(a) Contracting officers shall ensure that any document listed under 801.602-71 through 801.602-76 that is submitted for technical or legal review is submitted through or by an official at least one level above the contracting officer.

(b) Before opening a bid, awarding a contract, or signing a contract-related document as specified in 801.602-71 through 801.602-76, the contracting officer shall ensure that the appropriate VA official, including appropriate staff of the Acquisition Resources Service regional or VA Central Office, has reviewed and concurred with the document.

(c) Before signing a contract for a Veterans Benefits Administration field facility for any guidance center or vocational rehabilitation service with an anticipated expenditure of $100,000 or more, the contracting officer shall ensure that the Director, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Service, has reviewed and approved the solicitation or proposed contract.

(d) When the following items are for the management, sale, or lease of properties acquired by VA after liquidation of a guaranteed, direct, acquired, or vendee loan, the review requirements specified in 801.602-71 through 801.602-76 do not apply:

(1) Agreements.

(2) Licenses.

(3) Easements.

(4) Deeds.

(e) If there is insufficient time for the legal review required in 801.602-75(a)(3), the contracting officer (except contracting officers in the Office of Construction and Facilities Management) must at least obtain verbal concurrence from Acquisition Resources Service staff before issuing a change order where:

(1) The change order (unilateral agreement) has an anticipated value of $100,000 or more; or

(2) The change order is for a time extension of 60 days or more.

(f) Unless otherwise stated, all dollar values in 801.602-71 through 801.602-76 are expressed in total dollars involved in the acquisition action.

(1) The contracting officer may not consider the positive and negative status of the figures in determining the total dollar values involved.

(2) An acquisition of $550,000 with a trade-in credit of $70,000 would be valued at $620,000 for legal or technical review purposes rather than the net amount of $480,000. An Energy Savings Performance Contract requiring payment from savings of $10,000,000 to the contractor over the life of the contract would be valued at $10,000,000, despite the fact that there is no immediate cost to VA and no payment if there are no savings.

(g) By separate notice, the DSPE may require technical review of any contract-related materials, regardless of dollar value.

(h) Except as set forth in 801.602-73 and 801.602-75, at its discretion, the Office of Acquisition and Materiel Management may request OGC review.

(i) The requirements of this section or sections 801.602-71 through 801.602-76 do not apply to contracts awarded by or on behalf of the VA Office of Inspector General.

(j) Contracting officers and purchase card holders must ensure compliance with separate guidance on information technology (IT) tracking and approval prior to processing requests for acquisitions of IT and telecommunications software, equipment, and/or services, regardless of dollar value.