After finding randomly selecting and reviewing 74 task orders
at five Department of Defense buying organizations and
finding that competition requirements were waived in 34 of
them, the Government Accountability Office called for
additional pro-competition guidance.
It said DoD spends billions each year on services issued
through task orders under multiple-award contracts or the
General Services Administration’s federal supply schedule
program, and Congress has enacted section 803 of the National
Defense Authorization Act for fiscal 2002, requiring DoD to
promote competition and setting out when it can be waived.
However, the current guidance for granting waivers does not
sufficiently describe the circumstances under which a waiver
for competition may be used, and there are no safeguards
ensuring contracts are re-issued to current suppliers only
under appropriate circumstances, according to GAO-04-874.
It said, “striking the right balance between achieving the
benefits of competition and retaining contractors that are
satisfying customer needs is a challenge for DoD.”
Frequent waiver use could hinder DoD’s ability to obtain
innovative solutions and the best value, said GAO, but it
also noted that requests by program officials to waive
competition in retaining current contractors could just mean
they are getting the job done.
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