[Congressional Record Volume 170, Number 16 (Monday, January 29, 2024)]
[House]
[Pages H257-H258]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
SAFE AND SMART FEDERAL PURCHASING ACT
Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the
bill (H.R. 5528) to evaluate the impact of the lowest price technically
acceptable source selection process on national security, and for other
purposes, as amended.
The Clerk read the title of the bill.
The text of the bill is as follows:
H.R. 5528
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of
the United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Safe and Smart Federal
Purchasing Act''.
SEC. 2. REVIEW TO DETERMINE THE IMPACT OF THE LOWEST PRICE
TECHNICALLY ACCEPTABLE SOURCE SELECTION PROCESS
ON NATIONAL SECURITY.
(a) Review.--The Director shall review the procurement
management practices of Defense and Civilian agencies to
determine whether the provisions of section 15.101-2 of the
Federal Acquisition Regulation have created any national
security risk.
(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the enactment of
this Act, the Director shall submit a report on the results
of the review under subsection (a) to--
(1) the Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the
House of Representatives; and
(2) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental
Affairs of the Senate.
(c) Definitions.--In this section:
(1) Defense and civilian agency.--The term ``Defense and
Civilian agency'' has the meaning given the term ``agency''
in section 133 of title 41, United States Code.
(2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of
the Office of Management and Budget.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to the rule, the gentleman from
Florida (Mr. Donalds) and the gentleman from Maryland (Mr. Raskin) each
will control 20 minutes.
[[Page H258]]
The Chair recognizes the gentleman from Florida.
General Leave
Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I ask unanimous consent that all Members
may have 5 legislative days in which to revise and extend their remarks
and include extraneous material on this measure.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Is there objection to the request of the
gentleman from Florida?
There was no objection.
Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may
consume.
Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5528, the Safe and Smart
Federal Purchasing Act.
Lowest Price Technically Acceptable is a source selection method
outlined in the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
Simply put, this Federal Acquisition Regulation standard prioritizes
price above all else.
Prioritizing price over any other technical or operational factors in
Federal procurement can result in agencies cutting corners, sacrificing
long-term value, and potentially jeopardizing national security.
The House Oversight Committee, in previous Congresses, placed
appropriate constraints on agency use of the LPTA source selection
process to mitigate such concerns.
Those constraints recognized that the LPTA standard is not always
appropriate when agencies seek to purchase technically innovative
services or technology.
Therefore, my bill requires the Director of the Office of Management
and Budget to conduct a governmentwide evaluation of the LPTA source
selection process to determine if it is being used in the way that
creates any national security risks.
This is a useful step forward understanding how agencies are using
LPTA in their source selection decisions, and will determine whether
agencies are relying on LPTA when it is not appropriate.
This review is a commonsense step to ensuring America's national
security, while also reducing supply chain risks to Federal agencies.
Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Virginia, Mr. Gerry
Connolly, and my colleague from Colorado, Ms. Lauren Boebert, for their
support in drafting this legislation.
Madam Speaker, I urge my colleagues to support this simple and
necessary bill, and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.
Madam Speaker, the gentleman's legislation, H.R. 5528, the Safe and
Smart Federal Purchasing Act, would require the Director of OMB to
review the procurement management practices of Federal agencies to
determine whether the use of acquisition procedures focused exclusively
on costs known as Lowest Price Technically Acceptable, or LPTA, poses
any national security risks.
Since our committee reported this bill last September, I appreciate
that Mr. Donalds and the majority sought and incorporated feedback from
the administration, and also earned bipartisan support with the
cosponsorship of Mr. Connolly, a longtime expert in Federal operations.
With these updates, I am happy to lend my full support to this
legislation.
When Federal agencies purchase goods or services, they strive to
achieve the best value for the American people. In the words of the
Federal Acquisition Regulation, best value means that the acquisition
should provide ``the greatest overall benefit in response to the
requirement.''
Under LPTA procedures, price is the controlling factor in awarding a
contract with no consideration given to any other factors. This
contrasts with the more frequently used tradeoff approach which looks
at the bigger picture and considers additional factors beyond just
cost, perhaps assessing elements like quality and performance, or a
bidder's technical or managerial expertise.
This bill, and the tradeoff approach to Federal contracting, take
into consideration that focusing on contract price alone can actually
increase the overall cost to the Federal Government and the people.
For example, cutting costs in the short term can lead to expensive
project delays, or might result in taxpayer dollars flowing to
adversarial nations that threaten our national security.
If no consideration is given to the strength and integrity of a
bidder's supply chain, cutting costs in the short term could lead to
inferior products or disastrous supply shortages at key moments.
Madam Speaker, I am happy to give my support to this legislation, and
I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I have no further speakers on this bill,
and I reserve the balance of my time.
Mr. RASKIN. Madam Speaker, I yield back the balance of my time.
Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, the Safe and Smart Federal Purchasing Act
is a measured and targeted legislation that can inform future
congressional work on Federal procurement, a policy area we know is
ripe for reform and taxpayer savings.
Madam Speaker, I encourage my colleagues in the House to support this
commonsense bipartisan bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. The question is on the motion offered by the
gentleman from Florida (Mr. Donalds) that the House suspend the rules
and pass the bill, H.R. 5528, as amended.
The question was taken.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. In the opinion of the Chair, two-thirds
being in the affirmative, the ayes have it.
Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.
The yeas and nays were ordered.
The SPEAKER pro tempore. Pursuant to clause 8 of rule XX, further
proceedings on this motion will be postponed.
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