This interactive decision tool helps federal contracting officers determine whether Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA) or best-value tradeoff source selection is appropriate for a given acquisition. It walks through the key regulatory considerations from FAR 15.101, DFARS 215.101-2-70, and NDAA Section 813, and provides a recommendation based on your answers. The tool is designed for GS-13 and GS-14 contracting officers and contracting officer representatives who are drafting source selection plans.
The Evidence Behind This Tool
The decision logic in this tool is grounded in federal acquisition regulation, but the recommendation to favor best-value tradeoff for complex services is also supported by empirical research. In Paper 1, we use a difference-in-differences design to show that NDAA Section 813’s restriction on LPTA in DoD services led to measurable improvements in contract outcomes, including reduced cost growth and fewer single-bid awards. Paper 4 examines the single-bid problem directly, finding that evaluation method choice is linked to competitive dynamics.
Perhaps most importantly, Paper 2 applies Transaction Cost Economics to show that evaluation method matters most for complex, smaller contracts in competitive markets. When the acquisition is technically complex, when contract values are moderate (not so large that other oversight mechanisms dominate), and when multiple firms are competing, best-value tradeoff delivers the greatest performance advantages over LPTA. These are precisely the conditions where contracting officers have the most discretion — and where this decision tool can be most useful.