Open Market Items
In accordance with FAR 8.402(f), for administrative convenience, an ordering activity Contracting Officer may add items not on the GSA Schedule contract – e.g., open market items – to a GSA Schedule BPA or an individual task or delivery order only if:
- All applicable acquisition regulations pertaining to the purchase of the items not on the Schedule contract have been followed (e.g., publicizing (FAR Part 5), competition requirements (FAR Part 6), acquisition of commercial items (FAR Part 12), contracting methods (FAR Parts 13, 14, and 15), and small business programs (FAR Part 19)
- The ordering activity Contracting Officer has determined the prices for the items not on the Schedule contract are fair and reasonable
- The items are clearly labeled on the order as items not on the Schedule contract
- All clauses applicable to items not on the Schedule contract are included in the order
- The ordering Contracting Officer has determined that the items are within the scope of the Schedule contract
It is important to recognize that GSA has only negotiated prices or determined prices to be fair and reasonable for those supplies and services that are awarded to Schedule contracts. Therefore, the ordering activity must comply with the requirements for full and open competition, by following all applicable acquisition regulations and determining price reasonableness for open market items.
The terms and conditions of the Schedule contract do not apply to open market items and all contract clauses applicable to such items must be included in the order.
Orders with cost-type pricing arrangements as described per FAR Subpart 16.3 are NOT allowed under Schedules!
