Overview
This section outlines the authority of government agencies to establish contracts and basic ordering agreements (BOAs) for transportation services, while emphasizing a preference for utilizing existing agreements managed by experienced agencies like the General Services Administration (GSA) and the Department of Defense (DoD).
Key Rules
- General Authority: All government agencies have the authority to contract for transportation services and execute BOAs (pursuant to subpart 16.7) unless specifically prohibited by their own agency regulations.
- Efficiency Preference: Agencies are encouraged to use existing term contracts and BOAs managed by specialized agencies (DoD and GSA) to ensure economic and operational efficiency.
- GSA/DoD Support: The GSA and DoD actively award contracts for other agencies covering services such as office moves, local drayage, and ocean-freight forwarding.
- Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) Exception: Agencies may independently procure transportation services if the cost is at or below the simplified acquisition threshold, provided that no suitable term contracts or BOAs are currently available.
Practical Implications
- Source Selection: Before initiating a new procurement for transportation, Contracting Officers should first verify if GSA or DoD has an existing vehicle that meets their requirements to avoid duplicative efforts and leverage specialized expertise.
- Procurement Flexibility: Agencies maintain the flexibility to bypass the search for formal BOAs for low-dollar requirements (under the SAT) when no established agreements are accessible, allowing for faster localized purchasing.