The 411 on Section 843

Deidre Lee, the Defense Department's director of procurement and acquisition policy, suggested that Section 843 of the Defense Authorization Act would be overturned. Regardless, when the provision took effect March 23, it limited the terms of task and delivery order contracts to five years.

Some information about Section 843:

• Who is affected? The section applies to task and delivery order contracts awarded by DOD, NASA and the Coast Guard.
• What contracts are not covered by this provision? Existing contracts, definite-quantity contracts, General Services Administration schedules and governmentwide contracts awarded by agencies other than DOD, NASA or the Coast Guard.
• Do the changes affect existing contracts? The interim rule applies only to solicitations issued on or after March 23.
• Are there any provisions for waivers? There are no waivers and no exceptions, according to DOD officials. But procurement officials are hopeful that Congress will repeal or amend the law in fiscal 2005.
• Where can vendors submit comments on the change? The undersecretary of Defense for acquisition, technology and logistics, is still unsure of the provision's impact on businesses and asks for comments at emissary.acq.osd.mil/dar/dfars.nsf/pubcomm.

Source: Office of the Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition, Technology and Logistics