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Dr. Brad Nathan
Lecturer & Postdoctoral Research Scholar
Accounting Division
Columbia Business School

This paper studies how requirements for suppliers to privately disclose accounting information affect the bidding and execution of government procurement contracts. Using thresholds related to a federal procurement regulation known as the Truth in Negotiations Act (TINA), which requires suppliers to disclose data supporting their proposed prices unless there is a minimum number of competing bidders, I find that compared to below-threshold contracts, above-threshold contracts experience greater competition, performance (i.e., less frequent re-negotiations and cost overruns), and completeness (i.e., decreased reliance on cost-plus contracts). These findings are consistent with the procurement system paying greater attention to promote competition for above-threshold contracts.