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BAA and RDT&E Budget Activities


rmeman2k

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IAW FAR 35.016 (a), the broad agency announcement is used for the acquisition of basic and applied researched and that part of development not related to the development of a specific system or hardware procurement. DoD Financial Management Regulation (DoD 7000.14-R), Volume 2B, Chapter 5 paragraph 050201 provides six detailed definitions of RDT&E budget activities, with budget activity 1 being basic research and budget activity 2 being applied research. My contracting center supports a program office whose mission is to develop, procure and sustain soldier protective equipment. RDTE funds are budgeted for development and improvement of the equipment and/or hardware. The funds the program office receives are designated as budget activity 4 and budget activity 5 RDTE funds. The program office believes that a BAA may be used for all six budget activities. Are they correct or is a BAA limited to budget activity 1 and 2 funds only?

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Are they correct or is a BAA limited to budget activity 1 and 2 funds only?

Good question. Within DoD, use of the BAA technique seems to be permitted for BAs 1, 2, & 3, and, in very limited circumstances discussed below, Budget Activity 4.

Toward answering your question, I would encourage you to take a look at Pub. L. 111-84, sec. 819. As I read it, Section 819 limits the availability of Budget Activity 4 funds to certain follow-on contract line items of limited duration.

S. Rept. 111-035 notes that the "authority" contained in section 819 was requested by DoD. Section 810 of the DoD's proposed NDAA '10 (see Bill Text, at 39) envisioned permitting an option for prototype units or for ACD&P work that furthered the initial effort awarded under the BAA. It limited the term of the option to one year. The General Counsel's Section-by-Section Analysis accompanying the proposed legislation makes it clear that DoD/GC believes that the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) authority is intended for use in Science and Technology. Specifically, it states, "However, the BAA solicitation technique is restricted to only basic and applied research and that portion of development not related to a specific system or hardware program. In the DoD this restricts the use of BAAs to projects funded under Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriations' S&T budget categories 6.1 (Basic), 6.2 (Applied), and 6.3 (Advanced Technology Development)." Section-by-Section Analysis, at 60.

While I'm not convinced the General Counsel's office got it right, it is hard for me to not read Section 819 as amounting to an implicit Congressional blessing of this interpretation.

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Good question. Within DoD, use of the BAA technique seems to be permitted for BAs 1, 2, & 3, and, in very limited circumstances discussed below, Budget Activity 4.

Toward answering your question, I would encourage you to take a look at Pub. L. 111-84, sec. 819. As I read it, Section 819 limits the availability of Budget Activity 4 funds to certain follow-on contract line items of limited duration.

S. Rept. 111-035 notes that the "authority" contained in section 819 was requested by DoD. Section 810 of the DoD's proposed NDAA '10 (see Bill Text, at 39) envisioned permitting an option for prototype units or for ACD&P work that furthered the initial effort awarded under the BAA. It limited the term of the option to one year. The General Counsel's Section-by-Section Analysis accompanying the proposed legislation makes it clear that DoD/GC believes that the Broad Agency Announcement (BAA) authority is intended for use in Science and Technology. Specifically, it states, "However, the BAA solicitation technique is restricted to only basic and applied research and that portion of development not related to a specific system or hardware program. In the DoD this restricts the use of BAAs to projects funded under Research, Development, Test, and Evaluation (RDT&E) appropriations' S&T budget categories 6.1 (Basic), 6.2 (Applied), and 6.3 (Advanced Technology Development)." Section-by-Section Analysis, at 60.

While I'm not convinced the General Counsel's office got it right, it is hard for me to not read Section 819 as amounting to an implicit Congressional blessing of this interpretation.

Thank you for the additional references. I submitted the same question to my legal advisor I received the response below this morning, it is similar to yours.

The definitions of 6.1 and 6.2 funds clearly fall within the language of FAR 35.016. 6.5 funds clearly encompass efforts that fall within the exclusionary language of FAR 35.016. 6.5 funds focus on programs which have already gained a specific focus, not the basic "new idea" initiative for which the BAA process is intended. 6.4, like 6.5, appear to be focused on specific components and subsystems. While I cannot say that efforts falling within the definition provided for 6.4 funds are categorically ineligible for the BAA process, any BAA proposed to be funded with 6.4 funds should be specifically justified as "not related to the development of a specific system or hardware procurement".

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