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SF 1449 Block 29


myfrogleaps

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I am seeking clarification on the completion of Block 29.

 

Per Block 29: "Award of Contract: ____________ Offer Dated _________. Your offer on solicitation (Block 5), including any additions or changes which are set forth herein, is accepted as to items:______________."

 

My thought process is as follows:

1. Purchase Order are not contracts.

2. Quotations in response to Purchase Orders are not "accepted" by the government as the government is making the offer with the award of a Purchase Order which then has to be "accepted" by the Contractor.

3. The SF1449 lists both Contract and Purchase Order in Block 27b but does not list Purchase Order in Block 29.

All the above leads me to concur that Block 29 is for Contracts in which the Contractor is making an offer that is accepted by the Government and does not speak to purchase orders.

 

I have searched for instructions for the SF 1449 and found an outdated DOD copy which simply uses the term "contract."

 

Does anyone know if there are more recent instructions? How do others interpret this? Do you complete the Block 29 for Purchase Orders as well as Contracts?

 

 

 

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I’ve heard arguments both ways that you should leave it blank if soliciting quotes, and that you should put the quote number, the date it was accepted and the items that were accepted. I think the SF1449 uses the terms interchangeably.

I would just leave it blank and make sure you have several other indicators that would show the Government and contractor intended to be bound by the contract once signed. 

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Unless an agency has issued policy or guidance on the matter (FAR 53.212), I would suggest the following.

Block 29 only applies when the government is accepting an offer from a offeror to form a binding contract.

If the CO is instead issuing an offer to purchase (purchase order) to a vendor, the CO should simply complete Blocks 31a, b and c, then send the purchase order to the vendor.  If the CO wants written confirmation of the vendor's acceptance of the purchase order, he or she can check Block 28 request the vendor sign the document and complete Blocks 30a, b, and c.  While Block 28 states the contractor is "required" to sign the document, I don't see how they could be required to accept an offer to purchase from the government, even if they submitted a quote.  Alternatively, if the CO is not concerned with obtaining written acceptance, he or she can rely on the expectation that the contractor will perform.  Tender of performance creates a binding contract.  When performance is partial or in part, the question of when a contract is formed is less certain.  Boards have found in that substantial performance creates a binding contract, while intiation or partial performance may or may not based on the circumstances (ASBCA No. 33732, Amplitronics, Inc.).

I believe the reason that Block 27 states both contract and purchase order, is because those clauses apply regardless of whether the form is used to create a contract by accepting an offer from a vendor or the issuance of an offer to purchase (purchase order) issued by the government.  Block 29, on the other hand, is only used to accept a vendor's offer to form a contract when the CO signs the document.  Block 29 is not used to issue a purchase order.

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