FAR 15.002—Types of negotiated acquisition.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 15.002 explains the two basic types of negotiated acquisitions: sole source acquisitions and competitive acquisitions. It tells contracting officers how the solicitation and source selection approach should differ depending on whether only one source is available or multiple offerors will compete. In a sole source environment, the RFP should be streamlined by removing unnecessary material, such as elaborate evaluation criteria and excessive proposal preparation instructions, because competition is not driving the process. In a competitive environment, the procedures in FAR part 15 are meant to keep the solicitation, evaluation, and source selection as simple as possible while still supporting a fair, impartial, and thorough evaluation. The practical purpose of the section is to align acquisition planning and proposal requirements with the actual market situation, reduce unnecessary burden on industry and the Government, and support selection of the proposal that offers the best value to the Government. This section is important because it sets the tone for how much detail, structure, and evaluation rigor should be built into the acquisition.
Key Rules
Tailor sole-source RFPs
When only one source is available, the RFP should be stripped down to the information and requirements that are actually needed. Unnecessary evaluation factors and lengthy proposal instructions should be avoided because they add burden without improving competition or decision quality.
Simplify competitive procedures
In competitive acquisitions, FAR part 15 procedures should minimize complexity in the solicitation, evaluation, and source selection process. The goal is to keep the process manageable while still supporting a sound award decision.
Maintain impartial evaluation
Even when the process is streamlined, the Government must still conduct an impartial and comprehensive evaluation of proposals. The evaluation must be fair, consistent with the solicitation, and thorough enough to support a defensible source selection.
Select best value
Competitive negotiated acquisitions are intended to lead to selection of the proposal representing the best value to the Government. Best value is the guiding outcome, so the evaluation and source selection approach should be designed to identify the proposal that best meets the Government’s needs.
Match process to market conditions
The section distinguishes between sole source and competitive environments so the acquisition strategy fits the actual market. The more competition there is, the more the process should focus on structured evaluation and source selection; the less competition there is, the more the solicitation should be streamlined.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Determine whether the acquisition is sole source or competitive and shape the RFP accordingly. In sole source acquisitions, remove unnecessary instructions and evaluation detail; in competitive acquisitions, keep the process as simple as possible while ensuring a fair, comprehensive evaluation and a best-value source selection.
Source Selection Team / Evaluators
Apply the solicitation’s evaluation approach impartially and consistently. Ensure the evaluation is comprehensive enough to support the source selection decision and aligned with the stated best-value objective.
Agency
Structure negotiated acquisitions so the solicitation and source selection process reflect the market environment. Support acquisition planning that avoids unnecessary complexity and promotes efficient, defensible procurement outcomes.
Offerors / Contractors
Respond to the solicitation as written and prepare proposals that address the stated requirements. In sole source settings, focus on the essential information requested; in competitive settings, tailor proposals to the evaluation criteria and best-value considerations.
Practical Implications
For sole source buys, overbuilt RFPs waste time and can create confusion or disputes over requirements that are not needed to choose among competitors.
For competitive buys, unnecessary proposal instructions and overly complex evaluation schemes can slow the procurement, increase protest risk, and make source selection harder to defend.
Contracting officers should ensure the solicitation matches the acquisition environment; using a competitive-style RFP for a sole source action is a common inefficiency.
Evaluation criteria should be only as detailed as needed to support a fair best-value decision; too much detail can constrain judgment, while too little can undermine transparency.
The section reinforces that simplicity is not the same as informality: even streamlined negotiated acquisitions must still support an impartial, comprehensive, and well-documented decision.
Official Regulatory Text
(a) Sole source acquisitions. When contracting in a sole source environment, the request for proposals (RFP) should be tailored to remove unnecessary information and requirements; e.g., evaluation criteria and voluminous proposal preparation instructions. (b) Competitive acquisitions . When contracting in a competitive environment, the procedures of this part are intended to minimize the complexity of the solicitation, the evaluation, and the source selection decision, while maintaining a process designed to foster an impartial and comprehensive evaluation of offerors’ proposals, leading to selection of the proposal representing the best value to the Government (see 2.101 ).