# Subpart 4.11 - System for Award Management

## 4.1100 Scope.

This subpart prescribes policies and procedures for requiring contractor registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) to—

1. (a) Increase visibility of vendor sources (including their geographical locations) for specific supplies and services; and

2. (b) Establish a common source of vendor data for the Government.

## 4.1101 Definition.

As used in this subpart-

Agreement means basic agreement, basic ordering agreement, or blanket purchase agreement.

## 4.1102 Policy.

1. (a) Offerors and quoters are required to be registered in SAM at the time an offer or quotation is submitted in order to comply with the annual representations and certifications requirements except for—

   1. (1) Purchases under the micro-purchase threshold that use a Governmentwide commercial purchase card as both the purchasing and payment mechanism, as opposed to using the purchase card for payment only;

   2. (2) Classified contracts (see 2.101) when registration in SAM, or use of SAM data, could compromise the safeguarding of classified information or national security;

   3. (3) Contracts awarded by–

      1. (i) Deployed contracting officers in the course of military operations, including, but not limited to, contingency operations as defined in 10 U.S.C.101(a)(13) or humanitarian or peacekeeping operations as defined in 10 U.S.C.2302(8);

      2. (ii) Contracting officers located outside the United States and its outlying areas, as defined in 2.101, for work to be performed in support of diplomatic or developmental operations, including those performed in support of foreign assistance programs overseas, in an area that has been designated by the Department of State as a danger pay post (see https://aoprals.state.gov/);or

      3. (iii) Contracting officers in the conduct of emergency operations, such as responses to natural or environmental disasters or national or civil emergencies, e.g., Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C.5121);

   4. (4) Contracts with individuals for performance outside the United States and its outlying areas;

   5. (5) Contracts awarded without providing for full and open competition due to unusual or compelling urgency (see 6.302-2);

   6. (6) Contract actions at or below $30,000 awarded to foreign vendors for work performed outside the United States, if it is impractical to obtain SAM registration; and

   7. (7) Micro-purchases that do not use the electronic funds transfer (EFT) method for payment and are not required to be reported (see subpart 4.6).

2. (b) If practical, the contracting officer shall modify the contract or agreement awarded under paragraph (a)(3) of this section to require SAM registration.

3. (c) Contracting officers shall use the legal business name or “doing business as” name and physical address from the contractor's SAM registration for the provided unique entity identifier to identify the contractor in section A of the contract schedule, similar sections of non-uniform contract formats and agreements, and all corresponding forms and data exchanges. Contracting officers shall make no changes to the data retrieved from SAM.

4. (d)

   1. (1)

      1. (i) If a contractor has legally changed its business name or “doing business as” name (whichever is shown on the contract), or has transferred the assets used in performing the contract, but has not completed the necessary requirements regarding novation and change-of-name agreements in subpart 42.12, the contractor is required to provide the responsible contracting officer a minimum of one business day's written notification of its intention to change the name in SAM, comply with the requirements of subpart 42.12, and agree in writing to the timeline and procedures specified by the responsible contracting officer. Along with the notification, the contractor is required to provide the contracting officer sufficient documentation to support the legally changed name.

      2. (ii) If the contractor fails to comply with the requirements of paragraph (d)(1)(i) of the clause at 52.204-13, System for Award Management Maintenance, or fails to perform the agreement at 52.204-13, paragraph (d)(1)(i)(C), and, in the absence of a properly executed novation or change-of-name agreement, the SAM information that shows the contractor to be other than the contractor indicated in the contract will be considered to be incorrect information within the meaning of the “Suspension of Payment” paragraph of the EFT clause of the contract.

   2. (2) The contractor shall not change the name or address for electronic funds transfer payments (EFT) or manual payments, as appropriate, in the SAM record to reflect an assignee for the purpose of assignment of claims (see subpart 32.8, Assignment of Claims).

   3. (3) Assignees shall be separately registered in SAM. Information provided to the contractor’s SAM record that indicates payments, including those made by EFT, to an ultimate recipient other than that contractor will be considered to be incorrect information within the meaning of the “Suspension of payment” paragraph of the EFT clause of the contract.

## 4.1103 Procedures.

1. (a) Unless the acquisition is exempt under 4.1102(a), the contracting officer—

   1. (1) Shall verify that the offeror or quoter is registered in SAM (see paragraph (b) of this section) at the time an offer or quotation is submitted;

   2. (2) Should use the unique entity identifier to verify SAM registration–

      1. (i) Via https://www.sam.gov; or

      2. (ii) As otherwise provided by agency procedures; or

   3. (3) Need not verify SAM registration before placing an order or call if the contract or agreement includes the provision at 52.204-7, System for Award Management, or the clause at 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items, or a similar agency clause, except when use of the Governmentwide commercial purchase card is contemplated as a method of payment. (See 32.1108(b)(2)).

2. (b) If the contract action is being awarded in accordance with 4.1102(a)(5), the contractor is required to be registered in SAM within 30 days after contract award, or at least three days prior to submission of the first invoice, whichever occurs first.

3. (c) Agencies shall protect against improper disclosure of information contained in SAM.

4. (d) The contracting officer shall, on contractual documents transmitted to the payment office, provide the unique entity identifier, or, if applicable, the Electronic Funds Transfer indicator, in accordance with agency procedures.

## 4.1104 Disaster Response Registry.

Contracting officers shall consult the Disaster Response Registry via https://www.sam.gov , Search Records, Advanced Search, Disaster Response Registry Search when contracting for debris removal, distribution of supplies, reconstruction, and other disaster or emergency relief activities inside the United States and outlying areas. (See 26.205 ).

## 4.1105 Solicitation provision and contract clauses.

1. (a)

   1. (1) Insert the provision at 52.204-7, System for Award Management, in all solicitations except when the conditions in 4.1102(a) apply.

   2. (2) Insert the provision at 52.204-7, System for Award Management, with its Alternate I when the solicitation is anticipated to be awarded in accordance with 4.1102(a)(5).

2. (b) Insert the clause at 52.204-13, System for Award Management Maintenance, in solicitations that contain the provision at 52.204-7, and resulting contracts.