| PSC Comments on Supply Chain Regulation Change |
Arlington, Va. (Feb. 12, 2020) The Professional Services Council (PSC) submitted
comments on February 10, 2020, welcoming a change in regulations that reduces the reporting burden on federal contractors from the complex supply chain prohibitions known as “
Section 889(a).” The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council’s December 19, 2019,
second interim rule now allows offerors to annually certify in the System for Award Management (SAM) database that they are not using products or services from certain Chinese companies.
“PSC is grateful that the government listened to and acted on industry feedback to address the substantial challenges and complexities that are accompanying Section 889(a) implementation,” said Alan Chvotkin, PSC Executive Vice President and Counsel. “Allowing offerors to annually certify in SAM, rather than having to make that declaration on an offer-by-offer basis, is a productive step. This interim rule will assist those companies that are not otherwise impacted by the prohibition but are affected by its reporting requirements.”
Section 889 of the Fiscal Year 2019 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA, P.L. 115-232) imposes prohibitions on the government’s purchase of certain telecommunications products and services and use of those products and services in a federal contractor’s supply chain.
On October 21, 2019, PSC led a coalition of associations in commenting on the August 2019 interim FAR rule titled, “Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment.”
The coalition’s first of eight recommendations called for the expeditious implementation of this one-time SAM certification. As that letter stated in part: "A one-time, annual certification, rather than offer-by-offer representation, would dramatically reduce the administrative burden on, and the compliance costs for, both the government and federal contracting community. A single certification will further save time and allow contracting officers and agencies to focus on offerors that have identified the presence of such covered equipment or services in their supply chain.”
“The second phase of the Section 889(a) implementation, that will take effect in August 2020, is much more extensive and contractors need additional information to prepare,” Chvotkin continued. “Accordingly, we urge the government to issue proposed regulations for phase two as expeditiously as possible, to expand outreach to the impacted communities, and to assist the contractor community with implementing this very expansive and challenging mandate.”
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About PSC: PSC is the voice of the government technology and professional services industry. PSC’s more than 400 member companies represent small, medium and large businesses that provide federal agencies with services of all kinds, including information technology, engineering, logistics, facilities management, operations and maintenance, consulting, international development, scientific, social, environmental services, and more. Together, the trade association’s members employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in all 50 states. Follow PSC on Twitter
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