Good Day My Fellow Contracting Professionals,
I hope I have posted this in the correct area - if not, please forgive me.
Here’s the scenario: A Government Agency and the Local Union agreed to arbitration to settle a matter. The agreement was the Agency and the Union would split the cost for the services. The Contracting Officer received a funding document and the invoice to pay for the services. There is not a contract vehicle in place such as a contract / purchase order, BPA, etc.
To me, this appears to be an unauthorized commitment that should be ratified, whereas, the services have taken place, no contract vehicle was in place, and now it’s time to pay the invoice.
My question is: Does anyone know of an exception that would allow this type of action without a contract vehicle being in place first, i.e., just pay for the services once they are completed? By the way, the Vendor does not accept credit cards, so a purchase order will have to be issued to pay for the services. I can’t find anything in the FAR, the agency supplemental regulation, or anything in the Agency’s HR regulations that would allow for an exception to not have a contract in place before the services took place. FAR Part 33 is not applicable in this particular scenario.
The dollar value is under the SAP, but over the Micro Purchase Threshold - not that it really matters.
Thank you for your time and expertise!