Objective
Our objective was to determine whether
DoD properly awarded contracts
and cooperative agreements on a
sole-source basis for the development
and implementation of integrated natural
resources management plans (INRMPs)
on DoD installations in Alaska.
Findings
Grants officers from the U.S. Army Corps
of Engineers (USACE)–Alaska District
did not properly award or effectively
use cooperative agreements issued on
a sole-source basis, valued at about
$18 million, for the development and
implementation of INRMPs at Joint Base
Elmendorf–Richardson (JBER) and
Fort Wainwright, Alaska. This occurred
because grants officers:
- did not follow the DoD Grants and Agreements Regulations to maximize competition;
- issued the cooperative agreements or task orders as directed by JBER and Fort Wainwright personnel rather than perform sufficient market research to determine recipients; and
- did not have clear guidance from the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense, (Installations and Environment), on DoD’s implementation of the Sikes Act requirements.
As a result, USACE did not obtain the
benefits of competition and may have paid
more than necessary. Additionally, they
awarded cooperative agreements that did
not meet DoD’s interpretation of the Sikes
Act requirement to give priority to Alaskan
State agencies before they obtain support by
other means.
In addition, personnel from the Fort Wainwright Mission
Installation Contracting Command properly awarded
three contracts for INRMP support, with a value (including
options) of $32.8 million, by justifying the use of other
than full and open competition. Fort Wainwright
contracting personnel generally complied with Federal
Acquisition Regulation requirements related to
noncompetitive contracting.
Recommendations
We recommend that the Deputy Under Secretary of
Defense (Installations and Environment) develop guidance
to require competition for task orders when multiple
cooperative agreements exist and to issue guidance clarifying
that priority should be given to the respective State fish and
wildlife agencies.
We recommend the Garrison Commander, JBER, and the Chief,
Directorate of Public Works, Fort Wainwright, discontinue
directing which universities or soil and water districts obtain
cooperative agreements or associated task orders.
We recommend that the Contracting Division Chief, USACE
Alaska District develop procedures and implement controls
related to the award and management of cooperative
agreements to improve competition. In addition, we
recommend that the Contracting Division Chief require
training for grants officers on proper award and management
of cooperative agreements.
Management Comments and Our Response
We did not receive comments to the draft report. We request
that the Deputy Under Secretary of Defense (Installations and
Environment); Commander, JBER; Chief, Directorate of Public
Works, Fort Wainwright; and the Contracting Chief, USACE,
Alaska District, provide comments to the final report.
This report is a result of Project No. D2015-D000CG-0128.000.