Going through the motions

• By Matthew Weigelt
• Sep 26, 2008

The Multiple Award Schedule Advisory Panel, which is reviewing various parts of the MAS program, approved seven recommendations at its Sept. 19 and 22 meetings. The recommendations focus on professional services sold through MAS contracts. At its October meetings, the panel will discuss issues related to products. The panel will send its recommended changes to the program to the General Services Administration’s administrator.

So far, the panel has recommended:

• Eliminating the price reduction clause for MAS program schedule services contracts and adopting an 803-like approach (see story) to compete orders above the simplified acquisition threshold for all agencies using schedule contracts.


• Establishing, with consent and active participation of the ordering agencies, a process to enable ordering agencies to collect and report on their purchasing experiences, including quantity and quality considerations and price.


• Disclosing the basis on which the contracting officer determined that the contract schedules prices are fair and reasonable.


• Periodically evaluating special item number descriptions to determine that they are consistent with customers’ needs and the market offerings and that SIN labor categories are also consistent with the scope of their descriptions.


• Consulting with ordering agencies and industry partners to periodically review the schedules to determine their relevance in the marketplace and ability to meet agencies’ needs.


• Setting the goal of GSA schedules to be obtaining fair, reasonable prices at the time of contract formation by pursuing the lowest overall cost option. GSA’s administrator should issue clear and consistent guidance for implementing that objective.


• Improving how GSA announces terms and conditions to ordering agencies to ensure they place orders that are consistent with the schedule contract.

Source: Multiple Award Schedule Advisory Panel

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