PSC Comments on Procurement Administrative Lead Time Definition; Welcomes Government Progress to Implement Contracting Process Improvements


Arlington, Va. (Feb. 21, 2020) The Professional Services Council (PSC), in conjunction with the Council of Defense and Space Industry Associations (CODSIA), submitted comments on February 20, 2020, welcoming the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) Procurement Administrative Lead Time (PALT) proposed definition to measure and publicly report PALT. The comments are in response to OFPP’s Jan. 21, 2020, request for public comment on PALT, with the goal of improving the acquisition process and delivering solutions to users more quickly.

PSC is a member organization of CODSIA, a coalition of industry associations with common interests in federal procurement policy issues. CODSIA’s member associations represent thousands of government contractors nationwide.

“On behalf of CODSIA and the contractor community, we applaud the government for the work that went into the proposed definition, thus acknowledging the impact that lengthy and costly lead times can have on the procurement process,” said Alan Chvotkin, PSC Executive Vice President and Counsel. “Addressing procurement delays means that once the government identifies a need, it is able to obtain the necessary goods, services and solutions as soon as possible, which is especially important where advances in technology often outpace the government’s ability to contract for that technology.”

The comments support OFFP’s efforts to drive process improvements and innovation in procurement practices, while also increasing efficiency in the requirements development process. CODSIA continues to urge the government to move swiftly on reaching key milestones towards PALT implementation.

“Challenges around lead times are not specific to just one type of contract or agency. It’s clear that the entire government could benefit from a standardized format for collecting and reporting PALT data,” Chvotkin continued. “We will continue to work with the government on implementation to catch up to Congressionally-mandated implementation timelines and improve the contracting process.”


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Media Contact:
Pheniece Jones
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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, visit www.pscouncil.org.