described in FAR 17.207(f)(1) through (5).
"Unevaluated option" means an option that is not included in the evaluation for award purposes.
"Unpriced option" means an option where the prices for the option quantities or performance periods are not specified in the contract at the time of award and the option prices are negotiated at the time the option is exercised.
(e) The Procurement Executive shall approve any solicitations or contracts which exceed the five (5) year maximum length for supplies or services. The Procurement Executive may delegate this approval authority to individuals within the Office of the Procurement Executive.
Subpart 617.5 - Interagency Acquisitions Under the Economy Act
This subpart establishes Department policy and procedures for the development, documentation, and administration of interagency acquisition agreements under the Economy Act (31 U.S.C. 1535, et seq. ).
"Interagency acquisition agreement (IAA)" means a written transaction under which a Federal agency obtains personal property, real property, or services from another Federal agency. IAAs usually involve a transfer of funds between the two Federal agencies. An Economy Act interagency acquisition agreement (EAIAA) is one type of interagency acquisition agreement.
"Requesting agency" means the Federal agency obtaining personal property, real property, or services from another Federal agency through an IAA.
"Servicing agency" means the Federal agency providing personal property, real property, or services to another Federal agency through an IAA. The servicing agency can meet the requesting agency's needs directly or through issuance of a contract, grant, or cooperative agreement.
(a) Policy. (1) It is the Department's policy to use Economy Act IAAs (EAIAAs) in a manner that promotes Department missions, programs, and responsibilities, is consistent with statutory and regulatory requirements, and conforms to relevant financial management standards.
(i) Funds transferred under an EAIAA may not exceed the period of availability of the source appropriation, unless the servicing agency subsequently has incurred valid obligations under the EAIAA.
(ii) Any assets acquired with the transferred funds are in the custody of the servicing agency until such time as the EAIAA has expired. Disposition of any such assets shall be in accordance with the terms of the EAIAA.
(2) An Economy Act IAA (EAIAA) shall be used when:
(i) The EAIAA is identified and planned by the program office with sufficient time to permit orderly completion of reviews and supporting documentation;
(ii) The EAIAA, regardless of whether the Department is the requesting or servicing agency, also is identified and planned in accordance with the Department's acquisition planning cycles;
(iii) Any EAIAA requiring a commitment of Department resources, regardless of whether the Department is the requesting or servicing agency, is identified and planned in accordance with the Department's program planning and budget cycles;
(iv) Any EAIAA including a transfer of funds into the Department is cleared by the budget office of the program office, in consultation with the Bureau of Resource Management (RM); and
(v) Any EAIAA affecting Department employment or ceiling positions is cleared by the personnel office of the program office, in consultation with the Bureau of Resource Management (RM) and the Bureau of Human Resources (HR).
(b) Scope. The following transactions do not fall within the scope of this subpart:
(i) Procurement from required sources, including supplies or services obtained from other Federal agencies as authorized or required by law, e.g., excess and surplus stocks from other government agencies, General Services Administration (GSA) Federal Supply Schedules, GSA Customer Supply Centers, GSA Stock Catalogs, GSA Federal Supply Service Consolidated Purchase Programs, Federal Prison Industries, Inc., National Industries for the Blind, and the Government Printing Office.
(ii) Contracts, awarded by warranted contracting officers, with the Small Business Administration pursuant to Section 8(a) of the Small Business Act;
(iii) Agreements that do not provide for a subsequent transfer of funds to or from other Federal agencies and do not affect employment ceilings or positions of the Department; and
(iv) Interagency acquisition agreements established pursuant to statutory authority other than the Economy Act, e.g., the State Department Basic Authorities Act, the Omnibus Diplomatic Security and Antiterrorism Act, the Foreign Assistance Act, and the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act (including the section known as the Brooks Act).
(c) Competition requirements. An agency may place an Economy Act order with another agency in lieu of undertaking a competitive acquisition; however, the Competition in Contracting Act (41 U.S.C. 253(f)(5)(B)) provides that in no event may an executive agency "procure property or services from another executive agency unless such other executive agency complies fully with the requirements of this subchapter [i.e., competition requirements] in its procurement of such property or services."
Under the Economy Act, any condition or limitation on the requesting agency's funds applicable to amounts for procurement apply equally to the interagency acquisition itself or to any procurement processed thereunder.
617.503 Determination and findings requirements.
The authority to make the determination prescribed in FAR 17.503 is delegated to the head of the contracting activity. A sample determination and findings for EAIAAs is provided on the Intranet at http://www.aope.a.state.gov/.
617.504-70 Ordering procedures.
(a) Department deputy assistant secretaries and Bureau Executive Directors or their equivalents are authorized to execute Economy Act IAAs. Department contracting officers also are authorized to execute Economy Act IAAs, as prescribed in FAR 17.504(a). However, note the restrictions at DOSAR 607.103-70 regarding the Department's State First policy.
(b) Department of State Form DS-1921, Award/Modification of Interagency Acquisition Agreement shall be used for all Economy Act IAAs where the Department is the requesting agency. It shall also be used for Economy Act IAAs where the Department is the servicing agency if the requesting agency does not have a similar form that provides the same information.
(c) EAIAA Review, Authorities, and Responsibilities. (1) Department requirements offices shall identify and justify EAIAA needs in annual planning documents, including acquisition plans. When both the Department and the other agency are contributing resources, personal property, real property, or services, the requirements office shall determine which agency is the requesting agency based on the preponderant need, i.e., the overall, underlying requirement.
(2) The appropriate Department contracting activity shall handle EAIAA responsibilities prescribed in or pursuant to FAR Subpart 17.5.
(3) The Office of the Legal Adviser (L/BA) shall review and clear all EAIAAs exceeding $1 million prior to their execution, except for those of the Office of Inspector General (OIG), which shall be reviewed and cleared by the OIG Office of Counsel.
(d) Preparation, Execution, Distribution, and Administration of EAIAAs.
(1) The requirements office shall identify all EAIAA requirements in its resource plans, including any or all of the following: program plan, budget plan, financial plan, and acquisition plan. Consultation with the Office of the Legal Adviser to establish the statutory authority (specific statute or Economy Act) for the IAA may be sought at this time.
(2) The requirements office shall appoint an individual to manage each EAIAA.
(i) The EAIAA manager shall coordinate the requirement within the bureau, with FMP and, when appropriate, with PER.
(ii) The EAIAA manager shall obtain appropriate clearances and approvals, as specified in 6 FAM 217.4, and coordinate the requirement with the appropriate contracting activity (see 6 FAM 212) for processing in accordance with FAR Subpart 17.5.
(3) When the Department is the requesting agency for the EAIAA, the determination prescribed by FAR 17.503 shall be made by the head of contracting activity, or his/her designee; provided, that authority is within the head of the contracting activity's or his/her designee's overall procurement authority. The EAIAA manager shall assist in preparing the determination, which includes providing a cost or price analysis to support the determination.
(4) When the Department is the servicing agency for the EAIAA, the appropriate Department contracting activity shall ensure compliance with FAR 17.504(d). The EAIAA manager shall assist in preparing the document(s). The determination discussed in 617.503 is not required of the Department. If the EAIAA manager believes the Department may need to use contractor support to meet its obligations under the EAIAA, the EAIAA manager shall consult with the appropriate contracting activity before the EAIAA is signed.
(5) While IAAs are not required to be reported in the Federal Procurement Data System or otherwise, a uniform numbering system shall be established to distinguish DOS participation in the process. An "alpha numeric" designator shall be assigned to all Department IAAs. The number of characters may vary depending on the office code and sequential number. An illustrative example follows:
S-IAA-03-OBO-1
The first four positions shall always commence with "S" and "IAA" to designate a DOS IAA; positions five and six, the fiscal year in which the number is assigned; positions seven and taking up as many spaces as necessary, the office code; and the last position, a sequential number. The sequential number may extend beyond one digit, if necessary. Hyphens shall be inserted as indicated in the example. The example reflects the first IAA issued by the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations in FY 2003.
(6) The EAIAA shall also include a description of the property or services required; a not-to-exceed price; funds citation; delivery requirements; payment provisions; a procedure for resolving disagreements, including use of a third-party forum (consent of the third party should be obtained in writing); audit provisions; disposition instructions for any assets acquired; and acquisition authority as may be appropriate (see FAR 17.504(d)). Certification of funds availability shall be obtained through RM. Payment(s) may be made in advance or on a reimbursable basis (see FAR 17.505).
(7) After obtaining all necessary clearances, the EAIAA manager shall submit the EAIAA to the appropriate authority for signature. The requesting agency usually signs the EAIAA first and then submits it to the servicing agency for bilateral execution.
(8) All modifications to EAIAAs are processed, cleared, and executed in a similar manner.
(9) If there is only one "original" copy of the EAIAA or modification, that copy shall be forwarded to the paying office. The EAIAA manager shall maintain a distribution list of those Department offices that shall receive a copy of each EAIAA or modification. Any changes to the list shall be maintained by the EAIAA manager as they occur.
(e) The EAIAA manager shall be responsible for administering the Economy Act IAA, including quality control, performance, monitoring and enforcement, and evaluation. The EAIAA manager is not, however, authorized to change the DOS resource commitment(s) expressed in the EAIAA. Only those individuals identified in 617.504-70(a)(4) may execute any such modifications to an EAIAA.
Subpart 617.6 - Management and Operating Contracts
The Assistant Secretary for Administration is the agency head for the purposes of FAR 17.602.