Orders placed against MAS contracts may not result in the lowest overall cost alternative, said auditors. Image: DCStockPhotography/Shutterstock.com
GSA’s Federal Acquisition Service cannot document that use of its multiple award schedule, or MAS, produces the best prices for federal agencies using it to purchase supplies and services, an inspector general audit has said.
The MAS consists of long-term, governmentwide contracts with commercial firms with fixed prices based on at volume discount pricing, from which federal agencies can order directly or through the GSA Advantage portal.
However, in examining 20 recent MAS contract and option awards, auditors “found that price analyses performed by FAS contracting personnel cannot provide customer agencies with assurance that orders placed against MAS contracts will result in the lowest overall cost alternative.”
“When performing price analyses on TDR pilot contracts, FAS contracting personnel do not have access to TDR data that can be used for pricing decisions and as a result, they mainly compared proposed pricing to other MAS and government contracts. However, this approach does not provide customer agencies with assurance that FAS achieved pricing that reflects the offerors’ best pricing and will result in the lowest overall cost alternative to meet the government’s needs,” a report said.
Further, contracting personnel “frequently accepted commercial pricing information from offerors that was unsupported, outdated, or that identified no comparable commercial sales,” it said.
GSA management disagreed with recommendations including that GSA should “inform customer agencies that they should perform separate and independent price determinations” citing price analyses that it said supports that MAS contracts meet their intended purpose of producing the lowest possible price. The IG responded that its “conclusions remain the same.”
Decisions on Federal Workplace Issues Remain Before Congress
At FBI, the Higher the Level, the Lesser the Penalty for Sexual Misconduct, Senator Says
Reminder on Revised Leave Policies for Voting
Review of Marijuana Policy Could Have Implications for Federal Workplace
Enrollee Share of FEHB Premiums to Rise 8.7 Percent on Average for 2023
OPM Addresses Drivers of Premium Hikes, Upcoming Coverage Changes in FEHB
Effort to Ban a New Schedule F Ratchets Up in Congress
Administration Urged to Extend Waiver in Loan Forgiveness Program
See also,
Employees Value TSP, Annuity, FEHB Most Highly, Survey Finds
Did FERS Actually End the CSRS “Golden Handcuffs” Effect?
Report Assesses Impact of Repealing Windfall, Offset Provisions
With FERS Annuity Indexed for Inflation, Fed Retirees Faring Better