Safe and Smart Federal Purchasing Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I move to suspend the rules and pass the bill (H.R. 5528) to evaluate the impact of the lowest price technically acceptable source selection process on national security, and for other purposes, as amended.

The Clerk read the title of the bill.

The text of the bill is as follows: H.R. 5528

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

This Act may be cited as the ``Safe and Smart Federal Purchasing Act''. SEC. 2. REVIEW TO DETERMINE THE IMPACT OF THE LOWEST PRICE TECHNICALLY ACCEPTABLE SOURCE SELECTION PROCESS ON NATIONAL SECURITY.

(a) Review.--The Director shall review the procurement management practices of Defense and Civilian agencies to determine whether the provisions of section 15.101-2 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation have created any national security risk.

(b) Report.--Not later than 180 days after the enactment of this Act, the Director shall submit a report on the results of the review under subsection (a) to--

(1) the Committee on Oversight and Accountability of the House of Representatives; and

(2) the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs of the Senate.

(c) Definitions.--In this section:

(1) Defense and civilian agency.--The term ``Defense and Civilian agency'' has the meaning given the term ``agency'' in section 133 of title 41, United States Code.

(2) Director.--The term ``Director'' means the Director of the Office of Management and Budget.
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Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, I yield myself such time as I may consume.

Madam Speaker, I rise in support of H.R. 5528, the Safe and Smart Federal Purchasing Act.

Lowest Price Technically Acceptable is a source selection method outlined in the Federal Acquisition Regulation.

Simply put, this Federal Acquisition Regulation standard prioritizes price above all else.

Prioritizing price over any other technical or operational factors in Federal procurement can result in agencies cutting corners, sacrificing long-term value, and potentially jeopardizing national security.

The House Oversight Committee, in previous Congresses, placed appropriate constraints on agency use of the LPTA source selection process to mitigate such concerns.

Those constraints recognized that the LPTA standard is not always appropriate when agencies seek to purchase technically innovative services or technology.

Therefore, my bill requires the Director of the Office of Management and Budget to conduct a governmentwide evaluation of the LPTA source selection process to determine if it is being used in the way that creates any national security risks.

This is a useful step forward understanding how agencies are using LPTA in their source selection decisions, and will determine whether agencies are relying on LPTA when it is not appropriate.

This review is a commonsense step to ensuring America's national security, while also reducing supply chain risks to Federal agencies.

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague from Virginia, Mr. Gerry Connolly, and my colleague from Colorado, Ms. Lauren Boebert, for their support in drafting this legislation.
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Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, the Safe and Smart Federal Purchasing Act is a measured and targeted legislation that can inform future congressional work on Federal procurement, a policy area we know is ripe for reform and taxpayer savings.

Madam Speaker, I encourage my colleagues in the House to support this commonsense bipartisan bill, and I yield back the balance of my time.

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Mr. DONALDS. Madam Speaker, on that I demand the yeas and nays.

The yeas and nays were ordered.

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