PSC Welcomes Supply Chain Rule Changes; 
Calls for Further Clarity and Progress to Reduce Industry Burden 


Arlington, Va. (Dec. 16, 2019) The Professional Services Council (PSC) welcomes a December 13, 2019 interim rule designed to reduce the compliance and reporting burden on industry from August 2019 regulations that imposed prohibitions on the government’s purchase of certain telecommunications products and services in the supply chains of federal contractors. 

The Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council’s second interim rule implementing “Section 889(a)” will allow offerors to annually certify in the System for Award Management (SAM) database that they are not using certain Chinese products or services, rather than having to make that declaration on an offer-by-offer basis. 

“The challenges and complexities of implementing this prohibition are substantial, for both the government and the contractor community,” said Cate Benedetti, PSC Vice President for Government Relations. “For many contractors who are not otherwise impacted by the August prohibition, but are affected by its administration, an annual, single certification will save time and reduce administrative costs.”

On October 21, PSC led a coalition of associations in commenting on the August 2019 interim final rule “Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment.”  The coalition’s first of eight recommendations called for the expeditious implementation of this one-time SAM certification.   

“PSC appreciates that the government is acting expeditiously on our feedback.  We look forward to continuing to work with federal agencies to add other needed clarifications that will help further reduce unnecessary burdens on the contractor community,” Benedetti continued. 
 


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 Media Contact: 
 Jason Yaley
 Director, Media Relations
 703.875.8974| jyaley@pscouncil.org
media@pscouncil.org

  
About PSC: PSC is the voice of the government technology and professional services industry. PSC’s more than 400 member companies represent small, medium and large businesses that provide federal agencies with services of all kinds, including information technology, engineering, logistics, facilities management, operations and maintenance, consulting, international development, scientific, social, environmental services, and more. Together, the trade association’s members employ hundreds of thousands of Americans in all 50 states. Follow PSC on Twitter @PSCSpeaks. To learn more, visitwww.pscouncil.org.