In accordance with FAR 28.106-6(c), the HCA, or designee at a level not lower than the BPC, is the agency official authorized to furnish the certified copy of the bond and the contract.

When contractors submit any of the types of security described in FAR 28.204-1 through 28.204-3 in lieu of furnishing sureties, the contracting officer shall enter into an agreement with the contractor covering a bank account, and suitable covenants protecting the Government's interest, in which the securities will be deposited to protect against their loss during the period of the bond obligation.

Under cost-reimbursement contracts, before buying insurance under a group insurance plan, the contractor shall submit the plan to the contracting officer for review and approval. During review, the contracting office should utilize all sources of information available such as audit, industry practices, etc., to determine that acceptance of the group insurance plan, as submitted, is in the Government's best interest.

(a) It is DOJ policy that DOJ contracts shall not contain clauses expressly designating prime contractors as agents of the Government for the purpose of avoiding State and local taxes.

(b) Although circumstances may exist under which a contractor is an agent of the Government, even in the absence of a contract clause expressly designating a contractor as such, these circumstances should be extremely rare. Before any DOJ contracting activity may contend that any of its contractors are agents of the Government for the purpose of claiming immunity from State and local sales and use taxes, the matter will be referred to the AAG/A for review, and approval to ensure that DOJ policy is complied with and that the contracting activity's contention is fully in accordance with the pertinent legal principles and precedents. Each case forwarded will be reviewed by the HCA before referral to the AAG/A. The referral will include all pertinent data on which the contracting activity's contention is based, together with a thorough analysis of all relevant legal precedents.

(c) Whenever clauses, procedures, and business practices are cited by DOJ contracting activities to support the contention that a contractor is an agent of the Government for the purpose of immunity from a State or local sales or use tax, contracting activities should whenever possible, devise alternative clauses, procedures, and practices for future use which will accomplish their intended purpose without providing the basis for contention that the contractor is an agent of the Government for the purpose of immunity from State and local sales or use taxes. Any referral to the AAG/A for approval under this subpart shall include comments on the extent to which alternative clauses, procedures, or practices may be utilized to accomplish the intended purpose without providing the basis for the contention that the contractor is an agent of the Government for the purpose of immunity from State and local sales or use taxes.

A request for a waiver of the Cost Accounting Standards requirements shall be forwarded to the HCA after the contracting officer has made the determination required by FAR 30.201-5.

(a) The PE is the official authorized to grant individual deviations from the cost principles of FAR part 31. All requests for individual deviations must cite the facts and circumstances surrounding the request as well as attempts to negotiate contractor compliance.

(b) Requests for class deviations from the cost principles set forth in FAR part 31 will be forwarded through the PE prior to submission to the Civilian Agency Acquisition Counsel. Requests must contain the information required in paragraph (a) of this section.

(a) The DOJ and bureau contracting officers are encouraged to negotiate advance agreements concerning the treatment of special or unusual costs to avoid possible subsequent disputes or disallowance of costs based upon unreasonableness or nonallowability. All such agreements shall be negotiated in accordance with FAR 31.109 prior to the contractor incurring such costs. Contracting officers are not authorized to agree to a treatment of costs which would be inconsistent with FAR part 31.

(b) Prior to negotiating an advance agreement, contracting officers shall make a written determination setting forth the reasons and rationale for entering into such agreements. In addition, the determination will set forth the nature, the duration, and which contract or contracts are covered by the proposed agreement. All determinations required by this subpart will be reviewed and approved at a level above the contracting officer prior to negotiation of the proposed agreement. The approved determination will be placed in the contract file.

(c) All advance agreements shall be in writing and shall set forth the nature, duration, and contract or contracts covered by the agreements. Advance agreements will be signed by both the contractor and the contracting officer, and made a part of the contract file. Copies of executed advance agreements will be distributed to the cognizant audit office when applicable.

(d) All advance agreements will be incorporated in full in the subsequent contract(s) to which they pertain, prior to award.

(a) Precontract cost authorizations shall be used only on cost reimbursement contracts, contain no provisions for payment of fees, and be treated as advance agreements in accordance with the provisions of FAR 31.109 and 2831.109.

(b) The following limitations apply to the execution of precontract cost authorizations.

(1) Contracts which are estimated to be greater than the simplified acquisition threshold may contain a precontract cost authorization providing the authorization is for a period of 60 days or less and the dollar amount does not exceed the lesser of the simplified acquisition threshold or one third of the total estimated costs (including fee if any) of the contract.

(2) the limitation expressed under paragraph (b) of this section may be increased in unusual circumstances as appropriate, with the written approval of the HCA, but in no event shall they exceed one-third of the total estimated costs (including fee if any) of the contract or be for periods of time which exceed 90 days.

The HCA, or designee at a level not lower than the BPC, is the official authorized to approve unusual contract financing as set forth in FAR 31.114.

(a) The authority to sign written determinations and findings with respect to making advance payments is vested in the HCA.

(b) Prior to awarding a contract which contains provisions for making advanced payments, the contract terms and conditions concerning advance payments must be approved at a level above the contracting officer, with advice and consent of the bureau's legal counsel.

(c) The contracting officer shall coordinate with the activity that is to provide contract financing for advance payments, the bureau's disbursing or finance office, or the Treasury Department, as appropriate, to ensure that all FAR and departmental requirements are met.

In cases where advance payments may be made on an interest free basis (FAR 32.407(d)), the intent to make such interest free advance payments, and the circumstance permitting interest free advance payments, shall be set forth in the original determination and findings and be approved in accordance with 2832.402.

The HCA is responsible for promulgating policies and procedures to implement FAR 32.9 and to ensure that, when specifying due dates, full consideration will be given to the time reasonably required by Government officials to fulfill their administrative responsibilities under the contract.

When the clause at FAR 52.232-34, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer-Other than Central Contractor Registration, is required the contracting officer may insert in paragraph (b)(1) of the clause a particular time after award, such as a fixed number of days, or an event such as the submission of the first request for payment, to establish the point at which contractors’ EFT information must be provided.

(a) Agency Protest Official means the official, other than the contracting officer, designated to review and decide procurement protests filed with a contracting activity of the Department of Justice.

(1) This person will be at a level above that of the Contracting Officer, will be knowledgeable about the acquisition process in general and will have no programmatic interest in the procurement.

(2) This official shall be an individual designated by the head of the contracting activity and may be the Competition Advocate.

(b) Deciding Official means the person chosen by the protestor to decide the agency protest; it may be either the Contracting Officer or the Agency Protest Official.

(c) Interested Party means an actual or prospective offeror whose direct economic interest would be affected by the award of a contract or by the failure to award a contract.

(a) This part describes policies and procedures for processing protests to the Department of Justice in accordance with Executive Order 12979, Agency Procurement Protests, dated October 25, 1995, and FAR 33.103. They are intended to be flexible and to provide for fair, quick, and inexpensive resolution of agency protests.

(b) Interested parties have the option of protesting to the Contracting Officer or to the Agency Protest Official.

(c) Contracting officers and potential protestors are encouraged to use their best efforts to resolve concerns through frank and open discussion, as required by FAR 33.103(b). In resolving concerns and/or protests, consideration should be given to the use of alternative dispute resolution techniques where appropriate.

(d) Responsibilities:

(1) Contracting Officers: (i) Include the provision at 2852.233-70 in all solicitations that are expected to exceed the simplified acquisition threshold.

(ii) If the protestor requests that the Contracting Officer decide the protest, or if the protest is silent on this issue, the Contracting Officer decides the protest using the procedures in this subpart and FAR 33.103.

(iii) If the protestor requests that the Agency Protest Official decide the protest, the Contracting Officer must ensure that the Agency Protest Official receives a copy of the materials served on the Contracting Officer within one business day after the filing date.

(2) Agency Protest Official: If the protestor requests that the Agency Protest Official decide the protest, the Official must use the procedures in this subpart and FAR 33.103 to provide an independent review of the issues raised in the protest.

(a) The filing time frames in FAR 33.103(e) apply. An agency protest is filed when the protest complaint is received at the location the solicitation designates for serving protests.

(b) An interested party filing an agency protest has the choice of requesting either that the Contracting Officer or the Agency Protest Official decide the protest.

(c) In addition to the information required by FAR 33.103(d)(2), the protest must:

(1) Indicate that it is a protest to the agency.

(2) Be filed with the Contracting Officer.

(3) State whether the protestor chooses to have the Contracting Officer or the Agency Protest Official decide the protest. If the protest is silent on this matter, the Contracting Officer will decide the protest.

(4) Indicate whether the protestor prefers to make an oral or written presentation of arguments in support of the protest to the deciding official.

(d) The decision by the Agency Protest Official is an alternative to a decision by the Contracting Officer on a protest. The Agency Protest Official will not consider appeals from a Contracting Officer's decision on an agency protest.

(e) The deciding official must conduct a scheduling conference with the protestor within five (5) days after the protest is filed. The scheduling conference will establish deadlines for oral or written arguments in support of the agency protest and for agency officials to present information in response to the protest issues. The deciding official may hear oral arguments in support of the agency protest at the same time as the scheduling conference, depending on availability of the necessary parties.

(f) Oral conferences may take place either by telephone or in person. Other parties may attend at the discretion of the deciding official.

(g) The protestor has only one opportunity to support or explain the substance of its protest. Department of Justice procedures do not provide for any discovery. The deciding official has discretion to request additional information from either the agency or the protestor. However, the deciding official will normally decide protests on the basis of information provided by the protestor and the agency.

(h) The preferred practice is to resolve protests through informal oral discussion.

(i) An interested party may represent itself or be represented by legal counsel. The Department of Justice will not reimburse the protester for any legal fees related to the agency protest.

(j) If an agency protest is received before contract award, the Contracting Officer must not make award unless the Head of the Contracting Activity makes a determination to proceed under FAR 33.103(f)(1). Similarly, if an agency protest is filed within ten (10) days after award, the Contracting Officer must stay performance unless the Head of the Contracting Activity makes a determination to proceed under FAR 33.103(f)(3). Any stay of award or suspension of performance remains in effect until the protest is decided, dismissed, or withdrawn.

(k) The deciding official must make a best effort to issue a decision on the protest within twenty (20) days after the filing date. The decision may be oral or written. If oral, the deciding official must send a confirming letter within three (3) days after the decision using a means that provides receipt. The confirming letter must include the following information:

(1) State whether the protest was denied, sustained or dismissed.

(2) Indicate the date the decision was provided.

(l) If the deciding official sustains the protest, relief may consist of any of the following:

(1) Recommendation that the contract be terminated for convenience or cause.

(2) Recompeting the requirement.

(3) Amending the solicitation.

(4) Refraining from exercising contract options.

(5) Awarding a contract consistent with statute, regulation, and the terms of the solicitation.

(6) Other action that the deciding official determines is appropriate.

(m) If the Agency Protest Official sustains a protest, then within 30 days after receiving the Official's recommendations for relief, the Contracting Officer must either:

(1) Fully implement the recommended relief; or

(2) Notify the Agency Protest Official in writing of any recommendations have not been implemented and explain why.

(n) Proceedings on an agency protest may be dismissed or stayed if a protest on the same or similar basis is filed with a protest forum outside of the Department of Justice.

Contracting officers shall report suspected fraudulent claims to the Office of the Inspector General.

(a) The Agency Board of Contract Appeals (BCA), which will hear appeals from the decisions of bureau contracting officers, is the Department of Transportation BCA. The procedures set forth in 48 CFR chapter 63 shall apply.

(b) Pursuant to 28 CFR 0.45(i), the contact for all appeals of decisions of DOJ contracting officers which will be forwarded to the BCA under paragraph (a) of this section, is the Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Commercial Litigation Branch, Civil Division.