|
|
|
|
| HOME | CONTENTS | DISCUSSIONS | DISCUSSION ARCHIVES | BLOG | QUICK-KITs| STATES |
|
|
Loading
|
|
TITLE VIII--ACQUISITION POLICY, ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT, AND RELATED MATTERS Subtitle C--Industrial Base Matters |
|
|
P. L. 113-291 |
Explanatory Statement, 12/4/14, H8671 |
|
SEC. 822. PLAN FOR IMPROVING DATA ON BUNDLED OR CONSOLIDATED CONTRACTS. (a) Plan Required- Section 15 of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 644) is amended by adding at the end the following new subsection: `(s) Data Quality Improvement Plan- `(1) IN GENERAL- Not later than October 1, 2015, the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, in consultation with the Small Business Procurement Advisory Council, the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy, and the Administrator of General Services, shall develop a plan to improve the quality of data reported on bundled or consolidated contracts in the Federal procurement data system (described in section 1122(a)(4)(A) of title 41, United States Code). `(2) PLAN REQUIREMENTS- The plan shall-- `(A) describe the roles and responsibilities of the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, each Director of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization, the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy, the Administrator of General Services, senior procurement executives, and Chief Acquisition Officers in-- `(i) improving the quality of data reported on bundled or consolidated contracts in the Federal procurement data system; and `(ii) contributing to the annual report required by subsection (p)(4); `(B) recommend changes to policies and procedures, including training procedures of relevant personnel, to properly identify and mitigate the effects of bundled or consolidated contracts; `(C) recommend requirements for periodic and statistically valid data verification and validation; and `(D) recommend clear data verification responsibilities. `(3) PLAN SUBMISSION- The Administrator of the Small Business Administration shall submit the plan to the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate not later than December 1, 2016. `(4) DEFINITIONS- In this subsection, the following definitions apply: `(A) CHIEF ACQUISITION OFFICER; SENIOR PROCUREMENT EXECUTIVE- The terms `Chief Acquisition Officer' and `senior procurement executive' have the meanings given such terms in section 44(a) of this Act. `(B) BUNDLED OR CONSOLIDATED CONTRACT- The term `bundled or consolidated contract' means a bundled contract (as defined in section 3(o)) or a contract resulting from the consolidation of contracting requirements (as defined in section 44(a)(2)).'. (b) Technical Amendment- Section 44(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 657q(a)) is amended-- (1) in paragraph (1)-- (A) by inserting `appointed or' before `designated'; and (B) by striking `section 16(a) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 414(a))' and inserting `section 1702(a) of title 41, United States Code'; and (2) in paragraph (3), by striking `section 16(c) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 414(c))' and inserting `section 1702(c) of title 41, United States Code'. |
Plan for improving data on bundled or
consolidated contracts (sec. 822)
The House bill contained a provision (sec. 813) that would amend section 644 of title 15, United States Code, by requiring the Small Business Administration to work with other agencies to create and implement a data quality improvement plan to promote greater accuracy, transparency, and accountability in the reporting of contract bundling and consolidation. The committee recognizes that properly labeling a contract as bundled or consolidated is important to small business competition, as the process of contract labeling triggers a series of reviews and mitigation steps that promote opportunities for small business. The Senate committee-reported bill contained no similar provision. The agreement includes the House provision with a clarifying amendment. We direct the Comptroller General of the United States to assess whether contracts are being identified properly as bundled or consolidated. The review shall examine a statistically significant sample of contracts awarded by the Departments of Defense (DOD), Energy, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Veterans Affairs, the General Services Administration, National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the Small Business Administration with values above $10.0 million in sectors 23, 33, 54, and 56 as defined by the North American Industry Classification System. Not later than October 1, 2015, the Comptroller General shall provide an interim briefing to the House and Senate Committees on Armed Services, the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and the House Committee on Small Business with a summary of findings, including an assessment of (1) the quality of data reported pertaining to contract bundling and consolidation, and (2) interim recommendations, if any, to improve current data collection and dissemination on contract bundling and consolidation. In the final report, the Comptroller General shall evaluate (1) the pros and cons of implementing government-wide the "Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) Contract Reporting Data Improvement Plan'' published by DOD on January 12, 2010; (2) the plan proposed by the Small Business Administration under this section; and (3) whether other alternatives should be considered to improve reporting of bundled and consolidated contracts without requiring modification to FPDS. Finally, the Comptroller General shall examine whether government-wide strategic sourcing vehicles are reducing the number of companies, including small business concerns, that are actively participating in the federal procurement system as prime contractors, and whether this reduction poses substantial risk to the industrial base. The final report shall be delivered to the House and Senate Committees on Armed Services, the Senate Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship, and the House Committee on Small Business not later than October 1, 2017. H. Rpt 113-446 to accompany H. R. 4435 Section 813--Plan for Improving Data on Bundled and Consolidated Contracts This section would amend section 644 of title 15, United States Code, by requiring the Small Business Administration to work with other agencies to create and implement a data quality improvement plan to promote greater accuracy, transparency, and accountability in the reporting of contract bundling and consolidation. The committee recognizes that properly labeling a contract as bundled or consolidated is important to small business competition, as the process of contract labeling triggers a series of reviews and mitigation steps that promote opportunities for small business. Therefore, this section would also require the Comptroller General of the United States to initiate a study, not later than October 1, 2018, to examine the effectiveness of the required data quality improvement plan and report the findings of the study to the Committee on Small Business of the House of Representatives and the Committee on Small Business and Entrepreneurship of the Senate not later than 12 months after initiation of the study.
|
