3.801 Definitions
Source: FAR 3.801 on acquisition.gov
FAR 3.801 matters because the anti-lobbying rules in Subpart 3.8 turn on these definitions—especially what counts as a covered Federal action, who is a recipient, and when communications or payments may be treated as influence-related.
Overview
- FAR 3.801 provides the core definitions used in Subpart 3.8, Limitations on the Payment of Funds to Influence Federal Transactions. These definitions determine who is covered, what actions trigger the rule, and what types of communications may be treated as efforts to influence Federal decisions.
- For contractors, the section is important because it frames the scope of lobbying-related restrictions and certifications tied to Federal contracts and related transactions.
Key Rules
- Covered Federal action
- Includes awarding a Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement, as well as extending, renewing, amending, or modifying those instruments.
- Influencing or attempting to influence
- Means communications or appearances made with intent to influence agency officials, Members of Congress, congressional staff, or employees of Members of Congress regarding a covered Federal action.
- Who is covered
- Defines key parties such as agency, person, recipient, State, local government, and officer or employee of an agency. Recipient expressly includes contractors and subcontractors.
- Compensation standards and employment status
- Defines reasonable compensation, reasonable payment, and regularly employed, including the 130-working-day standard used to determine regular employment.
Responsibilities
- Contracting Officers: apply these definitions when evaluating lobbying restrictions, certifications, and disclosures under Subpart 3.8.
- Contractors: determine whether their communications, personnel, and payments fall within these definitions before seeking or modifying Federal awards.
- Agencies: use consistent statutory definitions, including special exclusions for certain Indian tribes and tribal organizations where permitted by law.
Practical Implications
- This section exists to create a uniform vocabulary for enforcing anti-lobbying restrictions in Federal transactions.
- It affects how contractors classify internal employees, consultants, payments, and communications tied to contract awards or modifications.
- Common pitfalls include misunderstanding who counts as a recipient, overlooking subcontractor coverage, and misapplying the 130-day regularly employed test.
As used in this subpart-
Agency means "executive agency" as defined in 2.101.
Covered Federal action means any of the following actions:
(1) Awarding any Federal contract.
(2) Making any Federal grant.
(3) Making any Federal loan.
(4) Entering into any cooperative agreement.
(5) Extending, continuing, renewing, amending, or modifying any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement.
Indian tribe and "tribal organization" have the meaning provided in section 4 of the Indian Self-Determination and Education Assistance Act (http://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?req=granuleid:USC-prelim-title25-section450b&num=0&edition=prelim" target="_blank">25 U.S.C. 450b) and include Alaskan Natives.
Influencing or attempting to influence means making, with the intent to influence, any communication to or appearance before an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress in connection with any covered Federal action.
Local government means a unit of government in a State and, if chartered, established, or otherwise recognized by a State for the performance of a governmental duty, including a local public authority, a special district, an intrastate district, a council of governments, a sponsor group representative organization, and any other instrumentality of a local government.
Officer or employee of an agency includes the following individuals who are employed by an agency:
(1) An individual who is appointed to a position in the Government under Title 5, United States Code, including a position under a temporary appointment.
(2) A member of the uniformed services, as defined in subsection 101(3), Title 37, United States Code.
(3) A special Government employee, as defined in section 202, Title 18, United States Code.
(4) An individual who is a member of a Federal advisory committee, as defined by the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Title 5, United States Code, appendix 2.
Person means an individual, corporation, company, association, authority, firm, partnership, society, State, and local government, regardless of whether such entity is operated for profit or not for profit. This term excludes an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or any other Indian organization eligible to receive Federal contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or loans from an agency, but only with respect to expenditures by such tribe or organization that are made for purposes specified in paragraph 3.802(a) and are permitted by other Federal law.
Reasonable compensation means, with respect to a regularly employed officer or employee of any person, compensation that is consistent with the normal compensation for such officer or employee for work that is not furnished to, not funded by, or not furnished in cooperation with the Federal Government.
Reasonable payment means, with respect to professional and other technical services, a payment in an amount that is consistent with the amount normally paid for such services in the private sector.
Recipient includes the contractor and all subcontractors. This term excludes an Indian tribe, tribal organization, or any other Indian organization eligible to receive Federal contracts, grants, cooperative agreements, or loans from an agency, but only with respect to expenditures by such tribe or organization that are made for purposes specified in paragraph 3.802(a) and are permitted by other Federal law.
Regularly employed means, with respect to an officer or employee of a person requesting or receiving a Federal contract, an officer or employee who is employed by such person for at least 130 working days within 1 year immediately preceding the date of the submission that initiates agency consideration of such person for receipt of such contract. An officer or employee who is employed by such person for less than 130 working days within 1 year immediately preceding the date of the submission that initiates agency consideration of such person shall be considered to be regularly employed as soon as he or she is employed by such person for 130 working days.
State means a State of the United States, the District of Columbia, an outlying area of the United States, an agency or instrumentality of a State, and multi-State, regional, or interstate entity having governmental duties and powers.