Par.

1. Purpose
2. Cancellation
3. Background
4. Scope
5. Definitions
6. Responsibilities
7. Requirements

1. PURPOSE. To identify for the originators of requests for procurement of services under contract, appropriate Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) organizational elements responsible for providing certain pre-contract clearances, and the estimated time to conduct these clearances.
2. CANCELLATION. The FHWA Order 4460.1, Clearance of requests for Procurement of Services, dated May 24, 1977, is superseded.
3. BACKGROUND. In order to carry out their functional responsibilities as a result of various Office of the Secretary of Transportation (OST), FHWA, and external control agency directives, certain FHWA organizations are required to review requests for the procurement of services by contract. These reviews are aimed at assisting originators to comply with appropriate external requirements and to assure that the products and services aspects being reviewed will be accomplished in the most cost effective manner. They may range from determining if an Office of Management and Budget (OMB) clearance is required for a proposed informationcollection to assessing whether or not a product or service must be acquired from Government sources.
4. SCOPE.
   1. This Order applies to all procurement requests (PR's) for services and modification(s) thereto, for research, study, consulting, or assistance, and which have as their purpose improvements in the safety, effectiveness, efficiency, or economy of the FHWA, or the Nation's highway system. This Order does not apply to services of individuals obtained by direct appointment or through normal Government employment procedures.
   2. Other clearance requirements for contracting for services are covered in the following directives:

      (1) DOT Order 4200.15, Criteria and Guidelines for Use of Consulting Services, dated March 15, 1981.

      (2) DOT Order 4200.13, Criteria and Guidelines for Technical Support Services Contracting, dated March 19, 1976 and

      (3) FHWA Order 4400.2, Acquiring Commercial or Industrial Products and Services, dated May 15, 1981.

   3. This Order applies to all elements of FHWA initiating PR's for procurement of services.
5. DEFINITIONS
   1. Clearance Office - an office which has responsibility for reviewing specific aspects of proposed PR's prior to submission to the Office of Contracts and Procurement (HCP). This responsibility may be prescribed by various sources, including functional statements, delegations of authority and limitations to those delegations, FHWA directives, departmental requirements or regulations, and externally imposed requirements or regulations.
   2. External Clearances - clearance of PR's by elements outside of FHWA such as OST, OMB, General Services Administration (GSA), etc.
   3. Initiating Office - an office, generally a program office, which has the specific need or requirement for contracted services.
   4. Internal Clearances - clearance of PR's by offices within FHWA.
   5. Services - contracted services which will result in an end product, or be an element of an end product, such as a final report, a set of recommendations, an analysis or evaluation report, a training course, or a visual aid. The requested services must be advantageous to the Government and the technical expertise and/or facilities to be procured are not available within the FHWA.
6. RESPONSIBILITIES
   1. Initiating Office. The office initiating the PR is responsible for:

      (1) determining the need for clearance (see Attachment 1), [SEE PRINTED COPY OF ORDER FOR A COPY OF THIS ATTACHMENT]

      (2) contacting the clearance office(s) at the earliest phase of the development of the PR to facilitate clearance,

      (3) obtaining required clearances,

      (4) providing documentation that required clearance(s) has been obtained, and

      (5) assuring that funding is available within budgetary allotments.

   2. Clearance Office. The office clearing the PR is responsible for:

      (1) assisting the initiating office by indicating the purpose and types of requirements that need clearance and providing necessary information to facilitate clearance, and

      (2) giving timely clearance of that portion of the PR relating to the Office's functional area.

7. REQUIREMENTS
   1. Clearances

      (1) Washington Headquarters. In order to process PR's, HCP needs evidence that appropriate clearances have been obtained. These clearances are documented on Form FHWA-1514, Pre-Contract Clearance of Services (Attachment 2), which is submitted with the PR to HCP. [SEE PRINTED COPY OF ORDER FOR A COPY OF THIS ATTACHMENT] All PR's should be accompanied by a Form FHWA-1514 or a statement in the transmittal to the effect that no clearances are required in accordancewith this Order. For planning purposes, Attachment 1 identifies estimated clearance times for services cleared by Washington Headquarters offices.[SEE PRINTED COPY OF ORDER FOR A COPY OF THIS ATTACHMENT]

      (2) Field Offices. When clearance authorities have been delegated to the regional offices, requesting regional offices should obtain required clearances before procurement action on the PR is initiated. When clearance authorities have not been delegated to the regional offices, Form FHWA-1514 should accompany each PR submitted to Washington Headquarters for approval.

   2. Cost Estimates. Estimated costs of performing the proposed contract services must be indicated on each PR. Where feasible, cost estimates should include such direct costs as salaries and wages, supplies, equipment and materials, travel and per diem, training and communications costs. Initiating offices will calculate the required cost estimates independently or with the assistance of the clearance office.

/S/
Daniel Markoff
Associate Administrator
for Administration

Attachments