Naming the item, and the clock on a request

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1. Nothing is sold that has no number

Every article and service on an agreement is identified by an entry on a controlled list. "MASLs are composed of descriptive codes and text and are used to identify articles and services proposed for transfer on an LOA document" (SAMM C5.6.6).

An item with no entry cannot be put on a case. The drafting agency then asks for the list to be changed, updating an entry or creating one (SAMM C5.6.6). The advice about timing is plain. "The IAs will submit MASL requests at the earliest possible point in the case development phase to avoid delays" (SAMM C5.6.6).

A separate handbook carries the detail, and the manual points to it rather than reproducing it (SAMM C5.6.6). What the list feeds into is described in how an FMS case is built.

2. Asking for a new entry

The process is deliberately personal at the requesting end. "Each IA will assign a Point of Contact (POC) to facilitate MASL request processing and allow for efficient responses to any questions or concerns" (SAMM C5.6.6.1.1). That person owns accuracy, not just transmission, and has to see that the form is complete with its supporting material before it is submitted through a tracker (SAMM C5.6.6.1.1).

The supporting material is where the work sits. For major defense equipment the examples are cost calculation worksheets and technical specifications, and the form must carry a figure: "For MASL requests that are MDE, the MASL Request Form must include the estimated NC recoupment charge per unit" (SAMM C5.6.6.1.1.1). Recoupment of development cost is covered in what a buyer pays towards development costs.

One division decides. The financial analysis and compliance division "is responsible for reviewing, processing, and approving all MASL requests" (SAMM C5.6.6.1.1), which is not the same office that writes the agreement itself.

3. What gets checked, and by whom

The review starts with completeness and accuracy, then adds something less obvious for a new entry. "For new MASLs, DSCA (OBO/FPRE/FAC) will also ensure recommended MASL nomenclature and abbreviations are consistent with similar existing MASL entries" (SAMM C5.6.6.1.2). A list is only useful if similar things are named in similar ways, and someone is made responsible for that.

The published table splits the work into two columns. The requesting agency supplies nineteen fields. Among them are the description, a description suitable for the agreement itself, generic and action codes, unit of issue and classification. Flags follow for significant military equipment, missile technology, end use monitoring, the munitions list and communications security (SAMM Table C5.T11).

The agency then verifies a shorter list, and its contents show what the entry is really for. Alongside recoupment charges and the equipment flags sit the Wassenaar Arrangement, the United Nations register of conventional arms, and the Vienna based security organization for Europe (SAMM Table C5.T11). The list entry is what later drives reporting under those regimes, which is why the coding matters beyond the case.

Two other offices are brought in. Valid and complete requests are coordinated with the global execution directorate and the weapons division. The manual says those offices verify the information as set out in a table numbered C5.T19, which is not the table printed alongside the text (SAMM C5.6.6.1.2.1). Questions travel back through the reviewing division rather than direct, and at the end "DSCA (OBO/FPRE/FAC) will establish the MASL in DSAMS and inform the IA MASL Request POC" (SAMM C5.6.6.1.2.1.1).

4. Ten business days, or two

Two service levels are published. Routine requests are normally processed within 10 business days of receipt, and urgent ones within 2 (SAMM C5.6.6.1.3.1).

The faster lane is rationed against the case rather than the commercial pressure. Requests for urgent handling "should be limited to instances where the LOA document processing is being expedited and should include supporting justification" (SAMM C5.6.6.1.3.1). An urgent list entry follows an expedited case, not the reverse.

5. Who prepares which part of the document

Drafting is shared, and the split is published. "Preparation of Basic LOAs, Amendments, and Modifications is divided between the IAs and the DSCA (IOPS/GEX/CWD)" (SAMM C5.6.9).

The drafting agency owns the substance. Its column covers the case and line structure, pricing and delivery data, terms of sale, and the line and case notes. It also covers congressional notification data, waiver requests, releasability, sole source justification, site surveys, offset information, anti tamper requirements, leases and restatements (SAMM Table C5.T12).

The case writing division owns the document as an instrument. It finalizes the text, sequences lines and notes, enters the standard notes and adjusts offer expiration dates. It also validates accessorial charges, prepares payment schedules, coordinates the list sent to the state department, and reviews the package for compliance with the governing statutes (SAMM Table C5.T12). Then it countersigns.

The dividing line is useful to hold. Anything about what is being sold and at what price belongs to the drafting agency. Anything about whether the document is lawful and properly formed belongs to the writing division. Payment schedules are covered in payment schedules and billing.

6. The dates on a request

A request carries a short series of dates, and they are not interchangeable. The first is simply the date on the partner’s letter. The second is receipt, defined as the "Date the IA received the LOR, independent of any validation or assessment of whether it is actionable" (SAMM Table C5.T14).

Between receipt and any work there is an assessment against published criteria. Two outcomes end it. A request that fails is insufficient, and then "Case development activities, to include case initialization, cannot be started until more information is obtained or clarified with the purchaser" (SAMM Table C5.T14). A request that passes is actionable: "An LOR that meets the mandatory requirements found on Table C5.T4A.is considered actionable" (SAMM Table C5.T14), with the missing space after the table number reproduced from the source. From that point "IA may proceed with case development actions once this milestone is entered" (SAMM Table C5.T14).

The assessment step is only compulsory for one class of case. "The LOR Assessment milestone will be mandatory for Category C cases but optional for other categories" (SAMM Table C5.T14). Two of these milestones are not yet fields in the system at all, so tracking them is left to the agency until it is updated.

Which date starts the clock depends on the category of document. For most categories it is the receipt date; for one it is the actionable date (SAMM Table C5.T14). The last date is not entered by anyone. Offer status arrives on its own, and "This happens automatically when the countersignature date is entered in DSAMS by DSCA (IOPS/GEX/CWD)" (SAMM Table C5.T14).

7. What a supplier can take from this

Two invisible steps can hold a case before anything visible has begun. If the item has no list entry, someone waits up to ten business days for one, and for major equipment that wait includes producing a per unit recoupment figure. Supplying the technical detail early is the practical contribution.

The dates matter for a different reason. A partner may regard a letter as sent and the clock as running, while the receiving agency has not yet judged the request actionable. Time spent clarifying an incomplete request is time in which no drafting is permitted, which is the most common reason a case appears stalled at the outset.

Key terms

MASL	The controlled list entry identifying an article or service on an agreement.
MASL point of contact	The person in the drafting agency responsible for the accuracy of a list request.
Nonrecurring cost recoupment	The per unit development charge that must appear on a request for major equipment.
LOR actionable	The point at which a request meets the mandatory criteria and drafting may begin.

Every statement above links to the document behind it. The full source list for this piece is on the sources page.

This page describes public United States government programs for general information. It is not legal, regulatory or procurement advice, and it does not address the facts of any particular case.

How Sentfore supports this

Nothing can be delivered that has not first been described, coded and priced. Sentfore provides secure movement, protective security, facilities and life support for defense programs once equipment and people are in country. Requirements can be sent through the contact page.