R -- New Central Contractor Registration (CCR) Requirement

TO ALL CURRENT AND PROSPECTIVE CONTRACTORS-------- In an effort to comply with a recent Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) requirement (FAR 52.204-7), which mandates all existing and prospective government contractors that wish to continue doing business with or receive an award from the federal government to be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) system, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) strongly encourages you to register your company in the CCR system. The CCR system allows government departments access to a consolidated source of contractor data and is the primary resource database for doing business with the government. Your cooperation will ensure a smooth transition and assist in minimizing delays in contract awards and payments The CCR system provides a web-based vendor database containing a multitude of qualified vendors and is used for market research by a vast majority of government buyers in search of potential contractors that offer quality goods and services. The CCR collects, validates, stores and disseminates data in support of agency missions. Additionally, CCR shares the data with several federal government agencies and federal agency finance offices to facilitate paperless payments through Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT). The registration requirements are free of charge and require completion of a one-time registration. In addition, the contractor will be responsible for providing the CCR system with annual updates and renewals in order to maintain an active status. The first step in the registration process is to obtain a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) identification number. This 9-digit DUNS number will act as the primary mechanism for tracking and identifying unique business entities. Obtaining a DUNS number is a free service provided by Dun & Bradstreet, Inc., who can be reached toll-free at +1 (555) 000-0000 or via Internet at http://www.dnb.com. Once your company has been issued a DUNS number, you become eligible to register in the CCR system via Internet at http://www.ccr.gov. Should you require additional assistance in registering, the CCR Assistance Center can be reached toll-free at +1 (555) 000-0000 or +1 (555) 000-0000. The registration process takes approximately 48 hours for activation. Once your registration has become active, you will receive two notifications via U.S. mail or E-mail. The first notification will be to welcome you to CCR and the second notification will contain a Trading Partner Identification Number (TPIN). The TPIN is your confidential password that allows registered contractors to make any subsequent changes and updates to their active registrations. For security reasons, the TPIN is not to be used on contracts or any other government documentation. All existing and prospective government contractors are required to be registered in the CCR. If you are a prospective contractor and you are not registered in the CCR database by the date of award selection, the contracting officer will proceed to award to the next registered offeror. If you have an existing contract and you do not register your company in the CCR system, HRSA will be unable to continue federal government business with your company and all payments will be suspended until registration has been completed. At HRSA, we measure our success by constantly improving our customer's satisfaction and making more efficient use of our resources. The Central Contractor Registration system will allow our agency a means of becoming even more efficient in providing our customers needs. As always, it is our pleasure to serve you and we look forward to our continued success. ALL CURRENT AND PROSPECTIVE CONTRACTORS ARE REQUIRED TO BE REGISTERED IN THE CCR BY DECEMBER 31, 2003.