Grant Money and Program Changes · 3 of 3
Redirecting equipment to another partner
In short
- Political instability and shifting priorities are named reasons for redirection.
- Where the equipment physically sits drives whether redirection is affordable.
- Articles failing inspection go to disposal, recorded on the case line note.
1. Equipment bought for a partner that will not receive it
On a grant funded program the equipment is bought before the partner owns it, which creates a situation a sale never produces. The articles exist, they are paid for, and the intended recipient is no longer going to get them.
The manual gives three answers. Equipment already released from stock or from a vendor can be sent for disposal, treated as American stock under one authority, or redirected to a different partner eligible under the same authority (SAMM C15.6.3).
Disposal has named destinations. Articles "can be redirected to the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) for disposal, or to the Joint Munitions Command (JMC) for all ammunition items that require disposal" (SAMM C15.6.3). How these cases are planned in the first place is covered in planning a grant funded program.
2. Why a partner stops being the recipient
Redirection applies to a specific window: "articles that are procured but not yet transferred to a Benefitting Partner may require redirection via renotification to a different Benefitting Partner" (SAMM C15.6.3.1). Before transfer, the equipment is still American.
The reasons are listed without euphemism. "This may occur because of political instability, program cancellation, changes in requirements, or shifting priorities" (SAMM C15.6.3.1).
Several parties can raise it. The policy and acquisition offices, the state department and the geographic command may all identify that a partner will no longer receive the articles (SAMM C15.6.3.1). Coordination with the state department happens before Congress is notified of the intent to redirect, and the policy office then "provides DSCA with direction and will support the CN" (SAMM C15.6.3.1).
3. Six questions before anything moves
A published table sets out what has to be weighed, and read together the six factors are a realistic picture of why redirection is harder than it sounds.
The first is simply finding candidates: "DSCA (IOPS) and the geographic CCMD coordinate to identify specific defense articles that may warrant redirection to an alternate Benefitting Partner(s)" (SAMM Table C15.T6).
The second is the state of the goods. Whoever physically holds them "coordinates with the IA that sourced the defense article to assess the condition to determine suitability for transfer to a new Benefitting Partner" (SAMM Table C15.T6), because the equipment will most likely ship in the condition it is in.
The third is geography, and it is the most practical. "The location of articles at the time a proposed redirection is considered is a critical factor because of the need to determine the feasibility and cost of shipment to the new Benefitting Partner(s)" (SAMM Table C15.T6). Where the equipment already sits in one command area, "redirecting those articles to a different area of operations may be cost ineffective and administratively cumbersome" (SAMM Table C15.T6).
The fourth is strategic fit. "Any redirection decision must be consistent with and further an established SSCI for the potential new Benefitting Partners" (SAMM Table C15.T6), and the command has to explain how it does.
The fifth asks whether the new recipient can use it. "Each potential Benefitting Partner for gaining redirected defense articles must be assessed for absorption capacity by the applicable geographic CCMD for the new Benefitting Partner" (SAMM Table C15.T6).
The sixth records a preference and then overrides it. The view of the command losing the program "will always be considered but does not prevent USW(P) direction to redirect defense article to other Partner(s)" (SAMM Table C15.T6).
4. Who decides, and what the new partner must say
The decision sits at policy level. The under secretary responsible for policy "selects the new Benefitting Partner(s), in coordination with DSCA (IOPS), the geographic CCMD that was the original Requesting Authority (RA)" (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1), along with any command that would become the new requesting authority.
The receiving side then has to put something in writing. A memorandum of request comes from the command for the proposed new partner, addressed to the agency assistant director, and it must identify the specific articles and confirm two things. The first is capacity: "Absorption Capacity. Confirmation that the Benefitting Partner has the capacity to effectively utilize the articles" (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.2). The second is purpose: "Strategic Rationale. Explanation of the strategic reasons that may be advantageous to the USG for the Benefitting Partner" (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.2).
It must also record that the partner understands what it is getting, since the memorandum includes an acknowledgment that the equipment will be shipped in the condition it is in (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.2).
Congress is not bypassed. "Articles requiring redirection from the original Benefitting Partner must comply with applicable CN requirements" (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.3), which is covered in congressional notification of arms sales.
5. How the paperwork records it
Two cases now exist, and both carry the story. On the original case, the agency "will enter a case remark indicating the BPC case line, quantity, and the item description not being delivered to the original Benefitting Partner, and the new BPC case ID the transfer will be conducted on" (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.1), and the redirected quantity is noted in the line description.
On the receiving side a new case is written, or an existing one amended, using the program code the articles were originally provided under, and funds do not need to be obligated again (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.1). Its case remark names the quantity, the item, the original case identifier and the relevant notification reference.
One clearance is not needed. "Prior Year Adjustment Review is not required" (SAMM C15.6.3.1.1.1), which matters because redirection often happens well after the original money has expired. Adjustments that do need approval are covered in amending a grant funded case.
6. When nothing can be salvaged
Some equipment is not redirected because it is not fit to send. "For defense articles that are determined to be unserviceable or that do not pass inspection prior to shipping due to safety concerns (e.g., ammunition) DSCA (IOPS) will accomplish the disposal action" (SAMM C15.6.3.2), coordinating with the logistics agency, the munitions command and the policy and acquisition offices.
Disposal is recorded on the case rather than simply carried out. "The IA will identify the quantity being disposed of in the applicable line description note" (SAMM C15.6.3.2).
The manual notes twice that better tracking is coming, with future system functionality to record redirected and disposed quantities in more detail (SAMM C15.6.3.2). For now the audit trail is a case remark and a line note.
7. What a supplier can take from this
Equipment bought under one of these programs can change destination after it is built and before it is handed over. The decision is taken at policy level, not by the command that asked for it. For anyone holding, moving or storing that equipment, the destination in the contract is not guaranteed.
Two of the six factors are logistics questions. Where the equipment physically sits drives whether redirection is affordable at all, and the receiving partner has to acknowledge that it arrives in the condition it is in. That is precisely the point at which inspection, refurbishment and onward movement become somebody else’s contract.
And where equipment fails inspection, the outcome is disposal rather than repair, handled by the logistics agency or the munitions command depending on what it is.
Key terms
| Redirection | Sending procured but untransferred articles to a different eligible partner, after renotification. |
|---|---|
| Absorption capacity | Whether a partner can actually use the equipment, assessed by the command for the new recipient. |
| As is condition | The state in which redirected equipment ships, which the new partner must acknowledge in writing. |
| Disposal action | The route for unserviceable articles or those failing inspection, through the logistics agency or the munitions command. |
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
Equipment changing destination late is a movement and storage problem before it is anything else. Sentfore provides secure movement, protective security, facilities and life support for defense programs in complex environments. Requirements can be sent through the contact page.