Information Technology Services: Agencies Complying with Revision to Federal Acquisition Regulation

Concerned that minimum personnel experience or education requirements in agency solicitations for information technology (IT) services were contributing to worker shortages, Congress included a provision in the fiscal year 2001 Defense authorization act requiring that the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) be amended to limit the use of such requirements. Specifically, agencies are not to include such minimum personnel requirements in solicitations for IT services that result in performance-based contracts--those with performance work statements that set forth contract requirements in clear, specific, and objective terms with measurable outcomes--unless the contracting officer determines that the needs of the agency cannot be met without them. This law also required GAO to study and report on the government's implementation of this provision. Accordingly, GAO assessed whether the FAR rule implementing this requirement conforms with the provision (section 813 of P.L. 106-398) and to what extent executive agencies have complied with the new requirement. GAO chose nine agencies to review, based on its analysis of data in FedBizOpps, a governmentwide Web site containing government business opportunities over $25,000.