Periodic control assessments, POA&M lifecycle management, ongoing monitoring schedules, and System Security Plan documentation. All four CA domain practices covered in one editable Word document.
What Is Included
Policy scope, purpose, and applicability statement
Roles and responsibilities matrix (ISSO, System Owner, Management)
Practice 3.12.1: Control assessment methodology, frequency table, and assessor qualifications
Practice 3.12.2: POA&M structure, risk-level classification table, ownership assignments, and closure criteria
Practice 3.12.3: Ongoing monitoring schedule (daily, monthly, quarterly, annual activities)
Practice 3.12.4: SSP documentation requirements, update triggers, and review cadence
Records retention requirements
Policy exception process
Revision history table and document control block
All placeholders clearly bracketed for organization-specific customization
Practice Coverage
3.12.1Periodically assess the security controls in organizational systems to determine if the controls are effective in their application
3.12.2Develop and implement plans of action designed to correct deficiencies and reduce or eliminate vulnerabilities in organizational systems
3.12.3Monitor security controls on an ongoing basis to ensure the continued effectiveness of the controls
3.12.4Develop, document, and periodically update system security plans that describe system boundaries, system environments, and implementation of security controls
Who Needs This
Any organization pursuing CMMC Level 2 certification needs written policy documentation for the CA domain before their C3PAO assessment. This template is specifically built for:
Defense contractors handling CUI under a DoD contract
MSPs managing CMMC compliance for DIB clients
IT managers building out their NIST SP 800-171 documentation package
Organizations that have a SPRS score below 110 and need to formalize their POA&M process
Frequently Asked Questions
This policy covers all four CA domain practices: 3.12.1 (periodically assess security controls), 3.12.2 (develop and manage a POA&M), 3.12.3 (monitor controls on an ongoing basis), and 3.12.4 (develop and maintain a System Security Plan). Together these four practices account for the complete Security Assessment domain under CMMC Level 2.
A Plan of Action and Milestones (POA&M) is a formal document that tracks identified security weaknesses, assigns ownership, sets remediation timelines, and documents risk acceptance decisions. Practice 3.12.2 requires defense contractors to maintain a POA&M as evidence that they are actively managing identified gaps. Without one, assessors have no way to verify deficiencies are being tracked and remediated.
Practice 3.12.1 requires periodic assessments but does not mandate a specific frequency. Most assessors expect at minimum an annual full assessment, with additional continuous monitoring activities running throughout the year (monthly vulnerability scans, quarterly log reviews, etc.). This template includes a monitoring frequency table that maps specific activities to daily, monthly, quarterly, and annual cadences.
Yes. Section 5.4 of the template addresses System Security Plan requirements under practice 3.12.4 - including what the SSP must document, who owns it, how often it must be updated, and how it relates to your assessment and monitoring activities. It complements our standalone SSP template if you need the full SSP document as well.