What is an IAA?

Most will instantly recognize that this familiar acronym stands for Interagency Agreement (IAA). But have you noticed that this same acronym sometimes is used a bit differently? For example, FAR Subpart 17.5 addresses policies for a “Special Contracting Method” called “Interagency Acquisition” (a different IAA?).

An acronym will often have very different meanings when used in different contexts. But, what about 1 acronym having different specific meanings in very similar contexts? Let’s look briefly at 3 sometimes encountered but importantly different situations that can be termed IAAs – all within the context of managing and expending Federal appropriated funds.

• Interagency Agreement – An agreement between 2 Federal agencies by which a “Requesting Agency” seeks to satisfy its needs via services or materials that are best available from – or with assistance of - another agency, called the “Servicing Agency.” This may be due to the Servicing Agency’s mission-related capability or expertise that is not available within the Requesting Agency or for reasons of efficiency or economy, e.g., leveraging Government purchasing power.
• Interagency Acquisition – The common type of Interagency Agreement covered by FAR 17.5, under which the Requesting Agency meets its own acquisition needs via some level of assistance from the Servicing Agency.
• Intra-Agency Agreement – A special type of Interagency Agreement under which the Requesting and Servicing Agency are organizational components of a larger agency that receive separate appropriations.

Overarching policies and rules for Interagency Agreements are established by the Office of Management and Budget, with the Treasury Department in charge of managing procedures, including development of the forms and required procedures because, in the end, all types of IAAs result in one agency expending funds that were appropriated by Congress or otherwise in the control of a different agency.

Want to know more? “Stay tuned” for another blog with a deeper dive into Interagency Acquisitions under FAR 17.5.

In the meantime, if you are new to working on an acquisition requirement where an IAA is being considered or you have been assigned to an Acquisition Team at either the Requesting or the Servicing Agency and need to get a handle on the IAA historical activity and status? One source of assistance is the video tutorials available in our suite of acquisition support products:

• Acquisition planning: Facilitated Intelligent Needs Development (FIND).
• Post-award performance management: Contractor Performance Intelligence (CPI)
• Funds planning, management and tracking: Spend Intelligence (SI)

These short tutorials help you to understand what you need to know to effectively and efficiently meet the needs of your role and those of your agency as a whole, with respect to the IAA based on your own objectives and acquisition circumstances. The FIND, CPI and SI libraries also have tailorable Templates, Formats, Guidance documents and automated processing capabilities to assist you in ensuring the IAA-related activities are documented and tracked to ensure you are able to meet your agency’s needs. 

Or better yet, request a demo at demo@seventhsenseconsulting.com or contact us at (301) 392-1895 or lakers@seventhsenseconsulting.com.   

Make it an enlightened day, 

Pat Shields 

Director – Acquisition Practice 

Seventh Sense Consulting