FCC Source Selection & SSEB Process 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Who is ultimately responsible for the source selection decision in a federal acquisition?
- The Source Selection Evaluation Board (SSEB) chairperson
- The Contracting Officer
- The Source Selection Authority (SSA) (Correct answer)
- The Program Manager
Correct answer: The Source Selection Authority (SSA)
The Source Selection Authority (SSA) is the individual responsible for making the final source selection decision.
Question 2: What document establishes the evaluation factors and their relative importance before proposals are received?
- The Source Selection Plan (SSP) (Correct answer)
- The Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP)
- The Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE)
- The Statement of Objectives (SOO)
Correct answer: The Source Selection Plan (SSP)
The Source Selection Plan (SSP) is developed prior to solicitation and defines evaluation factors, their weights, and evaluation procedures.
Question 3: Under FAR Part 15, when using the 'best value' tradeoff process, what must the solicitation clearly communicate to offerors?
- The names of the evaluators on the SSEB
- The relative importance of price versus non-price factors (Correct answer)
- The identities of other competing offerors
- The government's budget ceiling for the requirement
Correct answer: The relative importance of price versus non-price factors
FAR 15.304 requires solicitations to state the relative importance of all evaluation factors and subfactors, including the relationship between price and non-price factors.
Question 4: What is the purpose of 'consensus scoring' in an SSEB evaluation?
- To allow evaluators to average their individual numerical scores
- To let the SSA override individual evaluator findings
- To reach a collective team judgment on proposal ratings through discussion (Correct answer)
- To assign adjectival ratings based on a mathematical formula
Correct answer: To reach a collective team judgment on proposal ratings through discussion
Consensus scoring involves evaluators discussing their findings to reach a collective, documented team judgment rather than simply averaging scores.
Question 5: An offeror's proposal exceeds the government's requirements in a technically acceptable area but at a higher price. Under a Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) evaluation, what should the evaluator do?
- Award extra credit to the offeror for exceeding requirements
- Reduce the technical rating because exceeding requirements adds risk
- Treat the proposal as technically acceptable without crediting the additional capability (Correct answer)
- Request the offeror to revise down to meet minimum requirements only
Correct answer: Treat the proposal as technically acceptable without crediting the additional capability
Under LPTA, proposals are evaluated as acceptable or unacceptable against minimum requirements; exceeding requirements receives no additional credit.
Question 6: What is a 'weakness' as defined in FAR 15.001 in the context of proposal evaluation?
- A flaw that appreciably increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance (Correct answer)
- Any area where the offeror does not exceed the stated requirements
- A deficiency that makes the proposal unawardable as written
- A price that is more than 10% above the government estimate
Correct answer: A flaw that appreciably increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance
FAR 15.001 defines a weakness as a flaw in the proposal that increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance.
Question 7: During source selection, which of the following actions would constitute an improper communication by an SSEB member?
- Documenting a proposal strength in the evaluation record
- Discussing technical approach ratings with other SSEB members
- Informally telling an offeror their proposal is competitive before award (Correct answer)
- Requesting clarification of an ambiguous proposal element through the CO
Correct answer: Informally telling an offeror their proposal is competitive before award
SSEB members must not communicate source selection information to offerors outside of controlled, official communications channels managed by the Contracting Officer.
FCC Source Selection & SSEB Process 2
Who is ultimately responsible for the source selection decision in a federal acquisition?