1. PCARSS: Transfers of Accountability
Bradley Hill
Asset Management
Lockheed Martin MST

2. What is PCARSS?
Plant Clearance Automated Reutilization Screening System (PCARSS)
Part of DCMA’s eTools suite
It automates the process for reporting, screening, requisitioning, and dispositioning excess government property located at contractor facilities.
PCARSS is not used by DoD Components/Military Services for personal property disposal

3. Why do we use it?
FAR (j)(2)(i): “Absent separate terms and conditions for property disposition…the contractor…shall use SF 1428, Inventory Disposal Schedule (or electronic equivalent), to identify and report…”
PCARSS is simply the SF 1428 electronic equivalent Operationalized under DFARS clause
(b):  “Inventory disposal schedules.  Unless disposition instructions are otherwise included in this contract, the Contractor shall complete SF 1428, Inventory Schedule B, within the Plant Clearance Automated Reutilization Screening System (PCARSS).”

4. When do we use it?
When Government property is no longer required on a contract, the FAR clause at requires contractors to:
Report property to the plant clearance officer for disposition (DCMA’s etool PCARSS is used for this purpose) or
Notify the Contracting Officer that property can be used on another contract
In general, these requirements involve two (2) processes:
PCARSS reporting: standardized, automated, consistent, well-established
Notification/request for property transfer of accountability: ad-hoc, manual, inconsistent
The new process (PCARSS 3.2) collapses everything into one standard automated process

5. Transfers of Accountability
All Government contract property (whether Government furnished or contractor acquired) must be contractually accountable to a contract – and only one contract at a time
Government property can only be transferred from one contract to another when firm requirements exist under the new, follow-on or gaining contract. See PGI
Transfers of contractual accountability must be accomplished by contract modification of both gaining and losing contracts; contract modifications shall use the fillable PDF formats prescribed in the “smart” attachments found at PGI
The cognizant DCMA contracting officer may execute contract modifications, in coordination with the cognizant procuring contracting officer(s)

6. FAR 45.106 Transferring accountability.
“Government property shall be transferred from one contract to another only when firm requirements exist under the gaining contract.”
“Such transfers shall be documented by modifications to both gaining and losing contracts. Once transferred, all property shall be considered Government-furnished property to the gaining contract.”

7. OSD Memo

8. Smart Attachments

9. PCARSS 3.2!!!
Implemented May 6, 2013
Under PCARSS 3.2, contractors can identify property requiring transfer and report it in the same manner as other excess property
PCARSS will convert the property data from the Inventory Schedule into the DoD prescribed standard “Smart” attachment
Benefits include:
Smart Attachment generated by PCARSS
Standardizes the transfer process and templates
Provides additional guidance to COs enhancing compliance to FAR

10. Process Flow

11. Getting Started
Reporting property to PCARSS does not constitute a contractor request for transfer of accountability – contractors must still make a formal request (outside of PCARSS)
The reasoning behind this is in most cases, contractor personnel who work
PCARSS are not in a position (i.e., do not have the authority) to request a 
contractual transfer of accountability
Ensures that the contractual transfer of accountability has been properly internally vetted by the contractor
Once the formal request outside of PCARSS has been submitted to the contracting officer, the contractor can immediately proceed with making the request in PCARSS; a response is not required

12. Getting Started (cont.)
Click Yes on the transfer radio button
Enter the gaining contract number in the transfer contract number field
All other steps are identical to a normal Inventory Schedule including the submittal
Notes: The gaining and losing contracts must be administered by DCMA, otherwise you will receive an error message!

13. TIPS
Set a discriminator to identify transfer request versus schedules submitted for disposition
You can still do flat file uploads!

14. What’s Next?
When a transfer request is submitted, it automatically assigns a case number and the status goes to Disposition – Action complete

15. What’s Next? (cont.)
The PLCO does not accept or assign a case number; everything is assigned automatically
The submit and disposition date are the same since these actions occur immediately

16. What does the CO and PLCO receive?
Here is a sample sent from eTools to the COs and PLCO

17. What do the COs and PLCO receive (cont.)?
Attached to the in the prior slide will be a system generated Smart Attachment similar to this for both the gaining and losing contracts
The will not include any other attachments (e.g. Inventory Schedules)

18. What do they do with it?
The PLCO is not involved like a normal Inventory Schedule (e.g. accepting a schedule, establishing a case, issuing disposition instructions, etc.)
The CO can approve or disapprove the transfer
If approved, the CO can create the contract modification through the Modifications and Delivery Orders eTool—using the smart attachment as a part of (“attached to”) the contract modification. The contract modification is then distributed like any other contract modification, e.g., through EDA, etc.
The Contracting Officer should notify the PLCO after processing the contract modification; there is no interface between PCARSS and MDO
Once approved, the PLCO should file the contract modification in the case file and close the case

19. If the request is disapproved…..
Current process is all or nothing hence the importance of being vetted internally by the contractor
The CO will need to manually notify the PLCO of the denied request
The PLCO will withdraw the case and annotate in the comments block to reflect the contracting officer's denial of the transfer request
The property does not continue processing in PCARSS; once a case is established PCARSS does not allow the input of a screener rule
The contractor will need to resubmit the Inventory Schedule; the excess property is disposed of like any other excess property

20. Indefinite Delivery Contract (IDC)
Individual orders are not considered individual contracts
Cannot have property accountable to them
Do not require individual property assignment or closeout in MOCAS

21. Future Enhancements
Expand to contracts/contractors not administered by DCMA
Expand capacity of maximum number of line items in PCARSS
Automatically notify the PLCO after processing the contract modification
Property Loss eTool – Modify to permit use of “Smart” attachment for property loss reporting (already in process)

22. There's more to Asset Management than -1
FAR (Federal Acquisition Regulation)
45.102, Policy
45.103, General
45.106, Transferring Accountability
45.201, Solicitation
, Government Property
DFARS (Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement)
, Reporting Government-Furnished Property
, Reporting, Reutilization, and Disposal
PGI (Procedures, Guidance, and Information)
, Furnishing Government property to contractors
, Transferring Government property accountability
, Government-furnished property attachments to solicitations and awards
, Contracting office responsibilities

23. Questions?

24. Sources
Tom Ruckdaschel, DCMA, PCARSS 3.2. Expediting Contractual Transfers of Contract Property Accountability
Tom Ruckdaschel, DCMA, “Brown Bag” – Understanding and Standardizing Contractual Transfers of Government Property (PCARSS 3.2)
PCARSS 3.2 Frequently Asked Questions
DCMA Website, PCARSS,
FAR, DFAR, and PGIs found on slide 22