On May 2, 2025, the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (“OFPP”) and the Federal Acquisition Regulatory Council (“FAR Council”) issued the first round of promised FAR rewrites—to Parts 1, 34, and 52—alongside a guidance memorandum for agencies subject to the FAR, Deviation Guidance to Support the Overhaul of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (“FAR Council Deviation Guidance”). The Office of Management and Budget also released a guidance memo, Overhauling the Federal Acquisition Regulation (“OMB Guidance”), that addresses the proposed implementation roadmap for the FAR overhaul. These initial FAR revisions follow the April 15, 2025 Executive Order (“EO”), Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement, which we previously reported on here.
The initial rewrites include FAR Part 1 (Federal Acquisition Regulations System), and FAR Part 34 (Major System Acquisition), with a few corresponding revisions to FAR Part 52 (Solicitation Provisions and Contract Clauses). Notable changes include the deletion of FAR Subpart 1.5’s public participation terms, and the addition of FAR 1.109, a new clause containing a four-year sunset provision for non-statutory FAR clauses (which was specifically recommended in the April EO). A high-level summary of the initial revisions is included below.
The FAR Council Deviation Guidance instructs agencies to issue agency-specific class deviations within 30 days after the FAR Council publishes class deviation text on the “Revolutionary FAR Overhaul” (“RFO”) website, and such deviations should remain effective until formally implemented in the FAR. Agencies must request approval from the FAR Council before issuing class deviations that differ from the FAR Council’s model deviation text.
According to the OMB Guidance, most non-statutory regulations will be replaced with OFPP-endorsed “buying guides” that, collectively with the streamlined FAR, will be referred to as the Strategic Acquisition Guidance (“SAG”). The buying guides will be “living documents that are updated as best practices evolve and will accommodate varying levels of procurement experience.”
After the FAR Council has posted model deviation guidance for all FAR parts, it will turn to formal rulemaking using the notice and comment process set forth at 41 U.S.C. § 1707. The OMB Guidance notes that the rulemaking will be “informed by the model deviation text, public input on the text received on the RFO website, operational experience with agency deviations, recommendations from agency points of contact [], testing of the buying guides, and other appropriate inputs.”
Link to FAR Part 1 – Federal Acquisition Regulations System FAR Part 1 – Federal Acquisition Regulations System
Link to Sections Removed: Sections Removed:
- Subpart 1.2 – “Administration” has been removed.
- Subpart 1.5 – “Agency and Public Participation” has been removed, including sections 1.501 to 1.503, which covered solicitation of agency and public views, opportunity for public comments, exceptions, unsolicited proposed revisions, and public meetings.
Link to Sections Added: Sections Added:
- 1.109, “Regulatory sunset” – As directed in section 6 of the April 15, 2025 Executive Order, Restoring Common Sense to Federal Procurement, this new section outlines the expiration of FAR sections not required by statute after four years unless renewed.
Link to Sections Revised: Sections Revised:
- Subpart 1.1 – formerly, “Purpose, Authority, Issuance,” now, “Framework” has been revised and shortened, including, among other changes:
- Emphasis on efficiency and innovation
- Replacing language in the FAR’s guiding principles favoring awards to contractors with a track record of successful past performance or “current” superior ability to perform with new language favoring awards to “contractors who demonstrate a superior ability to perform.”
- Subpart 1.3 (now Subpart 1.2) – “Agency Acquisition Regulations” has been revised and shortened.
- Subpart 1.4 (now Subpart 1.3) – “Deviations from the FAR” has been revised and NASA and DoD-specific terms and exceptions have been removed.
- Subpart 1.6 (now Subpart 1.4) – “Career Development, Contracting Authority, and Responsibilities” has been revised.
- Subpart 1.7 (now Subpart 1.5) – formerly, “Supersession and modification,” now, “Replacement and modification” has been revised.
Link to FAR Part 34 – Major System Acquisition FAR Part 34 – Major System Acquisition
Link to Sections Removed: Sections Removed:
- 34.000, “Scope of part”
- 34.001, “Definition” – The definition of “Effective competition” was removed.
- 34.002, “Policy”
- 34.003, “Responsibilities” – Responsibilities for agency heads and procedures for major system acquisitions, including requirement for written implementation procedures, removed.
- 34.004, “Acquisition strategy” – The requirement for a written acquisition strategy by the program manager was removed.
- 34.005, “General requirements” – Sections detailing competition, mission-oriented solicitation, concept exploration contracts, demonstration contracts, full-scale development contracts, and full production contracts removed.
Link to Sections Revised: Sections Revised:
- Subpart 34.1 – Previously “Testing, Qualification and Use of Industrial Resources Developed Under Title III, Defense Production Act,” now, “Postaward”
- 34.100 (formerly 34.1), “Testing, Qualification and Use of Industrial Resources Developed Under Title III of the Defense Production Act”
- 34.101, “Scope” (formerly 34.100, “Scope of subpart”)
- 34.102 (formerly 34.101), “Definitions” – The definition of “Item of supply” has been revised.
- 34.103 (formerly 34.102), “Policy” – Whereas the current language declared it “the policy of the Government . . . to pay for any testing and qualification required for the use or incorporation of the industrial resources manufactured or developed with assistance provided under Title III of the Defense Production Act,” the new language states that the Government “will generally pay” such costs.
- 34.104 (formerly 34.103), “Testing and qualification” and 34.105 (formerly 34.104), “Contract Clause” – FAR 52.234-1 reference updated to FAR 52.201. Given that the current FAR 52.201-1 was deleted and reserved, it appears that FAR 52.234-1, Industrial Resources Developed Under Title III of the Defense Production Act, will become FAR 52.201.
- Subpart 34.2 – Earned Value Management System (EVMS)
- 34.201, “Policy” – Deletion of 34.201(b), which allowed for submission of a comprehensive plan for compliance with these EVMS standards if an offeror proposed to use a system that had not been determined to be in compliance with the Electronic Industries Alliance Standard 748 (EIA-748), and provided that offerors would not be eliminated from consideration for contract award because they did not have an EVMS that complied with these standards.
- 34.202, “Integrated Baseline Reviews” – The section is substantially shortened and now simply states that “[w]hen an EVMS is required, the agency will conduct an Integrated Baseline Review.”
- 34.203, formerly, “Solicitation provisions and contract,” now, “Contract Clause” – Insertion instructions deleted for FAR 52.234-2, Earned Value Management System Preaward Integrated Baseline Review and FAR 52.234-3, Earned Value Management System Postaward Integrated Baseline Review.
Link to FAR Part 52 – Solicitation Provisions and Contract Clauses FAR Part 52 – Solicitation Provisions and Contract Clauses
Link to Sections Removed and Reserved: Sections Removed and Reserved:
- 52.201-1, Acquisition 360: Voluntary Survey, deleted and reserved. Based on the revisions to FAR Part 34 and this deletion, it appears that FAR 52.234-1, Industrial Resources Developed Under Title III of the Defense Production Act, will become FAR 52.201.
- 52.234-2, Earned Value Management System Preaward Integrated Baseline Review, deleted and reserved.
- 52.234-3, Earned Value Management System Postaward Integrated Baseline Review, deleted and reserved.
Link to Sections Revised: Sections Revised:
- 52.234-1, Industrial Resources Developed Under Title III, Defense Production Act,” has been slightly renamed (“Industrial Resources Developed Under Title III of the Defense Production Act”) and revised.
- 52.234-4, Earned Value Management System, has been revised.