Subcontract Consent and Contractorsâ Purchasing System Review; FAR Section Affected: 52.244-2
Extension without change of a currently approved collection
No
Regular
02/25/2022
table that charts list comparision
Requested
Previously Approved
36 Months From Approved
02/28/2022
9,330
11,982
53,394
58,273
3,043,458
3,146,729
This clearance covers the information that a contractor must submit to comply with the requirements in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.244-2, Subcontracts, regarding consent to subcontract, advance notification, and Contractorsâ purchasing system review as follows:
a. Consent to subcontract. This is the contracting officerâs written consent for the prime contractor to enter into a particular subcontract. In order for the contracting officer responsible for consent to make an informed decision, the prime contractor must submit adequate information to ensure that the proposed subcontract is appropriate for the risks involved and consistent with current policy and sound business judgment. The review allows the Government to determine whether the contractorâs purchasing policies and practices are efficient and adequately protect the Governmentâs interests.
If the contractor has an approved purchasing system, consent is required for subcontracts specifically identified by the contracting officer in the subcontracts clause of the contract. The contracting officer may require consent to subcontract if the contracting officer has determined that an individual consent action is required to protect the Government adequately because of the subcontract type, complexity, or value, or because the subcontract needs special surveillance. These can be subcontracts for critical systems, subsystems, components, or services.
If the contractor does not have an approved purchasing system, consent to subcontract is required for cost-reimbursement, time-and-materials, labor-hour, or letter contracts, and also for unpriced actions under fixed-price contracts that exceed the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT).
b. Advance notification. Prime contractors must provide contracting officers notification before the award of any cost-plus-fixed-fee subcontract, or certain fixed-price subcontracts that are identified in paragraph (b), (c) and (d) of FAR clause 52.244-2. This requirement for advance notification is driven by statutory requirements in 10 U.S.C. 2306 and 41 U.S.C. 3905.
c. Contractorsâ Purchasing System Review. The objective of a contractor purchasing system review (CPSR), is to evaluate the efficiency and effectiveness with which a contractor spends Government funds and complies with Government policy when subcontracting.
Paragraph (i) of FAR clause 52.244-2 specifies that the Government reserves the right to review the contractorâs purchasing system as set forth in FAR subpart 44.3. This clause is the mechanism through which the requirements of FAR subpart 44.3 are applied to contractors.
FAR 44.302 requires the administrative contracting officer (ACO) to determine the need for a CPSR based on, but not limited to, the past performance of the contractor, and the volume, complexity and dollar value of subcontracts. If a contractorâs sales to the Government (excluding competitively awarded firm-fixed-price and competitively awarded fixed-price with economic price adjustment contracts and sales of commercial products and commercial services pursuant to part 12) are expected to exceed $25 million during the next 12 months, the ACO will perform a review to determine if a CPSR is needed. Sales include those represented by prime contracts, subcontracts under Government prime contracts, and modifications. Generally, a CPSR is not performed for a specific contract. The head of the agency responsible for contract administration may raise or lower the $25 million review level if it is considered to be in the Governmentâs best interest. Once an initial determination has been made to conduct a review, at least every three years the ACO shall determine whether a purchasing system review is necessary. If necessary, the cognizant contract administration office will conduct a purchasing system review.
The burden has been adjusted by using FY 2021 data from FPDS. The estimated cost to the public and to the Government was updated based on use of the calendar year 2021 OPM GS wage rates for the rest of the United States.
On behalf of this Federal agency, I certify that the collection of information encompassed by this request complies with 5 CFR 1320.9 and the related provisions of 5 CFR 1320.8(b)(3).
The following is a summary of the topics, regarding the proposed collection of information, that the certification covers:
(i) Why the information is being collected;
(ii) Use of information;
(iii) Burden estimate;
(iv) Nature of response (voluntary, required for a benefit, or mandatory);
(v) Nature and extent of confidentiality; and
(vi) Need to display currently valid OMB control number;
If you are unable to certify compliance with any of these provisions, identify the item by leaving the box unchecked and explain the reason in the Supporting Statement.
9000-0149 Supporting Statement 02.15.2022.docx
Advance Notification; FAR Section Affected: 52.244-2