Central Contractor Registration (CCR)

If your company is planning to respond to a solicitation or request for proposal from a U.S. Government agency, the solicitation will most likely contain the clause FAR 52.204-7 — Central Contractor Registration. Basically this clause tells you that if your company doesn’t have a DUNS number from Dun and Bradstreet, you need to go get one. And then you have to register in the CCR database. This registration must be complete prior to award of a contract (and you should probably do it before submitting your first proposal.) The CCR website tells you what information you will need to have at the ready to complete your registration.

From https://www.bpn.gov/ccr/CCRPol.aspx

Background
Central Contractor Registration (CCR) is the primary registrant database for the U.S. Federal Government. CCR collects, validates, stores, and disseminates data in support of agency acquisition missions, including Federal agency contract and assistance awards. Please note that the term “assistance awards” includes grants, cooperative agreements and other forms of federal assistance. Whether applying for assistance awards, contracts, or other business opportunities, all entities are considered “registrants”.

Both current and potential federal government registrants are required to register in CCR in order to be awarded contracts by the federal government. Registrants are required to complete a one-time registration to provide basic information relevant to procurement and financial transactions. Registrants must update or renew their registration at least once per year to maintain an active status. In addition, entities (private non-profits, educational organizations, state and regional agencies, etc.) that apply for assistance awards from the Federal Government through Grants.gov must now register with CCR as well. However, registration in no way guarantees that a contract or assistance award will be awarded.

CCR validates the registrant information and electronically shares the secure and encrypted data with the federal agencies’ finance offices to facilitate paperless payments through electronic funds transfer (EFT). Additionally, CCR shares the data with federal government procurement and electronic business systems.

Please note that any information provided in your registration may be shared with authorized federal government offices. However, registration does not guarantee business with the federal government.

One of the federal government systems that receives your CCR information is the Small Business Administration (SBA)’s “Dynamic Small Business Search” database. Larger businesses wanting to subcontract to small businesses often use this database to verify your business information, and occasionally to search for small business partners for current or future contracting opportunities. And sometimes small businesses use the database to find other small business teaming partners with complementary capabilities so that together they can bid for larger more complex contracts. It’s nice to know that your information goes someplace potentially useful!

The Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR)

If you or your company are doing business with the Government, or are doing business as a subcontractor to another contractor doing business with the Government, you will have clauses from the FAR in your contract/subcontract. You may find them a bit intimidating at first (I did), but you’ll see a lot of the same clauses over and over, so you’ll get used to it.

Back when I started in this field, a little under 15 years ago, the internet and email were just coming to small businesses, contracts were still signed via fax and hard copy, and we were referencing the FAR in little paperback books that were published yearly. Sometimes several people would be sharing the same book.

However, YOU don’t have to do it that way. You have the INTERNET! OK, that’s probably a little too much excitement about having the FAR (and DFARS and whole bunch of other agency-specific regulations) online and easy to get to. My favorite source is this one: http://farsite.hill.af.mil/ . I’ll give you that the internet isn’t perfect, so if that site is down, there’s also this one: https://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html . You’ll spend most of your time in Part 52 (Part 252 in DFARs), but if you’re looking into accounting and auditing issues, you’ll need to look in Part 31.

I have added these links to a Resources tab on this blog, and my initial posts will be mostly sharing some basic resource links. I hope to discuss some other topics in slightly more depth in the future.

Introduction (first post!)

 

After nearly 15 years in Government contract administration (on the contractor side), I’ve realized that I know stuff!  I’m still learning of course, but I feel like I’ve gleaned a fair amount of information over the years that I’m ready to share. 

My plan is to share the various links and resources that I use – some frequently and some rarely – and also some of the other professional knowledge I’ve gained.  That might include things I’ve learned on the job or things that I’m learning in class. (I’m currently working on my MS in Acquisition and Contract Management.)

I expect that my inputs will come in fits and spurts and that there will be some time spent figuring out what I can do with formatting and presentation of content.