In FY 2007, fed. agencies worked with over 160,000 contractors, obligating over $456 billion, to help accomplish fed. missions. This reliance on contractors makes it critical that agencies have the info. necessary to properly evaluate a contractor's prior history of performance and better inform agencies' contract award decisions. While actions have been taken to improve the sharing of past performance info. and its use -- including the development of the Past Performance Info. Retrieval System (PPIRS) -- concerns remain about this info. This report assesses agencies' use of past performance info. in awarding contracts; identifies challenges that hinder sharing of past performance info.; and describes efforts to improve contractor performance info. Illus.

In fiscal year 2007, federal agencies worked with over 160,000 contractors, obligating over $456 billion, to help accomplish federal missions. This reliance on contractors makes it critical that agencies have the information necessary to properly evaluate a contractor's prior history of performance and better inform agencies' contract award decisions. While actions have been taken to improve the sharing of past performance information and its use -- including the development of the Past Performance Information Retrieval System (PPIRS) -- concerns remain about this information. This report assesses agencies' use of past performance information in awarding contracts; identifies challenges that hinder systematic sharing of past performance information; and describes efforts to improve contractor performance information. In conducting this work, GAO analyzed 62 contract solicitations from fiscal years 2007 and 2008 and met with 121 contracting officials. While the solicitations represent a range of contracts and contractors, GAO's findings cannot be generalized to all federal contracts. GAO is making recommendations to the Office of Federal Procurement Policy and selected agencies aimed at facilitating sharing and use of past performance information.

Federal contractors : better performance information needed to support agency contract award decisions : report to congressional requesters.