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Competition Advocate & approval levels

Started by Contractor Barry · Mar 28, 2011 · 4 replies

  1. C

    Contractor Barry

    Mar 28, 2011 · 15y ago

    Original post

    When defining who can approve a sole source justification, FAR 6.304(a)(3)(ii) says ?If a civilian, is serving in a position in a grade above GS-15 under the General Schedule (or in a comparable or higher position under another schedule).? I am trying to determine what that means. In the General Schedule, as far as I understand, there have not been grades higher than GS-15 since the creation of the Senior Executive Service (SES). I would doubt that any of the few remaining GS-16 and GS-17 positions grandfathered are for Competition Advocates since Competition Advocates did not exist when they were being created. On the other hand, the FAR has gone to great lengths to not define this as someone in the SES (or comparable in other pay systems). Can someone please explain this choice of language? The Agency in am working at has a GS-15 Competition Advocate and would like to use this area to increase their threshold for approval to $62.5 million. Is a GS-15 step 5, for example, considered ?above a GS-15?, which could be as low as a step 1?

  2. J

    Jacques

    Mar 28, 2011 · 15y ago

    Q: Can someone please explain this choice of language?

    I think you've hit the nail on the head. The desire is to describe the position in a way that is agnostic as to which personnel schedule applies. Typically, it would be someone in the SES, but there are, of course, a number of other personnel schedules, some specific to a particular agency, etc.

    I would recommend not getting too wrapped around the axel on the language in the FAR, as your interpretation needs to also be consistent with statute. For DoD, see 10 USC 2304(f)(5)(A)(ii) (or, for defense agencies, (f)(5)(B)(ii)(II)); for civilian agencies see 41 USC 253(f)(1)(B)(ii). For civilian agencies, the language is, "is serving in a position in grade GS-16 or above under the General Schedule (or in a comparable or higher position under another schedule)." For DoD, the language is, "is serving in a position with a grade under the General Schedule (or any other schedule for civilian officers or employees) that is comparable to or higher than the grade of brigadier general or rear admiral (lower half)."

    Q: Is a GS-15 step 5, for example, considered "above a GS-15"?

    I would suggest not. First, GS-15 contains all its steps. Second, we are not looking at the person holding the position, but the position itself. If the position is graded at GS-15, then it is obviously not above a GS-15.

  3. G

    Guest Vern Edwards

    Mar 28, 2011 · 15y ago

    Agnostic?

  4. J

    Jacques

    Mar 28, 2011 · 15y ago

    I meant neutral in the sense of not building on or dependent upon a particular personnel schedule. For a similar use of the word, see Wikipedia's entry on cross-platform programming or the third (adjective) entry in Wiktionary. Sorry if I was unclear, confusing, or offensive.

  5. G

    Guest Vern Edwards

    Mar 28, 2011 · 15y ago

    You weren't offensive. It seems an odd usage. I don't think agnostic stands for neutral. From Merriam-Webster's Unabridged (online) Dictionary:

    Function: adjective

    1 : relating to or involving agnosticism ; especially : professing ignorance or uncertainty about the ultimates usually on the ground of unknowability <so far as faith in God is concerned they are agnostic rather than atheistic -- W.L.Sperry>

    2 : characterized by tolerance : UNDOGMATIC

    Function: adjective

    Etymology: Greek agnstos + English -ic

    : of, relating to, or characterized by agnosia

    See the following with respect to the jargon "platform agnostic":

    http://www.observer.com/2008/media/new-med...atform-agnostic

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