Advisory
Issued: Feb. 27th, 2009
Revision 01 Issued: March 4th, 2009
Revision
02 Issued: June 15th, 2009
Revision
03 Issued: August 6th, 2009
Review
of Advisory and Assistance Services and
Certain Other Professional Services
This Agriculture Acquisition Regulation (AGAR) Advisory supersedes
AGAR Advisory 91B, dated June 15th, 2009, and establishes an interim procedure
for Departmental oversight of proposed contracts for advisory and assistance
services and certain other professional services exceeding $500,000. AGAR
Revision 03 institutes the need for OCIO Acquisition Approval Request (AAR)
approval if information technology services are an integral part of the
acquisition pertaining to the Advisory and Assistance Services Review (AASR).
This advisory is issued
pursuant to the memorandums from Secretary Tom Vilsack, dated January 22, 2009,
and June 5, 2009, entitled “Interim Procedures,” and the Agriculture
Acquisition Regulation (AGAR), Department of Agriculture Supplement to the
Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), 48 CFR 401.371.
a)
“Advisory and assistance services,” is fully
defined in the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 37.2 and Subpart 2. These are services provided under contract by
non-governmental sources to support or improve:
· Organizational policy development;
·
Decision-making;
·
Management and
administration;
·
Program and/or
project management and administration; and/or
·
Research and
development (R&D) activities;
·
Information
technology services that are an integral part of a contract for the acquisition
of advisory and assistance services.
“Advisory
and assistance services” can also mean the furnishing of professional advice or
assistance rendered to improve the effectiveness of Federal management
processes or procedures (including those of an engineering and technical
nature) and may take the form of information, advice, opinions, alternatives,
analyses, studies, evaluations, recommendations, training, and the day-to-day
aid of support personnel need for the successful performance of ongoing Federal
operations. Included are efforts that
support or contribute to improved organization of program management, logistics
management, project monitoring and reporting, data collection, budgeting,
accounting, performance auditing, and administrative technical support for conferences
and training programs. Also included are
contracted services that provide organized, analytical assessments/evaluations
in support of policy development, decision-making, management, or
administration, and acquisitions of models, methodologies, and related software
supporting studies, analyses or evaluations.
“Advisory
and assistance services” do not include:
·
Routine
information technology services unless they are an integral part of a contract
for the acquisition of advisory and assistance services;
·
Architectural and
engineering services as defined in the Brooks Architect-Engineers Act (40
U.S.C. 1102);
·
Research on
theoretical mathematics and basic research involving medical, biological, physical,
social, psychological, or other phenomena.
“Advisory and assistance services” shall not be –
·
Used in
performing work of a policy, decision-making, or managerial nature which is the
direct responsibility of agency officials;
·
Used to bypass or
undermine personnel ceilings, pay limitations, or competitive employment
procedures;
·
Contracted for on
a preferential basis to former Government employees;
·
Used under any
circumstances specifically to aid in influencing or enacting legislation;
·
Used to obtain
professional or technical advice which is readily available within the agency
or another Federal agency.
b)
“Certain Other Professional Services” means any program management and
acquisition support services. “Certain
Other Professional Services” do not typically include operational or support
services such as security or guard service, architect and engineer services,
janitorial, grounds keeping services, repair services, software development, systems
operations and support, or network management support.
c)
“Requesting Activity” means the program
unit within the Agency or staff office that has the need for the advisory and
assistance service or other applicable professional service.
It
is the policy of the Department that agencies acquiring advisory and assistance
services shall comply with Subpart 37.2 of the FAR
and
this supplemental guidance.
a)
Requesting
Activities, through
their Head of Contracting Activity Designee (HCAD), shall submit the
information required in the template (Attachment A) prior to any proposed award
for advisory and assistance services or certain other applicable professional
services exceeding $500,000. The HCAD is
responsible for submitting the required documentation, with signatures, to the Chief,
Procurement Policy Division (PPD). All submissions shall be emailed to Todd.Repass@da.usda.gov.
b)
Chief, Procurement
Policy Division (OPPM/PPD) is responsible for reviewing the submission for
completeness and routing the documentation to the Assistant Secretary for Administration
for review. If information technology services are an integral part of the acquisition
pertaining to the AASR, the Associate Chief Information Officer will need to
review and approve prior to the Assistant Secretary for Administration. Approval for
AASR’s which contain information technology services will not be considered
until OCIO AAR approval is provided. The PPD Chief will notify the HCAD when
the review(s) is complete or will request additional information from the
activities for action or resubmission, if needed. No award shall be made prior to completion of this review process.
Initial submission of a proposed
contract award under this AGAR advisory should be submitted as soon as
identified and, at a minimum, 30 business days prior to any proposed award.
Agencies are encouraged to submit this information as early in the acquisition
planning process as possible.
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.
This
advisory is available on the USDA procurement homepage at http://www.da.usda.gov/procurment/index.html
EXPIRATION DATE: This advisory
will remain in effect until cancelled.
AGAR Advisory 91
Attachment
A
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Project Name: |
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Agency/Office: |
Name: |
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Address: |
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Agency
Identifier #: |
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Agency Point of Contact: |
Name: |
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Email
Address: |
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Telephone
Number: |
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Contracting
Officer: |
Name: |
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Email
Address: |
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Telephone
Number: |
Please include the following information:
1.
Description: Please include a description of the planned
acquisition including major deliverables/services, and the name of the Agency program/project
supported by the acquisition.
2.
Amount: List the Estimated Dollar Amount (inclusive
of all options).
3.
Funding: Provide proposed funding method including fund
type and year of funds. Please specify
if recovery funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 are
being used.
4.
Schedule: Provide the Period of Performance/Delivery
Schedule and estimated award date.
Include option periods, quantities or items, if applicable.
5.
Contracting Method:
a)
Solicitation type (e.g., sealed bid (IFB), negotiated (RFP), request for proposals under
a multiple award contract or Federal Supply Schedule, interagency agreements).
b)
Small Business Program Considerations:
(i)
Include
information on small business set-asides and programs considerations (e.g.,
8(a) competitive, 8(a) non-competitive, small business set-aside, HubZone
set-aside, Service Disabled Veteran owned small business, women-owned small
business, etc.).
(ii)
If the
acquisition was unrestricted, provide a rationale and address market survey(s)
conducted.
(iii)
Has Office of
Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) approval form AD-1205,
“USDA Small Business Program - Procurement Request Review” been completed, if
required? If yes, attach a copy of the signed form.
c)
Extent of competition (e.g., full and open competition, full and open competition
after exclusion of sources, other than full and open competition pursuant to
FAR Subpart 6.3, competition under Federal Supply Schedule, sole source
set-aside, brand name specified under FSS, GWAC, multiple award or other
indefinite delivery type contracts.)
(i)
For brand name specific order, attach a copy of the justification as required by
FAR 11.105.
(ii)
For other than full and open competition pursuant to FAR Part 6.3, attach a copy of the
approved justification for other than full and open competition.
(iii)
For a sole-source procurement, include a separate sole-source statement explaining why
there
is no other source capable of providing
the required services.
(iv)
Performance Based: If the contract is not performance based, provide a rationale.
d)
Contract Type
(see FAR part 16) including pricing structure.
If recovery funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of
2009 are being used and the planned contract type is other than firm,
fixed price, please explain.
e)
Contract Users/Ordering Offices: Identify
authorized contract users. For
indefinite delivery type contracts, identify authorized ordering offices.
6.
Determination: Has the determination required by FAR 37.204,
regarding availability of personnel, been made?
7.
Conflict of Interest: Include a
brief statement regarding any possible basis, or lack thereof, of a conflict of
interest or appearance of a conflict of interest.
8.
Continuing Requirement: If the
acquisition is a continuing requirement, what is the current contract/order
number(s), contractor(s) name and address and expiration date(s)?
9. AAR
Requirement: If information
technology is a requirement, have you received an approved AAR from OCIO? If
yes, please provide the AAR number and approval date.
Note: AASR approval will not be considered until OCIO AAR approval is
provided.
10. Other
Issues: Include any other acquisition issues of note.
SUBMITTED FOR REVIEW:
_________________________________________________________ ___________________
Signature Date
Name (Type or Print):
Program Manager / Project Manager
_________________________________________________________ ___________________
Signature Date
Name (Type or Print):
Contracting Officer
_________________________________________________________ ___________________
Signature Date
Name (Type or Print):
HCA or HCAD