Preparing the Offer · 1 of 4
Preparing an offer
In short
- Major and significant equipment lines carry a quarterly delivery schedule.
- Every training offer states the purchaser’s responsibilities.
- Status provisions in an offer need staffing as an international agreement.
1. Who prepares the offer
Every unclassified part of a Letter of Offer and Acceptance (LOA) is prepared in the Defense Security Assistance Management System (DSAMS). The work follows the manual’s figures and its standardization guide in Appendix 9 (SAMM C5.6.5 and SAMM C5.6.5.3). The organizations authorized to receive letters of request and prepare offers are the implementing agencies (IAs) (SAMM C5.6.5.1). When a request includes an item managed by another IA, it must be coordinated with every organization involved. What the finished document contains is covered in inside the letter of offer and acceptance.
2. One offer or several
A purchaser that needs several weapon systems on one case, for its own budget or other internal reasons, may be offered a Multi-Service LOA (SAMM C5.6.5.1). If that would add too much financial and logistical processing, the request may be split into several offers by IA and major weapon system, managed together. The country portfolio director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency (DSCA) coordinates with the purchaser and the security cooperation organization (SCO) before any split. The agencies then work under agreed terms, with a lead IA to deliver a total package approach, and plan events such as program management reviews jointly where they can.
The IA that received the request must tell the purchaser if the answer will be several offers rather than one (SAMM C5.6.5.1). The manual encourages consolidation. Several requests from the same purchaser may be answered with one offer, and offers for major systems should include the supporting items and services rather than offering them separately (SAMM C5.6.5.4.4).
3. Bringing the purchaser in early
The manual calls early purchaser involvement essential, so that the final document meets its needs (SAMM C5.6.5.2). Purchasers should be encouraged to attend meetings and receive correspondence that clarifies the request. They help identify unique requirements and special needs, and draft notes or conditions may be shared with them in advance. Such meetings and agreements can be recorded in the case remarks in DSAMS. Purchasers should also be encouraged to take part in the acquisition process.
4. Delivery and training schedules
Each materiel line carries a months of service entry showing when the materiel is expected to be available (SAMM C5.6.5.4.5). IAs may add an estimated delivery schedule on defined order lines. Every line for major defense equipment or significant military equipment must carry one, by quarter, consistent with that entry, and it prints at the end of the offer.
Defined order offers should include a confirmed schedule of personnel into specific training courses, or else general training plans with a note that details will follow (SAMM C5.6.5.4.9). Blanket order training offers explain their scope and how courses are defined and requested. Every training offer must state the purchaser’s responsibilities, such as pay and allowances, housing, medical expenses, insurance, qualified students and their supervision.
5. People sent to the partner country
When an offer needs personnel assigned to the partner country on a permanent change of station, the IA tells the SCO the start date, duration, grade, specialty and location (SAMM C5.6.5.4.6). The SCO coordinates with the Chief of Mission and reports support costs and any obstacles to accepting or supporting the personnel. The IA puts those costs in the offer, with a note, and flags the requirement to DSCA in the cover memorandum. Any offer with permanent or temporary duty personnel should state their number, arrival and departure dates, destination and home station, and in-country travel (SAMM C5.6.5.4.6.1).
Status abroad gets careful handling. For services performed outside the United States, the manual’s term for American personnel covers both government and contracted personnel working under the offer (SAMM C5.6.5.4.7). Where a status of forces agreement applies, government employees are covered by it, and where DSCA’s general counsel identifies a relevant agreement, the offer references it (SAMM C5.6.5.4.7.1). "The LOA itself does not create any rights or benefits" (SAMM C5.6.5.4.7.1). Status provisions inside an offer require staffing as an international agreement, so the manual advises avoiding them where possible.
Costs of in-country duty, such as currency revaluation or unexpected import or export charges, are covered by the standard terms and conditions (SAMM C5.6.5.4.7.2). Special notes may be added where a purchaser may not honor status provisions, raising costs. Every line that expects to fund travel of government or contracted personnel abroad must say so in its line description, and name the location if it is not the purchaser’s country (SAMM C5.6.5.4.7.3).
6. Statements of work
Major programs may need a memorandum of understanding, statement of work or performance work statement, referenced in or attached to the offer (SAMM C5.6.5.4.8). Routine offers can avoid a detailed statement (SAMM C5.6.5.4.8.1). They instead describe the service and its purpose, where and how it will be done and the expected result. They also note any American reservations about the project’s likely success.
7. Other things the offer must show
Supply support arrangement and blanket order offers must show the major items they support, and each consumption case must reference its stock case (SAMM C5.6.5.4.11). Every offer shows which party initiates requisitions (SAMM C5.6.5.4.12). If the purchaser does, the offer gives the information needed to initiate and route them correctly. As offers are drafted, IAs include estimated costs for storing items at government or contractor facilities before they are integrated into the end item or delivered (SAMM C5.6.5.4.13). Manpower for specific sales programs is provided on the case, either on service lines or in the price of materiel for activities outside the standard level of service (SAMM C5.6.5.4.14). A table in the manual shows which case-related manpower functions the administrative surcharge covers and which belong on the offer as lines (SAMM C5.6.5.4.14.1).
Key terms
| Implementing agency (IA) | An organization authorized to receive letters of request and prepare offers. |
|---|---|
| Multi-Service LOA | A single offer covering several weapon systems managed by more than one agency. |
| Total package approach | Delivering a system with its supporting items and services, coordinated by a lead agency. |
| Estimated delivery schedule | The quarterly delivery forecast required on major and significant equipment lines. |
| Status of forces agreement | An agreement governing the legal status of American personnel in a partner country. |
Every statement above links to the document behind it. The full source list for this piece is on the sources page.
This page describes public United States government programs for general information. It is not legal, regulatory or procurement advice, and it does not address the facts of any particular case.
How Sentfore supports this
Offers that send personnel abroad also create a need for their support there. Sentfore works at the delivery end of defense programs in difficult environments, providing secure movement, protective security, facilities and life support. Requirements can be sent through the contact page.