U.s. Federal Acquisition Regulation

The agency had submitted a Request for Proposals in April of 1991 in reference to the need for Egyptian Health Insurance Organization to have an information management system that was computer-based (Open Jurist). There were five companies who submitted proposals for this project and Birch & Davis International, Inc. was one of them. Birch submitted three proposals and two went into the final bidding stage. Birch was informed that they were excluded from the competitive range and that left only one bidder in December of the same year. This is the action that led Birch to file a formal appeal with the General Services Board of Contract Appeals on December 20, 1991. Their argument was that their bid held up within competitive range and that any issues were just superficial (p.1426). The GSBCA reviewed the decision to exclude the bid from the competitive range and on February 27, 1992 they

1. You recently retired from government contracting work and established a consulting company (fully consistent with government ethics laws and rules, of course) with the primary focus of advising potential government contractors and subcontractors. Mr. Johnny Jones, of The Johnny Jones Flooring and Construction Company has approached you with a question. Jones and his company are potential subcontractors (they, obviously, specialize in flooring) on a federal construction contract worth a little over two million dollars ($ 2,000,000.00) recently awarded to the Jimmy Smith Construction Company (Jimmy Smith, the prime contractor). Neither Johnny nor his company have ever been part of a government contract

Contract monitoring is the systematic review of a contractor’s records, activities, etc. to ensure compliance with the terms and conditions of the contract (Texas HHSC 2015). Because privatization aims to provide the government with the best value in terms of quality, service, and conditions, contracting does not end after the procurement process (Schooner 2011, 3). The administration of the contract, including monitoring, is just as important to ensuring that the state gets the best value. Despite the fact that there is a clear contract monitoring process within HHS, time is not always invested into developing a comprehensive monitoring approach and funds are not always allocated towards that process, preventing agencies

Part 15 of the Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) “prescribes [the] policies and procedures governing competitive and noncompetitive negotiated acquisitions.” One component of negotiated acquisitions that occurs early in the acquisition process is the solicitation of proposals. FAR 15.201, titled, “Exchanges with Industry before Receipt of Proposals,” regulates the type and manner of communications, also sometimes referred to as exchanges, which can – and cannot – take place between the Government and potential suppliers prior to the receipt of a potential supplier’s proposal and the subsequent award of a contract.

All Advance Pays for Soldiers departing the installation (PCS out) must be submitted to the Out Processing Section at Waller Hall.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been in protecting consumer privacy on the internet by targeting deceptive and unfair trade practices since the act was establish in 1914( Halbert & Ingulli, 2012, p. 253). According to Halbert & Ingulli (2012) the FTC banned

The Federal Trade Commission is an independent agency of the U.S. government that was established in 1915 and charged with keeping American business competition free and fair. The FTC has no jurisdiction over banks and common carriers, which are under the supervision of other governmental agencies. It has five members, not more than three of whom may be members of the same political party, appointed by the President, with the consent of the Senate, for seven-year terms. The act was part of the program of President Wilson to check the growth of monopoly and preserve competition as an effective regulator of business.

There was no formal bidding process. In addition, it appeared that not all bidders were treated equally. This can be seen when the bidding process was opened back up after the contractors were narrowed down to

Strict adherence to formal procedures characterizes sealed bidding which attempts to provide a “level playing field” or as a multitude of references point out equal footing to all bidders who compete for a contract. Competitive negotiation is a more flexible process that enables the agency to conduct discussions, evaluate offers, and award the contract using price and other factors. The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), whose origins can be traced back to the ASPA of 1947 was codified at Title 48 of the Code of Federal Regulations and became effective 1 April 1984. The FAR contains the uniform policies and procedures for acquisitions by all federal agencies to date. It addresses nearly every procurement related statute or executive policy; and subsequently encompasses every stage of the acquisition process. In a nutshell, FAR appears to have modernized and thus enveloped the aforementioned three acts.

Evaluate the requirements for announcing federal contract awards. Determine how these requirements apply to this scenario.

After submission of written arguments and a review of the record (the board members would have to to review the transcript and exhibits from the two-day hearing),

However, there are other important factors that the federal government insists that contracting officers evaluate in the selection process. The contracting officer must decide if the cost/non-cost criteria is either significantly more important that cost or price; approximately equal in importance of cost or price or significantly less important than cost or price (Compton. 2010, p.113). Vendors are informed of the results after the contract has been awarded. There are circumstances in which the

Sealed bidding is a form of reviewing contracts in which the bid is literally 'sealed' and "submitted in response to invitation-to-bid (ITB). Sealed bids received up to the deadline date are generally opened at a stated time and place (usually in the presence of anyone who may wish to be present) and evaluated for award of a contract" (What is a sealed bid, 2012, Business Dictionary). Although the bids are sealed prior to being opened at the designated date, afterwards all "interested parties" can review the bids, although "they don't have access to the bidders' financial data and other proprietary information. The contract is awarded to the company with the lowest bid" under most circumstances (What Sealed bids vs. proposals: How they compare, 2012, ONVIA). Of course, the reliability of the contractor and the feasibility of the lowest bid must first be evaluated before the contract is extended. The bid must fulfill the stipulations of the original IFB. The past history of the company will also be gauged. "They gauge a bidder's level of responsibility based on the company's means to fulfill all the contract requirements" (Sealed bids vs. proposals: How they compare, 2012, ONVIA).

Post award orientation, either by conference, letter or some other form of communication, should be the beginning of the actual process of contract administration. These forms of communication are helpful tool for the business. It is important to have a pre-meeting with a program and contracting officials present so that there is a clear understanding of everyone’s responsibilities and restrictions in

Negotiating is a practice that allows for two sides to reach common ground and agree upon a specific settlement or transaction. During this at times complicated process, the bargaining sides develop a measure together to move forward in their business process. As a lead negotiator of a small firm, the research and analysis of the sought after contract has to be thoroughly conveyed to the U.S. Government. The small business’s negotiating team should be very familiar with the federal negotiating team and all that the federal government is expecting from the product they desire. As there are hundreds of competitors out there, it is safe to assume that there are multiple products out there. However, the negotiating firm of the small business must use different negotiating gambits and pay particular attention to the body language and examine the language used during the entire process.