FAR 19.502-11—Solicitation notice regarding administration of change orders for construction.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 19.502-11 is a cross-reference provision that tells readers where to find the solicitation notice requirement for construction contracts involving the administration of change orders and the definitization of equitable adjustments. In practical terms, this section does not itself create a detailed substantive rule; instead, it points contracting personnel and offerors to FAR 36.211, which governs the notice that must be included in solicitations for construction when the Government may issue change orders and later definitize the resulting equitable adjustment. The topic matters because construction contracts often involve field changes, differing site conditions, design clarifications, and other modifications that can affect price, time, and performance. The notice requirement helps ensure offerors understand how change orders will be handled, how equitable adjustments will be negotiated and finalized, and what administrative process will apply after work changes are directed. For contractors, this affects pricing, risk allocation, and expectations about documentation and negotiation. For contracting officers, it is a solicitation-preparation requirement that supports transparency and reduces disputes over how change-order adjustments will be settled.
Key Rules
Cross-reference to FAR 36.211
This section directs the reader to FAR 36.211 for the actual notice requirement. The rule here is essentially informational: if the acquisition involves construction and change-order administration, the solicitation notice requirements are found in the construction-specific part of the FAR.
Applies to construction solicitations
The referenced notice requirement concerns construction contracts, where change orders and equitable adjustments are common. The purpose is to alert offerors at the solicitation stage to the Government’s process for administering and definitizing those adjustments.
Focus on definitization of equitable adjustments
The notice addresses how equitable adjustments resulting from change orders will be definitized. This means the solicitation must inform offerors that the Government may direct changes and later settle the resulting price or schedule impact through a formal adjustment process.
Supports informed pricing and risk allocation
By requiring notice in the solicitation, the FAR helps offerors price the work with knowledge of the change-order administration framework. This reduces ambiguity about who bears the risk of interim performance and how final compensation will be determined.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Ensure the solicitation includes the required notice by following FAR 36.211 when the acquisition is for construction and change-order administration is relevant. The contracting officer must make sure offerors are informed of the process for definitizing equitable adjustments.
Offerors
Review the solicitation notice and account for the change-order and equitable-adjustment process in pricing, scheduling, and proposal assumptions. Offerors should understand that directed changes may be settled later through definitization.
Agency
Use the proper construction solicitation procedures and ensure acquisition documents are consistent with the FAR’s notice requirements. The agency should support contracting personnel in applying the correct construction-specific rules.
Practical Implications
This section is easy to overlook because it is only a cross-reference, but missing the underlying notice can create solicitation defects or disputes about change-order administration.
Contractors should pay close attention to how the solicitation describes equitable adjustments, because that language affects pricing strategy and post-award negotiation leverage.
Contracting officers should verify that construction solicitations incorporate the required notice early, before issuance, rather than trying to fix the issue after proposals are received.
The notice helps prevent misunderstandings about whether a change is immediately priced or later definitized, which is a common source of claims and schedule conflict in construction.
Because the section points to another FAR provision, users should read it together with FAR 36.211 rather than treating it as a standalone rule.
Official Regulatory Text
See 36.211 for the requirement to provide a notice to offerors regarding definitization of equitable adjustments for change orders under construction contracts.