[Code of Federal Regulations]
[Title 48, Volume 1]
[Revised as of October 1, 2002]
From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access
[CITE: 48CFR15.303]

[Page 253-254]
 
            TITLE 48--FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATIONS SYSTEM
 
                CHAPTER 1--FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION
 
PART 15--CONTRACTING BY NEGOTIATION--Table of Contents
 
                     Subpart 15.3--Source Selection
 
Sec. 15.303  Responsibilities.

    (a) Agency heads are responsible for source selection. The 
contracting officer is designated as the source selection authority, 
unless the agency head

[[Page 254]]

appoints another individual for a particular acquisition or group of 
acquisitions.
    (b) The source selection authority shall--
    (1) Establish an evaluation team, tailored for the particular 
acquisition, that includes appropriate contracting, legal, logistics, 
technical, and other expertise to ensure a comprehensive evaluation of 
offers;
    (2) Approve the source selection strategy or acquisition plan, if 
applicable, before solicitation release;
    (3) Ensure consistency among the solicitation requirements, notices 
to offerors, proposal preparation instructions, evaluation factors and 
subfactors, solicitation provisions or contract clauses, and data 
requirements;
    (4) Ensure that proposals are evaluated based solely on the factors 
and subfactors contained in the solicitation (10 U.S.C. 2305(b)(1) and 
41 U.S.C. 253b(d)(3));
    (5) Consider the recommendations of advisory boards or panels (if 
any); and
    (6) Select the source or sources whose proposal is the best value to 
the Government (10 U.S.C. 2305(b)(4)(B) and 41 U.S.C. 253b(d)(3)).
    (c) The contracting officer shall--
    (1) After release of a solicitation, serve as the focal point for 
inquiries from actual or prospective offerors;
    (2) After receipt of proposals, control exchanges with offerors in 
accordance with 15.306; and
    (3) Award the contract(s).