Pentagon says contract specialists don't have to go back to school

March 21 memo, Acting Undersecretary of Defense Charles L. Cragin directed agency officials to apply education requirements included in the 2001 Defense Authorization Act only to new military and civilian contracting officials who started in their positions after Oct. 1, 2000. Section 808 of the 2001 Defense Authorization Act requires contract specialists at the GS-1102 level to have bachelor's degrees from accredited institutions and at least 24 semester hours of business-related studies, regardless of work experience. Previously, contract specialists at the GS-1102 level could fulfill educational requirements either with a college degree, credits in business-related courses, or an exam demonstrating their skills in contract administration. Although Congress intended the law to apply only to new employees, confusion throughout the Defense Department had threatened to send thousands of federal contract specialists back to school. According to Cragin's memo, military and civilian personnel who began their positions in the GS-1102 series or job categories related to that series on or before Sept. 30, 2000, do not have to fulfill the new education requirement. The guidance also encouraged Defense officials to use a waiver in the original law (United States Code 10, Section 1724) for those who entered the GS-1102 series between Oct. 1, 2000 and March 21, 2001. Under the waiver, the acquisition career board of a military department may waive any or all of the education requirements if it thinks an applicant has demonstrated superior skills based on job performance and qualifying experience. Cragin's memo followed a series of meetings between Defense officials and staff from the Senate Armed Services Committee on how to implement Section 808 of the fiscal 2001 authorization act. John Threlkeld, a legislative representative for the American Federation of Government Employees, said the union would like to see the provision's language clarified through the law itself, rather than through agency guidance, which can be ambiguous. For example, since the guidance does not specifically address GS-1105s and GS-1106s, it could be misinterpreted, Threlkeld said. Employees in the GS-1105 and GS-1106 categories are frequently promoted to the GS-1102 level. "We believe Congress should revisit this issue in the fiscal 2002 Defense authorization bill to make sure the revised education requirement does not impact GS-1105s and GS-1106s," said Threlkeld.