9-14 – Office of Business Operations Contracting Personnel Qualifications and Warrant Authority

This report presents the results of our audit of contracting personnel qualifications and warrant authority in the Office of Business Operations (OBO). OBO is responsible for planning, executing, and supporting the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) procurement activities. In April 2005, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) issued Policy Letter 05-01, Developing and Managing the Acquisition Workforce, requiring that all new contracting officers issued contract warrant authority on or after January 1, 2007, be certified at an appropriate level to support their warrant obligations. This certification program, known as the Federal Acquisition Certification program, is intended to improve Federal acquisition workforce competencies. Having a qualified acquisition workforce is important to ensure that the $20 million that SBA received for contracting under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (Recovery Act), is used to obtain the best value for the Agency.