Simplified Acquisition Procedures

Simplified Acquisition Procedures (SAP) are widely known to be used to increase the chances for small business concerns to receive federal government contracts. They are also used to reduce administrative costs and promote efficiency to alleviate any burdens that agencies and contractors may face.

These procedures also come with multiple acquisition thresholds that the federal government is bound to follow based on policy.

You can find the effect dates for these thresholds by viewing this table.

The SBA expects agencies to monitor their SAT performance and take appropriate actions when they miss the opportunity to use a small business concern. Federal Procurement Officers that are assigned to recruiting small businesses for federal contracts will look for businesses that are registered and approved. Every business must be registered in System for Awards Management (SAM) to be eligible for federal government contracts.

Simplified Acquisition Threshold

There are several thresholds or ceilings where the SAP can be used. The current simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) is set to $250,000 for most acquisitions. When most people reference SAP, they are thinking of this particular threshold.

The SAT is raised for defense purposes to $800,000.

To purchase underneath this threshold, most contracting officers will need to release a Request for Quote (RFQ) to receive competitive bids.

These changes were made as of October 1, 2022.

Micro-Purchase Threshold

The micro-purchase threshold (MPT) is set to a ceiling of $10,000, but when it is used for defense purposes, this threshold is raised to $35,000.

Most micro-purchases use a government commercial purchase card. Some exceptions can raise this amount, but overall, the number most people think about when hearing this is the normal ceiling.

Micro-purchases are special because a contracting officer does not have to receive a quote or request them to purchase.

Blanket Purchase Agreement

A blanket purchase agreement (BPA) is another SAP procedure that is used to buy an item or service repetitively. The way this works is that there are calls made to the BPA. These calls are orders that are not able to go over the SAT.

BPAs are frequently used since it sets a source of supply that the agency can go back and use at any point in time while the contract lasts without having to release another RFQ.