FAR Council Proposing to Raise Certified Cost or Pricing Data Threshold to $750,000

The FAR Council today published a proposed rule that will raise the threshold for for certified cost or pricing data from $700 thousand to $750 thousand. Under FAR 15.403-4, contractors and prospective contractors are required to certify that the cost or pricing data submitted in support of a proposal is current, complete, and accurate. The actual certification states:

This is to certify that, to the best of my knowledge and belief, the cost or pricing data (as defined in Section 2.101 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and required under FAR subsection 15.403-4 submitted, either actually or by specific identification in writing, to the Contracting Officer or to the Contracting Officer's representative in support of ________ are accurate, complete, and current as of ____________. This certification includes the cost or pricing data supporting any advance agreements and forward pricing rate agreements between the offeror and the Government that are part of the proposal.

The intent for increasing the TINA threshold (Truth-in-Negotiations Act), according to the FAR Council, is not to reduce Government oversight but to maintain the status quo, by adjusting thresholds to keep pace with inflation. If the threshold was not adjusted for inflation, the number of contracts subject to TINA would continue to grow, because more and more contracts will be above the stated threshold.

The new threshold will probably become effective on October 1, 2015.