PN 04-36

Subpart 1804.5--Electronic Commerce in Contracting

1804.570 NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS).

1804.570-1 General.

The NASA Acquisition Internet Service (NAIS) provides an electronic means for posting procurement synopses, solicitations, and associated information on the NAIS Internet site which in turn, automatically posts relevant information onto the Governmentwide point of entry (GPE).

1804.570-2 Electronic Posting System.

(a) The NAIS Electronic Posting System (EPS) enables the NASA procurement staff to --

(1) Electronically create and post synopses on the NAIS Internet site and the GPE; and

(2) Post solicitation documents, including solicitation amendments or cancellations, and other procurement information on the NAIS Internet site with linked references on the GPE.

(b) The EPS maintains an on-line index linking the posted synopses and solicitations for viewing and downloading.

(1) Create and post all synopses in accordance with FAR Part 5 and NFS 18 05; and

(2) Post all competitive solicitation files, excluding large construction and other drawings, for acquisitions exceeding $25,000.

(d) The NAIS is the official site for solicitation postings which in turn, automatically posts relevant information onto the Government-wide point of entry (GPE). In the event supporting materials, such as program libraries, cannot be reasonably accommodated by the NAIS, Internet sites external to NAIS may be established after coordination with the contracting officer. Such sites must be linked from the NAIS business opportunities index where the solicitation resides. External sites should not duplicate any of the files residing on the NAIS.

Subpart 1804.6--Contract Reporting

1804.601 Record requirements.

The Headquarters Office of Procurement, Analysis Division, is responsible for meeting the requirements of FAR 4.601, based on installation validation and approval of data entered into the Federal Procurement Data System.

(d)(1) Centers shall ensure that only actions awarded to SBA certified HUBZone small businesses are counted towards HUBZone goal achievement when reporting information in the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS). Such businesses must be determined by SBA as eligible to receive HUBZone contracts prior to the time of proposal submission.

1804.604 Responsibilities.

(c) Centers shall perform statistically-valid comparisons of FPDS data to contract files. The Procurement Officer Certification of Procurement Data Submissions to FPDS and the Results of Statistically Valid Comparison of FPDS Data and Contract Files shall be submitted to the Office of Procurement, Analysis Division by December 15^th of each year. The templates for these documents can be accessed at http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/ProcurementOfficerCertification.doc and shall be attached to a cover letter forwarding Center submittals. Definitions and specific process requirements are as follows:

(i) Definitions:

Overall Accuracy Rate – The percent of all the FPDS data elements sampled which were determined to be correct (the elements matched the corresponding data in the contract files and the data in the contract files were correct). Only compute the overall data accuracy rate for the data elements listed in (D) for the FPDS validation, verification and certification process as required by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP). Center validation of additional data elements must be accomplished separately.

Data Element Accuracy Rate – The percentage of entries for each selected data element in the sampled contract action records (CARs) that were determined to be correct (the entry matched the corresponding data in the contract file and the data in the contract file was correct). Only data elements appropriate for the type of record being validated should be counted in computing the data element accuracy rate. For example, only count the accuracy of the “Reason for Modification” element in modification records. Data elements that have been optional in FPDS should be validated as though they had been required. Therefore, data elements should only be blank if they do not apply to that record type. Data elements that apply to the type of record being reviewed must not be blank and must be supported by information present in the contract file or contract writing system.

Total Sample Size – This is the total number of FPDS CARs selected for comparison to the corresponding contract files. Records will be randomly identified for each Center by the HQ Office of Procurement.

Percent of Total Center Procurement Spend Covered by Sample – This is computed by dividing the total obligations associated with the CARs sampled by the total obligations associated with all procurement actions at your Center (excluding grants) during the review period.

(ii) Procedures:

(A) All reportable Center actions must be entered into FPDS. The HQ Office of Procurement will randomly select actions (excluding grants) for data validation and verification from records in the system and provide a list of actions to each Center on or about April 15^th and October 15^th. The April list of actions will include awards made October 1 through March 31. The October list will include awards made April 1 through September 30. Centers can establish a schedule for completing the validation and verification as long as the certification and results report is provided as required in 1804.604(c).

(B) Each sampled CAR shall be validated against the associated contract file by an individual other than the contracting officer who awarded the contract or the person entering the contract data for that CAR. While validation of data against the corresponding data in the contract writing system (CWS) may still occur, for the purposes of the validation and verification process, verification must be made against the official contract file for each CAR.

(C) The reviewer(s) must obtain sufficient information to validate any CAR data elements not contained in the contract file or CWS. Data elements that cannot be validated shall be considered incorrect and this includes CAR data elements that match data in the contract file or CWS that the reviewer and his/her supervisor determine to be inaccurate.

(D) The data elements to be reviewed are identified by the names which appear on the FPDS screens and correspond to the data dictionary definition which can be accessed at http://www.fpds-ng.com/downloads/FPDSNG_DataDictionary.pdf. The following data elements shall be reviewed as a part of the data validation and verification process:

1A Procurement Identifier

1C Referenced IDV ID

2A Date Signed

2C Completion Date

2D Est. Ultimate Completion Date

2E Last Date to Order

3A Base and All Options Value

3B Base and Exercised Options Value

3C Action Obligation

4C Funding Agency ID

4F Funded by Foreign Entity

5B Who Can Use

5D Fee for Use of Service

5J Fee Paid for Use of IDV

6A Type of Contract

6F Performance Based Service Acquisition

6M Description of Requirement

7A Clinger Cohen Act

7B Walsh-Healy Act

7C Service Contract Act

7D Davis Bacon Act

8A Product/Service Code

8G Principal NAICS Code

8K Use of EPA Designated Products

8L Use of Recovered Material

8N Bundled Contract

9A DUNS No

9C Principal Place of Performance Code

9H Place of Manufacture

9K Place of Performance ZIP Code (+4)

10A Extent Competed

10C Reason Not Competed

10N Type of Set Aside

10P Evaluated Preference

10R Statutory Exception to Fair Opportunity

11A CO’s Business Size Selection

11B Subcontract Plan

12A IDV Type

12B Award Type

12C Reason for Modification (if 12D = M)

13N 8(a) Program Participant

13O HUBZone Firm

13P Small Disadvantaged Business

13U Woman Owned Business

13V Veteran Owned Business

13W Service-Related DVOB

(E) Each Center shall utilize a sample size from the random list of contract actions that is sufficient to produce statistically valid conclusions at the 95% confidence level, with an error rate of no more than 5 percent. The contract actions must be reviewed in the sequential order provided in the list from the HQ Office of Procurement. Centers must use the Binomial Confidence Intervals calculator at http://statpages.org/confint.html to determine if they have achieved an error rate of no more that 5 percent in accordance with OFPP guidance. When using the calculator note the following:

Binomial Confidence Intervals

Numerator:
Denominator:

Proportion:
Exact Confidence Interval:	to
Confidence Level:
% Area in Upper Tail:
% Area in Lower Tail:

1. The Numerator equals the total number of errors found

2. The Denominator equals the total number of contract action records reviewed

3. The Confidence Level will always be 95

4. The percentage used in the Upper Tail block will always be five (5)

5. The percentage in the Lower Tail block will always be zero (0)

6. The Exact Confidence Interval and the Proportion are automatically computed when the numerator and denominator are inserted. An exact confidence Interval greater than 5 percent

exceeds the OFPP tolerance level.

(F) Errors or discrepancies identified must be documented and corrected in FPDS and PRISM/CMM. Current year awards will be provided in the list of actions, but if an error has been carried forward from the basic award, the basic award must be corrected so that the change carries forward to all modifications. In addition to the Results of Statistically Valid Comparison of FPDS Data and Contract Files report that accompanies the Procurement Officer’s certification, each Center shall maintain a record of all findings, corrections, and the date(s) corrections were made in CMM and/or FPDS. When requested, this information shall be provided to the Office of Procurement, Analysis Division.

(G) Errors in fields that originate from external sources (i.e. CCR data and basic contract award information input by another agency (when placing orders)) cannot be corrected by NASA. Each occurrence must be counted as an error and identified in the results report if this is considered to be the cause of systemic errors for a data field being reviewed. Specific descriptions of these errors shall be maintained in the Center record of findings.

(H) Each center shall identify a primary focal point and one alternate for FPDS data verification and validation responsibility. The focal point is responsible for establishing and coordinating the center’s review process and ensuring that reviews comply with the requirements of this section and the OFPP mandate for independent review of contract actions against the contract file. The focal point shall also ensure that certifications are provided to the Office of Procurement, Analysis Division on or before the December 15^th due date each year. Focal point and/or alternate changes shall be promptly provided to the Analysis Division.

(I) Each center shall develop and maintain an FPDS Data Quality Plan. The template for the plan is available at: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/procurement/regs/QualityPlan.doc. The focal point shall ensure that the most current copy/version of the Center’s Data Quality Plan is provided to the Office of Procurement, Analysis Division.

Subpart 1804.8--Government Contract Files

1804.802-70 Handling of classified material.

When a contract is unclassified, classified material relating to that contract shall be maintained in a separate file folder and container, and the unclassified folder shall be marked to indicate the location of the classified material. The front and back of each folder containing classified material shall be marked with the highest classification assigned to any document in the folder.

1804.803 Contents of contract files.

1804.803-70 Checklist.

NASA Form 1098, Checklist for Contract Award File Content, shall be used as the "top page" in contract files.

1804.804 Closeout of contract files.

1804.804-2 Closeout of the contracting office files if another office administers the contract.

(b) Upon receiving the NASA Form 1611 or DD Form 1594, Contract Completion Statement, from the contract administration office and complying with FAR 4.804-2(b), the contracting officer shall complete the form.

1804.804-5 Procedures for closing out contract files.

(a) When the contracting office retains contract administration (excluding acquisitions under the simplified acquisition threshold), the contracting officer must comply with FAR 4.80 4 -5(a) by completing NASA Form 1612, Contract Closeout Checklist, and DD Form 1593, Contract Administration Completion Record.

(b) To comply with FAR 4.804-5(b), the contracting officer must complete NASA Form 1611 or DD Form 1594, Contract Completion Statement, except for acquisitions under the simplified acquisition threshold.

1804.805 Storage, handling, and disposal of contract files.

(a) See NPR 144 1.1, NASA Records Retention Schedules.

1804.805-70 Review, separation, and retirement of contract files.

(a) Upon determination of contract completion under the procedures outlined in 1804.804, each office shall remove the official contract files from the active file series, mark each file folder with "Completed (Date)", and place the folder in a completed (inactive) contract file series. Separate series should be established for contracts of $25,000 or less and for contracts of more than $25,000, to facilitate later disposal. Any original or official file copies of documents contained in duplicate or "working" contract files shall be removed and placed in the appropriate official file; any remaining material in the duplicate or "working" file shall be destroyed immediately or segregated and marked for early disposal.

(b) Each office shall review contractor "general" files (i.e., a file containing documents relating generally to a contractor rather than a specific contract) at least once annually and remove documents that --

(1) Are obsolete or superseded documents relating generally to the contractor (e.g., documents no longer pertinent to any aspect of a contractor's current or future capability, performance, or programs, and documents relating to a contractor that is no longer a possible source of supplies, services, or technical assistance) and dispose of the documents as authorized in 1804.805; or

(2) Pertain only to completed contracts. Place those files that are not routine in nature in inactive files for later disposal, and immediately dispose of routine documents as authorized in NPR 1441.1, NASA Records Retention Schedules.

Subpart 1804.9--Taxpayer Identification Number Information

1804.904 Reporting payment information to the IRS.

Each NASA installation, that has its own employer identification number, may elect to report to the IRS payments under purchase orders and contracts for merchandise and other exempt bills.

Subpart 1804.70--Transfer of Contracting Office Responsibility

1804.7000 Scope of subpart.

This subpart contains policies and procedures applicable to the transfer of contracts between NASA installations.

1804.7001 Definition.

"Transfer of a contract," as used in this subpart, means that process whereby a contract and all future responsibility for a contract held by one installation are transferred or reassigned in writing to another installation.

1804.7002 Approval of Transfer Requests.

(a) The approval authority for requests to transfer a contract is the official in charge of the cognizant Headquarters program office or designee. Requests for approval shall be submitted by the director of the transferring installation after receiving the concurrence of the director of the receiving installation. Concurrence of the Associate Deputy Administrator (Code AI) is also required for a transfer where an installation's roles and missions may be affected.

(b) Approval of a program transfer by the cognizant Headquarters official constitutes approval to transfer program-related contracts.

1804.7003 Responsibilities of the contracting officer of the transferring installation.

1804.7003-1 Coordinations.

The contracting officer of the transferring installation shall take the following steps before transferring the contract:

(a) Agree on a plan and schedule with the contracting officer of the receiving installation for transferring contract responsibility and contract files.

(b) Coordinate with the following offices:

(1) Financial Management Office, to determine the contract financial records to be transferred and the method, timing, and dollar amount of such transfers.

(2) Technical (Engineering and Project) Office, to determine the status of any outstanding engineering changes.

(3) Reliability and Quality Assurance Office, to determine status and method of transferring the reliability and quality assurance functions.

(4) Industrial Property and Facilities Office, to determine the method of transferring the Government property records.

(5) Transportation Office, to determine the status of bills of lading furnished the contractor.

(6) Security Office, to determine whether any classified material is outstanding and whether special precautions are necessary during the transfer process.

(7) Other organizational elements, to determine the status of any other actions such as new technology, materials reports, PERT, and safety.

1804.7003-2 File inventory.

The contracting officer of the transferring installation shall prepare an inventory of the contract file. This inventory shall also include a separate listing of all outstanding requests for contract administration assistance issued to other Government agencies, indicating the name and address of the agency office, functions requested to be performed, estimated cost of the services, and

estimated reimbursement due the administration agency for the services yet to be performed for each requested function. Copies of this inventory shall be provided to the contracting officer of the receiving installation.

1804.7003-3 Notifications.

The contracting officer of the transferring installation shall provide written notification of the planned transfer to the contractor and all agencies performing or requested to perform administration services.

1804.7003-4 Transfer.

(a) Upon completion of the actions described in 1804.7003-1 through 1804.7003-3, the contracting officer of the transferring installation shall issue a letter to the contractor, agencies performing contract administration functions, contracting officer representatives, and the contracting officer of the receiving installation. This letter shall provide notification of the transfer date, termination of appointment of the contracting officer's representatives, and the name, mailing address, and telephone number of the contracting officer of the receiving installation.

(b) After issuing the letters described in 1804.7003-4(a), the contracting officer of the transferring installation shall send the contract file to the contracting officer of the receiving installation with a letter transferring contract responsibility. This letter shall contain a provision for acceptance of the responsibility for the contract and its related files by the contracting officer of the receiving installation.

1804.7003-5 Retention documentation.

The contracting officer of the transferring installation shall retain for permanent file a copy of the approvals and concurrences required by 1804.7002, the transfer acceptance letter of the contracting officer of the receiving installation, and any additional documents necessary for a complete summary of the transfer action.

1804.7004 Responsibilities of the contracting officer of the receiving installation.

1804.7004-1 Pre-transfer file review.

The contracting officer of the receiving installation shall review the contract, letters of request, actions in process, and other related files and to request corrective action, if necessary, before the official transfer of the contract. This review may be waived by written notification to the contracting officer of the transferring installation.

1804.7004-2 Post-transfer actions.

The contracting officer of the receiving installation shall --

(a) Provide the contracting officer of the transferring installation written acceptance of contract responsibility and receipt of the contract files;

(b) Inform all offices affected within the installation of the receipt of the contract;

(d) Issue a contract modification to provide for the administrative changes resulting from the transfer action (e.g., identifying offices responsible for performing contract administration and making payment and the office to which vouchers, reports, and data are to be submitted);

(e) Provide copies of the contract documents to affected installation offices; and

(f) If appropriate, supplement the letter of request to the Government agency providing contract administration services to reflect the changes resulting from the transfer action. The supplement may terminate or amend an existing contract administration support arrangement or may request support in additional areas.

Subpart 1804.71--Uniform Acquisition Instrument Identification

1804.7100 Scope of subpart.

This subpart contains the procedures for uniform numbering of NASA solicitations, contracts (including letter contracts), purchase orders (including requests to other Government agencies), basic ordering agreements, other agreements between the parties involving the payment of appropriated funds or collection of funds for credit to the Treasury of the United States, and modifications or supplements to these instruments.

1804.7101 Policy.

Contractual documents shall be numbered with approved prefixes, suffixes, and serial numbers as prescribed in this subpart. If other identification is required for center purposes, it shall be placed on the document in such a location as to clearly separate it from the identification number.

1804.7102 Numbering scheme for solicitations.

(a) Solicitations shall use the following twelve character alpha-numeric numbering scheme. For the purposes of this section, solicitations include RFPS, draft RFPs, IFBs, RFQs, RFIs, BAAs, NRAs, AOs, and cooperative agreement notices (CANs).

(1) The first two characters shall be NN.

(2) The third character shall designate the Center/Installation issuing the solicitation as follows: A=ARC, C=GRC, D=DFRC, G=GSFC, H=HQ, J=JSC, K=KSC, L=LaRC, M=MSFC, N=NMO-JPL, P=NMO-APL, S=SSC, and X=NSSC.

(3) The fourth and fifth characters shall be two numeric characters for the FY in which the solicitation is expected to be issued.

(4) The sixth through eleventh characters shall be the last six digits of the purchase request (PR) number, except for cases where the solicitation is to be issued without an assigned PR number, for example NASA Research Announcements (NRAs) and Announcements of Opportunity (AOs). In those cases: the sixth character shall be the letter Z; the seventh and eighth characters shall represent the issuing organization’s code; and the ninth through eleventh characters shall be an action number (001-999), assigned sequentially by the issuing organization.

(5) The twelfth character shall be one alpha character for type of solicitation, as follows:

C= CAN

E = IFB

J = Draft RFP

K = BAA (other than AOs or NRAs) or other grant announcements

L = RFI

N = NRA

O = AO

Q = RFQ

R= RFP

(b) The solicitation number is also referred to as the “collective” number within the Integrated Enterprise Management (IEM) system. Since the “collective” field in IEM is limited to ten characters, omit the first two characters (NN) when the solicitation number is entered into the “collective” field.

1804.7103 Numbering scheme for awards.

(a) The identification number for awards shall consist of exactly ten alpha-numeric characters. Identification numbers shall be serially assigned to the extent feasible. Installations may designate blocks of numbers to offices for future use.

(b) The identification number shall consist of the following:

(1) The first two characters shall be NN.

(2) The third character shall be as set forth in 1804.7102(a)(2) .

(3) The fourth and fifth characters shall be two numeric characters for the FY in which the award is expected to be signed by the Government.

(4) The sixth through ninth characters shall be four digits for action number; two alphas, two numbers (AA01, AA02 ... AA99, AB01, AB02, … AZ99, BA01, BA02, etc. through ZZ99)

(5) The tenth character shall be an alpha character for type of action, as follows:

A - Cooperative agreement.

B - BOA, GWAC, or other indefinite delivery type contract.

C - Contract (except Facilities or indefinite delivery type).

D - Delivery order or call against a supply contract (BOA, FSS, or other indefinite delivery contract or BPA).

F - Facilities contract.

G - Grant (other than training).

H - Training grant.

I - Intragovernmental transaction, i.e., request to another Government agency to furnish supplies or services. It does not include an award by NASA to fulfill a request from another agency.

P - Purchase order. (This does not include a call or task or delivery order, regardless of whether it is issued on a purchase order form. It also does not include other types of actions listed in this paragraph, notwithstanding that they are referred to as purchase orders in IEM.)

S - Space Act agreement.

T - Task order or call against a service (including R&D) contract (BOA, FSS, or other indefinite delivery contract or BPA).

Z - BPA.

(b) Sample.

NNG04AA01C would be a GSFC action issued in FY04. It would be the first one issued at the Center (or the first of its type), and the action type would be a contract:

NN G 04 AA01 C

NASA GSFC FY04 Serial No. 1 Contract

1804.7104 Modifications of contracts or agreements.

(a) Modifications of definitive or letter contracts or agreements shall (1) bear the same identification as the contract or agreement being modified and (2) be numbered consecutively for each contract or agreement, beginning with Modification Number 1, regardless of whether the modification is accomplished by unilateral or bilateral action. Except for termination notices, modifications shall be effected by the use of Standard Form 30, Amendment of Solicitation/Modification of Contract.

(b) Definitive contracts superseding letter contracts shall retain the same contract number as that originally assigned to the letter contract. Actions definitizing letter contracts are considered modifications and shall be assigned modification numbers in accordance with paragraph (a) of this subsection.

Subpart 1804.72--Review and Approval of Contractual Instruments

1804.7200 Contract review by Headquarters.

(a) Requests for approval of contracts and supplemental agreements by the Assistant Administrator for Procurement shall be submitted to the Headquarters Office of Procurement (Code HS) in sufficient time to allow a minimum of 15 days for review.

(b) Each request for approval shall be accompanied by (1) five copies of the contractual document, one of which has been executed by the contractor and contracting officer, and (2) the official contract file containing the appropriate documentation as set forth in FAR 4.803(a). However, for the items specified in FAR 4.803(a)10, (11), and (12), the contracting officer shall provide documentation pertaining only to the successful offeror; and, in lieu of the items specified in FAR 4.803(a)(26)(ii) and (iii), the contracting officer shall provide an index briefly describing the content of all previous modifications.

(c) The approval required under this section shall be made by signature of the Assistant Administrator for Procurement on the contract/supplemental agreement.

Subpart 1804.73--Procurement Requests

1804.7301 General.

Except in unusual circumstances, the contracting office shall not issue solicitations until an approved procurement request (PR), containing a certification that funds are available, has been received. However, the contracting office may take all necessary actions up to the point of contract obligation before receipt of the PR certifying that funds are available when -

(a) Such action is necessary to meet critical program schedules;

(b) Program authority has been issued and funds to cover the acquisition will be available prior to the date set for contract award or contract modification;

(d) The solicitation includes the clause at FAR 5 2 .2 3 2-18, Availability of Funds. The clause shall be deleted from the resultant contract.