How To Use the NDAA Pages

Back to NDAA Contents

TITLE VIII--ACQUISITION POLICY, ACQUISITION MANAGEMENT, AND RELATED MATTERS

Subtitle G—Other Matters

P. L. 114-

House Conference Report. 114-270

The Senate amendment contained a similar provision (sec. 824 that would: (1) prohibit the use of reverse auctions and lowest priced technically acceptable (LPTA) contracting methods for the procurement of personal protective equipment where the level of quality needed or the failure of the item could result in combat casualties; and (2) establish a preference for best value contracting methods when procuring such equipment.

The Senate recedes with an amendment to combine the two provisions to ensure that the Department of Defense to the maximum extent practicable uses best value criteria for the
procurement of these items.

The conferees are concerned that an overarching bias towards reducing prices paid by the Department of Defense (DOD) to the exclusion of other factors could result in DOD buying
low cost products that have the potential to negatively impact the safety of U.S. military personnel. The conferees believe this could be a particular problem with the quality of personal protective equipment such as combat helmets, body armor, ballistic eye protection, and other similar individual equipment issued to U.S. military personnel.

House Report 114-201 to accompany H. R. 1735 as it was reported out of the House Armed Services Committee.

Section 860--Procurement of Personal Protective Equipment

This section would ensure the Secretary of Defense uses best value contracting methods to the maximum extent practicable when procuring an item of personal protective equipment.

Senate Report 114-49 to accompany S. 1376 as it was reported out of the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Limitation of the use of reverse auctions and lowest priced technically acceptable contracting methods (sec. 824)

The committee recommends a provision that would: (1) Prohibit the use of reverse auctions and lowest priced technically acceptable (LPTA) contracting methods for the procurement of personal protective equipment where the level of quality needed or the failure of the item could result in combat casualties; and (2) establish a preference for best value contracting methods when procuring such equipment. The committee is concerned that an overarching bias towards reducing prices paid by the Department of Defense (DOD) to the exclusion of other factors could result in DOD buying low cost products that have the potential to negatively impact the safety of U.S. troops. This could be a particular problem with the quality of personal protective equipment such as helmets, body armor, eye protection, and other similar individual equipment issued to U.S. military personnel. While LPTA and reverse auction contracting techniques are appropriate for some type of purchases, the committee believes that lowest price is not always the best strategy when quality and innovation are needed. In these cases, the committee believes a best value acquisition approach is more appropriate.