Practice Test Geeks(FCC) Federal Contracting Certification Practice Test
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OCI & Procurement Integrity Flashcards

7 cards from real FCC practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.

Read the first 7 OCI & Procurement Integrity flashcards as text

  1. A solicitation contains a provision requiring offerors to certify they have no OCIs. An offeror knows of a potential conflict but certifies anyway and wins the award. What law, beyond the FAR, could be implicated?

    Answer: The False Claims Act

    A knowing false certification on a government solicitation can constitute a false statement under the False Claims Act, exposing the contractor to treble damages and civil penalties.

  2. Which type of OCI arises when a contractor gains access to a competitor's proprietary proposal information while performing a systems integrator role for the government?

    Answer: Unequal access to information

    Unequal access to information OCI occurs when a contractor, through its government role, obtains non-public data that gives it an unfair competitive advantage over other offerors.

  3. FAR 9.505-4 restricts contractors who evaluate offers or help select awardees from then competing for what?

    Answer: The award or any resulting contracts they evaluated

    FAR 9.505-4 bars a contractor that evaluated proposals or assisted source selection from competing on the award being evaluated or any contracts flowing from it.

  4. A contracting officer learns that a contractor's mitigation plan for an impaired objectivity OCI relies solely on a conflict-of-interest ethics policy in the employee handbook. Is this sufficient?

    Answer: Generally no — effective mitigation typically requires structural safeguards such as personnel exclusion or organizational firewalls

    A handbook ethics policy alone rarely constitutes adequate OCI mitigation; structural measures such as removing conflicted personnel, erecting firewalls, or requiring exclusion from the work are generally required.

  5. Under the Procurement Integrity Act, which of the following actions by a contractor is explicitly prohibited during a federal agency's source selection?

    Answer: Offering a recruiting bonus to a competing offeror's key personnel

    Soliciting or offering employment to a competing firm's employees during a source selection is prohibited as it could be used as a mechanism to obtain proprietary source selection information.

  6. When must a contracting officer document the basis for concluding that a potential OCI either does not exist or has been adequately mitigated?

    Answer: Before award whenever an OCI issue was identified and analyzed

    FAR 9.506 requires the CO to document the OCI analysis and mitigation conclusions in the contract file before award, regardless of contract value, whenever an OCI was considered.

  7. A small business set-aside contract includes no OCI clause. Post-award, the CO discovers the awardee had a significant impaired objectivity OCI. What remedy is most likely available?

    Answer: The CO may still terminate the contract for default or pursue other contractual remedies

    Even absent an express OCI clause, the government may terminate for default or pursue remedies if the contractor misrepresented facts or violated governing law and regulations that apply independently of contract language.