Contracting Fairness

PURPOSE:

• To examine when it is appropriate for the federal government to contract with the private sector for goods and services and when it is appropriate for the government to provide goods and services in-house with an emphasis on promoting public-private competition to generate efficiencies and reduce costs.

BACKGROUND:

• Until 2009, the federal government’s long-standing policy preference was to rely on the private sector, where most cost effective, to perform commercial activities.
• The 1998 Federal Activities Inventory Reform (FAIR) Act required federal agencies to:
  • conduct an inventory of their commercial activities;
  • hold competitions when considering contracting out these activities.
• Since 2009, legislative developments have prohibited public-private competitions in favor of encouraging more in-sourcing of contractor provided goods and services.