B-306050, Procurement Provisions in Appropriations Acts, April 28, 2006

B-306050 Apr 28, 2006 Jump To VIEW DECISION DOWNLOADS RELATED PAGES GAO CONTACTS Highlights Legislation such as the Competition in Contracting Act and the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act established a comprehensive acquisition framework to accommodate the needs of individual agencies while maximizing uniformity across the federal government. In response to congressional request, GAO has identified and summarized procurement-related provisions in several major annual appropriations acts for fiscal years 2001 through 2005. View Decision B-306050, Procurement Provisions in Appropriations Acts, April 28, 2006 B-306050 April 28, 2006 The Honorable Tom Davis Chairman, Committee on Government Reform House of Representatives Subject: Procurement Provisions in Appropriations Acts Dear Mr. Chairman: Legislation such as the Competition in Contracting Act and the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act established a comprehensive acquisition framework to accommodate the needs of individual agencies while maximizing uniformity across the federal government. In your letter of July 1, 2005, you noted the committee's concern about the potential impact of other legislation on Congress's efforts to promote a consistent, government-wide approach to procurement and asked GAO to review procurement related provisions appearing in recent appropriations legislation. Based on discussions with your staff, we agreed to identify and summarize procurement related provisions in several major annual appropriations acts over the past few years. In total, we examined thirty appropriations acts, or relevant divisions of consolidated acts, covering the Department of Defense (Table 1); Foreign Operations (Table 2); Interior (Table 3); Veterans Affairs and Housing and Urban Development (Table 4); Transportation and Treasury (Table 5); and Homeland Security (Table 6). Our review encompassed legislation passed for fiscal years 2001 through 2005. We defined procurement-related provisions as those pertaining to the acquisition of goods or services by contract with appropriated funds. In this regard, we did not include provisions pertaining exclusively to grants or cooperative agreements, provisions dealing with acquisition of real property, provisions imposing programmatic restrictions, and provisions concerning nonappropriated fund acquisitions. Generally, the provisions we included in the enclosed tables created new acquisition requirements, carved specific exceptions to existing requirements, or reiterated existing requirements. Although we found a wide variety of procurement related provisions, three distinct categories emerged in our review: domestic preferences, notification and reporting requirements, and competitive sourcing provisions. The enclosed tables include each of these categories as well as a fourth miscellaneous category. Each table is made up of three column headings. The first includes a summary of the provision. The second lists the appropriations act heading under which the provision appears and includes the legislative text with citation. The last contains short citations to similar or identical provisions appearing in other appropriations legislation for fiscal years 2001 through 2005. Please contact me at (202) 512-6293 or Noah Bleicher at (202) 512-5078, if you have any questions about this review. Stephanie J. May Managing Associate General Counsel Enclosures Table 1: Department of Defense Appropriations Act Fiscal Years 2001-2005 Domestic Preferences Summary/Effect Procurement Related Provision Similar/Identical Provisions[1] Prohibits major component of a naval vessel being constructed or converted in US shipyards from being constructed in a foreign facility or shipyard. Appropriations Act Heading: TITLE III – PROCUREMENT; Shipbuilding and Conversion, Navy Text: –For expenses necessary for the construction, acquisition, or conversion of vessels as authorized by law . . . Provided Further, That none of the funds provided under this heading for the construction or conversion of any naval vessel to be constructed in shipyards in the United States shall be expended in foreign facilities for the construction of major components of such vessel. . . .— Pub. L. No. 108-287, 118 Stat. 962 (FY 05) FY 04: 117 Stat. 1064 FY 03: 116 Stat. 1530 FY 02: 115 Stat. 2240 FY 01: 114 Stat. 667 In new contracts, requires certain components (auxiliary equipment, propulsion system components; shipboard cranes and spreaders) to be manufactured in the U.S.; permits waiver if certain conditions are met. Appropriations Act Heading: TITLE V – REVOLVING AND MANAGEMENT FUNDS; National Defense Sealift Fund Text: –For National Defense Sealift Fund programs, projects, and activities, and for expenses of the National Defense Reserve Fleet, as established by section 11 of the Merchant Ship Sales Act of 1946 (50 U.S.C. App.