DISA Shifting More Work to Task Order Contracts The Defense Information Systems Agency plans to rely more heavily on task order contracts, according to an analysis by the market research firm Input. Reporting on DISA’s annual Forecast to Industry, Input analyst Alex Rossino said the agency apparently intends to fulfill “the overwhelming majority” of its requirements through its Encore II task order contract for IT hardware, software and services. DISA officials said they will also increase the use of Army task order contracts, such as ITES-2. “The agency will exploit existing internal or external contracts to the maximum extent possible,” according to a presentation at the conference by Tony Montemarano, component acquisition executive. Input’s Rossino commented, “Without doubt, the use of [multiple award contracts] at DISA and across the DoD is hampering competition and limiting transparency. This reality prompted an audience participant from one of DISA’s major industry partners to ask if the agency can set up a portal to forecast which requirements are coming out and when. Presently, very few people have access to any information; specifically, what projects will be issued as a Task Order RFP and when that competition will begin.” DISA is scheduled to begin moving its 4,000-plus employees from Northern Virginia to Fort Meade, MD, in two years as part of the Base Realignment and Closure program. The agency’s BRAC executive, David Bullock, estimated that 3,000 to 5,000 contractors will also be moving. Bullock said a survey of DISA employees in May found that 40% planned to move, 20% did not, and 40% were undecided. Four out of five employees and more than 90% of contractors are scientific or technical workers. While Bullock said plans for the move are “going extremely well” so far, Input’s Rossino said, “Off the record, however, the move to Ft. Meade is making DISA officials very uncomfortable.”