FPDS-NG Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

1. What's new about FPDS-NG? Why is it necessary?

The Government has a compelling need to understand where your tax dollars are spent. Collecting data about Government procurements provides a broad picture of the overall Federal acquisition process. The ability to look at all contracts across many agencies, in greater detail, is a key component in establishing trust in our government and credibility in the professionals who use these contracts. With a view of Federal spending we can hope to conduct analyses to structure strategic procurements and save money, improve government-wide management, and establish interoperation with other government-wide data systems.

2. Is there any intelligence in the contract numbers?

No. There is no specific or required structure to a contract number. However, some agencies do have contract numbers that are formatted to provide data that is either coded or transparent, e.g., the fiscal year, type of contract, or activity location. But beyond very simple information, the contract numbers do not reflect what was purchased.

3. Why isn't there a Federal mandate on the format of contract numbers?

The OMB is keenly aware that agencies have been independently buying, using their own processes and numbering schemes for years. As we are in the process of streamlining the procurement phases that all agencies do similarly, we are increasingly interested in areas that must be standardized to allow data sharing. Although having contract numbers that are similar would be helpful, it isn't absolutely necessary. As such, making all agencies follow a mandated scheme is not a crucial factor at the current time.

4. Can I get a copy of the contract file including the terms and conditions from FPDS?

No. Only data about the contract is in FPDS.

5. If not, where can I get a copy of the contract?

You must contact the contracting officer to request a copy of the contract. You must reference the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to obtain contract documents.

6. Is there a central repository for all contract documents?

No. The contract file is not stored in a federally sponsored, central repository. It remains with the contracting office. Some agencies have developed internal repositories to aid in the electronic distribution of contract files which would make it easier to receive an electronic version, but there is no mandate to do this.

7. Where can I see the items that were purchased on a contract?

We refer to this level of detail as the "contract line item" or the "contract line item number" (CLIN) data. CLIN data is not pushed to FPDS. Usually CLIN data is available to the public through a formal request made to the contracting office. Agencies with automatic contract writing systems can, or will be able to, review data at the CLIN level. You have to inquire at the contracting office if they have that capability.

8. Where can I see the contractor’s proposal and work breakdown structure for a given contract?

The contractor's proposal is usually (but not always) incorporated into what becomes the final contract at the time of award. It may be retained as an attachment, or it may be revised into the statement of work (Section C) of the contract. The contracting officer is the only one who would be able to provide the specifics of a given contract, assuming that is not proprietary information. If the contractor feels it is proprietary, when given a chance they can remove whatever they don't want released under a FOIA request.

9. Where can I see what is supposed to be delivered under a contract?

The contract's deliverables are usually (but not always) provided under the terms and conditions or it may be revised into Section D of the contract. The contracting officer is the only one who would be able to provide the specifics of a given contract.

10. What is the Small Business Goaling Report?

Our government uses the Federal procurement process to encourage agencies to award contracts to small companies owned by women, veterans, and minorities, or located in economically challenged areas.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is responsible for setting goals for small business participation in Federal contracts. Each year the SBA works with each agency to set goals. The SBA submits an annual Small Business Goaling Report with achievements against the goals to Congress. The report is generated by FPDS-NG. The official Small Business Goaling Report is published on the SBA website, www.sba.gov.

11. What is the difference between the SBA Small Business Goaling Report and the other socio-economic reports?

The government prepares two types of reports dealing with socio-economic data: The SBA Small Business Goaling Report (performed government-wide, by department, and by agency) and the Socio-Economic Accomplishments reports (which represent Goaling versus Accomplishments).

• Goaling reports give “credit” to the departments and agencies that pay for a contract (not the ones that award the contracts).
• Accomplishments reports give “credit” to the departments or agencies that award the contracts (not to the ones paying for the work).
• Both types of reports exclude certain categories of procurements when calculating the percentages. See the following item “What is excluded from the Small Business Goaling Report?”.
  

12. What is excluded from the Small Business Goaling Report?

When calculating the percentages in the Goaling reports, the Small Business Administration determined that the counts of actions and sums of obligated dollars for certain actions shall be excluded.

The following categories of contracts are not included in the “base” amount:

• Javits-Wagner O'Day Program (JWOD, Sheltered Workshops)
• UNICOR or Federal Prison Industries
• American Institute in Taiwan
• Contracts awarded and performed outside the United States
• Acquisitions by agencies on behalf of foreign governments or entities, or international organizations
• Contracts funded predominately with agency generated sources
  

Accordingly, the following Government Agencies are excluded:

• FDIC
• Postal Service
• Bureau of Engraving and Printing
• United States Mint
• Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
• Office of Thrift Supervision
• Transportation Security Administration
• Federal Aviation Administration
• Tennessee Valley Authority
• Defense Commissary Agency*
• Quasi-government agencies**
  

*Defense Commissary Agency contracts are excluded because they are buying for resale in a military commissary.

**Quasi-government agencies are excluded because they operate with non-tax dollars (known as non-appropriated funds) that were not competed because the products they purchase are being bought to be resold. The money quasi-government agencies collect from these sales funds the operation of the organizations.

13. What does the 8(a) contracting number in the Small Business Goaling Report (SBGR) mean?

It represents the number of times government contracts were awarded using the 8(a) procedures. The SBA has the Section 8(a) Program for companies who apply for the 8(a) designation. SBA keeps track of the effectiveness of the program and counts awards made using an 8(a) set-aside or 8(a) competition.

14. What does "Purchase Card Used as Method of Payment" mean?

The order or contract provides for payments to the contractor to be made through the use of the purchase card. These are “charges” backed by a contract vehicle. It allows the government and the contractor to avoid the use of expensive invoices.

15. Does FPDS have purchase card data?

In addition to the information about the use of the purchase card as a method of payment, some agencies submit data about their purchase card transactions because that is a significant part of their procurement activity. Essentially they use this method of reporting because they don't have many large orders or contracts. Using the purchase card enables them to demonstrate achievement of socio-economic goals. FPDS-NG allows the submission of data about purchase card transactions; however, doing so is optional.

The data about contracts and the data about purchase card activity are maintained in two separate databases. We are working to provide the display and reports for both from a single tool.

Purchase card data is collected by the banks that issue the cards. Summary purchase card data will be made available via FPDS at some point in the future, perhaps as early as Fiscal Year 2007.

16. What is the difference between NAICS and PSC? Why does FPDS-NG have both?

The North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) classifies commercial activity into broad service categories, e.g., farming, manufacturer, wholesaler, retail, services. Contracts, on the other hand, generally purchase specific goods (such as cameras or telephones) and services. Therefore, FPDS has a second set of codes called Products and Services Codes (PSCs). While still rather general, the PSCs are more specific than NAICS.

In FPDS-NG, the new Description of Requirement field collects detailed information about the purpose of the contract. It is the combination of the two codes (NAICS and PSC) plus the description that enables greater visibility into what is procured.

17. What if my computer “times out” before the report I ran comes back?

If you are using a home computer or one in an office that is not part of a network, contact the Help Desk at (703) 390-5360, or email: fpdssupport@gce2000.com.

If you are using a computer that is part of a larger network, contact your organization’s information technology (IT) staff and ask them to check any HTTP connection timeouts on any outbound web proxy servers and/or firewalls. If there is a timeout on a connection, it could cause the remainder of the data to not be presented to your web browser.

After you've checked that, if it still times out, call the Help Desk and let them know the name and telephone number of your IT staff member who is helping you. Generally the two technicians are able to diagnose and fix the problem.

18. What is FPDS-NG not designed to collect?

The following data elements will not be found in FPDS-NG. Contracting officers can’t put this information in FPDS-NG even if they want to. Most of this data resides at the individual contracting office.

• Subcontracting data from either the government or the prime contractors with whom we do business. The government does have a method to collect this data at http://www.esrs.gov. The two data sources work together.
• Contract funding data outside of estimated totals and funds obligated on an action.
• Contract accounting data.
• As discussed in Question 7, contract line item data is not in FPDS-NG. This includes specific information about the CLIN. There is no NAICS information at the CLIN level, no CLIN description, no CLIN funding data, and no appropriation data at the CLIN level.
• No administration details including contracting officer’s technical representative names, wage determinations data, and details about the services via the contract number.
• Details of the contractor’s employee or staffing levels.
• Management plans.
• Statements of work or objectives.
• Terms and conditions of a contract.
• Deliverables.
• Entitlement expenditures including health, drug, Medicare, or insurance payouts. However, contracts about the management of these programs are required to be submitted.
• Contractor proposals from the awardee or any other interested party.
• Information about any parties excluded from the procurement.
  

19. Who can delete or void contracts from FPDS-NG?

Authority to assign privileges for deleting or voiding contracts that are in FPDS-NG is vested with the department’s or agency’s FPDS-NG system administrator. Only system administrators can assign such privileges to individual users within a department or agency. Contact your system administrator if you have questions about what privileges you have or to obtain authority to delete or void contracts. Delete and void authority are two separate privileges, and each must be separately assigned.

20. On the FPDS web site, is the "standard report" the same as "Federal Procurement Report"?

No it is not.

The Standard Reports are only found once someone has registered to use the system. They are templates of data that are requested frequently. When a Standard Report is run, it accesses the database and provides the latest numbers available at the moment of the request. The results on a Standard Report will most likely change from day-to-day.

The Federal Procurement Report is a .pdf version of the old book that the former and defunct Federal Procurement Data Center used to publish using the FPDS data. The contract does call for the contractor to develop a view of the FPR every year.

The government is in the process of putting all the old reports (1979-2003) on the homepage for historical purposes.