District of Columbia Administrative Code

2420 TIME-AND-MATERIALS CONTRACTS 2420.1 A time-and-materials contract may be used only when: (a) It is not possible at the time of executing the contract to estimate accurately the extent or duration of the work or to anticipate costs with any reasonable degree of confidence; an…

2421 LABOR-HOUR CONTRACTS 2421.1 When materials are not required, the contracting officer may use a labor-hour contract in accordance with the provisions of § 2420 of this chapter. SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 35 DCR 1554 (February 26, 1988); as amended by Final Rulemaki…

2425 LETTER CONTRACTS 2425.1 The contracting officer may use a letter contract when the District’s interests require that the contractor be given a binding commitment so that work can start immediately and executing a definitive contract is not possible in sufficient time to meet…

2499 DEFINITIONS 2499.1 When used in this chapter, the following words and terms shall have the meanings ascribed: Commercial-type products – a product such as an item, material, component, subsystem or system, sold or traded to the general public in the course of normal business…

2500 GENERAL PROVISIONS 2500.1 The District shall specify procurement needs in a manner designed to promote competition to the maximum extent possible. 2500.2 The District shall develop specifications and purchase descriptions using market research in a manner designed to promote…

2501 SELECTING SPECIFICATIONS OR DESCRIPTIONS FOR USE 2501.1 Items to be procured shall be described by citing the applicable specifications and standards or by a description containing the necessary requirements. 2501.2 The using agency shall review and select from available spe…

2502 BRAND NAME OR EQUAL 2502.1 The minimum acceptable purchase description shall be the identification of a requirement by use of a brand name followed by the words “or equal.” This purchase description shall be used only when adequate specifications or a more detailed purchase …

2503 SPECIFICATIONS AND STANDARDS 2503.1 Using agencies and contracting officers shall use the specifications and standards prepared and issued by the Director for goods and services required by the District, unless otherwise authorized by law or approved in accordance with this …

2504 DEVIATIONS FROM SPECIFICATIONS AND STANDARDS 2504.1 When the exceptions set forth in § 2503 of this chapter are not applicable, and an existing specification does not meet an agency’s minimum needs, the Director may authorize deviations in accordance with this section. 2504.…

2505 [RESERVED] SOURCE: Final Rulemaking published at 35 DCR 1576 (February 26, 1988); as amended by Final Rulemaking published at 65 DCR 7556 (July 20, 2018). District of Columbia Municipal Regulations Contracts and Procurement 27 DCMR § 2505 AUTHORITY: DC-DCMR Unless otherwise …

2506 USED OR RECONDITIONED MATERIAL, SURPLUS PROPERTY, AND RESIDUAL INVENTORY 2506.1 The contracting officer may procure used or reconditioned material if the solicitation clearly identifies which goods or components do not have to be new and the necessary requirements for accept…

2599 DEFINITIONS 2599.1 When used in this chapter, the following terms and phrases shall have the meanings ascribed: Brand name description – a purchase description that identifies a product by its brand name and model, part number, or other appropriate nomenclature by which the …

2600 GENERAL PROVISIONS 2600.1 Contracts for construction shall be awarded in accordance with the provisions of this chapter and other applicable provisions of this title. 2600.2 Contracts for architect-engineer services shall be awarded in accordance with title IX of the Federal…

2601 SPECIFICATIONS 2601.1 In addition to the requirements of this section, construction specifications shall conform to the requirements of chapter 25 of this title. 2601.2 Where applicable, contracting officers shall ensure that references in specifications conform to widely re…

2602 ESTIMATE OF CONSTRUCTION COSTS 2602.1 An estimate of construction costs shall be prepared for each proposed contract and for each proposed contract modification estimated to exceed ten thousand dollars ($10,000). 2602.2 The estimate shall be prepared by the agency requesting…

2603 NOTICE OF THE SCOPE OF CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS 2603.1 Any pre-solicitation notices and each solicitation shall state the approximate scope of the construction requirement in terms of physical characteristics and estimated price range. 2603.2 In no event shall the notice of the…

2604 LIQUIDATED DAMAGES IN CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS 2604.1 In accordance with §507(a) of the Act (D.C. Code, §1-1185.7), in all construction contracts estimated to exceed fifty thousand dollars ($50,000), the contracting officer shall include a liquidated damages clause approved by…

2605 PRICING CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS 2605.1 Unless otherwise authorized under this chapter, a contracting officer shall use firm-fixed-price contracts to procure construction. 2605.2 A contract may be priced on a lump-sum basis (when a lump sum is paid for the total work or define…

2606 CONCURRENT PERFORMANCE OF CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS 2606.1 Because of potential labor and administrative problems, cost-plus-fixed-fee, price-incentive, or other types of contracts with cost variation or cost adjustment features shall not be permitted concurrently at the same w…

2607 CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTS WITH ARCHITECT-ENGINEERING FIRMS 2607.1 Except as provided in §2607.2, a contracting officer shall not award a contract for the construction of a project to the firm that designed the project or its subsidiaries or affiliates without the prior written …

2608 INSPECTION AND SITE EXAMINATION OF DATA 2608.1 The contracting officer shall make appropriate arrangements for prospective bidders to inspect the work site and to have the opportunity to examine data available to the District which may provide information concerning the perf…

2609 DISTRIBUTION OF PRE-SOLICITATION NOTICES 2609.1 The contracting officer may distribute pre-solicitation notices in a manner designed to reach as many prospective bidders as practicable. 2609.2 The contracting officer may send pre-solicitation notices to organizations that ma…

2610 INVITATIONS FOR BIDS 2610.1 An invitation for bids ("IFB") for construction shall allow a reasonable time for bidders to prepare and submit their bids, but in no event less than thirty (30) days. Each IFB shall be publicized in accordance with the provisions of the Act and c…

2611 NOTICE OF INTENT TO AWARD 2611.1 Each notice of intent to award shall include the following: (a) The identity of the IFB; (b) The prospective contractor's bid; (c) The award price; (d) A statement notifying the prospective contractor that all required performance and payment…

2612 EVALUATION OF CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE 2612.1 The contract administrator shall evaluate contractor performance and prepare a performance report for each construction contract of ten thousand dollars ($10,000) or more in the following circumstances: (a) When any element of perf…

2613 PRE-CONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE 2613.1 The contracting officer may conduct a pre-construction conference to inform the contractor about the labor standards provisions of the contract and other pre-construction matters deemed appropriate by the contracting officer. SOURCE: Final …

2620 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER SERVICES 2620.1 The contracting officer shall publicize all requirements for architect-engineer services in accordance with chapter 13 of this title, and negotiate contracts for these services based on the demonstrated competence and qualifications of pros…

2621 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER EVALUATION BOARD 2621.1 When procuring architect-engineer services, the head of the contracting agency shall appoint one (1) or more permanent or ad hoc architect-engineer evaluation boards composed of members who, collectively, have experience in architec…

2622 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER EVALUATION BOARD FUNCTIONS 2622.1 The evaluation board established pursuant to §2621 shall perform the following functions under the general direction of the contracting officer: (a) Review the current data files on eligible firms and responses to notice o…

2623 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER SELECTION 2623.1 The contracting officer shall review the recommendations of the evaluation board and shall, with the advice of appropriate technical and staff representatives, make the final selection. 2623.2 The final selection shall be a listing, in ord…

2624 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER SELECTION PROCESS FOR SMALL PURCHASES 2624.1 When authorized by the contracting officer, the short process set forth in this section may be used as an alternative to the processes set forth in §§2622 and 2623 to select firms for contracts not estimated to …

2625 ARCHITECT-ENGINEER QUALIFICATIONS 2625.1 Each agency with construction contract authority shall receive and maintain data on firms that request to be considered for District architect-engineer contracts. 2625.2 To be considered for an architect-engineer contract, a firm shal…

2626 COST ESTIMATE FOR ARCHITECT-ENGINEER CONTRACTS 2626.1 An independent District estimate of the cost of architect-engineer services shall be prepared by or under the direction of the contracting officer before commencing negotiations in accordance with §2627 for each proposed …

2627 NEGOTIATIONS OF ARCHITECT-ENGINEER CONTRACTS 2627.1 Based upon the report submitted by the evaluation board, the contracting officer shall begin negotiations in accordance with this chapter. 2627.2 The contracting officer (or designee) shall first attempt to negotiate a cont…

2628 RELEASE OF INFORMATION 2628.1 After final selection has taken place under §2623, the contracting officer may release information identifying the highest rated architect-engineer firm with which a contract will be negotiated. 2628.2 If negotiations are terminated without awar…

2630 LIABILITY FOR DESIGN ERRORS OR DEFICIENCIES 2630.1 The firm shall be responsible for the professional quality, technical accuracy, and coordination of all services required under its contract. The firm shall be liable for costs to the District resulting from errors or defici…

2631 DESIGN WITHIN FUNDING LIMITATIONS 2631.1 The District may require the architect-engineer contractor to design the project so that construction costs will not exceed a contractually specified dollar limit. The amount of the construction funding limitation shall be established…

2632 REDESIGN RESPONSIBILITY FOR DESIGN ERRORS OR DEFICIENCIES 2632.1 The architect-engineer firm shall make necessary corrections at no cost to the District if the designs, drawings, specifications, or other items or services furnished by the firm contain any errors, deficiencie…