Joint Theatre Support Contracting Command (JTSCC) (2023)

a. Commander

The commander of a JTSCC is normally an O-7 or O-8 with significant contingency contracting experience. Because of the manner by which the military services develop their contingency contracting officers, this position will normally be filled by an Air Force or Army general officer. The JTSCC commander reports to the JFC commander and is responsible for ensuring the theatre support contracting mission is conducted in an effective, efficient, and well-coordinated fashion. This commander would also serve as the JFC’s principal advisor for contracting support.

b. Administrative Staff

The commander’s administrative staff support is determined by the JTSCC commander. This support requires no specific rank and no contracting-related experience.

c. Chief of Staff

Like all chiefs of staff, the JTSCC chief of staff is responsible for integrating all special and primary staff functions within the command. Normally, this position would be an O-6 with contingency contracting experience.

d. J1

The JTSCC J1 performs personnel actions, to include working personnel assignments, joint manning document (JMD)-related actions (e.g., number of personnel slots), awards, and ratings. The J1 generally would be a personnel officer with no specific rank or contracting-related experience.

e. J2/3/5

A JTSCC does not typically have or need a J2, J3 or J5 office. If required by the JTSCC commander, the J2/3/5 officer—normally an O-5 with contracting experience—is responsible to assist the commander and SCOs with synchronizing

supporting the JFC commander’s intent with effective and efficient contracting actions. If needed, the J2/3/5 could also contain separate policy and contract-compliance divisions.

f. J4

The JTSCC J4 performs logistics actions, to include general office supply, coordinating facility support, intra-theatre travel, and other similar actions. The J4 is normally a logistics officer with no specific rank or contracting-related experience.

g. J6

The JTSCC J6 performs communications support-related actions, to include coordinating communications support, website management, and related functions. The J6 normally would be a communications or signal officer with no specific rank or contracting-related experience.

h. Senior Contracting Official (SCO)

The JTSCC generally has one to three SCOs, normally at the O-6 level, with significant contracting-related experience and certifications. The SCO’s general responsibilities include:

• Overseeing day-to-day contracting operations within his/her area of contracting responsibility

• Overseeing and assessing the effectiveness of contracting programs • Issuing warrants and determining delegated warrant authorities • Participating in the JARB (primarily the SCO for forces support) • Chairing the JCSB as directed

• Managing and executing unit inspections through procurement and performance management reviews

• Developing and providing oversight and management-control programs • Conducting special reviews as required

• Managing the contract audit follow-up program, • Suspension and debarment

i. Senior Contracting Official Operations Staff

Each SCO will normally have an operations staff with primary duties that mirror the joint theatre support contracting command J-staff functions listed previously. These staffs can vary in size and should be made up of officers and noncommissioned officers (NCO) with at least some contracting and acquisition experience.

j. Senior Contracting Official for Forces Support

The SCO for forces support is responsible for planning, coordinating, and managing theatre support contracting for deployed U.S. forces and multinational forces. This support may also include support to interagency personnel and facilities, but does not normally include support to other government agency-led civil reconstruction projects. The SCO for forces support will generally have three or more RCCs. Each RCC will have with multiple Regional Contracting Offices (RCOs). Also, the SCO for forces support may have a specialty contracting division to handle common, joint operational area (JOA), or complex contracts that exceed RCC and RCO capabilities. Three contracting organizations that often report to the SCO for forces support and are established within a JTSCC include: RCCs, RCOs, and specialty contracts divisions.

k. Regional Contracting Centers (RCC)

The specific makeup of these RCCs is dependent on the specific mission support requirement; however, a typical RCC could consist of ten to twenty-five warranted contracting officers, NCOs, and DoD civilians. It is also common practice to align these RCCs to a major land force (division, corps, or Marine Expeditionary Force) headquarters or air expeditionary wing or group. The key to the proper manning of these RCCs and their subordinate RCOs is not the rank of the contracting officers on staff, but warrant and experience levels of the staff members.

l. Regional Contracting Offices (RCO)

RCOs are joint-staffed contracting organizations under the command and control of an RCC. RCOs are made up of two to eight warranted contracting officers,

support requirements. RCOs normally provide area support to specific forward operating bases (FOBs) and designated areas within the JOA.

m. Specialty Contracts Division

In some operations, there may be a need to develop a specialty contracts division that can contract for common, JOA-wide services or supplies. Additionally, these contracting organizations may be utilized to perform complex contracting actions that exceed the RCC and RCO capabilities. The specialty contracts division will be made up of specially selected, highly trained contracting officers, NCOs, and DoD civilians who have the requisite experience and warrants to handle large, complex contract actions.

n. Senior Contracting Official for Host Nation (HN) Forces and Transition Support

This SCO for HN and transition support is responsible for planning, coordinating, and managing theatre support contracting actions in support of the JFC mission to develop, organize, train, equip, and sustain HN security forces. The SCO for HN and transition support is also responsible for providing training and transition assistance to HN security forces (and other governmental agencies as directed) in order to facilitate the development and sustainment of their own contracting support capabilities.

o. Service and Commodity Divisions

The SCO for HN Forces and transition support would normally have some type of subordinate contracting organization (or organizations) responsible for managing HN security forces and theatre support contracting actions that cannot be readily accommodated by the existing forces.

p. Transition Teams

If established, the SCO for HN and transition support will normally have multiple transition teams. These transition teams are responsible for planning and executing support HN security forces and, if directed, HN governmental contracting

support organizations and capabilities. These teams will vary in size, but must be manned with military or DoD civilian personnel with the contracting experience required by their assigned mission.

q. Senior Contracting Official for Reconstruction Support

The SCO for reconstruction is responsible for planning, coordinating, and managing theatre support contracting actions in support of the civil reconstruction mission. Normally, the SCO for reconstruction would directly support the U.S. Chief of Mission or U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). The SCO for reconstruction generally would have multiple-sector support-contracting organizations. These subordinate organizations could include, but are not limited to, the following reconstruction sector areas: water, sanitation, electricity, transportation, oil production, and other related functions. As much as resources permit, these staffs will be made up of select, highly trained contracting officers, NCOs, and DoD civilians who have the requisite experience and warrant to handle large, complex reconstruction-related contract actions (AFLMA, 2008).

Figure 8 depicts the textbook structure of a JTSCC as outlined in the most recent Contingency Contracting: A Joint Handbook for the 21st Century (AFLMA, 2008).

Figure 8. Typical Joint Theatre Support Contracting Command organization (From AFLMA, 2008, p. 47)

A typical USSOCOM contracting operation will be most similar to a Regional Contracting Office at best. Often, USSOCOM contracting units are made up of one to three CCOs operating in support of the theatre SOF teams in a particular AOR. They do not often fall within the robust structure outlined above; therefore, although streamlined, they do not have the vast network of personnel and resources available as a JTSCC would. As noted above, the command authority and OPCON comes from the local AOR GCC, while the procurement (contracting) authority comes direct from HQ USSOCOM. This differentiation can increase a CCO’s ability to act in a more timely fashion; however, this also causes difficulty in coordinating and integrating with other functional areas.

C. SUMMARY

This chapter explained the organizational construct of USSOCOM. It also provided the framework of USSOCOM, showing its unique procurement authority and how that authority is delegated down to the CCO through the SOAL. Information in this chapter provided a basic understanding of USSOCOM. This chapter also delineated the differences between a typical JTSCC (such as the JCC-I/A) and the construct of operations faced by USSOCOM CCOs. Chapter V identifies specific commonalities with construction requirements experienced by CCOs and their customers within USSOCOM operations.