(a) Overseas contracting activities. (1) Each fiscal year, A/OPE shall issue a call for acquisition plans (“Master Buy Plan”) to all overseas posts. A/OPE shall ask posts to provide a list of planned solicitations, contracts, and modifications that will exceed the warrant level of the assigned contracting officer. These plans shall be submitted by April 1 of each year for actions covered in the subsequent fiscal year. A/OPE shall select those actions for which review will be required and provide the list to post, granting authority to sign any planned actions that are not selected for review. Posts shall notify A/OPE of any unplanned actions above the contracting officer’s warrant level as they arise, so that A/OPE may decide whether a review is required. Posts failing to respond to the call for acquisition plans may be required to submit all acquisition actions above the contracting officer’s warrant level for A/OPE review and approval. Prior A/OPE approval is not required when exercising priced options, unless specifically requested by A/OPE. See the additional exceptions in subparagraphs (2) and (3) of this section.
(2) Personal services contracts. The Procurement Executive has authorized any individual who receives a valid contracting officer certificate of appointment as described in DOSAR 601.603 to award a personal services contract without prior A/OPE review and approval, notwithstanding any limitation in the contracting officer’s certificate of appointment. This subparagraph applies to all personal services contracts awarded by a State Department contracting officer, regardless of the statutory authority cited under the personal services contract, including personal services contracts awarded under another agency’s statutory authority.
(3) Personal services agreements. Prior A/OPE approval is not applicable to personal services agreements, as they are not subject to procurement statute and regulation.
(b) Domestic contracting activities and Regional Procurement Support Offices. Domestic contracting activities and RPSOs shall submit all actions over $5,000,000 to A/OPE for review. There is no review threshold when the contracting activity's quality assurance plan has been approved by A/OPE.
(c) Options. When calculating the threshold for application of paragraphs (a) and (b) of this section, include the value of the base year plus all option years.
(d) Documentation. A/OPE shall document the scope and extent of the review and shall submit written recommendations to the contracting officer on each proposed contract action that it reviews. In the event the contracting officer and the reviewer cannot reach agreement on the recommendation(s), the contracting officer shall prepare an appeal file to be transmitted to the Procurement Executive. The appeal shall be approved by an individual one management level above the contracting officer prior to its transmission to the Procurement Executive. A resolution shall be worked out between the contracting activity and the Procurement Executive. For purposes of this section, the officer who may transmit the appeal file to the Procurement Executive shall not be the same individual who will sign the contractual document. For overseas posts, where the contracting officer is the head of the contracting activity, the approval authority shall be the Principal Officer.
(e) Delegation or waiver. The Procurement Executive may delegate or waive the review requirements. In such instances, the Procurement Executive shall provide to each head of the contracting activity, as appropriate, a written delegation or waiver of these requirements.
