May 9, 2008

AGAR ADVISORY

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE

OFFICE OF PROCUREMENT AND PROPERTY MANAGEMENT

AGAR ADVISORY NO. 85

Acquisition Workforce Training, Delegation, and Management System

INTRODUCTION: The purpose of this Agriculture Acquisition Regulation (AGAR) Advisory is to establish temporary Acquisition Workforce policy and procedures for USDA employees pursuant to—

• The Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting Program (FAC-C) dated January 20, 2006;
• The Federal Acquisition Certification for Program and Project Managers (FAC-P/PM) dated April 25, 2007; and
• The Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting Officer Technical Representatives (FAC-COTR) dated November 26, 2007.

SUMMARY: The Senior Procurement Executive (SPE) is issuing interim guidance to accelerate the mandatory implementation of the FAC-C, FAC-P/PM, and FAC-COTR programs within USDA. This interim guidance shall supersede guidance provided in Departmental Regulation (DR) 5001-1, Acquisition Workforce Training, Delegation and Tracking system, dated September 30, 2003. The attached guidance will be codified in a revised Departmental Regulation 5001-1 at a future date.

AGAR Advisories are posted on the USDA World Wide Web site at the following URL: http://www.usda.gov/procurement/policy/advisories.html. If you have questions regarding this advisory, please contact Todd Repass, Chief, PPD via email at Todd.Repass@da.usda.gov or by phone at (202) 690-1060; or send an email to procurement.policy@da.usda.gov.

EFFECTIVE DATE: This advisory will remain in effect until cancelled.

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