Procurement

ON-DEMAND "IT DEPENDS . . ." ZOOM SESSIONS - AVAILABLE ON DEMAND

Hosting faculty: Connor Crews and Norma Houston

Topics: FEMA procurement guidance, best practices under FEMA procurement guidelines and state law, and general purchasing and contracting questions related to COVID-19.

April 3, 2020 | “It Depends . . .” – A COVID-19 Purchasing and Contracting Q&A Session

April 17, 2020 | "It (Still) Depends . . ." - Another COVID-19 Purchasing and Contracting Q&A Session

May 1, 2020 | "It (Really Still) Depends . . ." - Another COVID-19 Purchasing and Contracting Q&A Session

STATE PROCUREMENT REQUIREMENTS

BLOGS

Force Majeure Clauses and COVID-19, by Connor Crews (April 2, 2020)

COVID-19: Procurement Questions for North Carolina’s Local Governments, by Connor Crews (March 20, 2020)
Emergency Procurement – When is an emergency really an emergency?, by Norma Houston (June 7, 2011)

FEMA PROCUREMENT REQUIREMENTS

For information on FEMA Public Assistance program reimbursement, see the School of Government's COVID-19 Emergency Management resource site.

GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

Federal procurement requirements under the Uniform Guidance (2 CFR Part 200, Subpart D) apply to all FEMA grant funds, including reimbursement under Category B, Emergency Protective Measures. Failure to follow procurement requirements may jeopardize FEMA reimbursement. Listed below is FEMA guidance and resources on specific procurement requirements related to the COVID-19 event. For more information on FEMA prourement requirements, see the FEMA Procurement Disaster Assistance Team (PDAT) website and the following general guidance:

EMERGENCY AND EXIGENT CIRCUMSTANCES EXCEPTION GUIDANCE

FEMA has issued the following guidance on use of the Emergency and Exigent Circumstance (E/E) exception to Uniform Guidance procurement requirements during the COVID-19 event: Effective January 27, 2020, and for the duration of the current federal Public Health Emergency declaration, local governments, tribal governments, nonprofits, and other non-state entities may proceed with new and existing noncompetitively procured contracts in order to protect property and public health and safety, or to lessen or avert the threats created by emergency situations for 1) Emergency protective measures under FEMA’s Public Assistance Program and 2) Use of FEMA non-disaster grant funds by non-state recipients and sub-recipients to respond to or address COVID-19. FEMA has determined that the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic qualifies per se (meaning, automatically) as an emergency and/or exigent circumstance such that FEMA grant applicants may use non-competitive procurement under that exception.

On April 23, 2020, FEMA announced that the US HHS has extended the duration of its Public Health Emergency (PHE) declaration, which in turn extends the effective period of FEMA’s determination that emergency & exigent (E&E) circumstances exist allowing non-competitive COVID-19 procurements, as explained in more detail in the Emergency and Exigent Circumstances guidance issued on March 17, 2020. The HHS PHE will be in effect for another 90 days unless HHS terminates it sooner.

For more information, see the following FEMA guidance (issued March 17, 2020):

COST REASONABLENESS GUIDANCE

FEMA has issued the following guidance on the cost reasonableness and independent cost or price analysis requirements: The Uniform Guidance requires that all contract costs be reasonable, and for contracts costing above the Simplified Acquisition Threshold ($250,000 or more), an independent cost or price analysis be performed prior to soliciting bids. These requirements apply to contracts used in response to the COVID-19 event, even if the contract qualifies as a sole-source contract under the E/E exception. The following documents provide further guidance on the cost reasonableness and independent cost or price analysis requirements:

FEMA Reasonable Cost Evaluation Job Aid

FEMA Pricing Guide for Recipients and Subrecipients

FEDERAL CONTRACT PROVISIONS

Even when operating under the E/E exception, the Uniform Guidance still requires that contracts include all required federal contract provisions applicable to the type of contract and cost. The following documents provide guidance on compliance with federal contract provision requirements. Also see the Frequently Asked Questions immediately below for questions and answers about federal contract provisions.

FEMA PDAT Federal Contract Provisions Template
FEMA PDAT Public Assistance Contracting Checklist (see pages 2-4 for contract provision checklist)
SOG Summary Chart - FEMA PA Contract Provisions Required By 2 CFR Part 200

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

The FAQs document below discusses common questions about compliance with FEMA procurement requirements, federal contract provisions, and other purchasing issues in the current COVID-19 emergency. These FAQs will be updated on an ongoing basis so please check back frequently.

COVID-19 Procurement FAQs

BEST PRACTICES - PROCUREMENT COMPLIANCE AND EXPENSE TRACKING

Local governments in North Carolina have experience with disasters. See below for suggested best practices and sample documents to guide compliance with FEMA procurement requirements and documenting expenses for FEMA reimursement.

Coronavirus / COVID-19