FPDS Query Library
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Solicitation Procedures

Human-readable value describing the solicitation procedure recorded for an Other Transaction Award competition record. It captures how the offer or sourcing action was conducted or classified in FPDS, often using a coded or abbreviated value such as "PS".

Family: Other Transaction Award
Category: Competition
Data Type: string
Semantic Type: attribute
Mapping: flattened_fpds_xml_field
AI Confidence: high

Variable Overview

FPDS Query Variable
content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures
Title
Solicitation Procedures
FPDS Path
OtherTransactionAward/contractDetail/competition/solicitationProcedures
Description
Human-readable value describing the solicitation procedure recorded for an Other Transaction Award competition record. It captures how the offer or sourcing action was conducted or classified in FPDS, often using a coded or abbreviated value such as "PS".
Business Meaning
This field helps analysts assess competition patterns, sourcing methods, and whether the award was recorded as competitive or noncompetitive. It is useful for comparing solicitation approaches across awards, identifying procurement structure trends, and supporting oversight of how the transaction was solicited.
Example Value
PS
Observed Non-Null Count
38,894

FPDS Compare

FPDS Query Variable
content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures
FPDS XML Path
OtherTransactionAward/contractDetail/competition/solicitationProcedures
Mapping Type
flattened_fpds_xml_field
Comparison Summary
FPDS Query flattens the original nested FPDS XML path 'OtherTransactionAward/contractDetail/competition/solicitationProcedures' into the SQL-ready variable 'content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures'.

Use Cases

  • Dictionary lookup and field explanation
  • SQL filtering and grouping
  • Analytical reporting and reusable query building
  • Competition and sole-source analysis

Common Usage

  • Segment awards by solicitation approach
  • Analyze competitive versus noncompetitive patterns
  • Validate FPDS coding consistency

Common Mistakes

  • Assuming the value is a plain-language explanation instead of a coded label
  • Inferring competition status without checking related competition fields

Query Guidance

Use this field in GROUP BY, DISTINCT, and filter logic to summarize solicitation procedure categories. In SQL, compare against observed codes or join to a lookup table if available, and avoid hard-coding interpretations without confirming the FPDS code meaning.

SQL Examples

Preview values

SELECT
    content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures AS solicitation_procedures
FROM fpds.data
WHERE content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures IS NOT NULL
LIMIT 25

Top values

SELECT
    content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures AS value,
    count() AS record_count
FROM fpds.data
WHERE content__OtherTransactionAward__contractDetail__competition__solicitationProcedures IS NOT NULL
GROUP BY value
ORDER BY record_count DESC
LIMIT 25

Each dictionary item includes SQL-ready examples generated alongside the variable metadata, allowing immediate use in FPDS Query for filtering, aggregation, and analysis.