Overview
This section establishes the procedure for offerors to seek a formal determination from the contracting officer regarding whether the Buy American statute applies to specific construction materials before a contract is awarded.
Key Rules
- Offeror Requests: Potential contractors may request a determination of inapplicability for specifically identified construction materials.
- Timing and Documentation: Submission deadlines and the specific data required to support the request are dictated by the applicable solicitation clauses (FAR 52.225-9 through 52.225-12).
- Evaluation Mandate: The contracting officer is required to evaluate all preaward requests before the contract is finalized.
- Information Sources: While offerors must provide supporting data, the contracting officer has the authority to supplement the evaluation with other readily available information.
Practical Implications
- This process allows contractors to mitigate the risk of non-compliance and cost volatility by clarifying domestic sourcing requirements during the proposal phase rather than after performance begins.
- Contracting officers must ensure they have sufficient technical and market data to validate claims of inapplicability (e.g., unreasonable cost or non-availability) before making an award.