Hi Fishlady49: While I can't speak from experience or authority on your particular question, I do believe I may have found where you can find some information that could help from the Defense Contract Audit Agency. Chapter 8 of the Contract Audit Manual deals with the Cost Accounting Standards and has information on compliance, disclosure and cost estimating. Is this information helpful?

fishlady49, Regarding DCAA Audit Manual Chapter 8: don't spend too much time digesting the Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) requirements--they are very different from what you are asking about, and as a small business you are exempt from CAS. With revenues of less than $3M, it is not likely that you will need to worry about CAS for quite some time. It is not unusual for DCAA to do a systems audit--just answer the questions and go through the process in a truthful, factual manner. Regarding the requirements for an approved purchasing system, the answer kind of depends on a number of factors. See: http://www.arnet.gov/far/current/html/Subpart%2044_3.htmland http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/dars/dfars/html/current/244_3.htm I don't know enough about your company or the specific industry you are in, butbased on theinformation you provided, I seriouslydoubt your company meets the criteria for being required to have an approved purchasing system. If an auditor or the prime contractor claims that itan approved purchasing system isrequired, ask them to provide you with a specific regulatory reference out of the FAR/DFARS to support their claim. Wayne Hinton FedBizAdvice, LLC

Chapter 8 of the Contract Audit Manual should have everything you need, as Zaneta said.

There is a wealth of information available for you on the internet and particularly on this site. I've found the answers to many of my business questions right here on business.gov