[Federal Register Volume 66, Number 184 (Friday, September 21, 2001)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 48649-48652]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 01-23690]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

48 CFR Part 215

[DFARS Case 2000-D018]


Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement; Changes to 
Profit Policy

AGENCY: Department of Defense (DoD).

ACTION: Proposed rule with request for comments.

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SUMMARY: DoD is proposing to amend the Defense Federal Acquisition 
Regulation Supplement (DFARS) to make changes to DoD profit policy that 
would reduce the emphasis on facilities investment, add general and 
administrative expense to the cost base used in determining profit 
objectives, increase emphasis on performance risk, and encourage 
contractor cost efficiency.

DATES: Comments on the proposed rule should be submitted to the address 
shown below on or before November 20, 2001, to be considered in the 
formation of the final rule.

ADDRESSES: Respondents may submit comments directly on the World Wide 
Web at http://emissary.acq.osd.mil/dar/dfars.nsf/pubcomm. As an 
alternative, respondents may e-mail comments to: [email protected]. 
Please cite DFARS Case 2000-D018 in the subject line of e-mailed 
comments.
    Respondents that cannot submit comments using either of the above 
methods may submit comments to: Defense Acquisition Regulations 
Council, Attn: Ms. Sandra Haberlin, OUSD (AT&L) DP (DAR), IMD 3C132, 
3062 Defense Pentagon, Washington, DC 20301-3062; facsimile (703) 602-
0350. Please cite DFARS Case 2000-D018.
    At the end of the comment period, interested parties may view 
public comments on the World Wide Web at http://emissary.acq.osd.mil/dar/dfars.nsf.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Sandra Haberlin, (703) 602-0289.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Background

    This rule proposes amendments to the profit policy in DFARS Subpart 
215.4. DoD published a proposed rule at 65 FR 45574 on July 24, 2000. 
That rule proposed to--
     Add general and administrative expense to the cost base 
used to establish profit objectives;
     Reduce the values assigned to facilities capital employed 
by 50 percent, with the objective, over time, to eliminate completely 
facilities investment as a factor in establishing profit objectives on 
sole-source, negotiated contracts;
     Offset these changes by increasing the values for 
performance risk by 1 percentage point and decreasing the values for 
contract type risk by 0.5 percentage point; and
     Add a special factor for cost efficiency to encourage cost 
reduction efforts.
    Twelve sources submitted comments in response to the proposed rule. 
Due to the complexity of the issues raised in the comments received, 
DoD published a notice of public meeting at 65 FR 69895 on November 21, 
2000. The public meeting was held on December 12, 2000. After 
considering written comments received in response to the proposed rule, 
and verbal comments provided during the public meeting, DoD is 
publishing a revised proposed rule. The major differences between the 
initial proposed rule and the revised proposed rule are--
     Facilities capital employed. Over a 4-year period, the 
initial rule eliminated facilities capital employed as a factor in 
developing profit objectives. The revised rule retains 50 percent of 
the current values for equipment as an incentive for modernization of 
equipment.
     Contract type and performance risks. The intention of the 
proposed profit policy changes is to revise the incentive structure of 
the policy and not to increase or decrease average profit objectives. 
Changes to contract type and performance risks in the initial proposed 
rule were made to offset the addition of general and administrative 
expense to the cost base and the elimination of facilities capital 
employed. Since the revised proposed rule restores a portion of 
facilities capital employed, offsets to performance risk contained in 
the initial rule have been reduced. Likewise, the revised rule restores 
the current values for contract type risk, that had been reduced by 0.5 
percent in the initial rule.
    This rule was not subject to Office of Management and Budget review 
under Executive Order 12866, dated September 30, 1993.

B. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    The proposed rule is not expected to have a significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities within the meaning of 
the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601, et seq., because most 
contracts awarded to small entities are below $500,000, are based on 
adequate price competition, or are for commercial items, and do not 
require submission of cost or pricing data. Therefore, an initial 
regulatory flexibility analysis has not been performed. Comments are 
invited from small businesses and other interested parties. Comments 
from small entities concerning the affected DFARS subpart also will be 
considered in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 610. Such comments should be 
submitted separately and should cite DFARS Case 2000-D018.

C. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The Paperwork Reduction Act does not apply because the rule does 
not impose any information collection requirements that require the 
approval of the Office of Management and Budget under 44 U.S.C. 3501, 
et seq.

List of Subjects in 48 CFR Part 215

    Government procurement.

Michele P. Peterson,
Executive Editor, Defense Acquisition Regulations Council.
    Therefore, DoD proposes to amend 48 CFR part 215 as follows:
    1. The authority citation for 48 CFR part 215 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 41 U.S.C. 421 and 48 CFR Chapter 1.

PART 215--CONTRACTING BY NEGOTIATION


215.404-4  [Amended]

    2. Section 215.404-4 is amended by removing paragraph 
(c)(2)(C)(1)(i) and redesignating paragraphs (c)(2)(C)(1)(ii) through 
(iv) as paragraphs (c)(2)(C)(1)(i) through (iii), respectively.
    3. Sections 215.404-71-1 and 215.404-71-2 are revised to read as 
follows:

[[Page 48650]]

215.404-71-1  General.

    (a) The weighted guidelines method focuses on four profit factors--
    (1) Performance risk;
    (2) Contract type risk;
    (3) Facilities capital employed; and
    (4) Cost efficiency.
    (b) The contracting officer assigns values to each profit factor; 
the value multiplied by the base results in the profit objective for 
that factor. Except for the cost efficiency special factor, each profit 
factor has a normal value and a designated range of values. The normal 
value is representative of average conditions on the prospective 
contract when compared to all goods and services acquired by DoD. The 
designated range provides values based on above normal or below normal 
conditions. In the price negotiation documentation, the contracting 
officer need not explain assignment of the normal value, but should 
address conditions that justify assignment of other than the normal 
value. The cost efficiency special factor has no normal value. The 
contracting officer must exercise sound business judgment in selecting 
a value when this special factor is used (see 215.404-71-5).


215.404-71-2  Performance risk.

    (a) Description. This profit factor addresses the contractor's 
degree of risk in fulfilling the contract requirements. The factor 
consists of two parts:
    (1) Technical--the technical uncertainties of performance.
    (2) Management/cost control--the degree of management effort 
necessary--
    (i) To ensure that contract requirements are met; and
    (ii) To reduce and control costs.
    (b) Determination. The following extract from the DD Form 1547 is 
annotated to describe the process.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                          Contractor risk       Assigned     Assigned    Base (Item     Profit
                Item                          factors          weighting      value         20)       objective
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
21..................................  Technical.............          (1)          (2)          N/A          N/A
22..................................  Management/Cost                 (1)          (2)          N/A          N/A
                                       Control.
23..................................  Reserved..............
24..................................  Performance Risk                N/A          (3)          (4)          (5)
                                       (Composite).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (1) Assign a weight (percentage) to each element according to its 
input to the total performance risk. The total of the two weights 
equals 100 percent.
    (2) Select a value for each element from the list in paragraph (c) 
of this subsection using the evaluation criteria in paragraphs (d) and 
(e) of this subsection.
    (3) Compute the composite as shown in the following example:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                     Assigned     Assigned     Weighted
                                    weighting      value        value
                                     percent      percent      percent
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Technical........................           60          5.0          3.0
Management/Cost Control..........           40          4.0          1.6
Composite Value..................          100                       4.6
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (4) Insert the amount from Block 20 of the DD Form 1547. Block 20 
is total contract costs, excluding facilities capital cost of money.
    (5) Multiply (3) by (4).
    (c) Values: Normal and designated ranges.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                                   Normal     Designated
                                                   value        range
                                                  percent      percent
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Standard......................................            5       3 to 7
Technology Incentive..........................            9      7 to 11
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (1) Standard. The standard designated range should apply to most 
contracts.
    (2) Technology incentive. For the technical factor only, 
contracting officers may use the technology incentive range for 
acquisitions that include development, production, or application of 
innovative new technologies. The technology incentive range does not 
apply to efforts restricted to studies, analyses, or demonstrations 
that have a technical report as their primary deliverable.
    (d) Evaluation criteria for technical.
    (1) Review the contract requirements and focus on the critical 
performance elements in the statement of work or specifications. 
Factors to consider include--
    (i) Technology being applied or developed by the contractor;
    (ii) Technical complexity;
    (iii) Program maturity;
    (iv) Performance specifications and tolerances;
    (v) Delivery schedule; and
    (vi) Extent of a warranty or guarantee.
    (2) Above normal conditions.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign a higher than normal value 
in those cases where there is a substantial technical risk. Indicators 
are--
    (A) Items are being manufactured using specifications with 
stringent tolerance limits;
    (B) The efforts require highly skilled personnel or require the use 
of state-of-the-art machinery;
    (C) The services and analytical efforts are extremely important to 
the Government and must be performed to exacting standards;
    (D) The contractor's independent development and investment has 
reduced the Government's risk or cost;
    (E) The contractor has accepted an accelerated delivery schedule to 
meet DoD requirements; or
    (F) The contractor has assumed additional risk through warranty 
provisions.
    (ii) Extremely complex, vital efforts to overcome difficult 
technical obstacles that require personnel with exceptional abilities, 
experience, and professional credentials may justify a value 
significantly above normal.
    (iii) The following may justify a maximum value--
    (A) Development or initial production of a new item, particularly 
if performance or quality specifications are tight; or
    (B) A high degree of development or production concurrency.
    (3) Below normal conditions.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign a lower than normal value in 
those cases where the technical risk is low. Indicators are--
    (A) Requirements are relatively simple;

[[Page 48651]]

    (B) Technology is not complex;
    (C) Efforts do not require highly skilled personnel;
    (D) Efforts are routine;
    (E) Programs are mature; or
    (F) Acquisition is a follow-on effort or a repetitive type 
acquisition.
    (ii) The contracting officer may assign a value significantly below 
normal for--
    (A) Routine services;
    (B) Production of simple items;
    (C) Rote entry or routine integration of Government-furnished 
information; or
    (D) Simple operations with Government-furnished property.
    (4) Technology incentive range.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign values within the technology 
incentive range when contract performance includes the introduction of 
new, significant technological innovation. Use the technology incentive 
range only for the most innovative contract efforts. Innovation may be 
in the form of--
    (A) Development or application of new technology that fundamentally 
changes the characteristics of an existing product or system and that 
results in increased technical performance, improved reliability, or 
reduced costs; or
    (B) New products or systems that contain significant technological 
advances over the products or systems they are replacing.
    (ii) When selecting a value within the technology incentive range, 
the contracting officer should consider the relative value of the 
proposed innovation to the acquisition as a whole. When the innovation 
represents a minor benefit, the contracting officer should consider 
using values less than the norm. For innovative efforts that will have 
a major positive impact on the product or program, the contracting 
officer may use values above the norm.
    (e) Evaluation criteria for management/cost control.
    (1) The contracting officer should evaluate--
    (i) The contractor's management and internal control systems using 
contracting office information and reviews made by field contract 
administration offices or other DoD field offices;
    (ii) The management involvement expected on the prospective 
contract action;
    (iii) The degree of cost mix as an indication of the types of 
resources applied and value added by the contractor;
    (iv) The contractor's support of Federal socioeconomic programs;
    (v) The expected reliability of the contractor's cost estimates 
(including the contractor's cost estimating system);
    (vi) The adequacy of the contractor's management approach to 
controlling cost and schedule; and
    (vii) Any other factors that affect the contractor's ability to 
meet the cost targets (e.g., foreign currency exchange rates and 
inflation rates).
    (2) Above normal conditions.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign a higher than normal value 
when there is a high degree of management effort. Indicators of this 
are--
    (A) The contractor's value added is both considerable and 
reasonably difficult;
    (B) The effort involves a high degree of integration or 
coordination;
    (C) The contractor has a good record of past performance;
    (D) The contractor has a substantial record of active participation 
in Federal socioeconomic programs;
    (E) The contractor provides fully documented and reliable cost 
estimates;
    (F) The contractor makes appropriate make-or-buy decisions; or
    (G) The contractor has a proven record of cost tracking and 
control.
    (ii) The contracting officer may justify a maximum value when the 
effort--
    (A) Requires large scale integration of the most complex nature;
    (B) Involves major international activities with significant 
management coordination (e.g., offsets with foreign vendors); or
    (C) Has critically important milestones.
    (3) Below normal conditions.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign a lower than normal value 
when the management effort is minimal. Indicators of this are--
    (A) The program is mature and many end item deliveries have been 
made;
    (B) The contractor adds minimal value to an item;
    (C) The efforts are routine and require minimal supervision;
    (D) The contractor provides poor quality, untimely proposals;
    (E) The contractor fails to provide an adequate analysis of 
subcontractor costs;
    (F) The contractor does not cooperate in the evaluation and 
negotiation of the proposal;
    (G) The contractor's cost estimating system is marginal;
    (H) The contractor has made minimal effort to initiate cost 
reduction programs;
    (I) The contractor's cost proposal is inadequate;
    (J) The contractor has a record of cost overruns or another 
indication of unreliable cost estimates and lack of cost control; or
    (K) The contractor has a poor record of past performance.
    (ii) The following may justify a value significantly below normal--
    (A) Reviews performed by the field contract administration offices 
disclose unsatisfactory management and internal control systems (e.g., 
quality assurance, property control, safety, security); or
    (B) The effort requires an unusually low degree of management 
involvement.
    4. Section 215.404-71-3 is amended as follows:
    a. In paragraph (b), in the table, by removing the heading ``Base 
(Item 18)'' and adding in its place ``Base (Item 20)''; and
    b. By revising paragraph (b)(2) and the introductory text of 
paragraph (e)(2) to read as follows:


215.404-71-3  Contract type risk and working capital adjustment.

* * * * *
    (b) * * *
    (2) Insert the amount from Block 20, i.e., the total allowable 
costs excluding facilities capital cost of money.
* * * * *
    (e) * * *
    (2) Total costs equal Block 20 (i.e., all allowable costs excluding 
facilities capital cost of money), reduced as appropriate when--
* * * * *
    5. Section 215.404-71-4 is amended as follows:
    a. In paragraph (a), in the first sentence, by removing the word 
``aggressive'';
    b. In paragraph (b)(2)(ii), in the first and last sentences, by 
removing ``Block 18'' and adding in its place ``Block 20''; and
    c. By revising paragraphs (c) and (d) to read as follows:


215.404-71-4  Facilities capital employed.

* * * * *
    (c) Values: Normal and designated ranges. These are the normal 
values and ranges. They apply to all situations.

------------------------------------------------------------------------
                                       Normal value
            Asset type                   percent        Designated range
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Land..............................                  0                N/A
Buildings.........................                  0                N/A

[[Page 48652]]

 
Equipment.........................               17.5         10% to 25%
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    (d) Evaluation criteria.
    (1) In evaluating facilities capital employed, the contracting 
officer--
    (i) Should relate the usefulness of the facilities capital to the 
goods or services being acquired under the prospective contract;
    (ii) Should analyze the productivity improvements and other 
anticipated industrial base enhancing benefits resulting from the 
facilities capital investment, including--
    (A) The economic value of the facilities capital, such as physical 
age, undepreciated value, idleness, and expected contribution to future 
defense needs; and
    (B) The contractor's level of investment in defense related 
facilities as compared with the portion of the contractor's total 
business that is derived from DoD; and
    (iii) Should consider any contractual provisions that reduce the 
contractor's risk of investment recovery, such as termination 
protection clauses and capital investment indemnification.
    (2) Above normal conditions.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign a higher than normal value 
if the facilities capital investment has direct, identifiable, and 
exceptional benefits. Indicators are--
    (A) New investments in state-of-the-art technology that reduce 
acquisition cost or yield other tangible benefits such as improved 
product quality or accelerated deliveries; or
    (B) Investments in new equipment for research and development 
applications.
    (ii) The contracting officer may assign a value significantly above 
normal when there are direct and measurable benefits in efficiency and 
significantly reduced acquisition costs on the effort being priced. 
Maximum values apply only to those cases where the benefits of the 
facilities capital investment are substantially above normal.
    (3) Below normal conditions.
    (i) The contracting officer may assign a lower than normal value if 
the facilities capital investment has little benefit to DoD. Indicators 
are--
    (A) Allocations of capital apply predominantly to commercial item 
lines;
    (B) Investments are for such things as furniture and fixtures, home 
or group level administrative offices, corporate aircraft and hangars, 
gymnasiums; or
    (C) Facilities are old or extensively idle.
    (ii) The contracting officer may assign a value significantly below 
normal when a significant portion of defense manufacturing is done in 
an environment characterized by outdated, inefficient, and labor-
intensive capital equipment.
    6. Section 215.404-71-5 is added to read as follows:


215.404-71-5  Cost efficiency factor.

    (a) This special factor provides an incentive for contractors to 
reduce costs. To the extent that the contractor can demonstrate cost 
reduction efforts that benefit the pending contract, the contracting 
officer may increase the prenegotiation profit objective by an amount 
not to exceed 4 percent of total objective cost (Block 20 of the DD 
Form 1547) to recognize these efforts.
    (b) To determine if using this factor is appropriate, the 
contracting officer must consider criteria, such as the following, to 
evaluate the benefit the contractor's cost reduction efforts will have 
on the pending contract:
    (1) The contractor's participation in Single Process Initiative 
improvements;
    (2) Actual cost reductions achieved on prior contracts;
    (3) Reduction or elimination of excess or idle facilities;
    (4) The contractor's cost reduction initiatives (e.g., competition 
advocacy programs, technical insertion programs, obsolete parts control 
programs, spare parts pricing reform, value engineering, the use of 
metrics to drive down key costs);
    (5) The contractor's adoption of process improvements to reduce 
costs;
    (6) Subcontractor cost reduction efforts; or
    (7) The contractor's effective incorporation of commercial items 
and processes.
    (c) When selecting the percentage to use for this special factor, 
the contracting officer has maximum flexibility in determining the best 
way to evaluate the benefit the contractor's cost reduction efforts 
will have on the pending contract. However, the contracting officer 
must consider the impact that quantity differences, learning, changes 
in scope, and economic factors such as inflation and deflation will 
have on cost reduction.


215.404-72  [Amended]

    7. Section 215.404-72 is amended as follows:
    a. In paragraph (b)(1)(i), in the first sentence, by removing 
``Block 18'' and adding in its place ``Block 20'';
    b. By removing paragraph (b)(1)(ii); and
    c. By redesignating paragraph (b)(1)(iii) as paragraph (b)(1)(ii).
    8. Section 215.404-73 is amended by revising paragraph (b) 
introductory text and the first sentence of paragraph (b)(2)(i) to read 
as follows:


215.404-73  Alternate structured approaches.

* * * * *
    (b) The contracting officer may design the structure of the 
alternate, but it must include--
* * * * *
    (2) * * *
    (i) The contracting officer must reduce the overall prenegotiation 
profit objective by the amount of facilities capital cost of money. * * 
*
* * * * *
    9. Section 215.404-74 is amended by revising the introductory text 
and paragraph (c) to read as follows:


215.404-74  Fee requirements for cost-plus-award-fee contracts.

    In developing a fee objective for cost-plus-award-fee contracts, 
the contracting officer must--
* * * * *
    (c) Apply the offset policy in 215.404-73(b)(2) for facilities 
capital cost of money, i.e., reduce the base fee by the amount of 
facilities capital cost of money; and
* * * * *

[FR Doc. 01-23690 Filed 9-20-01; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 5000-04-U