Effective April 25, the rule addresses multiple award contracts and how to determine price reasonableness of proposed commercial items.

Multiple Award Contracts.  The changes are a result of increased use of multiple award contracts and several recent allegationsthat award of task or delivery orders under them are not fair.  Incorporating with little change an earlier proposed rule,  a CO must now consider following issues when deciding to use multiple award contract.

Whether the contractor specializes in one or a few areas within the statement of work

Scope and complexity of the contract

Duration and frequency of task or delivery orders

Resources a contactor must have to perform expected orders

The ability to maintain competion amount awardees

The new rule also provides certain assurances to contractors where the government must now order a stated minimum quantity of supplies or services specified in the contract which is to be greater than a mere “nominal” quantity but not greater than the government is “fairly certain to order.”  The contract may also specify the minimium or maximum quantities the government may order under each task or delivery order and the maximum the government may order over a specified period of time.  Also an ombudsman contact will be specified in the contract to make it easier for contractors to  ? claims that task or delivery order awards were made without a fiar opportunity for competition (protests over task awards are usually not permitted).

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