Section 550.308  Specifications

a)         The Agency shall incorporate in its specifications a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements for the material, product, or service to be procured.  Such description shall not, in competitive procurements, contain features which unduly restrict competition, unless the features are necessary to test or demonstrate a specific thing or to provide for necessary interchangeability of parts and equipment or to promote innovative technology.  The description shall include a statement of the qualitative nature of the material, product, or service to be procured and, when necessary, shall set forth those minimum essential characteristics and standards to which it must conform if it is to satisfy its intended use.

b)         The Agency shall avoid the use of detailed product specifications.

c)         When it is impractical or uneconomical to make a clear and accurate description of the technical requirements, "brand name or equal" description may be used as a means to define the performance or other salient requirements of a procurement.  The Agency need not establish the existence of any source other than the named brand.  The Agency must clearly state in the specification the salient requirements of the named brand which must be met by offerors.

d)         Each solicitation for bids shall include a copy of the current prevailing wage determination issued by the Department of Labor, for any project of construction (as defined by the Secretary of Labor) in excess of $2,000, when USEPA assistance program legislation requires compliance with the Davis Bacon Act (40 U.S.C. 276a to 1-7) as supplemented by Department of Labor regulations (29 CFR Part 5).