§2271a Space Contractor Responsibility Watch List

Summary

The Assistant Secretary of the Air Force for Space Acquisition and Integration, who runs space buying for the Air Force, must keep a watch list of contractors that have a history of poor performance on space contracts. A whole company or a single division can be placed on the list if there is evidence of things like poor contract performance (including award fee scores below 50 percent), weak management or financial controls, poor security or unresolved foreign ownership risks, or any other serious failures. The Assistant Secretary must use written rules when deciding who goes on the list. Those rules must give the contractor notice and a chance to respond, put the final reasons in writing, and allow removal if the contractor shows the problem has been fixed. If a contractor is on the list, the Assistant Secretary cannot seek bids from, award contracts to, approve subcontracts with, sign grants or similar agreements with, or use contract options with that contractor unless a written decision shows there is a compelling reason. The Assistant Secretary must tell the congressional defense committees and the Interagency Committee on Debarment and Suspension within 10 days after making such a decision. The authority to place someone on the list or to allow work while listed can only be delegated to the Air Force suspension and debarment official, on a case-by-case basis, and the congressional defense committees must be told within seven days of any delegation. Listing is not the same as suspension or debarment and is not meant as punishment. Definitions: “contract” includes grants, cooperative agreements, and other transactions; “contractor” means any person or company that has a contract; “watch list” means the list described above.