Part 15 Contracting by Negotiation
Source: FAR 15 on acquisition.gov
FAR Part 15 provides the comprehensive framework for conducting negotiated federal acquisitions, ensuring fairness, transparency, and best value throughout the procurement process.
Overview
FAR Part 15, "Contracting by Negotiation," establishes the policies and procedures for conducting negotiated procurements in federal contracting. This part covers the entire lifecycle of negotiated acquisitions, including source selection, solicitation and receipt of proposals, evaluation and award, contract pricing, notifications, protests, and handling unsolicited proposals. It provides detailed guidance for both contracting officers and contractors on how to conduct fair and effective negotiations, ensure transparency, and achieve best value for the government. The part is organized into subparts that address specific phases and requirements, such as source selection techniques (e.g., tradeoff and lowest price technically acceptable), proposal handling, pricing policies, and debriefings. FAR Part 15 is essential for acquisitions where competitive negotiation is used rather than sealed bidding, and it sets the foundation for complex procurements, including those involving cost analysis, technical evaluations, and post-award communications.
Key Rules
- Source Selection Processes and Techniques
- Outlines methods for evaluating proposals, including best value, tradeoff, and lowest price technically acceptable approaches.
- Solicitation and Receipt of Proposals
- Details requirements for issuing solicitations, handling proposals, and amending solicitations.
- Source Selection
- Provides procedures for evaluating proposals, conducting discussions, and making award decisions.
- Contract Pricing
- Establishes policies for obtaining and analyzing cost or pricing data, profit analysis, and negotiation documentation.
- Notifications, Protests, and Mistakes
- Covers requirements for notifying offerors, handling protests, and correcting mistakes.
- Unsolicited Proposals
- Sets forth procedures for receiving and evaluating proposals not solicited by the government.
Responsibilities
- Contracting Officers: Must follow prescribed procedures for negotiations, proposal evaluation, pricing, and notifications.
- Contractors: Must comply with proposal submission, pricing data, and communication requirements.
- Agencies: Responsible for oversight, ensuring fairness, and maintaining documentation throughout the acquisition process.
Practical Implications
- FAR Part 15 exists to ensure negotiated procurements are conducted fairly, transparently, and result in best value for the government.
- It impacts daily contracting by defining how proposals are solicited, evaluated, negotiated, and awarded.
- Common pitfalls include improper documentation, failure to follow evaluation procedures, and inadequate communication with offerors.
15.002 Types of negotiated acquisition.
Subpart 15.1 - Source Selection Processes and Techniques
15.101-2 Lowest price technically acceptable source selection process.
15.101-3 Tiered evaluation of small business offers.
Subpart 15.2 - Solicitation and Receipt of Proposals and Information
15.201 Exchanges with industry before receipt of proposals.
15.202 Advisory multi-step process.
15.203 Requests for proposals.
15.204-1 Uniform contract format.
15.204-3 Part II-Contract Clauses.
15.204-4 Part III-List of Documents, Exhibits, and Other Attachments.
15.204-5 Part IV-Representations and Instructions.
15.206 Amending the solicitation.
15.207 Handling proposals and information.
15.208 Submission, modification, revision, and withdrawal of proposals.
15.209 Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.
Subpart 15.3 - Source Selection
15.302 Source selection objective.
15.304 Evaluation factors and significant subfactors.
15.306 Exchanges with offerors after receipt of proposals.
15.308 Source selection decision.
Subpart 15.4 - Contract Pricing
15.403 Obtaining certified cost or pricing data.
15.403-2 Other circumstances where certified cost or pricing data are not required.
15.403-3 Requiring data other than certified cost or pricing data.
15.403-4 Requiring certified cost or pricing data (10 U.S.C. chapter 271 and 41 U.S.C. chapter 35).
15.404-1 Proposal analysis techniques.
15.404-2 Data to support proposal analysis.
15.404-3 Subcontract pricing considerations.
15.406-1 Prenegotiation objectives.
15.406-2 Certificate of Current Cost or Pricing Data.
15.406-3 Documenting the negotiation.
15.407 Special cost or pricing areas.
15.407-1 Defective certified cost or pricing data.
15.407-2 Make-or-buy programs.
15.407-3 Forward pricing rate agreements.
15.408 Solicitation provisions and contract clauses.
Subpart 15.5 - Preaward, Award, and Postaward Notifications, Protests, and Mistakes
15.503 Notifications to unsuccessful offerors.
15.504 Award to successful offeror.
15.505 Preaward debriefing of offerors.
15.506 Postaward debriefing of offerors.
15.507 Protests against award.
Subpart 15.6 - Unsolicited Proposals
15.604 Agency points of contact.
15.605 Content of unsolicited proposals.
15.606-1 Receipt and initial review.
15.607 Criteria for acceptance and negotiation of an unsolicited proposal.