9.104-6 Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System
Source: FAR 9.104-6 on acquisition.gov
Contracting officers must review and document FAPIIS information for contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold to ensure only responsible contractors are awarded federal contracts.
Overview
FAR 9.104-6 requires contracting officers to review and consider information in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) before awarding contracts exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold. FAPIIS consolidates data on contractor performance, integrity, exclusions, and related entities (such as affiliates, immediate owners, subsidiaries, and predecessors). Contracting officers must use this information to inform responsibility determinations, request additional information from offerors if necessary, and document their decision-making process. The regulation also outlines procedures for handling information about subcontractors and mandates proper documentation in the contract file and FAPIIS for nonresponsibility determinations.
Key Rules
- FAPIIS Review Requirement
- Contracting officers must review FAPIIS (including SAM Exclusions and CPARS) before awarding contracts above the simplified acquisition threshold.
- Consideration of Affiliates and Predecessors
- Officers must consider information on immediate owners, subsidiaries, and predecessors of the offeror, as identified in FAPIIS.
- Responsibility Determination
- All relevant FAPIIS information must be weighed, including mitigating factors and the relevance of past actions to current responsibility.
- Handling Subcontractor Information
- Information about subcontractor violations is posted to the prime contractor’s FAPIIS record, and mitigating factors must be considered.
- Request for Additional Information
- If adverse information is found, officers must request additional information from the offeror and notify agency officials if debarment or suspension may be warranted.
- Documentation
- Officers must document how FAPIIS information was used in the contract file and, if a nonresponsibility determination is made, record it in FAPIIS.
Responsibilities
- Contracting Officers: Review FAPIIS, consider all relevant information, request clarifications, notify agency officials if needed, and document decisions.
- Contractors: Ensure FAPIIS records are accurate, respond to requests for additional information, and post mitigating factors if applicable.
- Agencies: Oversee compliance, maintain FAPIIS data integrity, and initiate debarment or suspension actions when appropriate.
Practical Implications
- This section ensures that only responsible contractors receive federal contracts by requiring a thorough review of past performance and integrity data.
- It impacts daily contracting by making FAPIIS review a mandatory step and requiring careful documentation.
- Common pitfalls include failing to review all relevant FAPIIS data, overlooking affiliate/predecessor information, or insufficiently documenting the responsibility determination process.
(a)
(1) Before awarding a contract in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold, the contracting officer shall review the performance and integrity information available in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS), (available at https://www.cpars.gov" target="_blank">https://www.cpars.gov), including FAPIIS information from the System for Award Management (SAM) Exclusions and the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS).
(2) In accordance with http://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title41-section2313(d)(3)&num=0&edition=prelim" target="_blank">41 U.S.C. 2313(d)(3), FAPIIS also identifies–
(i) An affiliate that is an immediate owner or subsidiary of the offeror, if any (see 52.204-17, Ownership or Control of Offeror); and
(ii) All predecessors of the offeror that held a Federal contract or grant within the last three years (see 52.204-20, Predecessor of Offeror).
(b)
(1) When making a responsibility determination, the contracting officer shall consider all the information available through FAPIIS with regard to the offeror and any immediate owner, predecessor, or subsidiary identified for that offeror in FAPIIS, as well as other past performance information on the offeror (see subpart 42.15).
(2) For evaluation of information available through FAPIIS relating to an affiliate of the offeror, see 9.104-3(c).
(3) For source selection evaluations of past performance, see 15.305(a)(2). Contracting officers shall use sound judgment in determining the weight and relevance of the information contained in FAPIIS and how it relates to the present acquisition.
(4) Since FAPIIS may contain information on any of the offeror's previous contracts and information covering a 5-year period, some of that information may not be relevant to a determination of present responsibility, e.g., a prior administrative action such as debarment, suspension, voluntary exclusion, or administrative agreement, that has expired or otherwise been resolved, or information relating to contracts for completely different products or services.
(5) Because FAPIIS is a database that provides information about prime contractors, the contracting officer posts information required to be posted about a subcontractor, such as trafficking in persons violations, to the record of the prime contractor (see 42.1503(h)(1)(v)). The prime contractor has the opportunity to post in FAPIIS any mitigating factors. The contracting officer shall consider any mitigating factors posted in FAPIIS by the prime contractor, such as degree of compliance by the prime contractor with the terms of FAR clause 52.222-50.
(c) If the contracting officer obtains relevant information from FAPIIS regarding criminal, civil, or administrative proceedings in connection with the award or performance of a Government contract; terminations for default or cause; determinations of nonresponsibility because the contractor does not have a satisfactory performance record or a satisfactory record of integrity and business ethics; or comparable information relating to a grant, the contracting officer shall, unless the contractor has already been debarred, suspended, or has agreed to a voluntary exclusion-
(1) Promptly request such additional information from the offeror as the offeror deems necessary in order to demonstrate the offeror’s responsibility to the contracting officer (but see 9.405); and
(2) Notify, prior to proceeding with award, in accordance with agency procedures (see 9.406-3(a) and 9.407-3(a)), the agency official responsible for initiating debarment or suspension action, if the information appears appropriate for the official’s consideration.
(d) The contracting officer shall document the contract file for each contract in excess of the simplified acquisition threshold to indicate how the information in FAPIIS was considered in any responsibility determination, as well as the action that was taken as a result of the information. A contracting officer who makes a nonresponsibility determination is required to document that information in FAPIIS in accordance with 9.105-2(b)(2).