Comments on a Proposed Amendment to Defense Acquisition Regulation

Comments were requested on a proposed amendment to a Defense Acquisition Regulation which eliminates the evaluation of prompt payment discounts in making contract awards. The practice of considering prompt payment discounts when evaluating offers sometimes results in inequities, and the procedure can be complex and burdensome. Therefore, GAO agreed that the prompt payment discount procedure should be reconsidered. However, GAO did not believe that the evaluation of prompt payment discounts should be eliminated completely. Although the procedure of considering prompt payment discounts for evaluating offers may be too burdensome for routine procurements, GAO believed that the procedure should be retained for high dollar value purchases because of the kinds of savings available in such purchases.