The Department of Defense standards of conduct office has
re-issued guidance summarizing restrictions of the
Procurement Integrity Act – and regulations implementing
it – that apply to the activities of personnel while
seeking outside employment and after taking an outside job.
As a simplified rule, once DoD personnel have started
seeking outside employment with a bidder or offeror they
may not take any official action in a DoD procurement
worth over $100,000, according to the guidance.
It said that to be disqualified, an employee, or an
employee’s direct subordinates must be personally and
substantially involved in the procurement.
That means active and significant involvement in “drafting,
reviewing, or approving the specification or statement of
work; preparing or developing the solicitation; evaluating
bids or proposals; selecting a source; negotiating price
or terms and conditions; or reviewing and approving the
award,” the standards of conduct office said.
It said it is permissible however for an involved official
to participate in agency-level boards, panels or advisory
committee review of programs, or to recommend alternate
technologies or approaches for agency objectives or
missions, A-76 management studies, and preparation of
in-house cost estimates, among other activities.
Personnel may not contact or be contacted by a bidder
regarding non-federal employment without first disqualifying
themselves if they are substantially involved in the
procurement – by submitting a written notice to the
contracting officer or immediate supervisor, said the
guidance.
It said the head of the contracting authority may
authorize resumed participation at a future date if one
of two conditions has been met: the potential employer
is no longer a bidder or offeror; or all employment
discussions have terminated without an agreement.
Agency officials must promptly report to their supervisors
and ethics officials an employment contract with a bidder
in a procurement worth over $100,000 – even when the
employment contract is promptly rejected.
One year after a designated date, a former DoD employee
may not accept compensation from the concerned contractor
on a $10 million dollar or greater contract for which he
or she performed designated services, office said.