CFCM Legal Compliance 4 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Under the Service Contract Act (SCA), which document establishes the minimum wages and fringe benefits contractors must pay service employees working on a federal service contract?
- Collective bargaining agreement
- Wage determination (Correct answer)
- Wage and Hour bulletin
- Davis-Bacon wage schedule
Correct answer: Wage determination
Wage determinations, issued by the Department of Labor and incorporated into SCA-covered contracts, set the minimum wages and fringe benefits for covered service workers.
Question 2: A contractor submits a certified claim of $2.5 million to the contracting officer. If the CO fails to issue a final decision within 60 days or provide a date by which a decision will be issued, what can the contractor do?
- The claim is deemed denied and the contractor may appeal (Correct answer)
- The contractor must resubmit the claim
- The contractor can only sue in federal district court
- The contractor must wait an additional 60 days
Correct answer: The claim is deemed denied and the contractor may appeal
Under the Contract Disputes Act, if the CO fails to respond within the required timeframe, the contractor may treat the failure as a denial and appeal to a Board of Contract Appeals or the Court of Federal Claims.
Question 3: Which Buy American Act provision requires that domestic construction material contain what minimum percentage of domestic components by cost?
- 50%
- 55% (Correct answer)
- 65%
- 75%
Correct answer: 55%
Under FAR 25.003, a manufactured end product is considered domestic if the cost of domestic components exceeds 55% of the total cost of all components (increased from 50% per recent rule changes).
Question 4: Under FAR 9.4, a contractor placed on the Excluded Parties List System (now SAM exclusions) is ineligible to receive federal contracts. Which agency maintains this exclusion database?
- Office of Inspector General
- General Services Administration (Correct answer)
- Office of Management and Budget
- Department of Justice
Correct answer: General Services Administration
GSA maintains the System for Award Management (SAM.gov), which includes the exclusions list (formerly EPLS) of debarred, suspended, and ineligible parties.
Question 5: The Equal Pay Act requires that contractors pay men and women equal wages for equal work. Which agency has primary enforcement authority over this requirement for federal contractors?
- Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
- Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (Correct answer)
- Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division
- Office of Personnel Management
Correct answer: Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs
OFCCP enforces equal pay requirements for federal contractors and subcontractors under Executive Order 11246 and related statutes.
Question 6: A contractor suspects a subcontractor of submitting inflated invoices. Under FAR 52.203-13, the prime contractor's hotline must be available to employees of which entities?
- Only direct employees of the prime contractor
- Employees of the prime and all subcontractors (Correct answer)
- Employees of the prime and first-tier subcontractors only
- Government employees assigned to the contract
Correct answer: Employees of the prime and all subcontractors
FAR 52.203-13 requires the contractor's ethics hotline to be available to all employees of the contractor and its subcontractors at all tiers.
Question 7: Under the Combating Trafficking in Persons requirements (FAR 52.222-50), what must a contractor do if it learns that a subcontractor has engaged in trafficking-related conduct?
- Issue a cure notice and allow 30 days to correct
- Immediately terminate the subcontract
- Report to the contracting officer and take remedial action including potential termination (Correct answer)
- Notify OFCCP within 72 hours
Correct answer: Report to the contracting officer and take remedial action including potential termination
FAR 52.222-50 requires contractors to notify the contracting officer and take appropriate remedial action, which may include termination of the subcontract.
CFCM Legal Compliance 4
Under the Service Contract Act (SCA), which document establishes the minimum wages and fringe benefits contractors must pay service employees working on a federal service contract?