§50503 Anchor Tenancy and Termination Liability

Summary

If Congress provides the money, the Administrator or the NOAA Administrator may sign multiyear "anchor tenant" contracts to buy a good or service when they conclude all of the following are true: the item fits the agency’s mission, it is cost effective, it was chosen through competition, other non‑government customers are identified, the venture won’t depend on continued government buying or unpaid government help, and private investors have money at risk. Those contracts can include payments if the Government ends the deal for its convenience. Any such termination payments must follow a fixed schedule and cannot exceed the total the Government would have paid after the date of termination if the contract had continued. Appropriated funds may be used to make those payments or to buy the delivered good or service, but enough money must remain to cover any leftover termination payments. Contracts may last no more than 10 years, must be on a firm, fixed‑price basis, should use reasonable performance specs for technical needs, and the agency may cancel all or part of a contract without paying termination charges if the contractor fails or is likely to fail to perform.