The FoRGED Act is the procurement blueprint for the National Defense Authorization Act of 2026. A section of the FoRGED Act contains language that will change the statutory authority for the General Services Administration (GSA) Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) to embrace best value acquisition procedures. This proposed statutory authority will immediately open up a world of innovation and efficiency for the government and industry.
The current statutory language has been interpreted by some to require the lowest price regardless of terms and conditions at the contract level. We maintain it means lowest cost at the order level, considering administrative costs, time savings, life cycle cost and other savings associated with the GSA’s MAS streamlined ordering procedures. Competition at the order level includes price competition. At the order level, sometimes, price is the determining factor for an order. Sometimes, quality, delivery, innovation, or other benefits are more important than price. The best value language will ensure that the continuum of acquisition strategies is available to contracting officers.
Amending the statutory language to “best value” would mean an end to the Price Reductions Clause (PRC), an archaic, noncommercial clause not seen in any other government contracting context. The PRC impacts the normal business operations of a business by forcing it to consider the effect that a commercial transaction might have on its MAS contract pricing. To avoid the PRC and its complicated tracking scheme, GSA mercifully created Transaction Data Reporting (TDR), where companies report data on transactions at the order level, which alleviates the requirement to comply with the PRC.