PART 6 -- COMPETITION REQUIREMENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SUBPART 6.2 -- FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION AFTER EXCLUSION
OF SOURCES
6.202 Establishing Or Maintaining Alternative Sources
SUBPART 6.3 -- OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION
6.302-4 International Agreement
6.302-7 Public Interest
6.303-1 Requirements
6.303-2 Content
6.303-90 Format & Amended Justification
6.304 Approval Of The Justification
6.304-90 Required Signatures/Coordinations for Justification for OTFAOC
6.90 Brand Name Justifications
6.91 Set-Asides For Local Firms During A Major Disaster Or Emergency
PART 6 -- COMPETITION REQUIREMENTS
SUBPART 6.2 — FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION AFTER EXCLUSION OF SOURCES
6.202 Establishing or maintaining alternative sources.
(b)(1) Approval authority for determinations and findings (D&Fs) under this subpart follows:
Dollar Threshold Approval Authority
$0 - $85.5 M Head of Contracting Activity (HCA)
Over $85.5 M Senior Procurement Executive (SPE)
See DFARS 206.2 for D&F format. Legal Counsel and Procuring Activity Competition Advocate (PACA)/Agency Competition Advocate (ACA) coordination is required before approval. Provide the Agency Competition Advocate with a copy of the approved D&F.
SUBPART 6.3 — OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION
6.302-4 International agreement.
(c) Limitations. The waiver of the justifications and approvals made effective by the Head of the Contracting Activity (HCA) document described in DFARS 206.302-4(c) shall only suffice in cases when the host country requests and documents in the agreement the specific company and supplies/services to be procured. If a proposed acquisition is to support NATO, then the agreement must state the specific company and supplies/services being procured.
(c)(1) Follow the format under FAR 1.7 for the written determination. Approval authority for D&F follows:
● Secretary of Defense (see DFARS Subpart 206.302-7)
● Required coordination: Legal counsel, PL2, PACA/ACA, HCA, and SPE
● Provide the Agency Competition Advocate with a copy of the approved D&F.
(3) If a justification is required to support the determination, follow DARS Part 6.
(c) Requirement certification shall be accomplished by the head of the requirements office (or the acting head of the requirement office in their absence). Technical certification shall be one level below the individual responsible for requirements certification.
(S-90) The requirements office, in close coordination with the contracting officer (KO), shall develop the Justification for OTFAOC using the required format set forth in DARS Subpart 6.303-90.
(S-91) For each acquisition covered by a class justification, the contract file must include a duplicate original copy including the signature page of the class Justification for OTFAOC, or a statement referring to its location.
(S-92) PL2 review/coordination is required on all Justifications for OTFAOC over $12.5M and Legal Counsel review/coordination is required on all Justifications for OTFAOC over $650K prior to approval by the approving authority as determined by DARS 6.304. KO or HCO can request legal review for $650K or below for possible contentious issues. Procedures for signatures and approvals are located in DARS 6.304-90.
(S-93) Modified Justifications are required if, prior to award of the contract, the approved J&A contents changed in the following areas:
(1) An increase in the dollar value of the prospective contract beyond the authority of the previous approving official; or a decrease in the dollar value of the prospective contract below the authority of the previous approving official.
(2) A change in the competitive strategy that further reduces competition; or a change in requirements that affects the basis for the justification.
(a) All items shall be included in the sequence set forth in FAR Subpart 6.303-2 and DARS Subpart 6.303-90. All documents must be submitted for review in Word. Those items determined to be not applicable shall state “not applicable” with a brief supporting rationale unless the reason is self-evident.
(b) Certification, review, and approval signatures shall be provided on a separate page at the end of the text of the Justification for OTFAOC. This is intended to facilitate making minor changes to the Justification for OTFAOC without impacting the signature page.
(c) Modified Justifications are required if prior to award of the contract, the approved J&A contents changed in the following areas:
(1) An increase in the dollar value of the prospective contract beyond the authority of the previous approving official; or a decrease in the dollar value of the prospective contract below the authority of the previous approving official.
(2) A change in the competitive strategy that further reduces competition; or
(3) A change in requirements that affects the basis for the justification.
(d) Modified Justification format:
(1) A modified Justification for OTFAOC is required with a new signature page to include approval via the original coordination chain. The modified Justification approval thresholds remain the same as with the original Justification’s approval thresholds.
(2) The Justification should clearly reflect the modifications/changes by change lines in the margin.
(3) Include the original approved Justification for OTFAOC as an attachment to the modified Justification for OTFAOC.
(4) The title of the Justification should read: “Modified Justification” and reference the original Justification’s number.
(5) The Justification posting requirements remain unchanged from the original Justification posting requirements.
(e) Electronic submission is encouraged. The required format is set forth in the DITCO Contracting Templates website at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates.
6.304 Approval of the Justification.
(a) The approving official for each Justification for OTFAOC shall be determined based on the table provided below:
Estimated Value of Justification Approving Official
$650K and below Contracting Officer (KO)
Over $650K to $12.5M Procuring Activity Competition Advocate *
Over $12.5M to $85.5M HCA **
Over $85.5M SPE
* The Agency Competition Advocate, HCA, or SPE can approve Justifications for OTFAOC at this level in the absence of the Procuring Activity Competition Advocate.
** In the absence of the HCA, The SPE must approve in accordance with FAR 6.304(a)(3).
(S-90) If the dollar value of the contract at the time of award exceeds the estimated value of the Justification for OTFAOC but within the approval level of the original approving official, modify the justification to reflect the actual contract value and coordinate with the signatories to ensure that they concur with the changes. When the dollar value of the contract at the time of award exceeds the estimated value of the Justification for OTFAOC and the approval level of the original approving official prepare modified Justification for OTFAOC and obtain the signatures of the reviewers and the new approving official. The modified Justification for OTFAOC will also require new signatures from all of the previous signatories, which are inclusive of the DISA Form 9. Both the initial justification and the modified justification shall be included in the official contract file.
(S-91) Proposed out-of-scope contract modifications , require a new Justification for OTFAOC.
6.304-90 Required Signatures/Coordination for Justification for OTFAOC.
(a) Technical and requirements certification. Justifications for OTFAOC provided to DITCO contracting offices shall include the signatures of the Technical Cognizance Official and the Requirements Cognizance Official, unless the justification is for a telecommunication service submitted via a Telecommunication Service Request (TSR) or Telecommunication Service Order (TSO), (see section 6.303-1(c) for description of officials). For Justifications for OTFAOC submitted via TSR or TSO, the official’s name, organization, phone, and date will suffice.
(b) Justifications for OTFAOC must be routed to the required certification, (excluding the requirements and technical certifications) review, and using one DISA Form 9 when the approving official is the HCA or two DISA Form 9s when the approving official is the SPE. A DISA form 9 is not required for PACA approval.
(c) Concurrent Coordination. The KO shall prepare the following concurrent coordination email located at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates , add form 9 to enclosure(s) (when the approving official is the HCA or SPE) along with the Justification for OTFAOC to obtain concurrent coordination on the Justification for OTFAOC from the offices shown in Table 6-1 below. The Disposition of Comments document and the DISA J&A form 9 for HCA approval located at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates shall also be attached to the email.
Justification for OTFAOC Estimated $ Value |
Approving Official |
Concurrent Coordination Offices with Email Address |
Below $650K |
Contracting Officer (KO) |
N/A |
Over $650K to $12.5M |
PACA |
HCO: HCO Personal email address Legal: “DITCO Legal Office” for PL5, PL7 and PL8 and “Acquisition Law Team” for PL6 |
Over $12.5M to $85.5M |
HCA |
HCO: HCO Personal email address Legal: “DITCO Legal Office” for PL5, PL7 and PL8 and “Acquisition Law Team” for PL6 PL22: “PL22 Policy Compliance Review Requests” PACA: “DITCO Competition Advocate Review” ACA: ACA Personal email address |
Over $85.5M |
SPE |
HCO: HCO Personal email address Legal: “DITCO Legal Office” for PL5, PL7 and PL8 and “Acquisition Law Team” for PL6 PL22: “PL22 Policy Compliance Review Requests” PACA: “DITCO Competition Advocate Review” ACA: ACA Personal email address |
(1) The coordinating offices shall either non-concur, concur or concur with comments. If the coordinating office non-concurs or concurs with comments, the comments shall be inserted in the Disposition of Comments document or into the Justification for OTFAOC using track changes and returned to the contract specialist/KO.
(2) Upon receipt of the email, DISA Form 9(s) (if applicable), and Disposition of Comments documents from the concurrent reviewers, the contract specialist/KO shall first determine if any offices non-concurred with the Justification for OTFAOC. If non-concurrence is received, the contract specialist/KO shall notify their immediate supervisor. The contract specialist/KO along with their immediate supervisor will contact the office that non-concurred and adjudicate as appropriate. The contract specialist/KO shall provide the comments matrix to the coordinator to ensure that comments are resolved appropriately.
(3) If all offices concurred or concurred with comments, then the contract specialist/KO shall file the emails and/or the DISA Form 9(s) in Tab 6 (IT) and Tab A05 (IQO) in EDMS and then consolidate all comments into a single Disposition of Comments document and insert the contract specialist/KO disposition of each comment in Column E and incorporate any necessary changes into the Justification for OTFAOC.
(d) PACA approval. After concurrent coordination, the contract specialist/KO will then send the PACA approval email located at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates to the HCO to obtain PACA approval. The Justification for OTFAOC and the consolidated Disposition of Comments document (and the Acquisition Plan if applicable) shall also be attached to the email. The HCO will forward the PACA approval email and attachments to “DITCO Competition Advocate Review” mailbox.
(e) HCA Approval. After concurrent coordination, the contract specialist/KO will then send the HCA approval email and the (Internal) DISA J&A Form 9 for HCA approval with concurrent coordination (templates located at located at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates) to the HCO to obtain HCA review and approval. The Justification for OTFAOC and the consolidated Disposition of Comments document (and the Acquisition Plan if applicable) shall also be attached to the email. When sending to the HCA for approval, the HCO will send the HCA approval email and attachments to the PLD Front Office staff, including the Director, Deputy Director and administrative staff.
(f) SPE Approval. When the approving official is the SPE, the contract specialist/KO shall follow the process at 6.304-90 (c) to obtain concurrent coordination via (Internal) DISA J&A Form 9 for HCA approval in accordance with Table 6-1. After all concurrent coordination’s are obtained and disposition of comments is complete, the KO/contract specialist shall prepare the Justification for OTFAOC package and email it to the HCO. The Justification for OTFAOC package shall consist of a second DISA SPE Form 9 (Senior Level/External) prepared in accordance with the template at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates, the (Internal) DISA J&A Form 9 for HCA approval, the Justification for OTFAOC, and the Disposition of Comments document.
(1) The HCO will forward the Justification for OTFAOC package to the ACA. After verifying that all comments received by reviewers are properly addressed in the Disposition of Comments document, the ACA will coordinate and obtain HQs legal (GC) coordination and forward the Justification for OTFAOC package to the HCA for review/coordination.
(2) Once the HCA has coordinated on the Justification for OTFAOC package, it will be sent to the SPE for approval. Once approved, the DISA Form 9 and approved Justification for OTFAOC will be emailed to the contract specialist/KO.
For Justification for OTFAOC, see DISA Contracting and Acquisition Templates, Samples, and Guides » J&A Templates located at https://www.ditco.disa.mil/DitcoContractingTemplates/doku.php?id=j_a_templates
6.90 Brand Name Justifications.
(a) Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 11.105 requires all agencies to prepare justifications when brand name or equal purchase descriptions are used. .
(b) For acquisitions exceeding $25,000 that use brand name or equal purchase descriptions, including simplified acquisitions and sole source procurements, brand name justification or documentation is required to be posted. (See 5.102(a)(6).)
(1) Justifications for acquisitions that require justification pursuant to FAR 6.303-1, including simplified acquisitions, shall be made publicly available via the Government wide Point of Entry (GPE) system at https://www.fbo.gov/ within 14 days after contract award.
(a) For contracts awarded under FAR 6.302-2, Unusual and Compelling Urgency, the justification shall be posted within 30 days after contract award
(b) For contracts awarded under FAR 6.302-1(c) Only one responsible source for brand name specifications, the approved justification shall be posted with the solicitation and redacted as necessary.
(2) For brand name orders against the FSS program, the documentation or justification required by FAR 8.405-6 shall be posted with the Request for Quotation (RFQ) to GSA’s electronic RFQ system known as e-Buy.
(3) The use of oral orders over $25,000 against the FSS that contain brand name or equal purchase descriptions is prohibited.
(i) KOs must be sensitive when dealing with proprietary information when posting justifications. FAR 6.305 requires KOs to carefully screen all justifications for contractor proprietary information and remove such information before making available to the public. KOs are to adhere to the exemptions on disclosure of information contained in the Freedom of Information Act (5 U.S.C. 552) and the prohibitions against disclosure in FAR 24.202 in determining the information that should be removed.
(ii) The use of non-DoD contracts is encouraged when it is the best method of procurement to meet DoD requirements. Use of this or other actions to circumvent the brand name posting requirement is barred.
6.91 Set-Asides For Local Firms During A Major Disaster Or Emergency.
(a) The use of the Act is based on a declaration made by the President of the United States under the authority of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5150).
(b) Applies to major disaster(s) or emergency(ies) as defined under the Stafford Act, which includes natural catastrophes (fire, flood, or explosion [regardless of cause]) or any other occasion or instance for which the President determines that federal assistance is needed to supplement state and local efforts and capabilities.
(c) Any reference to a disaster, major disaster, or emergency generally means a presidentially declared major disaster or emergency under the Stafford Act. In the expenditure of Federal funds for debris clearance, distribution of supplies, reconstruction, and other major disaster or emergency assistance activities which may be carried out by contract or agreement with private organizations, firms, or individuals, preference shall be given, to the extent feasible and practicable, to those organizations, firms, and individuals residing or doing business primarily in the area affected by such disaster or emergency.