II

104TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION S. 675

To provide streamlined contracting and ordering practices for automated

data processing equipment and other commercial items.

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

APRIL 5, 1995

Mr. LEVIN (for himself, Mr. GLENN, and Mr. ROTH) introduced the following

bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on Governmental Affairs

A BILL

To provide streamlined contracting and ordering practices

for automated data processing equipment and other commercial items.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled,

3 SECTION 1. AUTOMATION OF MULTIPLE AWARD SCHEDULE

4 CONTRACTING.

5 (a) DEVELOPMENT AND IMPLEMENTATION OF SYS6 TEM.—In order to provide for the economic and efficient

7 procurement of automatic data processing equipment and

8 other commercial items the Administrator of General

9 Services shall establish a program for the development and
2

•S 675 IS

1 implementation of a system to provide Governmentwide,

2 on-line computer access to information on products and

3 services that are available for ordering through multiple

4 award schedules.

5 (b) REQUIRED CAPABILITIES.—The system required

6 by subsection (a) shall be established as an element of the

7 Federal acquisition computer network (FACNET) archi8 tecture and shall, at a minimum—

9 (1) provide basic information on the prices, fea10 tures, and performance of all products and services

11 available for ordering through the multiple award

12 schedules;

13 (2) provide for updating that information to re14 flect changes in prices, features, and performance as

15 soon as information on the changes becomes avail16 able;

17 (3) enable users to make on-line computer com18 parisons of the prices, features, and performance of

19 similar products and services offered by various

20 vendors;

21 (4) enable users to place, and vendors to re22 ceive, on-line computer orders for products and serv23 ices available for ordering through the multiple

24 award schedules (up to the maximum order limita25 tion of the applicable schedule contract);
3

•S 675 IS

1 (5) enable ordering agencies to make payments

2 to contractors by bank card, electronic funds trans3 fer, or other automated methods in cases in which

4 it is practicable and in the interest of the Federal

5 Government to do so; and

6 (6) archive data relating to each order placed

7 against multiple award schedule contracts using

8 such system, including, at a minimum, data on—

9 (A) the agency or office placing the order;

10 (B) the vendor receiving the order;

11 (C) the products or services ordered; and

12 (D) the total price of the order.

13 (c) IMPLEMENTATION.—

14 (1) DEADLINE FOR IMPLEMENTATION.—The

15 system required by subsection (a) shall be imple16 mented not later than January 1, 1998. If the level

17 of the implementation of the FACNET architecture

18 on that date is insufficient to accommodate full im19 plementation of the features of the system described

20 in paragraphs (4) and (5) of subsection (b), the sys21 tem shall, as of that date, incorporate those features

22 to the maximum extent practicable consistent with

23 the level of implementation of the FACNET archi24 tecture.
4

•S 675 IS

1 (2) CERTIFICATION OF 90 PERCENT IMPLEMEN2 TATION.—The Administrator shall certify to Con3 gress that the system required by subsection (a) has

4 been implemented at such time as a system meeting

5 the requirements of subsection (b) is in place and

6 accessible by at least 90 percent of the potential

7 users in the departments and agencies of the Fed8 eral Government.

9 (d) RELATIONSHIP TO IMPLEMENTATION OF

10 FACNET CAPABILITY.—Orders placed against multiple

11 award schedule contracts through the system required by

12 subsection (a) may be considered for purposes of the de13 terminations regarding implementation of a Government14 wide FACNET capability under subsection (b) of section

15 30A of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41

16 U.S.C. 426a) and implementation of full FACNET capa17 bility under subsection (d) of such section.

18 SEC. 2. STREAMLINED PROCEDURES; PILOT PROGRAM.

19 (a) CONTRACTING AND ORDERING PROCEDURES.—

20 (1) REQUIRED PROCEDURES.—In order to pro21 vide for compliance with provisions of law requiring

22 the use of competitive procedures in Federal Govern23 ment procurement, the procedures established by the

24 Administrator of General Services for the multiple
5

•S 675 IS

1 award schedule program shall include requirements

2 for—

3 (A) participation in multiple award sched4 ule contracts to be open to all responsible and

5 responsive sources; and

6 (B) orders to be placed using a process

7 which results in the lowest overall cost alter8 native to meet the needs of the Government, ex9 cept in a case in which a written determination

10 is made (in accordance with such procedures)

11 that a different alternative would provide a sub12 stantially better overall value to the Govern13 ment.

14 (2) ELECTRONIC ORDERING PROCEDURES.—

15 The Administrator may require offerors to agree to

16 accept orders electronically through the electronic

17 exchange of procurement information in order to be

18 eligible for award of a multiple award schedule con19 tract.

20 (3) COMMERCIAL ITEMS PROCUREMENTS.—

21 Regulations on the acquisition of commercial items

22 issued pursuant to section 8002 of the Federal Ac23 quisition Streamlining Act of 1994 (Public Law

24 103–355; 108 Stat. 3386; 41 U.S.C. 264 note) shall

25 apply to multiple award schedule contracts.
6

•S 675 IS

1 (b) PILOT PROGRAM.—Within 90 days after the Ad2 ministrator makes the certification referred to in section

3 1(c)(2), the Administrator shall establish a pilot program

4 to test streamlined procedures for the procurement of

5 products and services available for ordering through the

6 multiple award schedules. The Administrator shall provide

7 for the pilot program to be applicable to all multiple award

8 schedule contracts for the purchase of automatic data

9 processing equipment and to test the following procedures:

10 (1) A procedure under which negotiation of the

11 terms and conditions for a covered multiple award

12 schedule contract is limited to terms and conditions

13 other than price.

14 (2) A procedure under which the vendor estab15 lishes the prices under a covered multiple award

16 schedule contract and may adjust those prices at

17 any time in the discretion of the vendor.

18 (3) A procedure under which a covered multiple

19 award schedule contract is awarded to any respon20 sible and responsive offeror that—

21 (A) has a suitable record of past perform22 ance on Federal Government contracts, includ23 ing multiple award schedule contracts;

24 (B) agrees to terms and conditions that

25 the Administrator determines as being required
7

•S 675 IS

1 by law or as being appropriate for the purchase

2 of commercial items; and

3 (C) agrees to establish and update prices

4 and to accept orders electronically through the

5 automated system established pursuant to sec6 tion 1.

7 (c) GAO REPORT.—

8 (1) REPORT REQUIRED.—Not later than three

9 years after the date on which the pilot program is

10 established, the Comptroller General of the United

11 States shall review the pilot program and report to

12 the Committee on Governmental Affairs of the Sen13 ate and the Committee on Government Reform and

14 Oversight of the House of Representatives on the re15 sults of the pilot program.

16 (2) CONTENT OF REPORT.—The report shall in17 clude the following:

18 (A) An evaluation of the extent of the com19 petition for the orders placed under the pilot

20 program.

21 (B) The effect of the pilot program on

22 prices charged under multiple award schedule

23 contracts.
8

•S 675 IS

1 (C) The effect of the pilot program on pa2 perwork requirements for multiple award sched3 ule contracts and orders.

4 (D) The impact of the pilot program on

5 small businesses and socially and economically

6 disadvantaged small businesses.

7 (d) TERMINATION OF PILOT PROGRAM.—Unless re8 authorized by Congress, the authority of the Adminis9 trator to award contracts under the pilot program shall

10 expire four years after the date on which the pilot program

11 is established. Contracts entered into before the authority

12 expires shall remain in effect in accordance with their

13 terms notwithstanding the expiration of the authority to

14 enter new contracts under the pilot program.

15 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS.

16 In this Act:

17 (1) AUTOMATIC DATA PROCESSING EQUIP18 MENT.—The term ‘‘automatic data processing equip19 ment’’ has the meaning given the term in section

20 111(a) of the Federal Property and Administrative

21 Services Act of 1949 (40 U.S.C. 759(a)).

22 (2) COMMERCIAL ITEM.—The term ‘‘commer23 cial item’’ has the meaning given the term in section

24 4(12) of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy

25 Act (41 U.S.C. 403(12)).
9

•S 675 IS

1 (3) FACNET ARCHITECTURE.—The term

2 ‘‘FACNET architecture’’ refers to the Federal ac3 quisition computer network architecture developed

4 and implemented pursuant to section 30 of the Of5 fice of Federal Procurement Policy Act (40 U.S.C.

6 426) and has the meaning given the term ‘‘architec7 ture’’ in subsection (d) of such section.

8 (4) COMPETITIVE PROCEDURES.—The term

9 ‘‘competitive procedures’’ has the meaning given the

10 term in section 309(b) of the Federal Property and

11 Administrative Services Act of 1949 (41 U.S.C.

12 259(b)).

Æ