17. Subjective Implementation of the Rule

Comment: A respondent expressed serious reservations as to the need for the rule, and identified potential harms to contractors if the rule is administered in an inconsistent or arbitrary fashion. According to the respondent, because the determination of a system deficiency is dependent upon the subjective interpretation of critical system criteria, application of the rule could well lead to inconsistent treatment by individual contracting officers and their DCAA advisers.

Response: This rule incorporates criteria for each business system, which define the aspects of the system that materially affect the ability of DoD to rely on information produced. Determinations of significant deficiencies will be based on the contractor's failure to comply with the business system criteria. Each significant deficiency must be determined on its own set of facts and ultimately decided by the contracting officer.