Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition - Aggregated Retail Point of Sale/ Scanner Transaction Data

The United States Census Bureau published a Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition Special Notice on September 19, 2023. The notice seeks to procure aggregated retail point-of-sale transaction data from Circana Group to produce economic statistics for the agency.

The Special Notice details a justification for a sole source contract award to Circana Group to provide the Census Bureau with aggregated retail point-of-sale and scanner transaction data. The data must cover over 1,300 retailers across various industries and provide detailed store-and product-level information. The contract would run from September 2023 to August 2028, consisting of one base year and four option years, with an estimated total value of $8.5 million. Previous testing demonstrated Circana's retail data to be highly accurate for the Census Bureau's needs. A sources sought notice and notice of intent to sole source were issued in May and July 2023 respectively, but Circana was the only contractor expressing ability to meet the requirements. The justification cites authority under the Census and Survey Act and Federal Acquisition Regulation to directly acquire comparable private data in lieu of collecting it from retailers.