Second Round of Contracting Guidance Coming Soon

By Robert Brodsky

The Office of Management and Budget expects to release its next, and final, round of contracting guidance in the coming weeks, according to an agency spokesman.

President Obama's March 4th acquisition memo directed OMB Director Peter Orszag to issue the administration's final set of guidance on a host of acquisition topics by September 30.

But, OMB spokesman Thomas Gavin tells Government Executive that the interim guidance issued by the administration in July addressed many of the concerns in Obama's memorandum.

"The guidance released in July is by far the most important guidance in setting priorities," Gavin said.

The final guidance was initially expected to cover the appropriate use and oversight of sole-source and other types of noncompetitive contracts, as well as issues related to the acquisition workforce. Both topics, however, were addressed in July. The upcoming guidance could still address outstanding questions related to outsourcing and defining "inherently governmental.".

In a related note, the Government Accountability Office issued a report Tuesday which found that civilian agencies are late in developing their insourcing guidelines. A provision in the 2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act required civilian agencies to develop a plan for bringing contracted work back in-house.

Agency officials the GAO that they delayed their efforts as they were waiting for OMB's July guidance to ensure their instructions were consistent. Some officials added that they are waiting on additional direction from OMB, particularly concerning the definition of inherently governmental functions and when it is appropriate to outsource.