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Procurement Notice

National Aeronautics and

Space Administration

Washington, DC 20546

**PN 04-39**

**December 1, 2008**

**IMPLEMENTATION OF FEDERAL ACQUISITION CERTIFICATION FOR CONTRACTING
OFFICER TECHNICAL REPRESENTATIVES (FAC-COTR)**

***PURPOSE:*** This PN revises section 1842.270 paragraphs (d) through
(g) to implement the Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting
Technical Officer Representatives (FAC-COTR) at NASA.

***BACKGROUND*:**  This PN revises the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) to
reflect changes in COTR training requirements and implementation of a
certification program mandated by Office of Federal Procurement Policy
Memorandum dated November 26, 2007. The NASA FAC-COTR program requires
40 hours of approved basic COTR training and 40 additional hours of
continuing education every two years after completion of the basic
training.

***ACTION REQUIRED BY CONTRACTING OFFICERS:*** Contracting officers
shall ensure individuals have a FAC-COTR before appointing them as
COTRs.

***CLAUSE CHANGES:*** Not Applicable.

***PARTS AFFECTED:*** Part 1842.

***REPLACEMENT PAGES*:** You may use the enclosed pages to replace 42:5,
42:6, and 42:6.1 (added) of the NFS.

***EFFECTIVE DATE*:** This PN is effective January 1, 2009.

**DO NOT FILE UNTIL JANUARY 1, 2009**

***TYPE OF RULE AND PUBLICATION DATE***:  These changes do not have a
significant effect beyond the internal operating procedures of NASA and
do not have a significant cost or administrative impact on contractors
or offerors, and therefore do not require codification in the Code of
Federal Regulations (CFR) or publication for public comment.

***HEADQUARTERS CONTACT***:  Marilyn E. Chambers, Office of Procurement,
Analysis Division, (202) 358-5154, email: marilyn.chambers@nasa.gov.

William P. McNally

Assistant Administrator for Procurement

Enclosures

**DISTRIBUTION LIST:**

**  PN List** 

contracting officer possesses training, qualifications and experience
commensurate with the duties and responsibilities to be delegated and
the nature of the contract.

\(b\) NASA Form 1634, Contracting Officer Technical Representative
(COTR) Delegation, shall be used to appoint COTRs. A COTR's duties and
responsibilities may not be redelegated by the COTR and the COTR may be
held personally liable for unauthorized acts. However, this does not
prohibit the COTR from receiving assistance for the purpose of
monitoring contractor progress and gathering information. When an
individual is appointed as a COTR on more than one contract, separate
delegations shall be issued for each contract. A separate NASA Form 1634
will be used to appoint an alternate COTR.

\(c\) A COTR delegation remains in effect throughout the life of the
contract unless canceled in writing by the cognizant contracting officer
or at any level above that contracting officer. The contracting officer
may modify the delegation only by issuance of a new delegation canceling
and superseding the existing delegation.

\(d\) A COTR shall not be authorized to initiate procurement actions or
in any way cause a change to the contract or increase the Government\'s
financial obligations. However, delegations may be made to construction
contract COTRs to sign emergency on-site change orders in accordance
with NFS 1843.70. Contracting officers shall specify in NASA Form 1634 a
not to exceed limitation on COTR authority. In no event shall the
limitation exceed \$25,000.

\(e\) Each COTR shall acknowledge receipt and accept the delegation by
signing the original delegation letter and returning it to the
contracting officer. The contracting officer shall file original of the
COTR delegation letter in the applicable contract file. Copies of the
signed COTR delegation letter shall be distributed to the COTR, the
contractor, and each cognizant contract administration office.
Acknowledgment and distribution for terminations of COTR delegations and
COTR delegations which revise authority, duties and responsibilities
shall follow the same rules.

\(f\) Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting Officer
Technical Representatives (FAC-COTR) Requirements

\(1\) These requirements apply to all individuals appointed as COTRs and
alternate COTRs on NASA contracts. These requirements do not apply to
individuals managing grants, or awards made under NASA\'s Small Business
Innovation Research (SBIR) and Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR)
Programs. NASA FAC-COTR Program will be managed by the Acquisition
Career Manager (ACM) within the Office of Procurement.

\(2\) FAC-COTR certificates from any civilian agency are equivalent to
NASA FAC-COTR certificates. The following certificates, from NASA or any
civilian agency, are equivalent to a NASA FAC-COTR certificate:

\(i\) Federal Acquisition Certification in Contracting (FAC-C) Level I
or above; or

\(ii\) Federal Acquisition Certification for Program and Project
Managers (FAC-P/PM) Mid-Level/Journeyman.

\(3\) An individual with a FAC-COTR does not necessarily meet the
requirements for the FAC-C Level I or the FAC-P/PM mid-level/journeyman.

\(4\) For recordkeeping purposes, individuals with equivalent
certificates who will be appointed as COTRs must submit a copy of their
equivalent certificate to the ACM to be recorded as meeting NASA
FAC-COTR requirements.

\(5\) Basic COTR Training. To earn a NASA FAC-COTR certificate,
individuals must complete 40 hours of basic COTR training approved by
the ACM. ACM approved training is available under the NASA Shared
Service Center's Agency-wide COTR Training Blanket Purchase Agreement
(BPA).

\(6\) Continuing Education. COTRs must maintain their skills currency
through continuing education. To maintain a FAC-COTR, COTRs are required
to earn 40 continuous learning points (CLPs) of skills currency training
every two years. The two-year continuous learning cycle is set for all
civilian agencies for the following timeframes: October 01, 2009, until
September 30, 2011, October 01, 2011 until September 30, 2013, and so
forth.

\(7\) With the exception of the NASA-specific COTR refresher training,
there are no specific courses required for COTR continuing education.
Supervisors remain responsible for working with COTRs to identify those
activities and opportunities of greatest benefit to the professional
development of an individual. The training, professional activities,
education and experience that are used to meet the continuing education
requirements must be job related.

\(i\) Each two-year cycle shall include NASA-specific COTR refresher
training which has been approved by the ACM. ACM approved training is
available under NASA Shared Service Center's Agency-wide COTR Training
BPA.

\(ii\) Appendix A to the Office of Federal Procurement Policy's
memorandum, The Federal Acquisition Certification for Contracting
Officer Technical Representatives, dated November 26, 2007, provides
additional guidance on determining continuous learning points. The
memorandum is available at http://www.fai.gov/pdfs/11-26-COTR-Memo.pdf.

\(8\) A FAC-COTR will expire if the continuing education requirements
are not met and the individual will no longer be eligible to be a COTR.

\(9\) FAC-COTR training, both basic and continuous, will be tracked in
SATERN. COTRs are responsible for ensuring their SATERN learning history
is accurate.

\(g\) The contracting officer shall verify that the proposed COTR has a
FAC-COTR before signing NASA Form 1634. The Procurement Officer (PO) may
defer, for a period not to exceed six months, all or part of the
FAC-COTR requirements in writing, on a case-by-case basis, if granting
the deferment is in the best interest of the Agency. This authority
shall be used only when necessary. A written justification shall specify
the reasons for and conditions of the deferment. A copy of the
justification shall be furnished to the ACM and documented in the
contract file(s).

\(1\) If the proposed COTR has not completed basic COTR training, the PO
shall ensure the proposed COTR receives appropriate interim training
until the required COTR basic training is completed. Interim training is
a stop gap measure to ensure the COTR understands his or her authority
and responsibilities. It may include a briefing or on-line training.
Completion of the interim training shall be documented in the applicable
contracts file(s).

**1842.271 NASA clause.**

Insert the clause at 1852.242-70, Technical Direction, when paragraph
3(m) of the NASA Form 1634 specifically authorizes a COTR to issue
technical direction.

**Subpart** **1842.3\--Contract Administration Office Functions**

**1842.302 Contract administration functions.**

\(a\) In addition to the responsibilities listed in FAR 42.302(a),
responsibility for reviewing earned value management system (EVMS) plans
and verifying initial and continuing contractor

compliance with NASA and DoD EVMS criteria and conformity with ANSI/EIA
Standard 748, Industry Guidelines for EVMS, is normally delegated to
DCMA.

**Subpart** **1842.5\--Postaward Orientation**

**1842.503 Postaward conferences.**

**(1)** A postaward conference shall be held with representatives of the
contract administration office when \--

**(i)** A contract is expected to exceed \$10,000,000;

**(ii)** Contract performance is required at or near a NASA installation
or NASA-controlled launch site;

**(iii)** The delegation will impose an abnormal demand on the resources
of the contract administration office receiving the delegation; or

**(iv)** Complex contract management problems are expected, particularly
risk management areas identified during program and acquisition
planning, e.g., significant or unusual mission success, technical, cost,
schedule, safety, security, occupational health, environmental
protection, and export control risks.

**(2)** Procurement officer approval is required to waive a post-award
planning conference for contracts meeting any of the criteria in
paragraph (1) of this section. The request for procurement officer
approval to waive a post-award conference shall address action taken and
planned to ensure effective communication with the contract
administration office during the performance of the contract.