3.6.6.  Funding and End of Year Requirements

3.6.6.1.  In order to expedite year-end or emergency requirements, the contracting officer may process SABER projects up to the point of award in advance of full project funding. Before requesting the contractor's proposal, the contracting officer should obtain from the contractor a no-cost agreement (in case the order does not materialize) with acknowledgment that funds are not available, or utilize a line item for project estimating. The latter compensates the contractor for the level of effort expended in estimating, designing, and negotiating the project order in advance of full funding. Any payment the contractor receives under this line item will be offset by a reduction from the negotiated price of the TO if the project results in an award. Contracting Officers should work closely with Civil Engineering to insure that projects priced in advance of funding are not excessive and that there is a high probability of funding.

3.6.6.2.  The contracting officer normally establishes milestones for actions in support of end-of-year actions to ensure sufficient lead time for SABER review, approval requirements, receipt of preliminary SABER project cost estimates, technical analyses, and negotiations.