Part 504—Administrative Matters
Subpart 504.1—Contract Execution
504.101 Contracting officer’s signature.
Contract, contract modifications, blanket purchase agreements, and task and/or delivery orders may be executed manually or electronically using a digital signature. In the absence of the original contracting officer, another contracting officer with appropriate warrant authority may sign. Always type or stamp the name and title of the contracting officer signing the contract on the document, unless it is electronically signed. An electronic contract which includes the name of the contracting officer satisfies the typed, stamped or printed requirement found in FAR 4.101. GSA Order CIO 2162.1 (GSA Digital Signature Policy dated December 2, 2010) is the guidance for the use of digital signatures as the preferred means of providing signatures for GSA documents, forms, correspondence, and/or emails.
Subpart 504.2—Contract Distribution
(a) The contracting officer must send documentation to the paying office on all contracts for which GSA generates a delivery or task order.
(1) For Federal Acquisition Service contracts entered into the FSS-19 system, the contracting officer must send a system generated contract listing.
(2) For all other contracts, the contracting officer must send a “Duplicate Original” of the entire contract or modification.
(b) The contracting officer must certify that the “Duplicate Original” is a true copy of the contract, modification, task and/or delivery order, if not electronically signed, by writing your signature, in ink, on the award or modification form (i.e., SF 26, 33, 1442, etc.). The contracting officer must certify all contracts except:
(1) Leases of real property.
(2) Schedule contracts.
(3) Standard or GSA multipage purchase/delivery/task order carbon forms.
504.203 Taxpayer identification information.
FAR 4.203(a) does not apply to leases of real property (see 504.904) or FAR Part 38 Federal Supply Schedule Contracting.
Subpart 504.4—Safeguarding Classified Information Within Industry
(a) This subpart prescribes procedures for safeguarding classified information required to be disclosed to contractors in connection with the solicitation of offers, and the award, performance, and termination of contracts.
(b) As used in this subpart, the term “Contractor(s)” means prospective contractors, subcontractors, vendors, and suppliers.
504.470 Acquisitions involving classified information.
HCA’s must consider how adequate security will be established, maintained, and monitored before accepting a reimbursable agreement for a requirement involving classified information. Further, HCAs are responsible for ensuring that the contracting officers, other procurement personnel, and contracting officer representatives (CORs) assigned to the acquisition have the appropriate security clearances, prior to accepting a reimbursable agreement involving access to, or generation of, classified information.
504.471 Processing security requirements checklist (DD Form 254).
(a) The contracting officer must prepare DD Form 254, Contract Security Classification Specification (illustrated in FAR 53.303-DD-254), for contracts involving contractor access to classified information. This form identifies for contractors the areas of classified information involved. The contracting officer may use written notice of classification for research or service contracts.
(b) Obtain instructions or guidance on completing DD Form 254 from the Security and Emergency Management Division, Office of Mission Assurance (OMA).
(a) The contracting officer in coordination with the appropriate program security officer must review DD Form 254 at least once a year, or whenever a change in the phase of performance occurs, to determine if the classified information can be downgraded or declassified.
(b) The contracting officer must inform the contractor of the results of the review by one of the following means:
(1) Issuance of a revised specification.
(2) Written instructions instead of DD Form 254, if authorized.
(3) Written notification if the review results in no change in the classification specifications.
(c) The contracting officer must prepare a final checklist upon termination or completion of the contract in accordance with FAR 4.805-5.
504.473 Recurring procurement.
The contracting officer must prepare a new DD Form 254 only if a change occurs in either of the following:
(a) End item.
(b) Previous security classification.
504.474 Control of classified information.
(a) The contracting officer must record, mark, handle, and transmit classified information in accordance with the requirements of the Security Branch Chief, Security and Emergency Management Division, Office of Mission Assurance (OMA).
(b) The contracting officer must obtain the consent of the originating agency before releasing classified information to a contractor.
504.475 Return of classified information.
(a) Contracting officers must recover classified information, unless it has been destroyed as provided in Section 7 of Chapter 5 of the National Industrial Security Program Operating Manual (NISPOM). Information on NISPOM can be found at http://www.fas.org/sgp/library/nispom.htm.
(b) Contracting officers must ensure that classified information provided by the government is returned immediately after any of the following events:
(1) Bid opening or closing date for receipt of proposals by non-responding offerors.
(2) Contract award by unsuccessful offerors.
(3) Termination or completion of the contract.
(4) Notification that authorization to release classified information has been withdrawn.
(5) Notification that a facility:
(i) Does not have adequate means to safeguard classified information; or
(ii) Has had its security clearance revoked or inactivated.
(6) Whenever otherwise instructed by the authority responsible for the security classification.
(c) The Government agency that provided classified information to a GSA contractor is responsible for the return of the information.
GSA employees responsible for the protection of classified information must refer the facts of an unauthorized disclosure promptly to Security Branch Chief, Security and Emergency Management Division, Office of Mission Assurance (OMA).
Subpart 504.5—Electronic Commerce in Contracting
Use of electronic signatures is encouraged and can be used to sign and route documents in GSA’s IT systems to contractually obligate funds. The method of authentication used for electronic signatures shall be consistent with the level (1-4) determined from the e-authentication risk assessment in accordance with OMB M-04-04, E-authentication Guidance for Federal Agencies, and the respective technology safeguards applicable to that level or risk from National Institute of Standards and Technology 800-63, Electronic Authentication Guideline.
Subpart 504.6—Contract Reporting
(a) The Senior Procurement Executive (SPE), in coordination with the HCA, shall establish necessary policies to ensure the accurate and timely input of data into FPDS. At a minimum, the SPE and the HCA shall ensure that the following procedures are implemented.
(1) Contract writing systems capable of reporting directly into FPDS shall be configured to do so as a condition of making an award.
(2) To ensure the accuracy of data entered, reports of actions awarded shall be routinely generated from the contract writing system, examined and compared to data contained in FPDS to assure that those actions have been reported accurately to FPDS.
(3) Organizations without a contract writing system shall report the data using the FPDS web portal interface not later than 14 days after an award is made. To ensure data entry and accuracy, logs of contract actions shall be regularly reviewed and compared to data entries in FPDS.
(4) HCAs shall also verify and validate accuracy of the data and ensure contract awards have been entered into FPDS within the appropriate time frames.
(b) Contracting officers are the individuals primarily responsible for the accuracy of data submitted to FPDS as well as the submission and accuracy of the individual contract action report (CAR).
(c) The contracting officer shall, at a minimum, take the following steps necessary to verify the accuracy of the CAR:
(1) In the case of a contract writing system, review the CAR information for accuracy and completeness prior to submission to FPDS and prior to the release of the contract award.
(2) In the absence of a Contract Writing System, ensure that the CAR information is submitted to FPDS within 14 days after contract award.
(3) To further assure accurate contract data, consider including a copy of the CAR with award documents sent to the contractor for the contractor's knowledge review and information.
(d) The Chief Acquisition Officer (CAO) shall periodically statistically sample the GSA FPDS file and provide a list of transactions to the contracting activities for certification.
(1) The review process should include procedures, comparisons of contract file data to FPDS data entries, and comparisons of printouts of FPDS data to their contract writing system data for accuracy.
(2) The verification and validation shall be conducted by an organization or person that did not award the contracts being reviewed. HCAs may institute any appropriate process that complies with this requirement.
(3) HCAs shall provide certifications of the accuracy, timeliness and validity of their FPDS data on a quarterly basis to the CAO based on the list of transactions provided to HCAs under paragraph (d) of this section. Certifications to the CAO shall include a description of the means used to verify the accuracy and completeness of the data and a statement that all discrepancies found have been corrected.
(e) The CAO will provide the annual certification of GSA’s FPDS data to OMB required by FAR 4.604(c). This certification will be based on the Regional and Heads of Services and Staff Offices’ reviews and certifications and the CAO’s review. Certifications are due not later than 15 working days after the end of the quarter.
(a) Uniform procurement instrument identification. This subpart:
(1) Prescribes procedures for identifying contracts, orders, and other procurement instruments regardless of dollar threshold.
(2) Applies to all contracting activities, except real property leasing.
(b) Transition of procurement instrument identifier (PIID) numbering. Effective October 1, 2017, all components shall comply with the PIID numbering requirements of FAR subpart 4.16 and this subpart for all new solicitations, contracts, orders, and agreements issued, and any amendments and modifications to those new actions.
(c) Policy.
(1) Contracting officers shall use the uniform PIID numbering requirements for procurement instruments reported to FPDS.
(2) Complete the contract number block provided on the applicable forms. If a space is not reserved for the prescribed number, place the number in the upper right-hand corner of the form.
(3) Each contracting office must maintain records to ensure continuity and control of PIID numbering.
(d) Activity Address Codes (AACs).
(1) AACs are made up of the following:
(i) The first two characters of the AAC must be “47” to identify GSA.
(ii) The third character must be the service/office code identified as follows:
Service/Office Code |
Letter Designation |
Office of the Administrator |
A |
Office of the Chief Financial Officer |
B |
Office of Human Resources Management |
C |
Office of Mission Assurance |
D |
Office of Small Business Utilization |
E |
Office of GSA IT |
F |
Civilian Board of Contract Appeals |
G |
Office of Administrative Services |
H |
Office of Inspector General |
J |
Office of General Counsel |
L |
Office of Governmentwide Policy |
M |
Public Buildings Service |
P |
Federal Acquisition Service |
Q |
Congressional & Intergovernmental Affairs |
S |
Technology Transformation Service |
T |
Office of Communications and Marketing |
Z |
(iii) The remaining characters are determined by each service organization, and can be found at https://insite.gsa.gov/aac.
(2) Central Service Point (CSP) individuals are responsible for establishing and updating AAC assignments in the Department of Defense Activity Address Directory (DoDAAD). Additional guidance on AAC assignments and updates can be found at https://insite.gsa.gov/aac.
504.605-70 Federal Procurement Data System—Public Access to Data.
(a) The FPDS database. The General Services Administration awarded a contract for creation and operation of the Federal procurement Data System (FPDS) database. That database includes information reported by departments and agencies as required by FAR subpart 4.6. One of the primary purposes of the FPDS database is to provide information on Government procurement to the public.
(b) Fee for direct hook-up. To the extent that a member of the public requests establishment of real-time integration of reporting services to run reports from another application, a one-time charge of $2,500 for the original integration must be paid by the requestor. This one-time charge covers the setup and certification required for an integrator to access the FPDS database and for technical assistance to help integrators use the web services. The fee will be paid to the FPDS contractor and credited to invoices submitted to GSA by the FPDS contractor.
(a) Reporting requirements. Detailed specification of FPDS data reporting requirements is contained in the FPDS-NG FAQs document (available at https://www.fpds.gov/wiki/index2.php/FPDS-NG_FAQ). Reporting offices are encouraged to use automated information systems for FPDS data reporting, provided that the systems contain all required FPDS data elements via the machine-to-machine process and the automated acquisition system has received the proper certification from the FPDS system manager.
(b) The GSA FPDS Sustainability Coding Guidelines at http://insite.gsa.gov/sustainableacquisition must be followed when selecting codes for the following sustainability data elements:
(1) Recovered Materials/Sustainability.
(2) Use of EPA Designated Products.
Subpart 504.8—Government Contract Files
This subpart prescribes a standard contract file format for all contracts that exceed the simplified acquisition threshold, except leases of real property. This subpart may be applied to purchases using simplified acquisition procedures.
(a) File standardization. The contracting officer must place all information and documentation required by FAR 4.802 and 4.803 in the contract file and organize the file in the standard contract file format as set out in 504.803.
(b) Responsibility for files.
(1) The contracting officer is responsible for the official file. Individuals creating documents relating to the contract must forward those documents to the contracting officer for inclusion in the file.
(2) The contracting officer is responsible for transferring official contract files to the National Archives and Records Administration and for maintaining appropriate records that will facilitate file retrieval.
(c) Transfer of responsibility for contract files.
(1) When responsibility for a contract transfers from one contracting officer to another contracting officer, e.g., transfer of assignments or redelegation of contract administration authority (intraoffice or interoffice), the original contracting officer must prepare a detailed listing by file number and name to identify the file(s) being transferred.
(2) Retain a copy of the listing and send a copy to the successor contracting officer as advance notice of the files being transferred.
(3) Retain duplicates of the files transferred until the successor contracting officer acknowledges receipt of the files.
(4) Send the files being transferred to the successor contracting officer by certified mail, return receipt requested, or by another method requiring the successor contracting officer's signature to acknowledge receipt. Send two copies of the listing with the transferred files.
(5) The successor contracting officer must sign one copy of the listing, certifying receipt of the files listed, and return the signed copy to the originating contracting officer.
504.803 Contents of contract files.
(a) Arrangement.
(1) Tab the contract file.
(2) File items in reverse order starting with item (1) on the bottom of the file and item (27) on the top.
(3) File documents within a tab chronologically with the most recent document on top.
(4) Place documents too voluminous for an individual tab in a separate file. Annotate the tab with the location of the separate file.
(5) Omit any tab not required for the contract.
(b) Tab contents. The following instructions apply to contract actions up to award. Contracting activities may develop further guidance on tabbing postaward actions tailored to their requirements. Tab the contract file as specified below:
(1) Requisition or request for contractual action. Include the certification of the accuracy and completeness of data supporting a recommendation by technical or requirements personnel to use other than full and open competition. (See FAR 6.303-1(b).)
(2) Specifications, drawings, and other technical documents.
(3) Acquisition plan including, if applicable, the determination required by OMB Circular A-76 and concurrence of the cognizant competition advocate.
(4) Determination and findings required by FAR 1.7 and 501.7, or justification required by FAR 6.303, including the certification of accuracy and completeness of the justification.
(5) Department of Labor Wage Determination.
(6) Small business determinations.
(7) Source list.
(8) Statement as to synopsis of proposed procurement under FAR 5.2 or other required advertisements under 505.2.
(9) Presolicitation notice.
(10) IFB/RFP and amendments.
(11) Abstract of bids or proposals including identification of the low bidder or offeror, discounted price, etc.
(12) Cost or pricing data and information other than cost or pricing data. Include the waiver and documentation supporting the waiver if the requirement for submission of cost or pricing data is waived, as provided in FAR 15.403-1(b)(4).
(13) Field pricing report (see FAR 15.404-2).
(14) Price or cost analysis report prepared under FAR 15.404, including:
(i) Supporting technical analyses, other than those supporting an audit report.
(ii) Profit or fee analysis required by FAR 15.404-4 and 515.404-4.
(iii) An independent Government estimate, if required.
(15) Documentation required by FAR 15.406, written to permit reconstruction of the acquisition’s major events.
(16) Certificate of current cost or pricing data, if applicable.
(17) Pre-award survey.
(18) EEO compliance review.
(19) “No bid” or “no proposal” correspondence.
(20) Unsuccessful bids or proposals. Include a copy of each rejected bid and unacceptable proposal.
(21) Mistakes in bids and protests. Include all correspondence and determinations relating to mistakes in bids disclosed before award or protests.
(22) Actions taken on late bids or proposals.
(23) Contract action. Include:
(i) Successful bid or proposal and all pertinent correspondence applicable to the contract action, including evidence of submission of contract award data to paying office (see 504.201).
(ii) Subcontracting plans incorporated in and made a material part of a contract, as required by FAR 19.705-5(a)(5).
(24) Evidence of legal review, if required.
(25) Approvals. Include, as applicable:
(i) GSA Form 1535, Recommendation for Award.
(ii) Documentation of approval of subcontracting plan.
(iii) Record of individuals authorized access to contractor bid or proposal information or source selection information (see 503.104-4(a)(4)).
(26) Notices of award.
(27) FPDS Contract Action Report, or other system-generated equivalent.
(c) Index.
(1) Place an index of the file tabs in the file, or simulate electronically an index of the tabs and include in the front of the electronic version of the contract file. Identify items that do not apply. If necessary, briefly explain why. The contracting officer may use the GSA Form 3420, Contract/Modification File Checklist File Format (Award), for the index, or an electronically created index inclusive of the items detailed under GSAR 504.803(b).
(2) Include subheadings under a tab if required by the contracting officer’s office.
504.804-5 Procedures for closing out contract files.
(a) HCAs are directed to take appropriate steps to ensure that physically completed contracts are formally closed in accordance with the procedures at FAR 4.804, GSAM 504.804-5, and guidelines provided below for simplified acquisitions and contracts with residual balances. HCAs are reminded that when closing out contract actions at FAR 4.804-1(a)(2), (3), and (4), the contracting officer shall use the closeout procedures at FAR 4.804-5. However, these closeout actions may be modified to reflect the extent of administration that has been performed. Contracting activities that have supplemented the FAR procedures with instructions pertinent to the specific contract types, business systems, and resources employed are encouraged to continue the use of such supplements.
(b) Contracting officers must be vigilant and proactive with respect to proper contract closeout procedures. They must not allow completed contracts to remain open indefinitely or allow a failure to conduct timely closeout to violate regulatory or statutory requirements, or negatively impact GSAs accurate and timely financial reporting.
(c) Under FAR 4.804-1(a)(1), the contracting officer only needs evidence of receipt of goods and services and final payment to closeout the contract files. For contracts awarded under the simplified acquisition procedures, contracting officers shall ensure that the contract award document and the statement of work includes the following statement:
“For payment purposes, the contractor shall mark its final invoice for payment as Final Invoice for Payment.”
(1) For task and delivery orders awarded under these procedures, the orders shall also include the statement above.
(2) Contracting officers shall instruct contracting officer representatives or project managers receiving supplies and services under the simplified acquisition procedures to forward copies of the receiving report and final invoice to the contracting officer for contract close-out purposes.
(d) Cancellation of open items with residual balances.
(1) Open item balances (remaining) of $100,000 and below should be canceled if deemed invalid following the procedures below. Service and Staff Office (SSO) funds managers (persons certifying the availability of funds) will have the authority and responsibility to cancel balances if deemed invalid. Only valid obligations should be retained in the financial accounting system.
(2) The following procedures should be followed to cancel invalid obligations:
(i) The SSO funds managers will generate a list of proposed deobligations and present it to the contracting officer and his/her director for review and approval.
(ii) The contracting officer or director shall respond to the SSO funds manager within 45 days, justifying in writing why any open item on the list should not be canceled.
(iii) If the funds manager receives no response from the contracting officer, the funds manager is authorized to take appropriate steps to deobligate the open items in the accounting and business systems.
(iv) When a contracting officer approves the cancellation of obligation under items b or c, above, the contracting officer shall prepare the appropriate documents necessary (e.g., contract modification) for the contract file.
(e) These actions by the SSO funds managers shall be considered an internal financial accounting action and shall have no bearing on the Government’s rights and duties under the contracts until the contracting officer officially closes the contract.
(f) Non-contracting officer acquisitions. For newly created open items that did not require the signature of a contracting officer (GSAM 501.603-1(f)) the funds manager has the authority to correct or cancel any open item not deemed valid. Examples of such document types include micropurchases using the governmentwide commercial purchase card, internal GSA orders and security clearances (e.g., IX, IY, GX). The funds managers should follow the financial systems procedures outlined in this memorandum for cancellation and should inform the originator of the open item of the cancellation.
504.805 Storage, handling, and disposal of contract files.
The contracting officer’s accountability for contract files ends when the following three conditions exist:
(a) The files’ retention period expires.
(b) The contracting officer receives the notice of disposal from the National Archives and Records Administration.
(c) The records liaison officer whose organization has functional responsibility for the files approves disposal.
Subpart 504.9— Taxpayer Identification Number Information
(a) Debt collection. The Debt Collection Improvement Act of 1996 requires each contractor doing business with GSA to furnish its Tax Identification Number (TIN). The Government is required to include with each certified voucher prepared and submitted to a disbursing official, the TIN of the contractor receiving payment under the voucher. The TIN may be used by the Office of Financial Policy and Operations to collect and report on any delinquent amounts arising out of the contractor's relationship with the Government.
(b) Information reporting to the IRS. The TIN is also required for Office of Financial Policy and Operations reporting of certain contract information (see FAR 4.903) and payment information (see GSAM 504.904) to the IRS.
504.904 Reporting contract information to the IRS.
(a) The Office of Financial Policy and Operations reports to IRS on payments made to certain contractors for services performed and to lessors for providing space in buildings. This is required by 26 U.S.C. 6041 and 6041A and implemented in 26 CFR. To assist the Office of Financial Policy and Operations in reporting to the IRS, contracting officers must indicate on obligating documents sent to Finance (e.g., purchase, delivery, or task orders; contracts; the GSA Form R-620 for leases; or certified invoices) the contractor's organizational structure (e.g., corporation, partnership) and taxpayer identification number (TIN).
Subpart 504.11-- System for Award Management
In addition to the requirements found in FAR 4.1103, prior to awarding a contractual instrument the contracting officer must--
(a) Verify that the prospective contractor’s legal business name, Doing-Business-As (DBA) name (if any), physical street address, and Data Universal Number System (DUNS) number or DUNS+4 number, as found in the System for Award Management (SAM), match the information that will be included in the contract, order, or agreement resulting from the vendor's quote or proposal. Correct any mismatches by having the vendor amend the information in the SAM and/or the quote or proposal. The SAM information can be accessed through the SAM website (www.sam.gov) by creating a user account.
(b) Ensure that the contractor’s address code exists in Pegasys and that it is SAM enabled with the contractor’s DUNS or DUNS+4 number. This can be done by searching Pegasys records using the contractor’s Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). If no code exists, request that a new address code be established by the Finance Center for SAM compliance.
(c) Ensure that the contractor’s identifying information is correctly placed on the contractual instrument, using special care to ensure that the legal name and “remit to” name match exactly. (Note: Lockbox names or numbers should not be used to replace the contractor’s name in the remittance block on the contractual instrument.)
(d) Unless one of the exceptions to registration in SAM applies (see FAR 4.1102(a)), the contracting officer must not award a contract to a prospective contractor who is not registered in SAM. If no exceptions are applicable, and the needs of the requiring activity allows for a delay in award, see FAR 4.1103(b)(1).
Subpart 504.13--Personal Identity Verification of Contractor Personnel
Contracting officers must follow the procedures contained in CIO P2181.1--GSA HSPD-12 Personal Identity Verification and Credentialing Handbook, which may be obtained from the CIO Office of Enterprise Solutions, to ensure compliance with Homeland Security Presidential Directive-12 (HSPD-12) ``Policy for a Common Identification Standard for Federal Employees and Contractors,'' Office of Management and Budget Memorandum M-05-24, and Department of Commerce FIPS PUB 201.
Insert the clause at 552.204-9, Personal Identity Verification Requirements, in solicitations and contracts when it is determined that contractor employees will require access to federally controlled facilities or information systems to perform contract requirements.
Subpart 504.16—Unique Procurement Instrument Identifiers
(a) Elements of a PIID. The PIID consists of 13 alphanumeric characters as follows:
Character(s) |
Content |
Content Description Location |
Example |
1-6 |
Activity Address Code |
See 504.605(c) |
47PA01 |
7-8 |
Last Two Digits of Fiscal Year of Number Assignment |
15 | |
9 |
Instrument Code |
See 504.1603(b) |
F |
10-13 |
Serial Number |
See 504.1603(c) |
0001 |
(b) Procurement Instrument Type Codes. Indicate the type of instrument consistent with the letter designation provided in FAR 4.1603(a)(3). The letter designations for the identified type of instruments unique to agency policy are identified as follows:
Instrument |
Letter Designation |
Purchase orders (open market simplified acquisition) - manual |
M |
Request for information |
N |
Standing price quote (SPQ) |
T |
(c) Serial Number Codes.
(1) A separate series of numbers may be used for each basic instrument type (see 504.1603(b)).
(2) For delivery or task orders, each order issued by contracting office must receive a consecutive serial number. That is, orders are numbered in sequence as issued by the contracting office, but they are not in sequence under any individual contract.
(3) At the beginning of each fiscal year, the first number assigned is 0001.
(4) Alphanumeric characters are serially assigned after the numeric series is exhausted.
(5) The allowable numeric and alphanumeric sequences, excluding alpha I and O are–
(i) 0001 through 9999;
(ii) A001 through A999, B001 through B999;
(iii) and so on to Z001 through Z999.
(6) Each issuing office is responsible for controlling serial number assignments.
