I.  Background

DoD, GSA, and NASA published a proposed rule in the Federal Register at 75 FR 54560 on September 8, 2010, to clarify the use of blocks 17 and 18 of the Standard Form (SF) 26, Award/Contract.

FAR 53.214(a) prescribes the SF 26 for use in contracting for supplies and services by sealed bidding (except for construction and architect-engineer services). The SF 26 is used to award sealed bid contracts after obtaining bids using a SF 33, Solicitation, Offer, and Award. FAR 14.408-1(d)(1) specifies that, if an offer made using a SF 33 leads to further changes, the resulting contract must be prepared as a bilateral document using the SF 26. Agencies identified instances in which contracting officers mistakenly checked block 18 when awarding negotiated, not sealed bid contracts, which created the potential for disputes between the agency and contractors. The clarifications provided on the form for when to use blocks 17 and 18 should eliminate this issue.

The changes will not prevent contracting officers from using block 17 of the SF 26 to award negotiated procurements; it will clarify to contracting officers the proper use of block 17 and block 18 and prohibit the use of block 18 of the SF 26 when awarding negotiated procurements. This final rule clarifies the use of block 18 on the SF 26, Award/Contract, and references the new form at FAR 53.214(a) and 53.215-1(a).

No respondents submitted comments on the proposed rule.