Civilian Agencies Council Spotlight - March 2022

Published 03/08/2022

Click here to access a PDF version of this spotlight.     

In this edition:  GSA Seeking Input on Impacts of Inflation and Supply Chain | PSC Seeking Input on NIST’s RFI on Cybersecurity Resources | Cabinet Agencies Publish Critical U.S. Supply Chain Reports | HHS Task Force / Vision Team Joint Session | PSC FedHealth Conference | DHS CIO Collaborative Roundtables | DHS Reverse Industry Day | PSC Federal Law Enforcement Conference – Virtual Access Available | DHS PIL Boot Camp Appendix | February DHS Industry Association Notes | Upcoming PSC Events

GSA Seeking Input on Impacts of Inflation and Supply Chain – Responses Due March 14
GSA is seeking input on the impacts of inflation on the supply chain so it can create a business case to justify future changes of the Economic Price Adjustment (EPA) process. Your responses to any or all of GSA’s questions will assist in their understanding of the challenges industry is experiencing with the current clause, the impact on businesses, and the potential consequences for GSA’s customers.  Please provide responses to gsaombudsman@gsa.gov by COB Monday, March 14, 2022. If you would prefer to provide PSC with feedback that we can aggregate and anonymize, please send your input to Policy@pscouncil.org by COB Friday, March 11, 2022.


PSC Seeking Input on NIST’s RFI on Cybersecurity Resources 
On February 22, 2022, NIST published a request for information (RFI) entitled “Evaluating and Improving NIST Cybersecurity Resources: The Cybersecurity Framework and Cybersecurity Supply Chain Risk Management.” Responses to this RFI will inform a possible revision of the Cybersecurity Framework as well as the NIICS initiative.” The deadline for public comments is April 25, 2022. If you have questions or inputs you would like PSC to consider, please share with Stephanie Kostro at Kostro@pscouncil.org or Christian Larsen at Larsen@pscouncil.org.


Cabinet Agencies Publish Critical U.S. Supply Chain Reports
On February 24, 2022, seven cabinet agencies published reports in response to President Biden’s Executive Order (EO) 14017 with assessments of and recommendations for strengthening certain critical U.S. supply chains. The White House published a capstone report providing an overview of the agency reports and also reviewing the actions the Biden Administration has taken over the past year to reduce the vulnerability of U.S. supply chains. Click here to see summaries and links to each agency report from the Department of Defense, Department of Commerce, Department of Homeland Security, Department of Energy, US Department of Agriculture, Department of Transportation, and Health and Human Services. 


HHS Task Force / Vision Team Joint Session – March 30
Please register here to attend the joint HHS Task Force and Vision Team session on March 30 from 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. The leadership of the PSC Vision Team will present a more in-depth version of key HHS Operating Divisions and HHS officials will provide feedback and commentary on what to expect for 2022. Members will have an opportunity for Q&A with HHS.


PSC FedHealth Conference – Registration Open
Registration is open for the 2022 PSC FedHealth Conference, scheduled for May 24 at the North Bethesda Marriot (and virtual). The agenda will include sessions on acquisitions and market trends, post pandemic civilian and military mental health, and leveraging AI/ML in federal health agencies. Sponsorship opportunities are available for this conference and range from $500 - $8000.  If you would like to get involved in planning or learn more about sponsorship opportunities, please contact Andrea Ostrander at ostrander@pscouncil.org. 


DHS CIO Collaborative Roundtables
The DHS Office of the Chief Information Officer (OCIO) will host the first in a series of collaborative roundtable discussions with industry on Wednesday, March 16 to discuss major issues and strategic priorities with DHS Technology Leadership. The first roundtable will focus on customer experience (CX), resource management, quality assurance, client engagement, technology, and the outlook on the future. PSC was offered four spots and selected a representative from IBM, Maximus Federal, World Wide Technology, and SNA International to participate in the first discussion based on the nominations received. We will notify members when new opportunities to participate become available.  


DHS Reverse Industry Day – March 23
PSC will host a virtual Reverse Industry Day for the DHS acquisition workforce on March 23, 2022, from 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. This event will include two industry-led sessions on the “Dynamics of Industry Teaming Agreements” and “Effective Government-Industry Engagement in a Hybrid Work Environment.”  DHS will offer a limited number of spaces for industry observers to listen to the discussion.  If you are interested in attending, please contact Krista Sweet at ksweet@pscouncil.org to determine availability of spots. 


PSC Federal Law Enforcement Conference – Virtual Access Available
More than 200 attendees joined in-person and virtually around the country to hear updates from more than eight federal law enforcement agencies at PSC’s Federal Law Enforcement Conference on February 22, 2022. The conference included keynote addresses from Paul Abbate, the Deputy Director of the FBI, and Ron Davis, the Director of the US Marshals Service. Panel sessions discussed acquisition trends and forecasts, how data is operationalized, and interagency approaches to ransomware. It’s not too late to access the event on-demand and get all the content here. 


DHS PIL Boot Camp Appendix
On February 16, 2022, more than 20 PSC members participated in the DHS Procurement Innovation Lab (PIL) Boot Camp for Industry. The OCPO has released an appendix that provides a summary briefing to executives with a high-level view of the ten procurement innovation techniques taught at the PIL Boot Camp and the nine new techniques that will be taught at the PIL Boot Camp Next Level later this summer. Please reach out to PIL@hq.dhs.gov for any questions.


February DHS Industry Association Meeting Notes
The DHS OCPO held its monthly industry association meeting on February 17, 2022.  The notes from this meeting are available here. During this meeting, the CPO and team answered pre-submitted questions sent in from industry. Topics included the Secretary’s 19 priorities, the Digital IT Acquisition Professional Training Program, how DHS is implementing DEIA initiatives, blind TEP evaluation strategy, and the PIL Boot Camp - Next Level procurement innovation techniques. The next meeting will be held on Thursday, March 17, 2022. If you have issues or questions you would like PSC to raise during this meeting, please contact Policy@pscouncil.org. 


Upcoming PSC Events

Contract Working Group Meeting
March 10, 2022 | 2:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Virtual 

DCSA Deputy Director Roundtable 
March 14, 2022 | 10:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. | Virtual

Mid-Size Company Work Group Meeting
March 18, 2022 | 2:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m. | Virtual 

Vision Study Teams Kick Off Meeting
March 24, 2022 | 1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. | Virtual

HHS Task Force / Vision Team Joint Session
March 30, 2022 | 1:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. | Virtual 

2022 PSC Annual Conference
April 24 – 26, 2022 | The Greenbrier

2022 PSC FedHealth Conference
May 24, 2022 | 12:30 p.m. – 5:00 p.m. | North Bethesda Marriot

GSA Seeking Input on Inflation and Supply Chain - Responses Due March 14

Published 03/09/2022

GSA has heard from contractors regarding concerns about the impacts of inflation on the supply chain and the ability of GSA’s pricing policies to appropriately respond. As such, GSA is seeking your feedback to gather information to create a robust business case to justify future more lasting changes to the Economic Price Adjustment (EPA) process. Your responses to any and/or all of the questions (see below) are valuable in GSA's understanding of the challenges industry is experiencing with the current clause, the impact on businesses, and the potential consequences for GSA’s customers.  Please provide responses to gsaombudsman@gsa.gov by COB Monday, March 14, 2022.  

If you would prefer to provide PSC with feedback that we can aggregate and anonymize, please send your input to Policy@pscouncil.org by COB Friday, March 11.

1. What are the main sectors that you believe have been impacted by inflation? 
2. How is inflation impacting your business in terms of labor, materials, and transportation costs? 
3. Are you experiencing issues with your lower tiers?  Are the issues related to price increases, supply chain disruptions, workforce shortages, or other factors?  How are you solving these issues? 

4. Did you submit an EPA request in the last two years due to changes in the market?  What was the outcome (approved/denied)?  How long was the process from the time you submitted the request until you received notification of the decision? 

5. EPA ceiling rates set an aggregate limit on price increases per 12-month period based on the applicable MAS large category, and are indicated under General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation (GSAR) clause 552.216-70 EPA – FSS Multiple Award Schedule Contracts and FAS clause I-FSS-969 EPA – FSS Multiple Award Schedule (and alternates). How does this 12-month period requirement impact your business and ability to stay in the MAS program? 

6. According to the EPA clause, increases are only allowed on or after the first 12 months of the contract period, and no more than three price increases will be considered during each succeeding 12-month period of the contract. Under what circumstances do you need to request increases during the first 12 months, or more than three increases each 12-month period thereafter?  Please provide examples.  How does this limitation impact your ability to do business with GSA? 

7. How is the inflation issue being addressed under other commercial IDIQs? 
*Note: Please provide any business cases that can be used to understand limitations in the current regulations and justify changes and recommendations to improve current processes.   

IRS Discusses Fourth Quarter Spending & Category Management with PSC

By PSC Staff | September 17, 2018

At the September 7 PSC Government Affairs Committee meeting, IRS Deputy Chief Procurement Officer Harrison Smith and Special Assistant Mitchell Winans engaged with PSC members about several acquisition initiatives impacting the market including fourth quarter spending, Category Management and 2019 activities.

Harrison indicated that an analysis of IRS fourth quarter spending indicate that an increasing amount of IRS spending is happening in the fourth quarter. In 2015, 28-30% of IRS spending was in the fourth quarter. Last year, over 40% of their spending was in the fourth quarter and 19% of their spend was in September 2017. Last year, the IRS had about 12,000 transactions. The IRS is looking at reversing these trends with better acquisition planning and increased training among the 294 people in the procurement workforce. The IRS is proud that the IRS Strategic Plan includes an acquisition section. The IRS is looking to shift from low impact to higher impact transactions.

The IRS does not have Other Transaction Authority (OTA), but they are working with the Section 809 panel and looking at increasing their use of FAR 13.5 – Simplified Procures for Certain Commercial Items. The IRS is interested in having an “Emerging Technology Day” to better engage with industry as part of their modernization plans. The IRS has a Joint Innovation Lab that Harrison views as an information technology sandbox for technology pilots.

Harrison also noted the IRS’ workforce diversity. Whereas the agency had more than 500 employees eligible for retirement just six years ago, now only 35%—or less than 300 employees—are eligible to retire. Additionally, he discussed the IRS has use of Procurement Innovation Teams (PITs) – “tiger teams” – for four procurements, with additional candidates being considered.