Code, except that the court may set aside or limit any award that is found to violate limitations imposed by Federal statute.

(h) Pursuant to the authority conferred under the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act, the Administrator is authorized and directed, as may be necessary or desirable to carry out the provisions of this Act, to issue guidelines with respect to criteria for the establishment, functions, and procedures of the agency boards (except for a board established by the Tennessee Valley Authority).

(i) Within one hundred and twenty days from the date of enactment of this Act, all agency boards, except that of the Tennessee Valley Authority, of three or more full time members shall develop workload studies for approval by the agency head as specified in section 8(a)(1).

SMALL CLAIMS

SEC. 9. [41 U.S.C. 608] (a) The rules of each agency board shall include a procedure for the expedited disposition of any appeal from a decision of a contracting officer where the amount in dispute is $50,000 or less. The small claims procedure shall be applicable at the sole election of the contractor.

(b) The small claims procedure shall provide for simplified rules of procedure to facilitate the decision of any appeal thereunder. Such appeals may be decided by a single member of the agency board with such concurrences as may be provided by rule or regulation.

(c) Appeals under the small claims procedure shall be resolved, whenever possible, within one hundred twenty days from the date on which the contractor elects to utilize such procedure.

(d) A decision against the Government or the contractor reached under the small claims procedure shall be final and conclusive and shall not be set aside except in cases of fraud.

(e) Administrative determinations and final decisions under this section shall have no value as precedent for future cases under this Act.

(f) The Administrator is authorized to review at least every three years, beginning with the third year after the enactment of the Act, the dollar amount defined in section 9(a) as a small claim, and based upon economic indexes selected by the Administrator adjust that level accordingly.

ACTIONS IN COURT: JUDICIAL REVIEW OF BOARD DECISIONS

SEC. 10. [41 U.S.C. 609] (a)(1) Except as provided in paragraph (2), and in lieu of appealing the decision of the contracting officer under section 6 to an agency board, a contractor may bring an action directly on the claim in the United States Claims Court, notwithstanding any contract provision, regulation, or rule of law to the contrary.

(2) In the case of an action against the Tennessee Valley Authority, the contractor may only bring an action directly on the

proceedings which, in the judgment of the agencies that are parties to the dispute resolution proceedings, require such continuation, until such proceedings terminate.".

"The reference in section 10(a)(1) is deemed to be a reference to the United States Court of Federal Claims. See footnote 5.

claim in a United States district court pursuant to section 1337 of title 28, United States Code, notwithstanding any contract provision, regulation, or rule of law to the contrary.

(3) Any action under paragraph (1) or (2) shall be filed within twelve months from the date of the receipt by the contractor of the decision of the contracting officer concerning the claim, and shall proceed de novo in accordance with the rules of the appropriate court.

(b) In the event of an appeal by a contractor or the Government from a decision of any agency board pursuant to section 8, notwithstanding any contract provision, regulation, or rules of law to the contrary, the decision of the agency board on any question of law shall not be final or conclusive, but the decision on any question of fact shall be final and conclusive and shall not be set aside unless the decision is fraudulent, or arbitrary, or capricious, or so grossly erroneous as to necessarily imply bad faith, or if such decision is not supported by substantial evidence.

(c) In any appeal by a contractor or the Government from a decision of an agency board pursuant to section 8, the court may render an opinion and judgment and remand the case for further action by the agency board or by the executive agency as appropriate, with such direction as the court considers just and proper. (d) If two or more suits arising from one contract are filed in the Court of Claims and one or more agency boards, for the convenience of parties or witnesses or in the interest of justice, the United States Claims Court may order the consolidation of such suits in that court or transfer any suits to or among the agency boards involved.

(e) In any suit filed pursuant to this Act involving two or more claims, counterclaims, cross-claims, or third-party claims, and where a portion of one such claim can be divided for purposes of decision or judgment, and in any such suit where multiple parties are involved, the court, whenever such action is appropriate, may enter a judgment as to one or more but fewer than all of the claims, portions thereof, or parties.

(f)(1) Whenever an action involving an issue described in paragraph (2) is pending in a district court of the United States, the district court may request a board of contract appeals to provide the court with an advisory opinion on the matters of contract interpretation at issue.

(2) An issue referred to in paragraph (1) is any issue that could be the proper subject of a final decision of a contracting officer appealable under this Act.

(3) A district court shall direct any request under paragraph (1) to the board of contract appeals having jurisdiction under this Act to adjudicate appeals of contract claims under the contract or contracts being interpreted by the court.

(4) After receiving a request for an advisory opinion under paragraph (1), a board of contract appeals shall provide the advisory opinion in a timely manner to the district court making the request.

SUBPENA, DISCOVERY AND DEPOSITION

SEC. 11. [41 U.S.C. 610] A member of an agency board of contract appeals may administer oaths to witnesses, authorize depositions and discovery proceedings, and require by subpena the attendance of witnesses, and production of books and papers, for the taking of testimony or evidence by deposition or in the hearing of an appeal by the agency board. In case of contumacy or refusal to obey a subpena by a person who resides, is found, or transacts business within the jurisdiction of a United States district court, the court, upon application of the agency board through the Attorney General; or upon application by the board of contract appeals of the Tennessee Valley Authority, shall have jurisdiction to issue the person an order requiring him to appear before the agency board or a member thereof, to produce evidence or to give testimony, or both. Any failure of any such person to obey the order of the court may be punished by the court as a contempt thereof.

INTEREST

SEC. 12. [41 U.S.C. 611] Interest on amounts found due contractors on claims shall be paid to the contractor from the date the contracting officer receives the claim pursuant to section 6(a) from the contractor until payment thereof. The interest provided for in this section shall be paid at the rate established by the Secretary of the Treasury pursuant to Public Law 92-41 (85 Štat. 97) for the Renegotiation Board. 8

APPROPRIATIONS

SEC. 13. [41 U.S.C. 612] (a) Any judgment against the United States on a claim under this Act shall be paid promptly in accordance with the procedures provided by section 1302 of the Act of July 27, 1956, (70 Stat. 694, as amended; 31 U.S.C. 724a).9

(b) Any monetary award to a contractor by an agency board of contract appeals shall be paid promptly in accordance with the procedures contained in subsection (a) above.

(c) Payments made pursuant to subsections (a) and (b) shall be reimbursed to the fund provided by section 1302 of the Act of July 27, 1956, (70 Stat. 694, as amended; 31 U.S.C 724a) by the agency whose appropriations were used for the contract out of available funds or by obtaining additional appropriations for such purposes. (d)(1) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) through (c), any judgment against the Tennessee Valley Authority on a claim under this Act shall be paid promptly in accordance with the provisions of section 9(b) of the Tennessee Valley Authority Act of 1933 (16 U.S.C. 831(h)). 10

(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (a) through (c), any monetary award to a contractor by the board of contract

Section 907(a)(3) of Public Law 102-572 provides:

(3) If any interest is due under section 12 of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 on a claim for which the certification under section 6(c)1) is, on or after the date of the enactment of this Act (October 29, 1992], found to be defective shall be paid from the later of the date on which the contracting officer initially received the claim or the date of the enactment of this Act (October 29, 1992).

The section referred to by section 13(a) is now section 1304 of title 31, United States Code. 10 So in law. The citation in section 13(d)(1) should be 16 U.S.C. 831h(b).

appeals for the Tennessee Valley Authority shall be paid in accordance with the provisions of section 9(b) of the Tennessee Valley Authority Act of 1933 (16 U.S.C. 831(h)).

AMENDMENTS AND REPEALS

SEC. 14. (a)

SEVERABILITY CLAUSE

SEC. 15. [41 U.S.C. 613] If any provision of this Act, or the application of such provision to any persons or circumstances, is held invalid, the remainder of this Act, or the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those to which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby.

EFFECTIVE DATE OF ACT

SEC. 16. [41 U.S.C. 601 note] This Act shall apply to contracts entered into one hundred twenty days after the date of enactment [Nov. 1, 1978]. Notwithstanding any provision in a contract made before the effective date of this Act, the contractor may elect to proceed under this Act with respect to any claim pending then before the contracting officer or initiated thereafter.

Public Law 85-804

AN ACT To authorize the making, amendment, and modification of contracts to facilitate the national defense

Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, That [50 U.S.C. 1431] the President may authorize any department or agency of the Government which exercises functions in connection with the national defense, acting in accordance with regulations prescribed by the President for the protection of the Government, to enter into contracts or into amendments or modifications of contracts heretofore or hereafter made and to make advance payments thereon, without regard to other provisions of law relating to the making, performance, amendment, or modification of contracts, whenever he deems that such action would facilitate the national defense. The authority conferred by this section shall not be utilized to obligate the United States in an amount in excess of $50,000 without approval by an official at or above the level of an Assistant Secretary or his Deputy, or an assistant head or his deputy, of such department or agency, or by a Contract Adjustment Board established therein. The authority conferred by this section may not be utilized to obligate the United States in any amount in excess of $25,000,000 unless the Committees on Armed Services of the Senate and House of Representatives have been notified in writing of such proposed obligation and 60 days of continuous session of Congress have expired following the date on which such notice was transmitted to such Committees. For purposes of this section, the continuity of a session of Congress is broken only by an adjournment of the Congress sine die at the end of a Congress, and the days on which either House is not in session because of an adjournment of more than 3 days to a day certain, or because of an adjournment sine die other than at the end of a Congress, are excluded in the computation of such 60-day period.

SEC. 2. [50 U.S.C. 1432] Nothing in this Act shall be construed to constitute authorization hereunder for

(a) the use of the cost-plus-a-percentage-of-cost system of contracting;

(b) any contract in violation of existing law relating to limitation of profits;

(c) the negotiation of purchases of or contracts for property or services required by law to be procured by formal advertising and competitive bidding;

(d) the waiver of any bid, payment, performance, or other bond required by law;

(e) the amendment of a contract negotiated under section 2304(a)(15), title 10, United States Code, or under section 302(c)(13) of the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act of 1949, as amended (63 Stat. 377, 394), to increase the