48 C.F.R. PART 306—COMPETITION REQUIREMENTS
Title 48 - Federal Acquisition Regulations System
Authority: 5 U.S.C. 301; 40 U.S.C. 486(c).
Source: 66 FR 4225, Jan. 17, 2001, unless otherwise noted.
(a) The reference to the agency head in FAR 6.202 (a) shall mean the appropriate competition advocate cited in 306.501. (b)(1) The required determination and findings (D&F) shall be prepared by the contracting officer based on the data provided by program personnel, and shall be signed by the appropriate competition advocate. The D&F signatory is not delegable. (a) (2) (ii) Follow-on contracts for the continuation of major research and development studies on long-term social and health programs, major research studies, or clinical trials may be deemed to be available only from the original source when it is likely that award to any other source would result in unacceptable delays in fulfilling the Department's or OPDIV's requirements. (b) Application. (4) When the head of the program office has determined that a specific item of technical equipment or parts must be obtained to meet the activity's program responsibility to test and evaluate certain kinds and types of products, and only one source is available. (This criterion is limited to testing and evaluation purposes only and may not be used for initial outfitting or repetitive acquisitions. Project officers should support the use of this criterion with citations from their agency's legislation and the technical rationale for the item of equipment required.) (a) Authority. (2) Agency head, in this instance, means the Secretary. (c) Limitations. An “approval package” must be prepared by the contracting officer and staffed through departmental acquisition channels to the Secretary. The package shall include a determination and findings for the Secretary to sign that contains all pertinent information to support justification for exercising the exemption to competition, and a letter for the Secretary to sign notifying Congress of the determination to award a contract under the authority of 41 U.S.C. 253(c)(7). (b) Preliminary arrangements or agreements with the proposed contractor shall have no effect on the rationale used to support an acquisition for other than full and open competition. (f) When a program office desires to obtain certain goods or services by contract without full and open competition, it shall, at the time of forwarding the requisition or request for contract, furnish the contracting office a justification explaining why full and open competition is not feasible. All justifications shall be initially reviewed by the contracting officer. (1) Justifications in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold shall be in the form of a separate, self-contained document, prepared in accordance with FAR 6.303 and 306.303, and called a “JOFOC” (Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition). Justifications at or below the simplified acquisition threshold may be in the form of a paragraph or paragraphs contained in the requisition or request for contract. (2) Justifications, whether over or under the simplified acquisition threshold, shall fully describe what is to be acquired, offer reasons which go beyond inconvenience, and explain why it is not feasible to obtain competition. The justifications shall be supported by verifiable facts rather than mere opinions. Documentation in the justification should be sufficient to permit an individual with technical competence in the area to follow the rationale. (a)(1) The program office and name, address, and telephone number of the project officer shall also be included. (2) This item shall include project identification such as the authorizing program legislation, to include citations or other internal program identification data such as title, contract number, etc. (3) The description may be in the form of a statement of work, purchase description, or specification. A statement is to be included to explain whether the acquisition is an entity in itself, whether it is one in a series, or part of a related group of acquisitions. (c) Each JOFOC shall conclude with at least signature lines for the project officer, project officer's immediate supervisor, contracting officer, and approving official. (a)(2) The competition advocates are listed in 306.501. This authority is not delegable. (3) The competition advocate shall exercise this approval authority, except where the individual designated as the competition advocate does not meet the requirements of FAR 6.304 (a)(3)(ii). This authority is not delegable. (4) The senior procurement executive of the Department is the Assistant Secretary for Administration and Management. (c) A class justification shall be processed the same as an individual justification. The Department's competition advocate is the Director, Office of Acquisition Management and Policy. The competition advocates for the Department's primary contracting officers are as follows:
ACF—Director, Office of Management Services CMS—Chief Operating Officer OS—Director, Office of Acquisition Management and Policy PSC—Director, Administrative Operations Service AHRQ—Executive Officer CDCP—Director, Office of Program Support FDA—Chief, Office of Shared Services HRSA—Associate Administrator for Operations and Management IHS—Director, Office of Management and Support NIH—Senior Advisor for Policy, Office of Extramural Research (R&D) and Senior Advisor to the Deputy Director for Intramural Research (Other than R&D) SAMHSA—Associate Administrator for Management [66 FR 4225, Jan. 17, 2001, as amended at 70 FR 40, Jan. 3, 2005]
Title 48: Federal Acquisition Regulations System
PART 306—COMPETITION REQUIREMENTS
Section Contents
306.202 Establishing or maintaining alternative sources.
306.302 Circumstances permitting other than full and open competition.
306.302-1 Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.
306.302-7 Public interest.
306.303 Justifications.
306.303-1 Requirements.
306.303-2 Content.
306.304 Approval of the justification.
306.501 Requirement.
Subpart 306.2—Full and Open Competition After Exclusion of Sources
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306.202 Establishing or maintaining alternative sources.
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Subpart 306.3—Other Than Full and Open Competition
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306.302 Circumstances permitting other than full and open competition.
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306.302-1 Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements.
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306.302-7 Public interest.
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306.303 Justifications.
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306.303-1 Requirements.
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306.303-2 Content.
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306.304 Approval of the justification.
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Subpart 306.5—Competition Advocates
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306.501 Requirement.
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