Under the old circular A-76, under which the 2003 and previous competitions were conducted, the competitive sourcing review was determined based solely on the lowest cost of those proposals that were determined to be technically acceptable. Under the revised circular A-76, under which the 2004 competitions and beyond will be conducted, the Source Selection Authority or SSA (the agency official who decides who has won the competition) may consider factors other than cost in making this determination. This process, commonly known as a "best value" approach, is referred to in the new circular as a "tradeoff souce selection process." Where such a process is used, the SSA must include in the performance decision document: (1) a narrative explanation of the tradeoffs performed; and (2) a rationale for the decision to award to other than the low-cost provider. No matter what type of process is used, however, if there are performance requirements they must be included in the Performance Work Statement (similar to a Statement of Work) and both the contractor offer and the federal offer are compared against the Performance Work Statement.
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