This series of FAR summaries is meant to take a meaningful portion of the Federal Acquisition Regulations to ensure an easy-to-understand approach to maintain that readers comprehend the process of doing business with the government and that the government exercises a fair and reasonable approach to doing business with the general public.
FAR 42.503-2 Post-Award Conference Procedure
This seems like a small thing when the Contracting Officer can just send a letter (FAR 42.504). However, trust me. They are necessary for proper performance.
The chairperson is the CO. They can invite whoever they want. Only the terms and conditions are discussed with the awardee. The purpose of the contract and contract roles are ironed out. If conversation desires change then a modification need be done, but if a CO is modifying a brand new award then they didn’t do their homework unless somebody found a typo.
When I worked in the government I sent a letter and gave the awardee a choice for a digital or teleconference. Those who chose a conference got a thorough explanation of their role, their rights and where to locate and use various federal contracting tools. They succeeded beautifully. Those who ignored the offer were either well versed in the federal space or stubborn. The stubborn ones usually were mining for information or seeking $2,500 for the cost of proposal preparation.
I know FAR 42.000 says this part speaks to assigning and performing contract administration and audit services but it reads like popery. FAR 42.302 shows the functions of a CO. They can be delegated or assumed and at the VA’s FSS program they are widely assumed and their are close to 100 responsibilities in which we had 30-50 contracts and were expected to award 10-15 proposals! FAR 42.401 speaks to correspondence between government and industry. Finally, FAR 42.701 speaks to indirect costs. Who knew!
It reminds me of our-trips to grandpa’s farm. Usually, we rode in his red pickup to check the cows. Sometimes we got to ride the tractor. On his tractor, grandpa had a piece of wood on a hydraulic hitched to the back. Sometimes us grandkids rode on that or sometimes he put materials on it. He called it his catch-all. The point is, that’s what this part of the FAR does. It outlines the responsibilities and actions of a CO. My question is, why did they wait until FAR Part 42 to explain them?
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