The Civilian Board of Contract
Appeals was established by section 847 of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2006 to hear and decide contract
disputes between government contractors and executive agencies under the
provisions of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978, 41 U.S.C. §§ 601-613,
and regulations and rules issued under that statute. The Board’s
authority extends to all agencies other than the Department of Defense,
the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, the Department
of the Air Force, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the
United States Postal Service, the Postal Rate Commission, and the
Tennessee Valley Authority.
The Board uses a variety of
techniques intended to shorten and simplify, when appropriate, the
formal proceedings normally used to resolve contract disputes. The Board
fully supports the use of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in all
appropriate cases; it encourages the prompt, expert, and inexpensive
resolution of contract disputes as promoted by the Administrative
Dispute Resolution Act. In addition, the Board provides to other
executive agencies, when jointly requested by an agency and its
contractor, alternative dispute resolution services on contract-related
matters, whether arising before or after a contract has been awarded.
The Board also hears and decides various additional
classes of cases, including:
-- Cases arising under the Indian
Self-Determination Act, 25 U.S.C. §§ 450m
et seq.;
-- Disputes between insurance companies and
the Department of Agriculture’s Risk Management Agency involving
actions of the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation under 7 U.S.C. §§
1501 et seq.;
-- Claims by federal employees under 31 U.S.C. §
3702 for reimbursement of expenses incurred while on official
temporary duty travel or in connection with relocation to a new duty
station; and
-- Claims by carriers or freight forwarders under
31 U.S.C. § 3726(i)(i) involving actions of the General Services
Administration regarding payment for transportation services.