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Modification of Contract


Kristin3

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Retreadfed, are you concerned that the OP is spending O&M funds for other than unspecified minor construction, maintenance or repairs? 

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16 hours ago, joel hoffman said:

Retreadfed, are you concerned that the OP is spending O&M funds for other than unspecified minor construction, maintenance or repairs?

Not necessarily, but we know that it happens generally inadvertently through a lack of knowledge or not knowing all the facts of a procurement.  As the contracting officer, Kristin needs to make sure that all requirements of law and regulation have been met before signing off on the mod.  Thus, it would be good to know the rules in this regard and to be on the alert for potential repeats of the Ft. Lee airfield.  I know this was covered in several courses I took while working for DoD.

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For the original poster's benefit, it might be good to say that there is a concern regarding the statutory cost limitation on funding construction projects with O&M funds -- let's say the limit is $300K (it used to be that amount) -- a contract for minor construction for $250K using O&M money is fine, but an additional $100K modification using O&M money would bust the limitation in violation of statute.  I think the limit today is higher.  See 10 USC 2805.

 

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12 minutes ago, ji20874 said:

For the original poster's benefit, it might be good to say that there is a concern regarding the statutory cost limitation on funding construction projects with O&M funds -- let's say the limit is $300K (it used to be that amount) -- a contract for minor construction for $250K using O&M money is fine, but an additional $100K modification using O&M money would bust the limitation in violation of statute.  I think the limit today is higher.  See 10 USC 2805.

 

It’s $750 Thousand and up to $2 MILLION with Secretary of the Service approval. It hasn’t been $300k for many years.

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Well, I allowed that it might be higher today -- I left DoD many years ago.  What is important is using the right terms, such as statutory cost limitation, and providing the citation, such as 10 USC 2805 (but I don't know the DoD implementing regulation citation), to help the original poster do her own research and ask the right questions, so she can get the right answers, rather than talking around the issue.

Kristin3, since you're using O&M funds for a construction project in DoD, is there any possibility that your proposed modification might violate the statutory cost limitation in 10 USC 2805?

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  • 4 months later...

Hello everyone again,

New project...FY 18 repair and doing an inscope mod. and they want to use FY 18 funds for repair....do you need to do a bona fide needs analysis for this type of in-scope mod? I've read the GAO etc. and i know you can use FY 18 funds, but do you have to do a bona fide need analysis as well? 

 

thanks! 

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Kristin,

What is your role?  Contracting officer, finance/budget specialist, program manager, attorney, something else?

You should be able to rely on your funds certifying official — he or she will certify that the provided funds are appropriate for the intended use.

There is no FAR requirement for the contracting officer to do a “bona fide needs analysis” — he or she simply needs to be satisfied that the work is within the scope of the original contract.  The FAR doesn’t require documentation for the file — the mere fact of the signed modification is the proof of the contracting officer’s satisfaction on that matter.  

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10 hours ago, Kristin3 said:

Hello everyone again,

New project...FY 18 repair and doing an inscope mod. and they want to use FY 18 funds for repair....do you need to do a bona fide needs analysis for this type of in-scope mod? I've read the GAO etc. and i know you can use FY 18 funds, but do you have to do a bona fide need analysis as well? 

 

thanks! 

Do not forgot that your agency may have guidance as to your responsibility with regard to bona fide needs review, analysis or whatever it might be called.  By example NASA's FAR Supplement (NFS) at 1837.106-70 does place bona fide needs responsibility on certain folks.  Other agency's may have responsibilities stated in policy documents.   In this context ji20874's guidance is general, your agency's guidance may be more specific.

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  • 4 weeks later...

So, if there is not enough funds in that prior year account when that in scope mod needs to be executed, can I use whatever is there in that prior year account and fund the rest with current year funds? I have done that before but I don't know if that is common practice.

For example:

In-scope mod amount: $50,000.00

FY 18 account available amount: $30,000.00

Current Year available amount: $1,000,000.00

Solution: Take $30,000.00 from that prior year FY2018 account, and take the remaining $20,000.00 from current year funds. Is this common practice? Or is it an all or nothing thing where if there is not 100% of the amount in the prior year account then I must use all current year funds? Thanks.

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Sam, what specifically do you mean when you say “not enough funds in that prior year account”? In other words what prior year account (I.e., locally available funds, agency available funds, etc.) are you referring to?

For instance, if you are in a DoD Service, are you referring to Service level funding or a locally available account?

The reason I ask is that prior year funding may be available for in-scope mods at a higher level than currently allocated locally. If so, that doesn’t allow you to use current year funding...

However, if  adequate prior year funds of the type originally obligated are not available from any levels, then you can make up the difference with current year funds available for that purpose .

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12 hours ago, joel hoffman said:

Sam, what specifically do you mean when you say “not enough funds in that prior year account”? In other words what prior year account (I.e., locally available funds, agency available funds, etc.) are you referring to?

For instance, if you are in a DoD Service, are you referring to Service level funding or a locally available account?

The reason I ask is that prior year funding may be available for in-scope mods at a higher level than currently allocated locally. If so, that doesn’t allow you to use current year funding...

However, if  adequate prior year funds of the type originally obligated are not available from any levels, then you can make up the difference with current year funds available for that purpose .

Thanks Joel, I was talking about the lowest level of the actual prior year accounting line, but I see your point, so, my take away from your answer is that the accounting department must find prior year funds somehow, but if they cannot find them from any level, then supplementing the remainder of the mod amount from current year funds is allowable. 

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22 minutes ago, Sam101 said:

Thanks Joel, I was talking about the lowest level of the actual prior year accounting line, but I see your point, so, my take away from your answer is that the accounting department must find prior year funds somehow, but if they cannot find them from any level, then supplementing the remainder of the mod amount from current year funds is allowable. 

Correct. I will add a caution though. My USACE organization performed construction contracting for USAF MILCON and O&M funded projects. The USAF project managers would take the necessary actions for USAF to transfer funds via “MIPRs“ (“military interdepartmental funds requests”) for O&M funded contracts and mods and for user requested changes for MILCON contracts. It was not uncommon for them to transfer or try to transfer current year funding for changes to O&M funded contracts, claiming that original year funding wasn’t available.

I don’t know if they didn’t inform their Finance and Accounting Offices (Resource Management Offices) or if their F&A offices were just plain ignorant. We couldn’t accept the current year MIPRs unless they could show that the original year funding was no longer available for in-scope changes at Air Staff level or wherever funds expired for new obligations were managed ( I used to know but don’t remember).

I don’t ever remember an instance when they weren’t available. 
 

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