Federal Acquisition Regulation: Revolutionary FAR Overhaul Parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, and 51

Federal RegisterSep 18, 2026

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OFFICE OF MANAGEMENT AND BUDGET

Office of Federal Procurement Policy

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

48 CFR Parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, 51, and 52

[FAR Case 2026-003, Docket No. FAR-2026-0003, Sequence No. 1]

RIN 9000-AO88

Federal Acquisition Regulation: Revolutionary FAR Overhaul Parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, and 51

AGENCY:

Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP), Office of Management and Budget (OMB); Department of Defense (DoD); General Services Administration (GSA); and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

OFPP, DoD, GSA, and NASA (collectively referred to as the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council or FAR Council) are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement Executive Order (E.O.) 14275, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement. The E.O. directs the elimination of excessive acquisition regulations to stop the inefficient use of American taxpayer dollars. The FAR Council is issuing twelve proposed rules that collectively will streamline the FAR in its entirety. This rule proposes revisions to FAR parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, 51, and 52.

DATES:

Interested parties should submit written comments to the Regulatory Secretariat Division at the address shown below on or before October 19, 2026, to be considered in the formation of the final rule.

ADDRESSES:

Submit comments in response to FAR Case 2026-003 to the Federal eRulemaking portal at

https://www.regulations.gov.

Follow the instructions for sending comments.

Instructions:

Please submit comments only and cite “FAR Case 2026-003” in all correspondence related to this case. Include your name, company name (if any), and “FAR Case 2026-003” on any attached document. Comments received generally will be posted without change to

https://www.regulations.gov,

including any personal and/or business confidential information provided. Public comments may be submitted as an individual, as an organization, or anonymously (see frequently asked questions at

https://www.regulations.gov/faq

). To confirm receipt of your comment(s), please check

https://www.regulations.gov,

approximately two to three days after submission to verify posting.

Docket:

For access to the docket to read background documents or comments received, go to

https://www.regulations.gov/FAR-2026-0003.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

For clarification of content, contact

FARpolicy@gsa.gov

or call 202-969-4075 and cite “FAR Case 2026-003.” For information pertaining to status, publication schedules, or alternate instructions for submitting comments if

https://www.regulations.gov

cannot be used, contact the Regulatory Secretariat Division at 202-501-4755 or

GSARegSec@gsa.gov.

Please cite “FAR Case 2026-003.”

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

E.O. 14275, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement (April 15, 2025), resets the foundation for Federal buying by requiring the FAR Council to produce a streamlined FAR that is simpler, clearer, and structured for speed. According to the E.O., the FAR has evolved from its original purpose (

i.e.,

to establish uniform procedures across executive departments and agencies), into an excessive and overcomplicated regulatory framework and bureaucracy. While meant to “deliver, on a timely basis, the best value product or service to the customer, while maintaining the public's trust and fulfilling public policy objectives,” the FAR has become an expensive barrier to achieving those objectives. As a result, the E.O. directed the FAR Council and OMB to create an agile, effective, and efficient regulation that contains only provisions required by statute or essential to sound procurement.

To implement E.O. 14275, OMB issued Memorandum M-25-26, Overhauling the Federal Acquisition Regulation, which announced the “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul” (RFO) and created a roadmap for producing a simpler regulation aligned to statute, rewritten in plain language, and including only those nonstatutory requirements that are necessary to conducting sound procurement. The memorandum described a new streamlined vision for the FAR, to be maintained alongside nonregulatory governmentwide guidance to provide a common-sense authoritative foundation for nimble response and delivery of mission capability.

This new vision represents a paradigm shift where over-engineered regulations designed for paperwork and compliance are replaced with streamlined regulations focused on core stewardship principles and nonregulatory guidance focused that will be used in concert with the streamlined FAR focused on proven buying strategies, critical thinking, market awareness (including to expand awareness of goods, products, and materials offered in the United States), and risk literacy to enhance workforce problem-solving. The significant reduction of unnecessary mandates is intended to clarify and reinforce the contracting officer's discretion to determine the best way to apply policies and practices. The newly established, nonregulatory guidance, which has been inspired by acquisition innovation advocates, category managers, other experienced practitioners, and many years of feedback from the contractor community—is expected to facilitate contracting officers' use of their discretion more efficiently and effectively to make smarter buying decisions.

OMB Memorandum M-25-26 also directed the FAR Council to complete the regulatory overhaul in two phases, each with robust public input. The FAR Council conducted its phase one effort in fiscal year 2025 by issuing model class deviations to replace each part in the FAR until such time as formal rulemaking occurred. This proposed rule is one of a series that constitute the FAR Council's phase two effort to obtain public comment through formal rulemaking.

II. Discussion and Analysis

A summary of proposed changes to existing FAR parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, and 51, and their corresponding provisions and clauses in part 52 follows:

A. General

1. General RFO Updates

This proposed rule generally reorganizes the FAR parts into phases of acquisition and simplifies the text into plain language, where possible. The plain language efforts include changes to active voice, edits to improve readability, and reorganization to present information more logically. None of the plain language edits are intended to change existing FAR requirements. The rewriting of the

entire FAR also required edits to harmonize the changes being proposed such as updating the cross-references. This aligns with the Federal plain language guidelines as directed by the Plain Writing Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-274; 5 U.S.C. 301 note).

Standardization of prescriptions.

This rule proposes revisions to standardize prescription language for provisions and clauses. These changes are intended to provide better clarity around the applicability of provisions and clauses such as whether they apply to commercial products and services.

Use of “must” instead of “shall”.

Additional revisions are being proposed throughout the FAR text and FAR provisions and clauses to replace the use of the term “shall” with “must” or “will,” as appropriate, to impose requirements.

Non-statutory requirements.

Section 4 of the E.O. required amendments to the FAR to ensure it contains only provisions that are required by statute or that are otherwise necessary to support simplicity and usability, strengthen the efficacy of the procurement system, or protect economic or national security. The FAR Council reviewed all non-statutory requirements to determine if they are still relevant and essential to sound procurement in today's contracting environment based on the criteria from section 4 of the E.O. The proposed rule retains non-statutory requirements that further one or more of the elements of sound procurements, including those requirements that serve as guardrails to protecting taxpayer interests and promote taxpayer confidence in the procurement system. Non-statutory requirements that were beneficial but not essential were retained in the non-regulatory guidance documents. Other non-statutory requirements that did not meet these standards, were removed. The Council considered the extent to which regulation is the most efficient means for capturing the benefit of the policy. For example, most “how to” requirements were found to be more appropriately suited for non-regulatory coverage which better enables a contracting officer to use discretion in determining the application of a strategy to a given situation and limits the risk of overapplication, which can create wasteful burden on the contracting parties.

As part of the RFO, the FAR Council has created a number of non-regulatory resources, including the FAR Companion, which provides insight from experienced practitioners across the government on using more streamlined practices and processes. The migration of significant coverage to non-regulatory guidance is intended to ensure that the benefits of the policy are not outweighed by the compliance burden of a more rigidly written regulation that is prone to application in an overly broad manner. This approach was explained to the public in a set of “frequently asked questions” that were posted on the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul homepage shortly after the initiative was launched.

B. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 8

Part 8 is being revised to simplify and streamline the policies and procedures used in the FAR to acquire supplies and services from required sources. The revisions would clarify the requirements for the use of required sources; simplify the process for using Government sources of products and services; reinforce the use of existing contracts to meet agency requirements, when possible; and broaden the policy permitting contractor use of Government supply sources. Specifically, the rule proposes to revise part 8, by:

Clarifying the requirements for the use of required sources.

The proposed rule would reorganize and simplify the existing text on required sources of supply and their priorities for use in acquisition. Specifically, the proposed rule would group the existing text into a more direct format that is easier to read and would allow contracting officers to quickly and easily identify the required sources for their specific acquisition, in the order of priority in which the sources must be considered to comply with statute.

Simplifying the process for using Government sources.

Currently, part 8 contains requirements, guidance, and procedures for acquiring and using excess property and ordering products and/or services from Federal Prison Industries (FPI), AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies, the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS), and the Government Publishing Office. Each of these sources oversees its own program and develops the rules and procedures for ordering from them.

This proposed rule would remove duplicative guidance in the FAR and instead would have agencies rely on the rules and procedures of each source, instead. This change would simplify the acquisition process for agencies when ordering from these sources and provide those sources with the flexibility to manage how agencies use their programs.

Reinforcing the use of existing contracts.

Consistent with the goals of E.O. 14240, Eliminating Waste and Saving Taxpayer Dollars by Consolidating Procurement, the proposed rule would support agency efforts to leverage the Government's buying power for better deals by requiring agencies to use and consider existing contracts or blanket purchase agreements (BPA) awarded for Governmentwide use before establishing a new contract for those products or services. Specifically, when a commercial product or commercial service meets an agency's need and is available on a contract or BPA awarded for Governmentwide use:

• Agencies would use the existing vehicle if it is designated as a “required use” contract or BPA by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP);

• If it isn't a suitable “required use” vehicle, agencies would consider using the existing contract or BPA if it is designated as a “best in class” contract by OFPP; and

• If it isn't a suitable “required use” or “best in class” vehicle, agencies would consider using the existing contract or BPA before soliciting for and awarding a new contract vehicle.

OFPP will establish the criteria for what constitutes a “required use” contract and identify those specific vehicles for agencies and industry. These changes would increase efficiency in the acquisition process by reducing the need to create new contract vehicles for common commercial products and services, while reducing administrative costs for agencies and industry.

Broadening the policy on contractor use of Government supply sources and movement of FAR part 51 to part 8.

Currently, FAR part 51, Use of Government Sources by Contractors, contains the requirements and policies for agencies to follow when authorizing or requiring contractors to use Government supply sources in the performance of a contract. Specifically, part 51:

• Requires agencies to authorize contractors purchasing supply items for Government use that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee to purchase those items from DLA, GSA, or VA (or from the appropriate central nonprofit agency, when not available from DLA, GSA, or VA);

• Permits agencies to authorize contractors to obtain supplies and services required in the performance of a Government contract from Government supply sources. However, in order to use these sources, the contractor must be performing under: a cost reimbursement contract; another

negotiated contract type when the agency determines that a substantial dollar portion of the contractor's Government contracts are cost-reimbursable in nature; or a contract awarded to an AbilityOne participating nonprofit agency meeting certain criteria; and

• Permits agencies to authorize contractors performing under cost-reimbursement contracts to obtain vehicles and related services through GSA Fleet.

The proposed rule would simplify and move these policies from part 51 to part 8 to consolidate requirements for the use of Government supply sources by contractors and the Government into a single part in the FAR. With the movement of the requirements and policies of part 51 to part 8, the rule proposes to eliminate part 51, in its entirety, from the FAR and renumber FAR clause 52.251-1, Government Supply Sources, and renumber and rename FAR clause 52.251-2, Interagency Fleet Management System Vehicles and Related Services.

The proposed rule would also broaden an agency's ability to authorize a contractor's use of Government supply sources to other than cost reimbursement-type contracts. The current text limits the use of Government supply sources to predominately cost-reimbursement contracts as a way to control cost and risk to the Government by making these lower cost sources, which would be used by the Government if performing the work on its own, available to contractors. The rule proposes to permit agencies to authorize contractors to use these sources under any contract awarded using other than sealed bidding procedures. This change would allow Government and industry to benefit from the standardized pricing of readily-available and contractually-compliant products from Government sources of supply under more contracts, which could facilitate a more simplified and streamlined acquisition process at a lower contract cost.

Other changes.

Subpart 8.11 currently provides policy and procedures for leasing non-tactical motor vehicles from commercial concerns to ensure those vehicles comply with Federal and State motor vehicle safety requirements. This text is no longer necessary in the FAR. The terms and conditions included in the subpart are addressed by GSA Fleet in its policies, procedures, and contract terms and conditions. As a result, subpart 8.11 would be no longer necessary and the proposed rule would remove the subpart in its entirety from the FAR.

C. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 12

The FAR Council is proposing to fundamentally re-engineer the structure, scope, and mechanics of FAR part 12 to be user-centric and make Federal buying faster, simpler, and more aligned with commercial practices. The following is a summary of the proposed changes to FAR part 12:

Focus on statutory requirements and sound procurement.

In accordance with E.O. 14275, the proposed rule seeks to refocus the content of the part on statutory requirements for procuring commercial products, including commercially available off-the-shelf items, and commercial services in accordance with 41 U.S.C. 1906, 1907, and 3307 and 10 U.S.C. 3451-3453. The mandate to procure commercial products and commercial services has always existed in FAR part 12; however, the proposed revisions to the FAR part would refocus buyers on this primary purpose. FAR 12.101, for example, would be retitled “Requirements” and would phrase the statutory mandate as directives rather than just agency policy. In doing so, the contracting workforce would have a better understanding of their authority and responsibilities.

The majority of the general guidance, examples, and best practices would be removed from this part of the FAR, because this content can be better addressed in nonregulatory sources, such as the new FAR practitioner guides and workforce training. The non-statutory content that is retained is designed to ensure sound procurement, better align Federal commercial buying with customary commercial practice, and encourage agencies to innovate and find efficiencies when buying commercial products and commercial services. Examples of non-statutory content proposed to be retained include:

• FAR sections 12.106 and 12.107, which continue to require technical data rights and commercial computer software, to ensure agencies are acquiring only the technical data, data rights, and licenses customarily provided to the public.

• FAR 12.201-1(d), which encourages agencies to use additional innovative approaches to the maximum extent practicable when soliciting quotations and issuing purchase orders.

• FAR 12.203(a), which emphasizes that evaluation factors generally need not be more detailed than technical, price, and past performance.

• FAR 12.203(c)(1), which requires the contracting officers to exercise good business judgment in deciding whether to accept late submissions from offerors.

• FAR 12.304, which continues to direct contracting officers to use the streamlined procedures for termination in FAR provision 52.212-4, Terms and Conditions-Commercial Products and Commercial Services, and not the more complex procedures in FAR part 49.

The cumulative result of these proposed changes to the scope of FAR part 12 will ensure agencies buy commercial to the maximum extent practicable, while enabling contracting officers to deliver on their missions more efficiently and effectively.

Process-oriented subparts.

First, the FAR part would be reorganized into process-oriented subparts by phase of the acquisition. FAR subpart 12.1, Presolicitation, addresses policies and procedures to be considered during acquisition planning and prior to soliciting offers. FAR subpart 12.2, Solicitation, Evaluation, and Award, addresses the procedures for preparing a solicitation, publicizing the requirement, evaluating offers, and preparing and documenting the award. FAR subpart 12.3, Postaward, addresses the policies for notifying offerors and the public of the award, as well as policies and procedures for handling purchase order cancellations and commercial contract terminations. There would also be a cross-reference to commercial subcontract requirements that should be considered during administration of the contract. This structural change will enable Federal buyers to easily access information relevant to the phase in which they are operating.

Procuring from required sources.

As discussed in section II.B. of this preamble, FAR part 8 would address requirements for agencies to procure from certain mandatory sources and to use and consider existing contracts or BPAs awarded for Governmentwide use before establishing a new contract for those products or services, in accordance with Executive Order 14275. The new section on applicability at FAR 12.200 reminds the contracting officer that they must first seek to procure commercial products and commercial services from the existing required sources identified in FAR part 8, before using the procedures in FAR subpart 12.2 for soliciting, evaluating, and awarding commercial contracts.

Simplified procedures and micro-purchases.

This proposed rule would consolidate procedures that are specific to or primarily utilized when procuring commercial products and commercial services, including procedures for:

publicizing procurements, simplified acquisition procedures, and procedures for micropurchases. This would replace the current FAR structure that forces commercial buyers to reconcile the procedures in FAR parts 5 and 13 with the procedures in FAR part 12. Specifically, this proposed rule would:

• Transfer the requirements associated with publicizing commercial acquisitions from FAR part 5 to FAR subpart 12.2;

• Transfer from FAR part 13 and streamline at FAR 12.201-1 the procedures for acquiring supplies and services valued at or below the simplified acquisition threshold, and throughout FAR part 12, differentiate these procedures from the more burdensome procedures in FAR parts 14 and 15; and

• Transfer from FAR subpart 13.2 and streamline at FAR subpart 12.4 the procedures for micro-purchases.

By transferring these procedures to FAR part 12, the FAR Council is moving toward “one-stop shop” on commercial acquisitions for Federal buyers, particularly those contracting officers primarily focused on smaller dollar value procurements, the majority of which are for commercial products and commercial services.

Higher threshold for simplified procedures.

The proposed rule would also transfer the statutory authority to use simplified procedures for acquisitions of commercial products and commercial services valued up to $9 million (or $15 million when the supplies and services are to be used in certain specified emergencies or major disasters) from FAR subpart 13.5 to FAR part 12. In lieu of a standalone authority section, this proposed rule will embed the higher thresholds throughout the FAR part and direct contracting officers to use simplified procedures for acquisitions at or below these values (see proposed FAR 12.001(c), 12.102, 12.201-1). These proposed changes make clear to contracting officers that they should not be using the burdensome procedures associated with conducting negotiations or sealed bidding using the procedures in FAR parts 15 and 14, respectively, and ensure that commercial acquisitions in this dollar range are solicited, offered, evaluated, and awarded in a simplified manner that maximizes efficiency and economy and minimizes burden and administrative costs for both the Government and industry.

Solicitation and contract forms and formats.

Proposed section FAR 12.202, Publicizing, addresses the acceptable forms and format for solicitations for commercial products and commercial services. FAR 12.202(a) would maintain the preference for use of the Standard Form (SF) 1449, Solicitation/Contract/Order for Commercial Products and Commercial Services. However, if the SF 1449 is inappropriate for a certain circumstance, the contracting officer may choose to use a form or format prescribed in parts 14, 15, and 36, as appropriate. This may be necessary, for instance, if the form and format in those parts would better outline and communicate the requirements of the solicitation to the public. Proposed FAR 12.204(c) again includes the preference for the SF 1449, but authorized use of the forms in other parts.

Publicizing the solicitation.

The requirements for publicizing presolicitation notices and solicitations for commercial acquisitions would be consolidated in FAR 12.202. In general, as proposed at FAR 12.202(b), contracting officers would be required to post a “Combined Synopsis/Solicitation” in the Governmentwide point of entry (GPE) at

https://www.sam.gov

that includes the following:

• Basic summary information about the acquisition, including the type of solicitation, a brief description of the requirement, small business set-aside information, and a statement about any Defense Priorities and Allocations System assigned ratings, if applicable.

• Either the solicitation document itself or access to the solicitation document (

e.g.,

to allow agencies to provide a link to a solicitation document posted on an external agency website).

Proposed FAR 12.202(c) provides exceptions to posting a combined synopsis/solicitation in the GPE, which include the following:

• For acquisitions valued at or below the SAT, the contracting officer may choose to post only a presolicitation notice, as described in 5.101(c), and solicit quotations from at least three sources, which should include two new sources, whenever practicable.

• Only a presolicitation notice would be required when conducting a sole source acquisition or obtaining other than full and open competition on the basis that there is only one responsible source or for national security reasons. However, posting a presolicitation notice is not required if doing so creates national security risks.

• Neither a combined synopsis/solicitation, nor a presolicitation notice would be required if the acquisition meets one of the other exemptions to posting a presolicitation notice in FAR part 5.

Proposed FAR 12.202(d) includes a table to illustrate the minimum publication timeframes for combined synopses/solicitations and presolicitation notices, which are derived from statute or trade agreements.

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

Requirements for solicitation provisions and contract clauses applicable to commercial acquisitions would be consolidated at proposed FAR section 12.205. This proposed rule would maintain three of the five existing provisions and clauses prescribed in FAR part 12 for the acquisition of commercial products and commercial services: FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Products and Commercial Services; FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation-Commercial Products and Commercial Services; and FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Products and Commercial Services. However, there are proposed edits to FAR 52.212-1 and 52.212-4 to streamline the existing instructions, remove unnecessary content, and make other plain language revisions. FAR 12.205 would also authorize certain tailoring of the provision and the clause to some extent.

The provision at FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, and clause at FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, commonly referred to as the “omnibus” provision or clause are proposed for removal. This provision and clause provide incomplete lists of provisions and clauses that could apply to commercial acquisitions. The contracting officer (or an agency clause logic system) would rely on these updated prescriptions when deciding which provisions and clauses may be included in an acquisition of commercial products or commercial services. This proposed change replaces the direction at FAR 12.301 for contracting officers to make their own determination regarding whether a provision or clause is necessary and consistent with customary commercial practice. FAR 12.301(d) currently gives the contracting officer broad discretion to incorporate provisions and clauses not listed in that section or the omnibus provision or clause. In contrast, if this proposed rule is finalized, it would require an agency to prepare an individual or class deviation in accordance with FAR part 1 to incorporate a provision or clause that is

not prescribed for commercial products or commercial services into a solicitation or contract for commercial products or commercial services. These proposed changes are expected to substantially reduce the number of provisions and clauses included in commercial acquisitions. These changes would also shift the burden of determining which provisions and clauses listed in 52.212-3 and 52.212-5 are applicable to a particular commercial acquisition from the offeror or contractor to the Government. However, while FAR 52.212-5 is proposed for removal, the statutory requirement at FAR 52.212-5(d),

Comptroller General Examination of Record,

would be transferred to 52.212-4(t). Block 27 of the SF 1449 (discussed in section II.C.6. of this preamble) would also be modified to remove references to FAR 52.212-3 and 52.212-5.

This proposed rule would also grant agencies the authority to issue a waiver or tailor provisions and clauses normally prescribed for commercial acquisitions as long as the provision or clause does not implement statutory or Executive order and is determined to be inconsistent with customary commercial practice. In addition, tailoring would not be required to be by addendum; however, agencies will be required to ensure that solicitations and contracts clearly indicate when a provision or clause has been tailored (see proposed FAR 12.205(c)(1)(ii)). All class waivers must be provided to the Chair of the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council (for civilian agencies) or the Director of the Defense Acquisition Regulations System (for defense departments and agencies) to determine whether regulatory changes are in order.

Construction as a commercial service.

The proposed rule published under FAR Case 2026-001 would amend paragraph (2) of the definition of “commercial services” in FAR part 2. This change would allow for construction to be considered a commercial service, thus allowing Federal buyers to leverage the procedures in FAR part 12 when buying construction. First, a contracting officer would need to determine that the construction services being procured are services “of a type offered and sold competitively in substantial quantities in the commercial marketplace based on established catalog or market prices for specific tasks performed or specific outcomes to be achieved and under standard commercial terms and conditions.” If the contracting officer determines that the construction services meet this definition, then they would follow the procedures in Part 12 to structure the contract, solicit offers, and award the contract.

This proposed rule includes changes that, if finalized, would provide guidance to contracting officers that procure construction. The new applicability section proposed at FAR 12.200 makes clear that when a contracting officer is procuring construction as a commercial service, they must still comply with requirements in part 36 for construction. As noted in section II.C.8. of this preamble, RFO rulemakings will also clarify in each provision and clause prescription whether the provision or clause applies to acquisitions of commercial products and commercial services. To this end, other RFO proposed rules for FAR parts that prescribe provisions and clauses for use in solicitations and contracts for construction will include proposed revisions to indicate whether those provisions and clauses apply to construction that is a commercial service.

10.

Subcontracts.

This proposed rule would continue to include the statutory requirement for the contracting officer to require the prime contractor and subcontractor at all tiers to incorporate, to the maximum extent practicable, commercial products, commercial services, or nondevelopmental items as components of items supplied to the agency (see proposed FAR 12.101(b)). However, proposed FAR subpart 12.3, Postaward, will include a cross-reference to FAR subpart 44.4 where instructions for subcontracts for commercial products and commercial services will be consolidated. See the section II.F. of this preamble for the discussion of changes to Part 44.

11.

Plain language.

Finally, the content of FAR part 12 and the solicitation provisions and contract clause in part 52 are rewritten in plain language to make the content clearer and easier to follow. For example, the phrase “the contracting officer shall” would be replaced with clear directives to the contracting officer in simplified language wherever possible. The revised part would also uses various drafting tools that better illustrate minimum compliance requirements, such as tables to present complex information in a clearer manner. The FAR part and associated provisions and clauses would no longer use the more formal term “shall,” but instead use “must” or “will.” These changes would ensure contracting officers, offerors, and contractors have a clear understanding of the expectations for commercial buying.

D. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 13

The FAR Council is proposing to revise FAR part 13 to provide procedures for only noncommercial acquisitions valued at or below the SAT. To do so, this proposed rule will amend FAR part 13 in the following ways:

Alignment with proposed changes in FAR part 12.

The current FAR requires contracting officers to decipher which procedures in FAR part 13 apply to commercial acquisitions, including when the higher threshold authorized by statute applies (see II.C.5. of this preamble). This proposed rule seeks to establish the same process-oriented structure in FAR part 13 as is proposed in FAR part 12 (see section II.C.2. of this preamble) and to use cross-references to part 12, where appropriate, to avoid a significant amount of repetitive regulatory text in FAR part 13. For example:

• FAR 13.201(a) would direct the contracting officer to use the simplified procedures at FAR 12.201-1 to issue RFQs for noncommercial acquisitions valued at or below SAT;

• FAR 13.202 would direct the contracting officer to follow the procedures in 12.203 when establishing evaluation factors;

• FAR 13.302(a) would include a cross-reference to FAR 12.201-1(b) on the legal effect of quotations and acceptance; and

• FAR subpart 13.4 would direct the contracting officer to FAR subpart 12.4 on micropurchases.

In other cases, specific requirements would be spelled out in FAR part 13, such as requirements related to competition, small business, forms and formats, and price reasonableness (see proposed FAR 13.101, 13.102, 13.202(b), and FAR 13.203(a), respectively). Because noncommercial acquisitions valued at or below SAT do not benefit from the same streamlining opportunities as commercial acquisitions (

i.e.,

the option to post a combined synopsis/solicitation for a reasonable amount of time, subject to the Contracting Officer's discretion), FAR 13.201(c) would provide the procedures necessary to comply with publicizing requirements in FAR Part 5.

Focus on statutory requirements and sound procurement.

Again, in accordance with E.O. 14275, the remaining retained content in the proposed FAR part 13 would be those requirements that either implement statute or are necessary for sound procurement. This proposed rule would

substantially streamline the content (similar to the proposed changes in FAR part 12) to more clearly communicate to the contracting officer and focus on minimum and simpler compliance requirements.

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

Proposed FAR section 13.204 would maintain the structure whereby contracting officers are expected to incorporate solicitation provisions and contract clauses in contracts valued at or below the SAT based on thresholds (or the absence of thresholds) included in prescriptions for provisions and clauses throughout the FAR. This section would also continue to prescribe FAR clause 52.213-4, Terms and Conditions—Simplified Acquisitions (Noncommercial), which provides a streamlined set of terms and conditions for inspection/acceptance, excusable delays, terminations, and warranties. However, the proposed text at FAR 13.204(b) would make clear that the content in the clause is used in lieu of similar clauses prescribed for these purposes. If the contracting officer would prefer to include a standalone clause instead, then they must tailor 52.213-4 to remove the associated content.

FAST Pay procedures.

FAR part 13 previously included procedures for FAST payment. Since these procedures are related to payments and apply to both FAR parts 12 and 13, as proposed in this rule, this content will be transferred to a standalone subpart in FAR part 32. The RFO rulemaking for FAR part 32 will address any changes to FAST payment procedures, which will apply to both commercial and noncommercial acquisitions valued at or below the SAT.

Plain language.

Finally, the content of FAR part 13 and the contract clause at FAR 52.213-4 would be rewritten in plain language to make the content clearer and easier to follow. Like the proposed revisions in FAR part 12, the phrase “the contracting officer shall” would be replaced with clear directives to the contracting officer in simplified language wherever possible. The clause at 52.213-4 would also use the terms “must” or “will” instead of the more formal term “shall.”

E. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 15

Part 15 would be revised to simplify and streamline the policies and procedures used in negotiated acquisitions. The revisions would simplify how the Government interacts with offerors by focusing on negotiation instead of discussions; reduce complexity around communicating with offerors by revising the definition of “deficiency”, eliminating the procedures for exchanges with offerors before establishing a competitive range, and expanding on the use of clarifications; and enhance the acquisition process by formalizing another source selection approach. Specifically, the rule proposes to revise part 15, by:

Focusing on negotiations, instead of discussions.

In practice, the current discussion process is often limited to fixing problems in an offeror's proposal, instead of truly negotiating to get the best possible deal to meet the Government's requirement. When this happens, offerors focus their proposals on meeting the minimum requirements of the Government to avoid being removed from competition, and agencies forgo simple clarifications to avoid inadvertently crossing the boundary into a discussion and creating a protest risk. This practice limits innovation and both parties miss the opportunity for meaningful negotiations that can lead to a more advantageous contract award and a more competitive position in future proposal submissions.

The proposed rule still requires a meaningful negotiation with each offeror in the competitive range where, at a minimum, each offeror's deficiencies and significant weaknesses must be addressed. However, it acknowledges that meaningful discussions do not look the same across every offeror in the competitive range. The proposed rule would clarify that, if necessary, contracting officers may have more than one negotiation with a particular offeror in the competitive range, without having to do so with all other offerors. This would simplify the process to encourage offerors to propose, and contracting officers to consider, solutions that exceed minimum requirements, while prompting contracting officers to proactively bargain on terms and conditions, such as intellectual property rights, licensing agreements, pricing, and other material aspects of the proposal, that would lead to a more advantageous contract award. The proposed rule would also add a basic definition of “negotiation” to support the simplification of this process.

Clarifying the definition of “deficiency”.

The FAR defines a “deficiency” as a material failure of a proposal to meet a Government requirement, or a combination of significant weaknesses that increase the risk of unsuccessful contract performance to an unacceptable level. If negotiations occur in competitive acquisitions, contracting officers must address each offeror's proposal deficiencies during the negotiation. In practice, this definition results in subjective interpretations of what a material failure of a proposal is, whether a weakness is truly significant, and/or whether a combination of significant weaknesses creates a deficiency that requires exclusion from the competition. This subjectivity results in protests and challenges that dispute the line between what could be fixed through clarifications and what is a deficiency that warrants exclusion.

The proposed rule would revise the definition to clarify that a deficiency is simply a part of a proposal that does not conform to a material term of the RFP. The definition would then explain that a material term is one that affects price, quantity, quality, or delivery, or a prerequisite that the RFP requires to be met at the time of proposal submission. Together, these two changes would reduce the subjective nature of the current definition and provide contracting officers with the leeway to address significant weaknesses directly with an offeror through negotiation, without the uncertainty of whether those weaknesses, when combined, increase the contract performance risk to an “unacceptable” level warranting exclusion from the competition.

Simplifying exchanges with offerors after receipt of proposals.

When conducting a competitive acquisition under part 15, the FAR currently prescribes several processes for interacting with offerors at different phases of the source selection process. Specifically, there is a process for clarifying certain aspects of a proposal without holding discussions with offerors, a process to help the Government better understand an offeror's adverse past performance information before establishing the competitive range of proposals to be included in the discussion process, and a process for discussions with offerors whose proposals are in the competitive range.

When the Government intends to make a competitive award without discussions but needs an offeror to clarify certain aspects of their proposal or resolve minor or clerical errors, contracting officers currently rely on the clarification process to do so. However, what is “minor” or “clerical” is subjective and the line between what is a “minor” error that can be remedied through a clarification and a material error that requires a discussion is often unclear for contracting officers and offerors alike. This ambiguity can lead contracting officers to adhere to

cautious interpretations of what constitutes a “minor” error in an attempt to avoid protest and unfair treatment of offerors. However, this caution can also prevent an offeror from easily correcting a minor mistake and receiving an award as the result of an otherwise competitive proposal.

Further, when the Government is establishing a competitive range of proposals, and an offeror has past performance information that is the determining factor preventing them from being included in the competitive range, the existing process requires contracting officers to give the offeror an opportunity to address adverse past performance information to which the offeror has not previously had an opportunity to respond.

The proposed rule would simplify these two types of exchanges by eliminating the process for exchanging information with offerors before establishing the competitive range, expand the use of clarifications to also apply to competitive negotiated acquisitions, and revise the clarification process to also include addressing adverse past performance information to which the offeror has not previously had an opportunity to respond. The proposed rule would also expand the clarification process to situations in which the ambiguities of the proposal, or other concerns, such as perceived deficiencies or mistakes, needs to be explained. The proposed text would advise that clarifications are not required, may occur at the contracting officer's discretion, and would not permit offerors to revise their proposal or use clarifications to change the material elements of the proposal or cure a material omission in the proposal. As a result, contracting officers could, but would no longer required as a matter of policy, to address adverse past performance information to which the offeror has not previously responded before establishing the competitive range. Instead, the rule would permit clarifications at any time up until contract award. As a result, contracting officers would retain the tools to review, interpret, and evaluate proposals through a clear and simple process. The proposed rule would also add a basic definition of “clarification” to support the simplification of this process.

Simplifying the acceptance of late proposals.

When a proposal is received after the date and time specified in the RFP for receipt of proposals, it is considered “late” and cannot considered for award, unless certain conditions exist. If a late proposal is received prior to award, the contracting officer may accept the proposal if doing so would not unduly delay the acquisition, and: (1) it was the only proposal received; or (2) it was submitted electronically and there is evidence to establish that it was received at the initial point of entry to the Government's infrastructure by 5:00 p.m. one working day prior to the date and time specified in the RFP.

The proposed rule would simplify this policy by permitting contracting officers to accept late proposals when they determine that doing so is in the Government's best interest and would not unduly delay the contract award. This change would provide contracting officers with greater leeway in deciding whether to accept a late proposal and offerors with a simpler policy to follow when submitting proposals to the Government.

Broadening the competitive range.

When contracting officers intend to conduct negotiations with offerors responding to a competitive RFP, statute requires agencies to conduct negotiations with all responsible offerors who submit proposals within the competitive range, unless the range is further reduced to the highest rated proposals for purposes of efficiency. The FAR then requires, as a matter of policy, the competitive range to be comprised of all of the most highly rated proposals.

The proposed rule would no longer require the competitive range to contain all of the most highly rated proposals and instead clarify that the range should include those proposals best suited for further negotiation. This change would acknowledge that, while not the highest rated proposal, offerors may propose solutions or terms that make a proposal otherwise well suited for negotiation. This change would allow contracting officers to consider those offers for inclusion in the competitive range, and focus their time and effort in negotiations on the offers that are most advantageous to the Government, while minimizing the time and effort offerors spend pursuing a contract award they are less likely to win.

Contracting officers would be able continue to reduce the competitive range to a number of proposals that will permit an efficient competition among the most highly evaluated proposals. The rule would exchange the terminology of “highest rated” proposals with “highest evaluated” proposals to be included in the competitive range, when reduced for efficient competition. This change would formally acknowledge that a rating system is not required when evaluating competitive proposals, and instead, the intent of the statute is to ensure that, if a competitive range is narrowed for efficiency, only the most highly evaluated proposals remain in the competitive range. The proposed rule would also add a basic definition of “competitive range” to support the simplification of this process.

Formalizing additional source selection and evaluation approaches.

The proposed rule would formally recognize an additional way, highest technically rated with a fair and reasonable price, to evaluate the best value in the FAR. This approach would focus on getting the best technical solution at a fair and reasonable price. Specifically, the contracting officer would evaluate proposals based on the non-cost/price factors outlined in the RFP. Upon identifying the highest technically rated proposal, the contracting officer would evaluate the cost/price of the proposal to determine if it is fair and reasonable. A contracting officer would not make tradeoffs between cost/price and non-cost/price factors. If the cost/price is determined reasonable, the contracting officer would make an award to the offeror. If the cost/price is not found to be fair and reasonable, the next highest rated proposal would be identified and its price would be evaluated for fairness and reasonableness. This process would continue until award is made to the offeror with the highest technically rated proposal with a fair and reasonable price.

The proposed rule would also formally recognizes phased evaluations, or a down-select process, as an efficient way to evaluate proposals, when necessary. Phased evaluations would apply evaluation factors in stages. Offerors would be asked to address certain, but not all, evaluation factors with their initial proposal and address remaining evaluation factors in subsequent proposal submissions.

Restriction on the use of LPTA for munitions response services.

Section 822 of the Servicemember Quality of Life Improvement and National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for fiscal year (FY) 2025 (Pub. L. 118-159) amends section 880(c)(1) of the John S. McCain NDAA for FY 2019 (41 U.S.C. 3701 note) to add munitions response services to the list of services that, to the maximum extent practicable, should not be obtained using a LPTA source selection approach. In response, the proposed rule would add munitions response services to the list of services that should avoid using a LPTA approach at FAR 15.102-2(c)(2)(i).

Other Changes.

In accordance with 41 U.S.C. 3905(b)(3), the rule would limit the six percent cap fee on contracts for architect-engineering services for public works or utilities to cost-type contracts.

The rule proposes to consolidate and move the text of FAR subpart 15.201 regarding exchanges with industry to part 7. Part 7 addresses different aspects of acquisition planning. The tools described at FAR subpart 15.201 are helpful during acquisition planning to better shape and communicate the Government's requirement. As such, the rule proposes to move the text to part 7 to make the tools more visible and accessible to agencies when conducting acquisition planning efforts.

F. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 38

Part 38 prescribes general policies for awarding contracts under the Federal Supply Schedule program. GSA oversees the FSS Program and prescribes the rules and procedures for establishing contracts under the FSS Program in subpart 538.2 of the General Services Administration Acquisition Regulation (GSAR). The text of FAR part 38 is duplicative of the text in the GSAR or is no longer necessary. As a result, the rule proposes to remove part 38, in its entirety, from the FAR.

G. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 44

The proposed rule would revise, reorganize, streamline, and clarify the existing policies and procedures of part 44, as described in paragraph II.A; however, the rule would not substantively change the policies and procedures of the part.

H. Summary of Changes to FAR Part 51

The rule proposes to move the policies of part 51 to part 8 and remove part 51, in its entirety, from the FAR (see discussion at paragraph II.B.4.).

III. Applicability to Contracts and Subcontracts Valued at or Below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold and for Commercial Products and Commercial Services

The following sections address the applicability of provisions and clauses prescribed in parts FAR 8, 12, 13, 15, and 44 to solicitations and contracts valued at or below the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) and those for the acquisition of commercial products, commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) items, and commercial services. Prescriptions for provisions and clauses in these parts have been updated to reflect applicability to commercial acquisitions.

A. Contracts and Subcontracts Valued at or Below the Simplified Acquisition Threshold

This proposed rule, if finalized, does not alter the prescriptions of provisions and clauses included in this proposed rule to change their applicability to contracts and subcontracts valued at or below the SAT. This rule, if finalized, would transfer the clauses(s) at 52.251-1 and 52.251-2 to new clauses at FAR 52.208-XX, Government Supply Sources, and FAR 52.208-YY, GSA Fleet Vehicles and Related Services. The clauses would continue to apply to contracts valued at or below the SAT.

B. Contracts and Subcontracts for Commercial Products, Commercially Available Off-the-Shelf Items, and Commercial Services

41 U.S.C. 1906 governs the applicability of laws to contracts for the acquisition of commercial products and commercial services and gives the FAR Council the authority to determine to apply a law to contracts or subcontracts for the acquisition of commercial products and commercial services. 41 U.S.C. 1907 exempts contracts for commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) items from certain provisions of law unless the Administrator for Federal Procurement Policy determines that doing so would not be in the best interest of the Federal Government.

Section 839 of the John S. McCain NDAA for FY 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232) required the FAR Council and the Administrator of Federal Procurement Policy to review prior determinations under 41 U.S.C. 1906 and 41 U.S.C. 1907, as well as the applicability of provisions and clauses to contracts and subcontracts for commercial products, COTS items, and commercial services that do not implement statute or Executive order, and propose amendments to the FAR to eliminate or exempt such requirements from commercial acquisitions, unless there are specific reasons to retain particular requirements.

In accordance with section 839 of the NDAA for FY 2019 and their authorities under 41 U.S.C. 1906 and 1907, the FAR Council reviewed the applicability of the provisions and clauses associated with the FAR parts covered by this proposed rule.

The following table reflects the FAR Council and Administrator of Federal Procurement Policy's proposed determination regarding the applicability of the provisions and clauses to solicitations and contracts for commercial products, COTS items, and/or commercial services. In making proposed applicability determinations, the FAR Council considered factors such as whether the provision or clause advances national security or economic security, contributes to the resilience of contractors and subcontractors in the federal marketplace, or advances uniformity and clarity in the performance of basic functions that are essential to sound procurement.

Accordingly, this proposed rule, if finalized, would revise provision and clause prescriptions to clearly reflect applicability to commercial acquisitions as outlined in the table. An “X” in the following table indicates the provision or clause will apply to that category of commercial acquisition, as prescribed:

Provision/clause No.

Title

Commercial products

Commercial services

COTS items

52.208-9

Contractor Use of Mandatory Sources of Supply or Services

52.208-XX

Government Supply Sources

52.208-YY

GSA Fleet Vehicles and Related Services

52.212-1

Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services

52.212-2

Evaluation—Commercial Products and Commercial Services

52.212-4

Terms and Conditions—Commercial Products and Commercial Services

52.212-4 Alt I

Terms and Conditions—Commercial Products and Commercial Services

52.213-4

Terms and Conditions—Simplified Acquisitions (Noncommercial)

52.215-1

Instructions to Offerors—Competitive Acquisition

52.215-1 Alt I

Instructions to Offerors—Competitive Acquisition

52.215-1 Alt II

Instructions to Offerors—Competitive Acquisition

52.215-2

Audit and Records—Negotiation

52.215-2 Alt II

Audit and Records—Negotiation

52.215-2 Alt III

Audit and Records—Negotiation

52.215-6

Place of Performance

52.215-8

Order of Precedence—Uniform Contract Format

52.215-9

Changes or Additions to Make-or-Buy Program

52.215-9 Alt I

Changes or Additions to Make-or-Buy Program

52.215-9 Alt II

Changes or Additions to Make-or-Buy Program

52.215-10

Price Reduction for Defective Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-11

Price Reduction for Defective Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-12

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-12 Alt II

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-13

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-13 Alt I

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-14

Integrity of Unit Prices

52.215-14 Alt I

Integrity of Unit Prices

52.215-15

Pension Adjustments and Asset Reversions

52.215-16

Facilities Capital Cost of Money

52.215-17

Waiver of Facilities Capital Cost of Money

52.215-18

Reversion or Adjustment of Plans for Postretirement Benefits (PRB) Other Than Pensions

52.215-19

Notification of Ownership Changes

52.215-20

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-20 Alt I

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-20 Alt II

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-20 Alt III

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-20 Alt IV

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-21

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-21 Alt I

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-21 Alt II

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-21 Alt III

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-21 Alt IV

Requirements for Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-22

Limitations on Pass-Through Charges—Identification of Subcontract Effort

52.215-23

Limitations on Pass-Through Charges

52.215-23 Alt I

Limitations on Pass-Through Charges

52.244-2

Subcontracts

52.244-4

Subcontractors and Outside Associates and Consultants (Architect-Engineer Services)

52.244-5

Competition in Subcontracting

52.244-6

Subcontracts for Commercial Products and Commercial Services

The FAR Council also reviewed subcontract flow down requirements in clauses associated with the FAR parts covered by this proposed rule. The following table reflects the FAR Council and Administrator of Federal Procurement Policy's proposal regarding whether those clauses flow down to subcontracts for commercial products, COTS items, and/or commercial services. This proposed rule, if finalized, would revise the subcontract paragraphs in these clauses to clearly state whether the clause flows down to commercial subcontracts, as outlined in the table. An “X” in the following table indicates the provision or clause will apply to subcontracts for that category of commercial subcontracts, as described in the clause:

Clause No.

Title

Commercial products

Commercial services

COTS items

52.215-2

Audit and Records—Negotiation

52.215-2 Alt II

Audit and Records—Negotiation

52.215-2 Alt III

Audit and Records—Negotiation

52.215-12

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-12 Alt II

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data

52.215-13

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-13 Alt I

Subcontractor Certified Cost or Pricing Data—Modifications

52.215-15

Pension Adjustments and Asset Reversions

52.215-18

Reversion or Adjustment of Plans for Postretirement Benefits (PRB) Other Than Pensions

52.215-19

Notification of Ownership Changes

52.215-23

Limitations on Pass-Through Charges

52.215-23 Alt I

Limitations on Pass-Through Charges

52.244-6

Subcontracts for Commercial Products and Commercial Services

IV. Expected Impact of the Rule

A. Overview

The intended impact of the RFO, as stated in E.O. 14275, is to restore the Government's ability to “deliver on a timely basis the best value product or service to the customer, while maintaining the public's trust and fulfilling public policy objectives.” Each of the RFO rulemakings is designed to contribute to this impact by emphasizing mission first, by aligning acquisition activities directly to achieving the agency's overarching objectives and serving the public interest and elevating the importance of fiscal responsibility. The proposed RFO rules focus on three goals in particular: (1) timely acquisition and delivery, (2) lower cost and accountability in all spending, and (3) increased competition.

Timeliness.

Timely acquisition and delivery are essential for mission success. To this end, RFO rules propose to eliminate mandates that unnecessarily interfere with agency discretion to determine the best way to procure products and services. The proposed RFO rules highlight more clearly streamlined and simplified authorities that allow buyers to use their time more efficiently and are expected to reduce time between solicitation and award. The proposed RFO rules are expected to make it easier for contracting officers to leverage commercial practices that are familiar to the commercial marketplace. This is expected to make it easier for sellers to engage and respond to Government solicitations more rapidly.

Lower cost.

E.O. 14271, Ensuring Commercial, Cost-Effective Solutions in Federal Contracts (April 15, 2025), directs the Government to utilize, to the maximum extent practicable, the commercial marketplace and the innovations of private enterprise to provide better, more cost-effective services to taxpayers, as envisioned by the Federal Acquisition Streamlining Act. The procurement of custom products and services where a suitable or superior commercial solution would have fulfilled the Government's needs has resulted in avoidable waste to the detriment of American taxpayers.

To address these concerns, consistent with associated responsibilities in section 839 of the John S. McCain NDAA for FY 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232), the FAR Council reviewed prescriptions for provisions and clauses to ensure all prescriptions are clear regarding their applicability to acquisitions for commercial products and services. Currently, many prescriptions leave this determination to contracting officer interpretation. By specifically stating when a provision or clause can be applied to commercial acquisitions, proposed RFO rules should decrease the likelihood of inclusion of provision and clauses in commercial acquisitions that are not required by law and drive greater consistency in the terms and conditions used in these contracts. In turn, these changes should both increase participation of commercial sellers, who are unwilling or unable to manage the cost of complying with noncommercial requirements, and improve taxpayer access to affordable commercial solutions.

Some RFO rules propose to delete requirements placed on commercial or noncommercial sellers that are not related to performance of the contract, drive up cost without attendant performance benefits, and may misdirect efforts away from innovation, investment and economic growth. Greater emphasis on timeliness should reduce bidders' carrying costs, enabling them to pass those savings on to customers through lower prices.

Increased competition.

Since enactment of the Competition in Contracting Act of 1984 (Title VII of Pub. L. 98-369), competition has been the cornerstone of the Federal acquisition system. The benefits of competition are well established: competition saves money for the taxpayer, improves contractor performance, curbs fraud, and promotes accountability for results. Competition also drives contractor resilience and positions the U.S. market to develop a strategic advantage for the nation.

According to data in the SAM Contract Award Management, roughly 45 percent of contract dollars were awarded in FY 2025 either without competition or with competition that received only one offer. Of equal concern, the Federal marketplace has seen a significant decline over the past 20 years in the number of businesses—especially small businesses—participating in the Federal supplier base. Studies suggest that high compliance costs lead to the misallocation of resources away from more profitable activities and discourage innovation, investment, and economic growth (Council of Economic Advisers, Executive Office of the President. June 2025. The Economic Benefits of Current Deregulatory Policies.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/The-Economic-Benefits-of-Current-Deregulatory-Efforts.pdf

). This may shelter incumbent contractors and stifle competition, reducing startup activity and job formation.

The RFO rules seek to increase participation in agency competitions and the resilience of the Federal supplier base, which includes commercial entities, small businesses, manufacturers, and nontraditional suppliers. The RFO will achieve this outcome by removing regulatory mandates that are not rooted in statute or essential to sound procurement, promoting greater reliance on practices that reduce transaction costs, and improving the quality of communications with offerors and potential offerors. Access to a broader range of solutions in a more dynamic marketplace will drive better return for each taxpayer dollar spent and increase taxpayer confidence in the Federal acquisition system.

B. Impact of Rule

The Government has conducted a regulatory impact analysis (RIA) for the RFO rulemaking inclusive of this proposed rule for FAR parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, 51, and 52. The RIA includes a discussion of the anticipated benefits of the rulemakings as follows:

1. Part 8

The proposed rule aims to streamline and simplify acquisition processes and shorten acquisition timeframes for both the Government and industry.

• By clarifying the rules and priorities for the use of mandatory sources, the Government can benefit from clear guidance that ensures contracting officers comply with statutory and

regulatory requirements for using such sources.

• By simplifying the process for using Government sources of products and services, the Government can benefit from a simplified and more direct acquisition process that saves time and administrative cost when ordering from these sources. Mandatory sources can also benefit from the greater flexibility and speed in which they can affect change to their respective programs due to the simplification and reduction in duplication of these policies in the FAR.

• By reinforcing the use of existing contracts, when possible, both the Government and industry can benefit from a faster acquisition process that relies on contract vehicles with already established terms and conditions, in lieu of having to negotiate these items with each acquisition. Existing contracts also provide streamlined ordering procedures that are less time-consuming for both the Government and industry when placing orders under these vehicles, in lieu of soliciting, negotiating, and awarding a new contract.

• By consolidating its demand for certain products or services into existing contract vehicles, the Government can also benefit from lower pricing through volume discounts, as well as consistent and reliable products and services that are compliant with legal and regulatory requirements.

• By broadening the policy permitting contractor use of Government supply sources, both the Government and industry can benefit from reduced contract costs via the volume discounts associated with the Government's buying power, and consistent and reliable products and services that are compliant with legal and regulatory requirements.

These proposed changes do not create any new burden on the Government or industry. Instead, these changes simply and reduce the guidance needed to acquire products and services from Government supply sources, make the acquisition process faster, lower contract costs, and ensure reliant and compliant products and services are used in performing Government contracts.

The Government acknowledges that these changes are benefits that can result in savings of time and effort costs for both the Government and industry, but the amount time and effort saved will vary for each acquisition and is entirely dependent on the details and requirements of each individual acquisition, as well how agencies apply the procedures and leverage mandatory sources and existing contracts. The saving associated with the rule are expected to be incremental and realized over time through individual acquisitions across various agencies, making a single, upfront estimate difficult to produce. The proposed rule impacts the internal procedures of the Government and does not require any new actions from external stakeholders.

2. Part 12

This proposed rule would substantially revise the structure, scope, and mechanics of FAR part 12 to be user-centric, faster, simpler, and more aligned with customary commercial practices resulting in the following benefits:

•

Improve efficiency and effectiveness:

Enables contracting officers to deliver on their missions more efficiently and effectively by ensuring agencies buy commercial to the maximum extent practicable, encouraging innovation, and finding efficiencies.

•

Greater clarity and understanding:

Refocuses the part on statutory requirements, providing the contracting workforce with a better understanding of their authority and responsibilities. The use of plain language makes the content more clear and easy to follow for contracting officers, offerors, and contractors.

•

Simplified access to information:

Reorganizes the FAR part into process-oriented subparts by acquisition phase, enabling Federal buyers to easily access relevant information.

• “

One-Stop Shop” for commercial acquisitions:

Consolidates procedures (publicizing, simplified acquisition, micro-purchases) into FAR part 12, creating a single source for commercial acquisitions, especially for smaller-dollar procurements.

•

Reduced administrative burden:

Minimizes burden and administrative costs for both the Government and industry by directing the use of simplified procedures for acquisitions up to $9 million (or $15 million in certain emergencies).

•

Streamlined contracting:

Substantially reduces the number of provisions and clauses in commercial acquisitions by removing the “omnibus” provisions (FAR 52.212-3 and 52.212-5) and shifting the burden of determining applicable clauses from the offeror/contractor to the Government.

Expanded use of commercial procedures:

Allows construction to be considered a commercial service, permitting Federal buyers to leverage the streamlined, less burdensome procedures in FAR part 12 when buying construction. Overall, the proposed changes aim to foster a more agile, risk-based, and efficient acquisition system that encourages greater commercial supplier participation in the Federal marketplace.

3. Part 13

This proposed rule, if finalized, would establish the same process-oriented structure as proposed in FAR part 12 and simplify the process for contracting officers handling noncommercial acquisitions valued at or below the SAT. The proposed changes would provide:

•

Clearer compliance requirements.

Substantially streamlines the content to focus on statutory requirements and communicate only those minimum compliance requirements necessary for sound procurement.

•

Enhanced clarity and usability.

Rewrites the content of FAR part 13 and the contract clause (52.213-4) in plain language to make them more clear and easy to follow. This includes replacing formal terms like “shall” with “must” or “will” where appropriate.

•

Reduced administrative hurdles:

Gives contracting officers more flexibility and promotes efficiency and economy for smaller purchases.

•

Improved opportunities:

Simplified procedures ensure industry understands how the Government conducts smaller purchases and improves opportunities for new entrants and small businesses.

4. Part 15

The proposed rule aims to streamline and simplify acquisition processes and shorten acquisition timeframes for both the Government and industry.

• By focusing on negotiation, instead of holding discussions (see paragraph II.E.1.), both the Government and industry can benefit from meaningful negotiations that lead to a more advantageous contract award for both parties.

• By simplifying the definition of “deficiency”, both the Government and industry can benefit from a more consistent application of the term during proposal evaluation, as well as a greater opportunity to address significant weaknesses directly through negotiation.

• By simplifying exchanges with offerors after receipt of proposals, both the Government and industry can benefit from a simple and clear process that can enhance competition by permitting contracting officers to better understand an offeror's proposal and, in turn, consider more proposals for contract award.

• By clarifying what a competitive range is, both the Government and

industry and benefit from a process that enhances competition by allowing the Government to consider proposals that, while not the highest rated, are otherwise well suited for negotiation.

• By formalizing the highest technically rated with a fair and reasonable price source selection approach and phased evaluations, both the Government and industry can benefit from more efficient acquisitions that simplify the source selection process and reduce the time to award a contract.

• By simplifying the policies on late proposals, offerors benefit from simpler and clearer guidance, while contracting officers have greater discretion when deciding whether to accept a late proposal.

These proposed changes do not create any new burden on the Government or industry. Instead, these changes create opportunities for increased competition amongst offerors, more advantageous contract awards for both Government and industry, and quicker and simpler proposal evaluations and contract awards.

The Government acknowledges that these changes are benefits that can result in savings of time and effort costs for both the Government and industry, but the amount of time and effort saved will vary for each acquisition and is entirely dependent on the details and requirements of each individual acquisition, as well as the source selection approach used, the evaluation factors chosen, and the number of other offers received and the details, requirements, and solutions proposed for each of those offers. The proposed rule impacts the internal procedures of the Government and does not require any new actions from external stakeholders.

5. Part 38 and Part 44

The proposed rule aims to reorganize, streamline, and clarify the existing policies and procedures of the FAR. As a result, both the Government and industry can benefit from simpler and clearer guidance. The proposed changes do not change or create any new burden on the Government or industry.

6. Part 51

Due to the proposed movement of the policies in part 51 to part 8, the benefits of the policies in part 51 are included in the discussion at paragraph IV.B.1.

V. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563

Executive Orders (E.O.s) 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess the costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public health and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). E.O. 13563 emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and benefits, of reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, and of promoting flexibility. This is a significant regulatory action and, therefore, was subject to review under Section 6(b) of E.O. 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review, dated September 30, 1993.

VI. Executive Order 14192

This rule is subject to E.O. 14192, Unleashing Prosperity Through Deregulation. This proposed rule, if finalized as proposed, is anticipated to be an E.O. 14192 deregulatory action. See discussion in the “Expected Impact of the Rule” section of this preamble.

VII. Regulatory Flexibility Act

This proposed rule, if finalized, may have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities within the meaning of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601-612. However, an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis (IRFA) is as follows:

1. Reasons for the action.

Executive Order (E.O.) 14275, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement, directs the elimination of excessive acquisition regulations to stop the inefficient use of American taxpayer dollars. The E.O. directs the first comprehensive end-to-end overhaul of the FAR in its 40-year history. The E.O. establishes the policy that the FAR should “contain only provisions that are required by statute or that are otherwise necessary to support simplicity and usability, strengthen the efficacy of the procurement system, or protect economic or national security interests.” In response to E.O. 14275, the Office of Management and Budget issued memorandum M-25-26, Overhauling the Federal Acquisition Regulation. The Memo directed the FAR Council to complete a “revolutionary overhaul” of the FAR. Therefore, the FAR Council is issuing twelve proposed rules that collectively will streamline the entirety of FAR.

2. Objectives of, and legal basis for, the rule.

The revolutionary FAR overhaul (RFO) rewrite represents a paradigm shift in federal acquisition. It emphasizes streamlining, clarity, and accessibility, while ensuring that the regulation focuses only on statutory mandates and foundational procurement principles. The RFO is designed to simplify compliance for contracting professionals, improve acquisition speed and agility, and reinforce mission outcomes over process formalities.

The basis for the RFO is E.O. 14275, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement. The authority for promulgation of the FAR is 41 U.S.C. 1121(b); 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 4 and 10 U.S.C. chapter 137 legacy provisions (see 10 U.S.C. 3016); and 51 U.S.C. 20113.

3. Description of and an estimate of the number of small entities to which the rule will apply.

All small business concerns who want to contract with the Federal Government will have to familiarize themselves with and be impacted by the reorganized, streamlined, and revised FAR, including the content of this rulemaking. As of January 2026, there are 401, 196 entities registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) that were small for at least one NAICS code they had selected.

Subcontractors that are small entities do not need to register in SAM. Based on data for fiscal years 2022 through 2024 from the Federal Procurement Data System, the Government awarded an average of 96,000 contracts annually to which the consent to subcontract would apply. Thus, the number of small business firms impacted by this rule may be greater than the number of small entities registered in SAM.

The changes proposed by this rule do not impose any new requirements or burdens on small business concerns. The impact of the proposed movement of part 51 policies and procedures to part 8, and the removal of part 51 on small entities is addresses in paragraph 3.b. The changes proposed by this rule are not expected to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

4. Description of projected reporting, recordkeeping, and other compliance requirements of the rule.

a. FAR Parts 8, 15, 38, 44, and 51.

The proposed rule does not impose any new reporting, recording keeping, or compliance requirements.

b. FAR Part 12.

The revisions to FAR part 12, if finalized, would remove the provision at FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, and clause at FAR 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, commonly referred to as the “omnibus” provision or clause are proposed for removal. Instead, FAR 12.205 would direct the contracting officer (or an agency clause logic system) to rely on the prescriptions for provisions and clauses, which are being amended under RFO rulemakings to explicitly state whether the provision or clause applies to acquisitions of commercial products and commercial services. Agencies would not be authorized to include provisions and clauses not on the list in commercial acquisitions unless they obtain a deviation in accordance with FAR part 1. This methodology will substantially reduce the number of compliance requirements included in commercial solicitations and contracts. This change also shifts the burden of determining which provisions and clauses are applicable to the commercial acquisitions from the offeror or contractor to the Government.

c. FAR Part 13.

There are no reporting or recordkeeping requirements imposed in FAR part 13 and there are no new compliance requirements for small businesses in FAR part 13. This proposed rule, if finalized, would substantially streamline the procedures for acquisitions valued at or below the SAT, having a positive economic impact on small businesses competing for such contracts.

5. Relevant Federal rules which may duplicate, overlap, or conflict with the rule.

The proposed rule, if finalized, would not duplicate, overlap, or conflict with other Federal rules.

6. Description of any significant alternatives to the rule which accomplish the stated objectives of applicable statutes, and which minimize any significant economic impact of the rule on small entities.

The FAR Council has not, at this stage, identified any significant alternatives that would minimize the impact of the rule on small entities while also implementing the requirements of E.O. 14275. The FAR Council will consider any significant alternatives identified by commenters for the final rule.

The Regulatory Secretariat Division has submitted a copy of the IRFA to the Chief Counsel for Advocacy of the Small Business Administration. A copy of the IRFA may be obtained from the Regulatory Secretariat Division. The FAR Council invites comments from small business concerns and other interested parties on the expected impact of this proposed rule on small entities.

The FAR Council will also consider comments from small entities concerning the existing regulations in subparts affected by the rule in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 610. Interested parties must submit such comments separately and should cite “5 U.S.C. 610 (FAR Case 2026-003)” in correspondence.

VIII. Paperwork Reduction Act

This rule includes information collections under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 3501-3521). Following are the specific collections associated with each FAR part in this rule as previously approved by OMB followed by how each collection would be affected by the proposed rule. If a FAR part is not listed below, then there are no information collections associated with the part.

A. FAR Part 12

• OMB Control No. 9000-0034, Examination of Records by Comptroller General and Contract Audit. See details in section IX.B of this preamble.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0136, Commercial Acquisitions. The changes under this proposed rule, if finalized, would remove the information collection in its entirety. The collection would be discontinued.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0142, Past Performance Information; FAR Sections Affected: 15.305(a)(2)(ii), 42.1503(d), and 52.212-1(b)(10). The changes to this information collection under this proposed rule, if finalized, would be negligible and, therefore, would not change the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

B. FAR Part 15

• OMB Control No. 9000-0013, Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Data Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data—FAR Sections Affected: 52.214-28, 52.215-12, 52.215-13, 52.215-20, and 52.215-21. The changes to this information collection under this proposed rule, if finalized, would be negligible and, therefore, would not change the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0034, Examination of Records by Comptroller General and Contract Audit: FAR Section(s) Affected: 52.212-5(d), 52.214-26, 52.215-2. The changes under this proposed rule, if finalized, would not affect the information collection or the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0037, Presolicitation Notice and Response—FAR Sections Affected: 14.205; 15.201(c); and 36.213-2. The changes to this information collection under this proposed rule, if finalized, would be negligible and, therefore, would not change the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0047, Place of Performance—FAR Sections Affected: 52.214-14, and 52.215-6. The changes to this information collection under this proposed rule, if finalized, would be negligible and, therefore, would not change the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0048, Certain Federal Acquisition Regulation Part 15 Requirements: FAR sections affected: 15.407-2(e), 52.215-1(c)(2)(iv), 52.215-9, 52.215-14, 52.215-19, 52.215-22, and 52.215-23. The changes to this information collection under this proposed rule, if finalized, would be negligible and, therefore, would not change the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

• OMB Control No. 9000-0142, Past Performance Information; FAR Sections Affected: 15.305(a)(2)(ii), 42.1503(d), and 52.212-1(b)(10). See details in section IX.A of this preamble.

C. FAR Part 44

• OMB Control No. 9000-0149, Subcontract Consent and Contractors' Purchasing System Review; FAR Section Affected: 52.244-2. The changes to this information collection under this proposed rule, if finalized, would be negligible and, therefore, would not change the paperwork burden previously approved by OMB. The collection would remain unchanged.

D. FAR Part 51

• OMB Control No. 9000-0032, Contractor Use of Interagency Fleet Management System Vehicles—FAR Sections Affected: 51.202 and 51.203. The changes under this proposed rule, if finalized, would remove the information collection in its entirety. The collection would be discontinued.

E. Comments Regarding Paperwork Burden

The FAR Council will publish a separate first notice in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act seeking comments on the changes to the collections of information affected by this proposed rule.

IX. Severability

If any portion (

e.g.,

section, clause, sentence) of this rule is held to be invalid or unenforceable facially, or as applied to any entity or circumstance, it shall be severable from the remainder of this rule, and shall not affect the remainder thereof, or its application to entities not similarly situated or to other dissimilar circumstances. The various portions of this rule are independent and serve distinct purposes. Even if one aspect were rendered invalid, the other benefits of the rule would still be applicable.

List of Subjects in 48 CFR Parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, 51, and 52

Government procurement.

William F. Clark,

Director, Office of Government-wide Acquisition Policy, Office of Acquisition Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy.

Therefore, OFPP, DoD, GSA, and NASA propose amending 48 CFR parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, 51, and 52 as set forth below:

1. Revise parts 8, 12, 13, and 15 to read as follows:

PART 8—REQUIRED SOURCES OF SUPPLIES AND SERVICES

Sec.

8.000

Scope.

8.001

Definitions.

Subpart 8.1—Presolicitation

8.101

Mandatory sources for specific supplies and services.

8.102

Mandatory source for services.

8.103

Mandatory sources of supplies.

8.104

Use of existing contracts.

8.105

Contractor use of Government supply sources.

8.105-1

Contractor required use of Government supply sources.

8.105-2

Contractor permitted use of Government supply sources.

8.105-3

Contractor use of GSA Fleet.

Subpart 8.2—Acquisition From AbilityOne Participating Nonprofit Agencies

8.201

General.

8.202

Presolicitation.

8.203

Postaward.

Subpart 8.3—Acquisitions From Federal Prison Industries, Inc.

8.301

General.

8.302

Exclusion.

8.303

Presolicitation.

8.304

Solicitation.

8.305

Evaluation and award.

8.306

Postaward.

Subpart 8.4—Ordering Under the Federal Supply Schedule

8.401

General.

Subpart 8.5—Acquisitions of Government Printing and Related Supplies

8.501

General.

8.502

Requirement.

Authority:

41 U.S.C. 1121(b); 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 4 and 10 U.S.C. chapter 137 legacy provisions (see 10 U.S.C. 3016); and 51 U.S.C. 20113.

8.000

Scope.

This part addresses prioritizing sources of supplies and services for use by the Government.

8.001

Definitions.

As used in this part—

AbilityOne Commission

is the operating name for the Committee for Purchase From People Who are Blind or Severely Disabled.

AbilityOne participating nonprofit agency

means a qualified nonprofit agency employing people who are blind or have other severe disabilities approved by the Committee to furnish a commodity or a service to the Government under 41 U.S.C. chapter 85.

Committee

means the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled.

Central nonprofit agency

means National Industries for the Blind, which has been designated to represent AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies serving people who are blind; or SourceAmerica (formerly known as the National Industries for the Severely Handicapped), which has been designated to represent AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies serving people with severe disabilities other than blindness.

Government printing

means printing, binding, and blank-book work for the use of an executive department, independent agency, or establishment of the Government.

Procurement List

means a list of supplies (including military resale commodities) and services that the Committee has determined are suitable for purchase by the Government under 41 U.S.C. chapter 85.

Subpart 8.1—Presolicitation

8.101

Mandatory sources for specific supplies and services.

Agencies must acquire the following supplies and services using the procedures listed below:

Requirement

Procedures

Public utility services

Part 41.

Government printing and related supplies

Subpart 8.5.

Motor vehicles leased for use within the United States and its outlying areas

Contact GSA Fleet.

Strategic and critical materials (e.g., metals and ores) from inventories exceeding Defense National Stockpile requirements

DLA Strategic Materials

https://www.dla.mil/Strategic-Materials/.

8.102

Mandatory source for services.

Unless otherwise required by law or 8.101, agencies must procure services that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee, from AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies in accordance with subpart 8.2.

8.103

Mandatory sources of supplies.

Unless otherwise required by law or subpart 8.101, agencies must procure supplies, in the following order-

(a) From inventories of the requiring agency, in accordance with agency procedures;

(b) From excess from other agencies, in accordance with 41 CFR 102-36;

(d) When on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee, from AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies, in accordance with subpart 8.2.

8.104

Use of existing contracts.

(a) When products or services are unavailable from the mandatory sources listed above, agencies should procure commercial products and commercial services, including those that can be modified to fill agencies' needs, to the maximum extent possible, in accordance with the policy of Executive Order 14271, Ensuring Commercial, Cost-Effective Solutions in Federal Contracts.

(b) When a commercial product or commercial service meets an agency's needs and is available on an existing contract or Blanket Purchase Agreement (BPA) awarded for Governmentwide use (such as the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS), governmentwide acquisition contracts, or other indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity contracts), the agency must—

(1) Use the existing contract or BPA to buy the product or service if it has been designated by the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) as a “required use” contract or BPA, unless the Senior Procurement Executive provides an exception (

e.g.,

because the contract's terms and conditions, scope, or performance period do not meet the agency's needs);

(2) If there is no suitable “required use” contract or BPA to meet the agency's needs, consider using the existing contract or BPA to buy the product or service if it has been designated by OFPP as a “best in class” contract or BPA; and

(3) If there is no suitable “required use” or “best in class” contract or BPA to meet the agency's needs, consider using the existing contract or BPA awarded for Governmentwide use before establishing a new contract for the commercial products and/or commercial services.

(c) Agencies should also consider the use of shared services to fulfill requirements. A shared service is a business or mission function provided by one agency for consumption by multiple other agencies, either within or between Federal agencies (

e.g.,

the stock programs of the General Services Administration (GSA) (see 41 CFR 101-26.3), the Defense Logistics Agency (DLA) (see 41 CFR 101-26.6), and the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) (see 41 CFR 101-26.704)).

8.105

Contractor use of Government supply sources.

When authorizing contractors to use Government supply sources, agencies must follow the requirements of sections 8.105-1 through 8.105-3.

8.105-1

Contractor required use of Government supply sources.

(a)

Policy.

Agencies must authorize contractors purchasing supply items for Government use that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee to purchase such items from DLA, GSA, and VA, if they are available from these agencies through their distribution facilities. When these items are not available from DLA, GSA, or VA, contractors must order them through the appropriate central nonprofit agency which will determine how to fulfill the order.

(b)

Contract clause.

Insert the clause at 52.208-9, Contractor Use of Mandatory Sources of Supply and Services, in solicitations and contracts, including those for commercial products and commercial services, that require a contractor to provide supplies or services for Government use that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee.

8.105-2

Contractor permitted use of Government supply sources.

(a)

General.

(1) Agencies may authorize contractors to use Government supply sources to obtain supplies or services required to perform a Government contract, when it is in the Government's interest and the supplies or services are available from Government supply sources. In this section, the terms “contractors” and “contracts” include “subcontractors” and “subcontracts.”

(2) Agencies may authorize the contractors to use these sources in performing—

(i) A contract awarded using other than sealed bidding procedures; or

(ii) A contract awarded to an AbilityOne participating nonprofit agency for supplies or services on Procurement List maintained by the Committee, if—

(A) The nonprofit agency requesting use of the supplies and services is providing a commodity or service to the Government; and

(B) The supplies or services received are directly used in making or providing a commodity or service on the Procurement List.

(3) Contractors with fixed-price Government contracts that require protection of security classified information may acquire security equipment through GSA sources in accordance with 41 CFR 101-26.507.

(b)

Exclusion.

Agencies must not require a contractor, or subcontractor at any tier, to use FPI as a subcontractor to perform a contract by any means, including means such as—

(1) A solicitation provision requiring a potential contractor to offer to use FPI supplies or services;

(2) A contract specification requiring the contractor to use specific supplies or services (or classes of supplies or services) offered by FPI; or

(3) Any contract modification directing the use of FPI supplies or services.

(c)

Contract clause.

Insert the clause at 52.208-XX, Government Supply Sources, in solicitations and contracts, including those for commercial products and commercial services, when the contractor is authorized to acquire supplies or services from a Government supply source.

8.105-3

Contractor use of GSA Fleet.

(a)

General.

Agencies may authorize contractors performing under cost-reimbursement contracts to obtain vehicles and related services through GSA Fleet in accordance with 41 CFR 101-39.202 and 41 CFR 102-34. In this section, the terms “contractors” and “contracts” include “subcontractors” and “subcontracts.”

(b)

Requirement.

When providing the authorization in paragraph (a), agencies must ensure that contractors establish and enforce suitable penalties against employees who use, or authorize the use of, Government motor vehicles for unofficial purposes or for other than in the performance of the contract.

(c)

Contract clause.

Insert the clause at 52.208-YY, GSA Fleet Vehicles and Related Services, in solicitations and contracts, other than those for commercial products or commercial services, when a cost-reimbursement contract is contemplated and the contractor may be authorized to use GSA Fleet vehicles and related services.

Subpart 8.2—Acquisition From AbilityOne Participating Nonprofit Agencies

8.201

General.

(a) When buying supplies or services from AbilityOne Nonprofit Agencies, agencies must follow the requirements of this subpart and 41 CFR chapter 51.

(b) The AbilityOne Commission has sole authority to set the price and to authorize or deauthorize sources of supply. Agencies may propose price development through the Commission, or propose additions to the Procurement List at any time through the AbilityOne Commission.

8.202

Presolicitation.

(a)

Policy.

In accordance with 41 U.S.C. chapter 85 and as required by 8.102 and 8.103, agencies must buy supplies or services that are on the Procurement List maintained by the Committee from the central nonprofit agency or its designated AbilityOne participating nonprofit agencies, unless a purchase exception applies or the supplies are available from DLA, GSA, or VA supply distribution facilities.

(b)

Purchase exception.

Agencies may submit a request to the AbilityOne Commission, or the appropriate central non-profit agency, for a waiver to the Procurement List requirement. If the waiver is approved, agencies may fulfill

their requirement from a commercial source. Other provisions of the FAR must not be construed as permitting an exception to the mandatory purchase of supplies or services on the Procurement List.

(c)

Supply distribution facilities.

When supplies on the Procurement List are identified as available from DLA, GSA, or VA distribution facilities, agencies must obtain the supplies through DLA, GSA, or VA. Supply distribution facilities in DLA and GSA must obtain supplies on the Procurement List from the central nonprofit agency identified or its designated AbilityOne participating nonprofit agency.

8.203

Postaward.

If the ordering office cannot resolve performance issues with the nonprofit agency, the ordering office must refer the matter to the applicable central nonprofit agency and, if necessary, to the AbilityOne Commission for appropriate resolution.

Subpart 8.3—Acquisitions From Federal Prison Industries, Inc.

8.301

General.

When buying supplies or services from FPI (also known as UNICOR), agencies must follow the requirements of this subpart and FPI's ordering procedures.

8.302

Exclusion.

Agencies must not enter into any contract with FPI that allows an inmate worker access to any—

(a) Classified data;

(b) Geographic data regarding the location of—

(1) Surface and subsurface infrastructure providing communications or water or electrical power distribution;

(2) Pipelines that distribute natural gas, bulk petroleum products, or other commodities; or

(3) Other utilities; or

(c) Personal or financial information about any individual private citizen, including information relating to such person's real property however described, without the prior consent of the individual.

8.303

Presolicitation.

In accordance with 10 U.S.C. 3905 and section 637 of Division H of the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2005 (Pub. L. 108-447) (18 U.S.C. 4124 note), agencies must—

(a) Before purchasing an item of supply listed in the FPI Schedule, conduct market research to determine whether the FPI item is comparable to supplies available from the private sector that best meet the Government's needs in terms of price, quality, and time of delivery. This is a unilateral determination made at the discretion of the contracting officer. The arbitration provisions of 18 U.S.C. 4124(b) do not apply; and

(b) Prepare a written determination that includes supporting rationale explaining the assessment of price, quality, and time of delivery, based on the results of market research comparing the FPI item to supplies available from the private sector.

8.304

Solicitation.

After making the determination in 8.303—

(a) If the FPI item is comparable, agencies must purchase the item from FPI, unless a waiver is obtained in accordance with FPI's ordering procedures; and

(b) If the FPI item is not comparable in one or more of the areas of price, quality, and time of delivery, agencies must—

(1) Acquire the item using—

(i) Competitive procedures; or

(ii) The fair opportunity procedures in part 16, if placing an order under a multiple award delivery-order contract; and

(2) Include FPI in the solicitation process and consider a timely offer from FPI for award in accordance with the item description or specifications, and evaluation factors in the solicitation.

(i) If the solicitation is available through the Governmentwide point of entry (Contract Opportunities at

SAM.gov

), agencies do not need to provide a separate copy of the solicitation to FPI;

(ii) If the solicitation is not available through Contract Opportunities at

SAM.gov,

agencies must provide a copy of the solicitation to FPI;

(iii) When using a multiple award schedule issued under the procedures in subpart 8.4 or when using the fair opportunity procedures in part 16—

(A) Establish and communicate to FPI the item description or specifications, and evaluation factors that will be used as the basis for selecting a source, so an offer from FPI can be evaluated on the same basis as the contract or schedule holder; and

(B) Consider a timely offer from FPI.

8.305

Evaluation and award.

Agencies must make award to the source offering the item determined by the agency to provide the best value to the Government. If the agency determines that the FPI item provides the best value to the Government as a result of FPI's response to a competitive solicitation, follow FPI's ordering procedures.

8.306

Postaward.

Disputes regarding price, quality, character, or suitability of supplies produced by FPI, except for determinations under 8.303 of this section, are subject to arbitration as specified in 18 U.S.C. 4124(b).

Subpart 8.4—Ordering Under the Federal Supply Schedule

8.401

General.

(a) The FSS program is directed and managed by GSA and provides Federal agencies with a simplified process to obtain commercial products and commercial services at prices associated with volume buying. Agencies must use GSA's FSS, in accordance with 8.104.

(b) When placing an order under GSA's FSS, agencies must follow the ordering procedures established by GSA and found at 48 CFR 538.71, Federal Supply Schedule Ordering Procedures. GSA ordering procedures follow all statutory requirements, including the requirements of section 863 of the Duncan Hunter National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009, and have been coordinated with OFPP for consistency with governmentwide acquisition policy.

Subpart 8.5—Acquisitions of Government Printing and Related Supplies

8.501

General.

When acquiring Government printing and related supplies (

i.e.,

supplies and equipment that are used in printing and binding operations), agencies must follow the requirements of this subpart and Government Publishing Office's (GPO) ordering procedures.

8.502

Requirement.

Government printing must be done by or through the GPO (44 U.S.C. 501), unless—

(a) The GPO cannot provide the printing service (44 U.S.C. 504);

(b) The printing is done in field printing plants operated by an executive agency (44 U.S.C. 501(2));

(d) The printing is specifically authorized by statute to be done other than by the GPO.

PART 12—ACQUISITION OF COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES

Sec.

12.000

Scope.

12.001

Applicability.

Subpart 12.1—Presolicitation

12.101

Requirement.

12.102

Restricting competition.

12.103

Small business.

12.104

Contract type.

12.105

Quality requirements.

12.106

Technical data.

12.107

Computer software.

12.108

Contract financing.

12.109

Cost Accounting Standards.

Subpart 12.2—Solicitation, Evaluation, and Award

12.200

Applicability.

12.201

Solicitation procedures.

12.201-1

Simplified procedures.

12.201-2

Other procedures.

12.202

Publicizing.

12.203

Evaluation.

12.204

Award.

12.205

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

Subpart 12.3—Postaward

12.301

Notifications.

12.302

Subcontracts.

12.303

Cancellations.

12.304

Terminations.

Subpart 12.4—Micro-Purchases

12.401

General.

12.402

Purchase guidelines.

12.403

Methods.

Authority:

41 U.S.C. 1121(b); 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 4 and 10 U.S.C. chapter 137 legacy provisions (see 10 U.S.C. 3016); and 51 U.S.C. 20113.

12.000

Scope.

This part provides policies and procedures to streamline the acquisition of commercial products, including commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) items (a subset of commercial products), and commercial services in accordance with 41 U.S.C. 1906, 1907, and 3307 and 10 U.S.C. 3451-3453. It also implements the simplified procedures authorized by 41 U.S.C. 1901-1903, 1905, and 3305.

12.001

Applicability.

(a) Acquisitions of commercial products or commercial services are subject to other parts of the FAR. This part takes precedence when there is an inconsistency.

(b) Agencies may treat any acquisition of supplies or services that, as determined by the head of the agency, are to be used to facilitate defense against or recovery from cyber, nuclear, biological, chemical, or radiological attack, as an acquisition of commercial products or commercial services. However, if the contract is awarded on a sole-source basis for an amount greater than $25 million, the contract is not exempt from Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) (see 48 CFR chapter 99) or certified cost or pricing data requirements (see part 15).

(c) The $9 million ceiling for the use of simplified procedures (see 12.201-1) is increased to $15 million if the head of the agency determines that the supplies or services are to be used to—

(1) Support a contingency operation;

(2) Facilitate the defense against or recovery from cyber, nuclear, biological, chemical, or radiological attack (including acquisitions treated as commercial products or commercial services according to paragraph (b));

(3) Support a request from the Secretary of State or the Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development to facilitate provision of international disaster assistance; or

(4) Support response to an emergency or major disaster.

(d) Do not divide a requirement to avoid using procedures that are required over certain thresholds.

(e) Go to

https://www.acquisition.gov/inapplicablelaws

for the lists of laws that do not apply to contracts for the acquisition of commercial products or commercial services, acquisitions of COTS items, and acquisitions valued at or below the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) (41 U.S.C. 1905 through 1907).

Subpart 12.1—Presolicitation

12.101

Requirement.

(a) Agencies must acquire commercial products or commercial services when the agency determines that they are available to meet the agency's needs (see Part 7).

(b) Require prime contractors and subcontractors at all tiers to incorporate, to the maximum extent practicable, commercial products, commercial services, or nondevelopmental items as components of items supplied to the agency.

12.102

Competition.

(a) For acquisitions valued at or below the SAT, document the decision and the basis for the decision to conduct a sole-source acquisition or to require brand-name specifications without allowing for products with equivalent specifications (“brand name or equal”). Publicize brand-name justifications as required by 12.202.

(b) For acquisitions valued over the SAT, follow the procedures in part 6 when conducting a sole source acquisition or requiring brand-name specifications without allowing for products with equivalent specifications.

12.103

Small business.

(a) See part 19 for small business set-aside requirements. When the acquisition is set aside under any of the small business programs, include the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and small business size standard in the solicitation.

(b) Acquisitions of supplies or services that have an anticipated dollar value above the micro-purchase threshold must be set aside for small business concerns in accordance with 19.104-1).

12.104

Contract type.

(a)

Preference for fixed-price contracts.

To the maximum extent practicable, use firm-fixed-price or fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract types to procure commercial products or commercial services. Follow the procedures in part 16 to use these contract types.

(b)

Time-and-materials or labor-hour contracts.

A time-and-materials or labor-hour contract may be used for commercial services that are procured on a competitive basis, if the services are commonly sold to the general public using these types of contracts.

(1) To use this contract type, the contracting officer must—

(i) Execute a determination and findings (D&F) that a firm-fixed-price or fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract type is not suitable; and

(ii) Include in the contract a ceiling price that the contractor exceeds at its own risk.

(2) Any increase to the ceiling price must be supported by a determination that doing so is in the best interest of the procuring agency.

(c)

Indefinite-delivery contracts.

(1) Indefinite-delivery contracts may be used when—

(i) Prices are established based on a firm-fixed-price or fixed-price with economic price adjustment; or

(ii) Rates are established for commercial services acquired on a time-and-materials or labor-hour basis.

(2) If rates are established on a time-and-materials or labor-hour basis, then to the maximum extent practicable, structure the contract to allow issuance of orders on a firm-fixed-price or fixed-price with economic price adjustment basis.

(i) Orders placed on a time-and-materials or labor-hour basis are subject to the requirements in paragraph (b) of this section.

(ii) If the contract only allows for orders on a time-and-materials or labor-hour basis, the D&F described in paragraph (b)(1) of this section is required only for the basic contract. It must explain why providing for an alternative firm-fixed-price or fixed-price with economic price adjustment pricing structure for orders is not practicable, and an official at least one level above the contracting officer must approve it.

(d)

Prohibition on use of cost-reimbursement contracts.

Do not use any cost-reimbursement contract type to procure commercial products or commercial services. However, line items for incidental expenses, such as travel, may be included in the contract if they provide for reimbursement based on actual costs and include a not-to-exceed amount.

(e)

Executive Order 14402 justification.

Follow the procedures in 16.104 when using other than a firm-fixed-price or fixed-price with economic price adjustment contract type.

12.105

Quality requirements.

(a)

Quality assurance.

To the maximum extent practicable, allow a contractor under a commercial products acquisition to use its existing quality assurance system to inspect or test commercial products before the contractor presents the products to the Government for acceptance. Rely on the contractor to accomplish all inspection and testing needed to ensure that commercial services conform to contract requirements before the contractor presents the services to the Government.

(b)

Warranties.

To the maximum extent practicable, take advantage of commercial warranties, including extended warranties, and use those warranties for the repair and replacement of commercial products and commercial services.

12.106

Technical data.

Presume that technical data delivered under a contract for commercial products was developed exclusively at private expense. Acquire only the technical data and the rights in that data customarily provided to the public with a commercial product or process. When a contract for commercial products requires the delivery of technical data, see part 27 for provisions and clauses to delineate rights in the technical data.

12.107

Computer software.

(a) Commercial computer software or commercial computer software documentation must be acquired under licenses customarily provided to the public to the extent such licenses are consistent with Federal law and otherwise satisfy the Government's needs. Generally, offerors and contractors must not be required to—

(1) Furnish technical information related to commercial computer software or commercial computer software documentation that is not customarily provided to the public except for information documenting the specific modifications made at Government expense to such software or documentation to meet the requirements of the solicitation; or

(2) Relinquish to, or otherwise provide, the Government rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose commercial computer software or commercial computer software documentation except as mutually agreed to by the parties.

(b) With regard to commercial computer software and commercial computer software documentation, the Government should have only those rights specified in the license incorporated into the contract. For additional guidance regarding the use and negotiation of license agreements for commercial computer software, see part 27.

12.108

Contract financing.

Government financing may be offered if buyer financing is a customary market practice for a commercial product or commercial service. See part 32 for contract financing policies and procedures.

12.109

Cost Accounting Standards.

CAS do not apply to contracts or subcontracts for the acquisition of commercial products or commercial services, except as provided in 12.001(b).

Subpart 12.2—Solicitation, Evaluation, and Award

12.200

Applicability.

(a) Acquire commercial products and commercial services from mandatory sources and existing contracts according to part 8. If not, use the streamlined procedures for solicitation, evaluation, and award in this subpart.

(b) When procuring construction as a commercial service, use the procedures in part 36 in conjunction with the procedures in this part.

12.201

Solicitation procedures.

12.201-1

Simplified procedures.

(a)

Requirement.

For acquisitions valued up to $9 million ($15 million for acquisitions described at 12.001(c)), issue a request for quotations (RFQ) followed by a purchase order.

(b)

Legal effect of quotations.

(1) Neither a quotation nor the purchase order issued by the Government in response to a quotation form a binding contract. The purchase order is the Government's offer to a supplier to buy certain products or services upon specified terms and conditions.

(2) A binding contract is formed when the supplier accepts the Government's offer, either by written acceptance of the purchase order or substantial performance of the purchase order. The contracting officer may request that the contractor provide written acceptance of the order.

(c)

Innovation.

In line with 1.102, Guiding principles for the System, agencies are encouraged to use additional innovative approaches to the maximum extent practicable when soliciting quotations and issuing purchase orders to—

(1) Reduce administrative costs and lead time;

(2) Improve opportunities for small business concerns;

(3) Promote efficiency and economy in contracting; and

(4) Avoid unnecessary burdens for agencies and contractors.

(d)

Other flexibilities.

The following are examples of flexibilities that may be leveraged when using simplified procedures:

(1)

Standing price quotation.

A contracting officer may rely upon standing price quotations, as long as the contracting officer validates before award that the pricing is current and reasonable.

(2)

Unpriced purchase order.

An unpriced purchase order is an order for supplies or services, the price of which is not established at the time of issuance of the order.

(i) An unpriced purchase order may be used only when it is impractical to obtain pricing in advance of issuance of the purchase order. Examples of such situations include:

(A) Repairs to equipment requiring disassembly to determine the nature and extent of repairs;

(B) Material available from only one source and for which cost cannot readily be established; or

e.g.,

miscellaneous repair parts, maintenance agreements).

(ii) When issuing an unpriced purchase order, include—

(A) A realistic monetary limitation (either for each line item or for the total

order) that is an obligation subject to adjustment once a firm price is established; and

(B) The following statement:

This is a firm order ONLY if your price does not exceed the maximum line item or total price in the Schedule. Submit invoices to the Contracting Officer. If you cannot perform in exact accordance with this order, do not begin performance, and notify the Contracting Officer immediately, giving your quotation.

(iii) Follow up on each order to ensure timely pricing. Review the invoice price and, if the price is reasonable (see 12.204(a)), process the invoice for payment.

(3)

Blanket purchase agreement.

A blanket purchase agreement (BPA) is a method of filling anticipated repetitive needs for supplies or services. A BPA is not a contract; the Government is only obligated to the extent that authorized orders are placed under a BPA.

(i) BPAs may be established with—

(A) More than one supplier for supplies or services of the same type to provide maximum practicable competition; or

(B) A single firm from which numerous individual purchases at or below the simplified acquisition threshold will likely be made in a given period.

(ii) If, for a particular purchase greater than the micro-purchase threshold, there is an insufficient number of BPAs to ensure maximum practicable competition—

(A) Solicit quotations from other sources and make the purchase as appropriate; and

(B) If practical, establish additional BPAs to facilitate future purchases if recurring requirements for the same or similar supplies or services seem likely and qualified sources are willing to accept BPAs.

(iii) The existence of a BPA does not justify soliciting from only one source or avoiding small business set-asides. The requirements in 12.102 and 12.103 apply to each order under the BPA.

(iv) The BPA must include—

(A) A statement that the supplier will furnish supplies or services, described in general terms, if and when requested by authorized individuals during a specified period and within a stipulated aggregate amount, if any.

(B) A statement that the Government is obligated only to the extent of authorized orders actually made under the BPA.

(

) A single firm, may not exceed the SAT; and

(

) More than one supplier, may not exceed the threshold for use of simplified procedures at 12.201-1(a).

(D) A list of individuals authorized to place orders or make purchases under the BPA.

(E) Information that must be included in delivery or shipment documentation.

(F) Instructions for proper invoicing under the BPA (

e.g.,

process for periodic billings).

(G) Any clauses that may be applicable to purchases under the BPA (see 12.205(b)).

(v) Review BPAs at least annually to ensure that authorized procedures are being followed. Maintain awareness of changes in market conditions, sources of supply, and other pertinent factors that may warrant making new agreements with different suppliers or modifying existing agreements.

12.201-2

Other procedures.

(a)

General.

For acquisitions valued at greater than $9 million ($15 million for acquisitions described at 12.001(c)), use the procedures in this subpart in conjunction with the procedures in part 15 for requests for proposals (RFPs) or part 14 for invitations for bids (IFBs), as appropriate.

(b)

Preference.

Use of an RFP is the preferred method because it includes consideration of past performance when evaluating offers (see 12.203(a)(2)).

12.202

Publicizing.

(a)

Forms and formats.

(1) Agencies should issue the solicitation using the Standard Form (SF) 1449, Solicitation/Contract/Order for Commercial Products and Commercial Services, and Optional Form (OF) 336, Continuation Sheet. The solicitation should be organized as follows:

(i) SF 1449 and, if necessary, the OF 336.

(ii) Applicable contract clauses.

(iii) Any contract documents, exhibits, or attachments.

(iv) Applicable solicitation provisions.

(2) Agencies may use the forms and formats prescribed in parts 14, 15, or 36, when using those procedures in conjunction with this subpart for more complex procurements or where that format would help industry better understand the solicitation.

(b)

General procedures.

Except as provided in paragraph (c), for acquisitions expected to exceed $20,000, post a “Combined Synopsis/Solicitation” in the Governmentwide point of entry (GPE).

(1) Include the following statements in the body of the notice:

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial products or commercial services prepared in accordance with part 12. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation.

[Insert: Quotations, Proposals, or Offers]

are being requested and a separate written solicitation will not be issued.

Solicitation number

[insert: solicitation number]

is issued as a

[insert: request for quotation (RFQ), request for proposal (RFP), or invitation for bid (IFB)]

for

[insert: a brief description of the requirement].

This acquisition

[is/is not]

set-aside for small business concerns.

[If applicable, insert a statement regarding the Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) and assigned rating.]

(2) Include or provide access to the RFQ, RFP, or IFB, as applicable.

(3) Include approved brand name justifications, if applicable.

(c)

Exceptions.

(1)

Simplified acquisition threshold.

For acquisitions valued at or below the SAT, the contracting officer has the option to solicit quotations directly from suppliers instead of posting a combined synopsis/solicitation. When soliciting directly—

(i) Post a presolicitation notice in the GPE that contains the minimum content at 5.101(c) and, if applicable, any approved brand name justification; and

(ii) To ensure maximum practicable competition, solicit quotations from at least three sources and, whenever practicable, ensure two were not included in the previous solicitation.

(2)

Noncompetitive acquisitions.

Post a presolicitation notice in the GPE instead of posting a combined synopsis/solicitation for the following types of noncompetitive actions:

(i) Sole-source acquisitions that do not exceed the SAT (see 12.101(a));

(ii) Acquisitions citing the authority at 6.103-1 (only one responsible source) other than brand-name justifications; and

(iii) Acquisitions citing the authority at 6.103-6 (national security), unless posting the notice would disclose the agency's needs in a way that compromises national security.

(3)

Other exceptions.

Neither a combined synopsis/solicitation, nor a presolicitation notice, is required to be posted if an acquisition meets an exemption to presolicitation notice requirements at 5.101(b).

(d)

Timing.

Comply with the minimum timeframes illustrated in Table 12-1.

(1) A combined synopsis/solicitation must remain open in the GPE for the minimum timeframe.

(2) A presolicitation notice must be posted for the minimum timeframe before soliciting quotations directly or awarding a noncompetitive acquisition, as described at paragraph (c) of this section.

(3) See subpart 25.3 for information on the World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement (WTO GPA) and Free Trade Agreements (FTA):

Table 12-1—Minimum Timeframes

Type of notice

Acquisition value

Not subject to the WTO GPA or FTA

Subject to the WTO GPA or FTA, but included in annual forecast

Subject to the WTO GPA or FTA, but not included in annual forecast

Combined synopsis/solicitation

>$20,000

Contracting officer discretion (provide a reasonable opportunity to respond)

10 days

40 days.

Presolicitation notice only

>$20,000 to ≤$45,000

10 days

40 days.

>$45,000

15 days

40 days.

12.203

Evaluation.

(a)

Factors.

For most acquisitions of commercial products or commercial services, evaluation factors need not be more detailed than technical (capability of the products or services offered to meet the agency's needs), price, and past performance.

(1)

Technical.

Evaluate technical based on how well the proposed products or services meet the Government's requirement. Predetermined subfactors are not required.

(2)

Past performance.

Past performance should be an important evaluation factor for award. Consider past performance information from a wide variety of sources both inside and outside the Government. This may include reviewing performance information reported to the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System, as well as other sources of information. For some commercial products or services, such as emerging technology, this should include consideration of commercial market experience. Contracting officers may consider an offeror's experience as a subcontractor.

(3)

Price.

Evaluate prices inclusive of transportation charges from the shipping point of the supplier to the delivery destination. Obtain prompt payment discounts to the maximum extent practicable, but do not include such discounts when evaluating the prices of quotations or offers.

(b)

Basis for award.

In the solicitation, notify potential quoters or offerors of the basis on which the agency will make the award decision. See 12.205(a)(2) on use of the solicitation provision at 52.212-2 for this purpose.

(c)

Evaluation process.

(1)

Timely quotations and offers.

Consider all quotations or offers that are timely received. Exercise good business judgment in deciding whether or not to accept a quotation or offer received after the due date or time (see 52.212-1(c)).

(2)

Methods.

Ensure that quotations and offers can be evaluated in an efficient and minimally burdensome fashion.

(i)

Quotations.

When using the simplified procedures at 12.201-1, the contracting officer has broad discretion in establishing how quotations will be evaluated. For example, the contracting officer may perform a comparative evaluation of quotations. The evaluation procedures are not subject to part 15 or 14. Contracting officers are not required to have evaluation plans, score quotations, or establish a competitive range before communicating with quoters or soliciting revised quotations.

(ii)

Offers.

When using other procedures as described at 12.201-2, follow the procedures in part 15 when evaluating proposals and the procedures in part 14 when opening bids. When using the procedures in part 15, do so in conjunction with the procedures in this section. Follow the procedures in part 36 when acquiring construction as a commercial service.

12.204

Award.

(a)

Price reasonableness.

The contracting officer must determine the price to be fair and reasonable. Whenever possible, base price reasonableness on competitive quotations or offers. For offers using the procedures in 12.201-2, see part 15 or 14, as applicable, for additional price documentation requirements.

(b)

Documentation.

(1) When using simplified procedures (see 12.201-1), include in the contract file a written description of the procedures used in awarding the contract and the number of quotations received.

(2) When using other procedures (see 12.201-2), document the award as required by part 15 or 14, as applicable.

(c)

Forms and formats.

(1) Agencies should use the SF 1449 and the OF 336, Continuation Sheet, to issue purchase orders (including orders against BPAs) or award contracts for commercial products or commercial services. Follow the streamlined format at 12.202(a)(1) but exclude the solicitation provisions.

(2) Agencies may also use the forms and formats prescribed in parts 14, 15, or 36, as applicable, when awarding contracts using those procedures in conjunction with part 12.

12.205

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

(a)

Required provisions.

(1) Include the provision at 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, in all solicitations for commercial products and commercial services. This provision may be tailored to reflect customary commercial practice, except the paragraph on debriefings, which is required by statute.

(2) Include the provision at 52.212-2, Evaluation—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, when using the procedures in 12.201-2. Paragraph (a) of this provision must be tailored for the acquisition and must include all evaluation factors and criteria for award. Do not tailor paragraphs (b) or (c).

(3) Include provisions prescribed in other parts of the FAR only if the provision is explicitly prescribed for commercial products and/or commercial services. Incorporate the provision as prescribed.

(b)

Required clauses.

(1) Include the clause at 52.212-4, Terms and Conditions—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, in solicitations and contracts for commercial products and commercial services.

(i) Use the clause with its Alternate I in solicitations and contracts for commercial services when expecting to award a time-and-materials or labor-hour contract or when expecting that orders will include time-and-material line items.

(ii) This clause may be tailored to reflect customary commercial practice, with the exception of the following

paragraphs that implement statute: Assignments, Disputes, Payment, Invoice, Compliance with laws unique to Government contracts, Unauthorized obligations, and Comptroller General examination of records.

(iii) Remove the paragraph on Comptroller General examination of records if the agency head has waived this requirement according to the procedures for waivers of right to examination of records in part 25.

(2) Include clauses prescribed in other parts of the FAR in contracts only if the clause is explicitly prescribed for commercial products and/or commercial services. Incorporate the clause as prescribed.

(c)

Waivers and deviations.

(1)

Waivers.

(i) Agencies may waive or tailor provisions and clauses authorized for use in acquisitions for commercial products or commercial services if—

(A) The provision or clause does not implement statute or Executive order;

(B) The contracting officer determines the content to be inconsistent with customary commercial practice; and

(C)(

) For individual acquisitions, the head of the contracting activity approves the waiver or tailoring; or

(

) For a class of acquisitions, the senior procurement executive approves the waiver or tailoring.

(ii) Agencies must—

(A) Provide copies of class waivers for tailoring to the deviations to the Chair of the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council (for civilian agencies) or the Director of the Defense Acquisition Regulations System (for defense departments and agencies); and

(B) Ensure that solicitations and contracts clearly indicate when a provision or clause has been tailored.

(2)

Deviations.

Do not include provisions or clauses that are not explicitly prescribed for commercial products or commercial services, unless the agency issues an individual or class deviation according to part 1.

Subpart 12.3—Postaward

12.301

Notifications.

(a)

Posting requirements.

(1) Comply with the award notice posting requirements in subpart 5.3.

(2) Make the justifications required by 12.102(b) for acquisitions valued over the SAT publicly available in accordance with 6.201.

(b)

Explanations for unsuccessful quoters.

When using the simplified procedures at 12.201-1, upon request, provide a brief explanation of the award decision that explains why the unsuccessful quoter was not selected. If an award notice was not required to be posted to the GPE, also provide the information that would be included in an award notice (see 5.301(c)).

(c)

Notifications and debriefings of unsuccessful offerors.

When using the procedures in 12.201-2, follow the procedures in part 15 or 14 for notification of unsuccessful offerors and debriefings, as appropriate. When providing a debriefing, include the information listed at 52.212-1(e).

12.302

Subcontracts.

See requirements for subcontracts for commercial products and commercial services in subpart 44.4.

12.303

Cancellations.

(a) The Government may withdraw, amend, or cancel purchase orders by written notice to the supplier at any time before acceptance of the order occurs (see 12.201-1(b)).

(b) If the supplier did not accept the purchase order in writing, request that the supplier provide written acceptance of the cancellation.

(c) If the contractor does not accept the cancellation or claims that costs were incurred as a result of the contractor beginning performance under the purchase order, follow the procedures at 12.304 to terminate the purchase order.

12.304

Terminations.

(a)

General.

Follow the procedures in this section and the termination paragraphs of the clause at 52.212-4, when terminating contracts for commercial products or commercial services. Do not use the procedures in part 49.

(b)

Termination for cause.

(1) Before terminating a contract for cause, send a cure notice to the contractor, unless the reason for the termination is late delivery.

(2) The Government's rights include any remedy available to any buyer in the commercial marketplace. The Government's preferred remedy is to acquire similar products or services from another contractor and charge the defaulted contractor for any excess reprocurement costs and any incidental or consequential damages incurred because of the termination.

(3) When a termination for cause is appropriate, send the contractor a written notification regarding the termination. At a minimum, this notification must include—

(i) A statement that the contract is terminated for cause;

(ii) The reasons for the termination;

(iii) Which remedies the Government intends to seek or date by which the Government will inform the contractor of the remedy; and

(iv) A statement that the notice constitutes a final decision of the contracting officer, and that the contractor has the right to appeal under the Disputes clause.

(4) Follow the procedures in part 42 to report termination information to the Responsibility/Qualification Information in

SAM.gov.

(c)

Termination for the Government's convenience.

When terminating for the Government's convenience, the contractor may be entitled to certain payments. The parties should mutually agree upon the requirements of the termination proposal. Balance the Government's need to obtain sufficient documentation to support payment to the contractor against the goal of having a simple and expeditious settlement.

Subpart 12.4—Micro-Purchases

12.401

General.

(a) Agency heads are encouraged to delegate micro-purchase authority (see part 1).

(b) Micro-purchases do not require written provisions or clauses. This paragraph takes precedence over any other FAR requirement to the contrary but does not prohibit the use of any clause.

(c) The security prohibitions and exclusions addressed at subpart 40.2 apply to micro-purchases, unless an exception applies or waiver is granted according to that subpart. However, the provisions and clauses in that subpart are not used for micro-purchases.

(d) Paragraph (s), Unauthorized Obligations, of the clause at 52.212-4, Terms and Conditions—Commercial Products and Commercial Services, automatically applies to any micro-purchase, including those made with the Governmentwide commercial purchase card. This clause prevents violations of the Anti-Deficiency Act (31 U.S.C. 1341).

12.402

Purchase guidelines.

(a) To the extent practicable, distribute micro-purchases equitably among qualified suppliers.

(b) Micro-purchases may be awarded without soliciting competitive quotations if the contracting officer or individual appointed in accordance with 1.403-2(b) considers the price to be reasonable.

(c) The administrative cost of verifying the reasonableness of the price for purchases may more than offset potential savings from detecting instances of overpricing. Therefore, action to verify price reasonableness need only be taken if there is—

(1) A lack of understanding of competitive pricing; or

(2) Reason to suspect that a price is not reasonable.

(d) If the contracting officer solicited competitive quotations and made award to a supplier that did not provide the lowest quote, documentation of the award must include identification of the suppliers solicited and a brief explanation of the award decision.

12.403

Methods.

(a) Use the following methods as the primary means of making micro-purchases:

(1)

The Governmentwide commercial purchase card.

The Governmentwide commercial purchase card is authorized for use in making purchases of supplies, services, or construction. Contracting officers and other individuals designated according to part 1 may use the Governmentwide commercial purchase card. The card may be used only for purchases authorized by law or regulation.

(2)

Purchase orders.

Purchase orders (including orders against blanket purchase agreements) may be used to make micro-purchases. See 12.201-1.

(b) The SF 44, Purchase Order-Invoice-Voucher, is a multipurpose pocket-size purchase order form designed primarily for on-the-spot, over-the-counter purchases of supplies and nonpersonal services while away from the purchasing office or at isolated activities. Contracting officers may use it in limited circumstances and only when advantageous to the Government if all of the following conditions are satisfied:

(1) An agency authorizes use of the SF 44.

(2) The amount of the purchase is at or below the micro-purchase threshold or higher dollar thresholds established by an agency for purchases made under unusual and compelling urgency or in support of contingency operations.

(3) The supplies or services are immediately available, and one delivery and one payment will be made.

(4) Its use is determined to be more economical and efficient than use of the Governmentwide commercial purchase card.

(c) Imprest funds and third-party drafts may be used to acquire supplies or services if an agency receives authorization from the Department of Treasury to use these methods and the purchases are made in accordance with Part IV of the Treasury Financial Manual for Guidance of Departments and Agencies. An imprest fund transaction must not exceed $500 or such other limits as have been approved by the agency head. A third-party draft transaction must not exceed $2,500, unless authorized at a higher level in accordance with Treasury restrictions.

PART 13—SIMPLIFIED PROCEDURES FOR NONCOMMERCIAL ACQUISITIONS

Sec.

13.000

Scope of part.

13.001

Applicability.

Subpart 13.1—Presolicitation

13.101

Competition.

13.102

Small business.

13.103

Quality assurance.

Subpart 13.2—Solicitation, Evaluation, and Award

13.201

Solicitation.

13.202

Evaluation.

13.203

Award.

13.204

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

Subpart 13.3—Postaward

13.301

Notifications.

13.302

Cancellations and terminations.

13.303

Contract financing and payments.

Subpart 13.4—Micro-Purchases

13.401

General.

Authority:

41 U.S.C. 1121(b); 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 4 and 10 U.S.C. chapter 137 legacy provisions (see 10 U.S.C. 3016); and 51 U.S.C. 20113.

13.000

Scope of part.

This part implements simplified procedures for the acquisition of noncommercial products and services valued at or below the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) in accordance with 41 U.S.C. 1901-1903, 1905, and 3305.

13.001

Applicability.

(a) The procedures in this part may be used only if—

(1) Unable to acquire products and services from mandatory sources and existing contracts according to part 8; and

(2) There are no commercial products or commercial services that can satisfy the agency's needs (see part 12).

(b) Follow the procedures in this part when procuring noncommercial products and services valued at greater than the micro-purchase threshold (MPT) but at or below the SAT, except—

(1) When procuring architect-engineering services, follow the short selection process at 36.202-4;

(2) When procuring construction as a noncommercial service, comply with the requirements in part 36 for construction contracts; and

(3) When procuring research and development, use the procedures in this part in conjunction with the procedures in part 35, as appropriate.

(d) Go to

https://www.acquisition.gov/inapplicablelaws

for the lists of laws that do not apply to acquisitions valued at or below the SAT (41 U.S.C. 1905).

Subpart 13.1—Presolicitation

13.101

Competition.

(a) Agencies must promote competition to the maximum extent practicable when procuring noncommercial products and services valued at or below the SAT.

(b) Document the decision and the basis for the decision to conduct a sole source acquisition or to require brand name specifications without allowing for products with equivalent specifications (“brand name or equal”).

13.102

Small business.

Acquisitions of supplies or services that have an anticipated dollar value above the MPT, but at or below the SAT, must be set aside for small business concerns in accordance with 19.104-1. Include the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and small business size standard in the solicitation.

13.103

Quality assurance.

Generally, inspection and acceptance should be at destination. Inspection at the contractor's location should be specified only if required by 46.404.

Subpart 13.2—Solicitation, Evaluation, and Award

13.201

Solicitation.

(a)

General.

The simplified procedures described at 12.201-1 for issuing requests for quotations (RFQs) also apply to noncommercial acquisitions. Agencies are encouraged to use additional innovative approaches and may leverage the other flexibilities identified in that section; however, if using blanket purchase agreements (BPAs), the maximum value of each individual purchase under a BPA may not exceed the SAT.

(b)

Forms and formats.

(1) Use the Standard Form (SF) SF 18, Request for Quotations, and Optional Form (OF) 336, Continuation Sheet, to prepare the solicitation. The solicitation should be organized as follows:

(i) SF 18 and, if necessary, the OF 336.

(ii) Applicable contract clauses.

(iii) Any contract documents, exhibits, or attachments.

(iv) Applicable solicitation provisions.

(2) Agencies may use the form and format prescribed in part 36, when

using those procedures in conjunction with this subpart.

(c)

Procedures.

Comply with the requirements in part 5 for publicizing presolicitation notices and solicitations. Unless an exemption at 5.101(b) applies, publicize the acquisition as follows:

(2) Normally, post the solicitation in the Governmentwide Point of Entry (GPE) and, if applicable, include approved brand name justifications.

(3) The contracting officer may choose to solicit quotations directly from suppliers. When soliciting directly—

(i) Post a presolicitation notice in the GPE and, if applicable, include approved brand name justifications; and

(ii) To ensure maximum practicable competition, solicit quotations from at least three sources and, whenever practicable, ensure two were not included in the previous solicitation.

13.202

Evaluation.

Follow the procedures in 12.203 when establishing evaluation factors and a process to evaluate quotations. Notify potential quoters of the basis on which the agency will make the award decision. Exercise good business judgment in deciding whether to accept a quotation received after the due date or time.

13.203

Award.

(a)

Price reasonableness.

The contracting officer must determine the price to be fair and reasonable. Whenever possible, base price reasonableness on competitive quotations.

(b)

Documentation.

Include in the contract file a written description of the procedures used in awarding the purchase order and the number of quotations received.

(c)

Forms and format.

Use the Optional Form (OF) 347, Order for Supplies or Services; the OF 336, Continuation Sheet, or OF 348, Order for Supplies and Services Schedule—Continuation; or similar agency forms or automated formats to the maximum extent practicable.

13.204

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

(a) Insert provisions and clauses prescribed elsewhere in the FAR in purchase orders for noncommercial supplies or services valued at or below the SAT as required or applicable based on the clause prescriptions.

(b) Contracting officers may insert the clause at 52.213-4, Terms and Conditions—Simplified Acquisitions (Noncommercial), in noncommercial acquisitions valued at or below the SAT to provide a streamlined set of terms and conditions for inspection/acceptance, excusable delays, terminations, and warranties. This clause is either used in lieu of similar clauses prescribed for these purposes or tailored to incorporate only some of the streamlined terms and conditions, as necessary.

i.e.,

52.212-1, 52.212-2, or 52.212-4) in noncommercial acquisitions.

Subpart 13.3—Postaward

13.301

Notifications.

Comply with the award notice posting requirements in subpart 5.3. Upon request from an unsuccessful quoter, provide a brief explanation of the award decision that explains why the unsuccessful quoter was not selected. If an award notice was not required to be posted to the Government point of entry, also provide the information that would be included in an award notice (see 5.301(c)).

13.302

Cancellations and terminations.

(a) The Government may withdraw, amend, or cancel purchase orders by written notice to the supplier at any time before acceptance of the order occurs (see 12.201-1(b)).

(b) If the supplier did not accept the purchase order in writing, request that the supplier provide written acceptance of the cancellation.

(c) If the supplier does not accept the cancellation or claims that costs were incurred as a result of beginning performance under the purchase order, follow the procedures in the termination clause in the purchase order (

e.g.,

52.213-4 or 52.249-8).

13.303

Contract financing and payments.

(a) Unless agency regulations permit otherwise, do not provide financing for purchases valued at or below the SAT.

(b) See part 32 for payment procedures, including the option to use fast payment procedures.

Subpart 13.4—Micro-Purchases

13.401

General.

(a) Follow the procedures in 12.4 when making purchases valued at or below the MPT.

(b) For noncommercial acquisitions, the clause at 52.232-39, Unenforceability of Unauthorized Obligations, automatically applies to any micro-purchase, including those made with the Governmentwide commercial purchase card. This clause prevents violations of the Anti-Deficiency Act (31 U.S.C. 1341).

PART 15—CONTRACTING BY NEGOTIATION

Sec.

15.000

Scope.

15.001

Definitions.

15.002

Types of negotiated acquisition.

Subpart 15.1—Presolicitation and Solicitation

15.100

Scope.

15.101

Structuring a request for proposals.

15.102

Developing a competitive source selection approach.

15.102-1

Tradeoff approach.

15.102-2

Lowest price technically acceptable approach.

15.102-3

Highest technically rated with a fair and reasonable price approach.

15.102-4

Phased evaluation.

15.103

Establishing competitive evaluation factors and significant subfactors.

15.104

Other considerations.

15.104-1

Oral presentations.

15.104-2

Negotiations disclosure.

15.104-3

Limitation on tiered evaluations for multiple award contracts.

15.104-4

Request for cost or pricing data.

15.104-5

Make-or-buy program.

15.104-6

Should-cost review.

15.104-7

Unit prices.

15.104-8

Advisory multistep process.

15.105

Amending a request for proposal.

15.106

Submission, modification, revision, and withdrawal of proposals.

15.107

Receiving proposals.

15.108

Uniform contract format.

15.108-1

Part I—The Schedule.

15.108-2

Part II—Contract Clauses.

15.108-3

Part III—List of Documents, Exhibits, and Other Attachments.

15.108-4

Part IV—Representations and Instructions.

15.109

Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.

Subpart 15.2—Evaluation and Award

15.200

Scope.

15.201

Source selection responsibilities.

15.202

Evaluating competitive proposals.

15.203

Competitive award without negotiation.

15.204

Competitive award with negotiation.

15.204-1

Establishing a competitive range.

15.204-2

Competitive negotiations.

15.205

Source selection decision.

15.206

Preaward notices and debriefings.

15.206-1

Preaward notices.

15.206-2

Preaward debriefing.

15.207

Award.

15.207-1

Award to successful offeror.

15.207-2

Award notice.

Subpart 15.3—Postaward

15.300

Scope.

15.301

Postaward debriefing of offerors.

15.302

Protests against award.

15.303

Discovery of mistakes.

15.304

Defective certified cost or pricing data after award.

15.305

Estimating systems.

Subpart 15.4—Contract Pricing

15.400

Scope.

15.401

Definitions.

15.402

General.

15.403

Obtaining cost or pricing data.

15.403-1

Data other than certified cost or pricing data.

15.403-2

Prohibitions on obtaining certified cost or pricing data.

15.403-3

Certified cost or pricing data.

15.403-4

Certificate of current cost or pricing data.

15.404

Proposal analysis.

15.404-1

Price analysis.

15.404-2

Cost analysis.

15.404-3

Cost realism analysis.

15.404-4

Technical cost or price analysis.

15.404-5

Unit prices.

15.404-6

Unbalanced pricing.

15.404-7

Review and justification of pass-through contracts.

15.404-8

Subcontract pricing considerations.

15.404-9

Profit.

15.405

Special cost or pricing areas.

15.405-1

Inaccurate, incomplete, or noncurrent cost or pricing data.

15.405-2

Make-or-buy programs.

15.405-3

Forward pricing rate agreements.

15.405-4

Should-cost review.

15.406

Data to support proposal analysis.

15.407

Price negotiation.

15.408

Documentation.

15.408-1

Prenegotiation objectives.

15.408-2

Documenting the negotiation.

Subpart 15.5—Unsolicited Proposals

15.500

Scope

15.501

Definitions.

15.502

General.

15.503

Preparing unsolicited proposals.

15.503-1

Scope of proposals.

15.503-2

Content of proposals.

15.503-3

Restricting use and disclosure of data.

15.504

Receipt and initial review of unsolicited proposals.

15.504-1

Initial Review.

15.504-2

Handling use and disclosure of data restrictions.

15.505

Evaluation of unsolicited proposals.

15.506

Criteria for acceptance and negotiation of an unsolicited proposal.

Authority:

41 U.S.C. 1121(b); 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 4 and 10 U.S.C. chapter 137 legacy provisions (see 10 U.S.C. 3016); and 51 U.S.C. 20113.

15.000

Scope.

This part addresses policies and procedures used in competitive and noncompetitive negotiated acquisitions. These acquisition procedures provide an opportunity for negotiation between the Government and an offeror(s) upon receipt of a proposal submitted in response to a request for proposals (RFP).

15.001

Definitions.

As used in this part—

Clarification

means communication between the Government and an offeror where the offeror is given the opportunity to resolve minor or administrative errors or clarify certain aspects of their proposal, but does not result in an opportunity for offerors to submit a proposal revision.

Competitive range

means the group of evaluated proposals that the contracting officer determines are best suited for negotiation.

Deficiency

is any part of a proposal that does not conform to a material term of a RFP. A material term is one that affects price, quantity, quality, or delivery, or any prerequisites that the RFP requires to be met at the time of proposal submission.

Negotiation

means communication between the Government and an offeror regarding an offeror's proposal that results in an opportunity for the offeror to submit a proposal revision. In noncompetitive negotiations, the proposal revision may occur verbally and be captured in the resultant contract.

Proposal modification

is a change made to a proposal before the RFP closing date and time, or made in response to an amendment, or made to correct a mistake at any time before award.

Proposal revision

is a change to an offeror's proposal made after the RFP closing date, at the request of or as allowed by a contracting officer, as the result of negotiations.

Weakness

means a flaw in the proposal that increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance. A “significant weakness” in the proposal is a flaw that appreciably increases the risk of unsuccessful contract performance.

15.002

Types of negotiated acquisition.

(a)

Noncompetitive acquisitions.

Noncompetitive, or sole source, acquisition is a process whereby an award is made to a single vendor without soliciting proposals from multiple sources. When using this acquisition strategy, remove unnecessary information and requirements from the RFP, including voluminous proposal preparation instructions and evaluation factors.

(b)

Competitive acquisitions.

Competitive acquisition is a process whereby an award is made after soliciting proposals from multiple sources. When using this acquisition strategy, tailor the complexity of the RFP, evaluation, and source selection decision to the circumstances of the acquisition, while maintaining a process that promotes an impartial and comprehensive evaluation of proposals, leading to selection of the proposal representing the best value to the Government.

Subpart 15.1—Presolicitation and Solicitation

15.100

Scope.

This subpart addresses policies

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