SPE-DEL-WATMORE-2024, Redesignation and Redelegation to Angela S. Watmore as Head of Contracting Activity (HCA) for the Office of Environmental Management
Rescinds:
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Section 1
DEPARTMENT OF ENERGY
REDESIGNATION AND REDELEGATION OF AUTHORITY
ORDER NO. SPE-DEL-WATMORE-2024
AS HEAD OF CONTRACTING ACTIVITY (HCA)
FOR THE OFFICE OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
1. REDELEGATION AND REDESIGNATION. Department of Energy (DOE)
Delegation of Authority Order S2-DEL-SPE-2022 sets forth various authorities
delegated to the Director, Office of Acquisition Management (herein referred
to as the “Director”), and provides that these authorities may be further
delegated, in whole or in part, as may be deemed appropriate. As the Deputy
Assistant Secretary for Acquisition and Project Management, you are hereby
designated as the Head of the Contracting Activity (HCA) for the Office of
Environmental Management, in accordance with Federal Acquisition
Regulation (FAR) 1.601. Except as expressly stated herein, you may not further
delegate your HCA authority; however, your HCA authority may be conferred
to individuals who are designated, in writing, to act in your position as the
Deputy Assistant Secretary for Acquisition and Project Management. Such
written designation shall specifiy the HCA authorities that are being conferred
and shall stipulate that those authorities may not be further delegated. Your
HCA delegated authorities are as follows:
1.1 Designate Contracting Officers (48 C.F.R. 1.601, 48 C.F.R. 1.603-1, 48
C.F.R. 901.601).
1.2 Designate a Contracting Activity Competition Advocate to perform the
duties required by the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984, Public
Law 98-369. This designation authority may not be redelegated (41
U.S.C. 1705, 48 C.F.R. 6.501, 48 C.F.R. 906.501).
1.3 Enter into, approve, administer, modify, close-out, terminate, and take
such other actions as may be necessary and appropriate with respect to
any procurement transaction binding the Department to the obligation
and expenditure of public funds.
1.4 Enter into, approve, administer, modify, close-out, terminate and take
such other actions as may be necessary and appropriate with respect to
any financial assistance agreement or similar transaction, whether or
not binding DOE to the obligation and expenditure of public funds.
Such action shall include the rendering of approvals, determinations,
and decisions, except those required by law or regulation to be made
by other authority.
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1.5 Enter into, approve, administer, modify, close-out, terminate and take
such other actions as may be necessary and appropriate with respect to
any sales contract, reimbursable orders, or similar transaction, whether
or not binding DOE to the obligation and expenditure of public funds.
Such action shall include the rendering of approvals, determinations,
and decisions, except those required by law or regulation to be made
by other authority. These authorities are contingent upon the
existence of statutory, other legal, and regulatory authority for sale of
products or to perform reimbursable work. Serve as Selection
Authority (SA) or appoint another individual to serve as SA for a
particular action or group of actions.
1.6 Designate a task and delivery order ombudsman to perform the duties
required by the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act of 1994 (title I,
section 1054(a) of Public Law 103-355, as amended by Public Law 110-
181, 41 U.S.C. 4106).
Section 2
1.7 Pursuant to Section 301 of the Energy and Water Development and
Related Agencies Appropriations Act, 2020, Division C, Title III (Public
Law 116-94), or any similar provisions enacted in subsequent
appropriations acts, notify the Committees on Appropriations of the
Senate and House of Representatives at least three full business days in
advance of making a grant allocation, discretionary grant award,
discretionary contract award, Other Transaction Agreement, or issuing
a letter of intent totaling in excess of $1 million or to announce publicly
the intention to make such an award, including a contract covered by
the FAR.
This authority may be re-delegated to your Procurement Director(s), or
equivalent Supervisory Contracting Official(s), but may not be re-
delegated below the Procurement Director(s), or equivalent Supervisory
Contracting Official(s).
2. REDELEGATION OF REGULATORY AUTHORITIES. The delegated authorities set
forth herein are conditioned upon your commitment to assuring compliance,
to the maximum extent practicable, with the applicable laws, regulations, and
policies and procedures that pertain to the authorities delegated herein.
These include the FAR, the DOE Acquisition Regulation (DEAR), DOE Directives,
DOE Acquisition Letters, and the DOE Acquisition Guide; notably Chapter 71,
which prescribes actions requiring Headquarters review and the process for
their selection. In determining whether an action is within a delegated
monetary authority prescribed herein, the determination will be based on the
total value of the action, including options, in-kind contributions and
contractors/recipients cost share. Moreover, where actions involve a
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combination of additional work and deductive work, the total value is the
absolute value of the work contemplated. Your HCA delegated authorities are
as follows:
2.1 ACQUISITION.
A. (i) The procurement authorities described in paragraph 1.3 may
be delegated only to a Contracting Officer without the power of
further delegation.
(ii) Except for actions that exceed the following delegated
monetary authorities, or that are otherwise subject to the prior
approval, or waiver thereof, by the Director, or designee
pursuant to the requirements prescribed in Acquisition Guide
Chapter 71, approve actions that exceed $25 million. This
authority is non-delegable. Authority to approve actions below
$25 million that are not subject to business clearance is re-
delegable to all Procurement Directors with the exception of the
Office of River Protection (ORP) at the discretion of the HCA.
The HCA may re-delegate the ORP authority up to $50 million
solely for contract actions pertaining to the Waste Treatment
Facility. All other ORP actions remain subject to the $25 million
threshold.
Type of Acquisition Delegated Monetary
Authority
Competitive Acquisitions $50 million
Non-Competitive Acquisitions $50 million
Contract Modifications1 $50 million
Interagency Acquisitions as defined in
FAR 2.101, including assisted, direct,
Economy Act, Non-Economy Act
(Federal Supply Schedules,
Government-wide Acquisition
Contracts)2
$50 million
Subcontracts (solicitation, award,
modification, and termination)3
$50 million
Notes 1, 2, and 3: Administrative modifications, e.g., funding modifications
are not subject to the limitation in the delegated monetary authority.
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Section 3
(iii) For actions within your delegated authority, serve as the
Source Selection Authority (SSA), or appoint another individual
who you deem qualified to serve as SSA for a single acquisition
or a class of acquisitions for all competitive acquisitions,
including the following types of acquisitions: fixed-price, cost-
reimbursement, incentive, time-and-materials, labor-hour,
indefinite-delivery, letter contracts, Federal Supply Schedules,
government-wide acquisition contracts, and blanket purchase
agreements.
(iv) The requirement for HCA concurrence prescribed in
Acquisition Guide Chapter 71, Section E., paragraph 2.e., may be
redelegated not lower than the Procurement Director. Such
further delegation shall be reflected in an appropriate
Redelegation Order.
B. Waive the requirement for submission of cost or pricing data, in
accordance with FAR 15.403-1(c)(4), without power of further
delegation.
C. Exercise all other authorities specifically granted to the HCA by
the FAR and DEAR. In some cases, FAR specified authorities are
modified by the DEAR. These HCA authorities may be further
delegated unless expressly prohibited by either the FAR or
DEAR.
2.2 ASSISTANCE.
A. The assistance authorities described in paragraph 1.4 may be
delegated only to a Contracting Officer without the power of
further delegation.
B. Except for actions that exceed $50 million, including funding
opportunity announcements that may result in a financial
assistance award with a total value of $50 million or more
(including cost share), and other financial assistance actions that
are subject to the prior approval, or waiver thereof, by the
Director, or designee pursuant to the requirements prescribed in
Acquisition Guide Chapter 71, approve actions that exceed $25
million. This authority is non-delegable. Your authority to
approve actions less than or equal to $25 million that are not
subject to the Headquarters review and approval requirements
of Acquisition Guide Chapter 71, is re-delegable at your
discretion.
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C. For actions within your delegated authority, serve as the
Selection Authority (SA) or appoint another individual who you
deem qualified to serve as SA for a funding opportunity
announcement.
2.3 INDEMNIFICATION.
Approve Management and Operating (M&O) contractor’s requests for
approval of subcontractor and third party indemnity provisions
pursuant to the DEAR clause 970.5244-1(l). This authority is limited to
recurring or routine requests that present a very low risk of significant
liability to the prime M&O contractor or that merely restate a
negligence standard under which the contractor already operates and
may include such activities as: participation in trade shows, access
agreements, vehicle use agreements, leases of equipment (not real
property), publishing (e.g., clearinghouses for publishers of research
and analytical papers as well as copyright transfer agreements for
publications or scientific and technical journals), software
indemnifications (e.g., use of particular computer software or services),
and other agreements of a routine nature with a very low risk of
significant liability to the M&O contractor and the Department. Field
Chief Counsel advice must be obtained prior to any approval.
Indemnification for real property transactions subject to the limitations
herein is authorized to the extent that such indemnification does not
conflict with real property authorities, policies, and procedures.
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The authority is further limited to contractor requests that meet all of
the following criteria: (1) the action or event necessitating the
indemnity must present a very low risk of significant liability to the
prime contractor; (2) participation in the event, requiring
indemnification of a subcontractor or third party, is required to
promote the DOE’s mission; (3) the prime M&O contractor must
exhaust all reasonable possibilities to avoid providing any indemnity,
including, but not limited to, the use of insurance if economically
reasonable in comparison to the risk; (4) the indemnity shall not
indemnify the subcontractor or third party for any liability resulting
from the subcontractor’s or third party’s own acts or omissions; (5) the
indemnity provided must stipulate that the Government’s liability to the
prime M&O contractor under any indemnification of the subcontractor
or third party is at all times subject to the availability of funds under the
prime M&O contract. Nothing under the indemnification approval or
the prime M&O contract shall be construed as implying that the
Congress will, at a later date, appropriate funds sufficient to meet
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deficiencies under the prime M&O contract; and (6) the indemnity must
make prudent business sense.
This authority may be further delegated only to the Manager, Savannah
River Operations Office.
3. MISCELLANEOUS AUTHORITIES.
3.1 Pursuant to the attached Charter, as an HCA, you are a member of the
Department of Energy Acquisition Council (DAC). The DAC is the
principal forum for senior acquisition officials throughout the
Department to exchange information about operational issues, initiate
and pursue acquisition reform initiatives, and exchange ideas and
successful practices in order to create a synergistic approach to
continuously improving the Department’s acquisition practices and
operations. The DAC is the primary vehicle for coordination and
sponsorship of department-wide acquisition initiatives.
3.2 COGNIZANT CONTRACTING ACTIVITIES. The following contracting
activities are also within your cognizance as the HCA:
• Environmental Management Consolidated Business Center
• Oak Ridge Office of Environmental Management Program
• Ohio Field Office Project Offices:
Fernald
Mound
Columbus
Ashtabula
• Portsmouth and Paducah Project Office
• Carlsbad Field Office
• Office of River Protection
• Richland Operations Office
• Savannah River Operations Office
• Idaho Operations Office
• EM-Los Alamos Field Office
4. RESCISSION. Delegation Order No. SPE-DEL-WATMORE-2021 is hereby
rescinded.
5. LIMITATION.
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BERTA
SCHREIBER Date: 2024.02.26 13:13:55 -05'00'
5.1 In exercising the authority delegated in this Order, a Delegate shall be
governed by the rules and regulations of the Department of Energy and
the policies and procedures prescribed by the Secretary or delegate(s).
5.2 Nothing in this Order precludes the Secretary of Energy, the Deputy
Secretary, or the Director, Office of Acquisition Management, from
exercising any of the authority delegated by this Order.
5.3 Nothing in this Order shall be construed to supersede or otherwise
interfere with the authorities provided to the Administrator for Nuclear
Security by law or by delegation. Furthermore, nothing herein
constitutes authority to exercise authority, direction, or control of an
employee of the National Nuclear Security Administration or its
contractors.
5.4 Any amendments to this Order shall be made in consultation with the
Department of Energy General Counsel.
Section 5
6. AUTHORITY TO REDELEGATE.
6.1 Except as expressly prohibited by law, regulation, or this Order, the
Delegate may delegate this authority further, in whole or in part.
6.2 Copies of redelegations and any subsequent redelegations shall be
provided to the Office of Management, which manages the Secretarial
Delegations of Authority system.
7. DURATION AND EFFECTIVE DATE.
7.1 All actions pursuant to any authority delegated prior to this Order or
pursuant to any authority delegated by this Order taken prior to and in
effect on the date of this Order are ratified and remain in force as if
taken under this Order, unless or until rescinded or amended.
7.2 This Order is effective 02.26.2024.
Berta Scheiber, Director
Office of Acquisition
Management
C.F.R. 901.601).
2.1 ACQUISITION.
2.2 ASSISTANCE.
2.3 INDEMNIFICATION.
3. MISCELLANEOUS AUTHORITIES.
5. LIMITATION.
6. AUTHORITY TO REDELEGATE.
7. DURATION AND EFFECTIVE DATE.