FAR 4.2105—Solicitation provisions and contract clause.
Plain-English Summary
FAR 4.2105 tells contracting officers exactly when to include the government’s telecommunications and video surveillance screening provisions and prohibition clause in solicitations, orders, and contracts. It covers three related requirements: the representation at 52.204-24, the prohibition clause at 52.204-25, and the representation at 52.204-26. In practice, this section is part of the government’s supply-chain security controls and is designed to identify and block certain covered telecommunications and video surveillance services or equipment from being acquired or used in federal contracts. It applies broadly to solicitations for contracts, to notices of intent to place orders and order solicitations under indefinite-delivery contracts, and to all solicitations and contracts for the clause. For contractors, it means these representations and restrictions are not optional boilerplate; they can affect eligibility, proposal content, and compliance obligations. For contracting officers, it creates a mandatory insertion rule with no discretion to omit the required text when the section applies.
Key Rules
Insert 52.204-24 in solicitations
The contracting officer must include the representation provision at 52.204-24 in all solicitations for contracts. This provision requires offerors to make the applicable representation regarding certain telecommunications and video surveillance services or equipment.
Use 52.204-24 for orders too
For indefinite delivery contracts, the contracting officer must also include 52.204-24 in all notices of intent to place an order and in solicitations for an order, including ordering procedures under subpart 8.4 and 16.505. The requirement applies at the order level, not just at the base contract level.
Insert 52.204-25 in all solicitations and contracts
The contracting officer must include the clause at 52.204-25 in all solicitations and contracts. This clause implements the prohibition on contracting for certain telecommunications and video surveillance services or equipment and creates binding contract requirements, not just a pre-award representation.
Insert 52.204-26 in all solicitations
The contracting officer must include the provision at 52.204-26 in all solicitations. This separate representation provision is used to capture offeror information about covered telecommunications equipment or services as part of the acquisition screening process.
Mandatory, not discretionary
These insertions are mandatory whenever this section applies. Contracting officers should not treat the provisions and clause as optional or rely on general solicitation language to substitute for the required FAR text.
Responsibilities
Contracting Officer
Must include 52.204-24 in all solicitations for contracts and in notices of intent to place orders or order solicitations under indefinite-delivery contracts; must include 52.204-25 in all solicitations and contracts; and must include 52.204-26 in all solicitations.
Offeror/Contractor
Must review and complete the required representations accurately, understand that the clause may prohibit performance involving covered telecommunications or video surveillance items, and ensure proposal and contract compliance with the resulting restrictions.
Agency
Must support implementation of the required telecommunications and video surveillance screening requirements through acquisition planning, solicitation templates, and contract administration processes so the mandatory provisions and clause are consistently used.
Practical Implications
These requirements affect both competition and compliance: an offeror’s representation can influence whether the government can award or place an order.
A common pitfall is forgetting that the representation provision applies not only to initial solicitations but also to notices of intent to place orders and order solicitations under IDIQ, GSA schedule, and similar ordering methods.
Another frequent mistake is omitting the clause from the contract itself or assuming a solicitation-only representation is enough; 52.204-25 must be in both solicitations and contracts.
Contractors should carefully trace their supply chain and internal product/service descriptions to avoid inaccurate representations or prohibited performance involving covered items.
Contracting officers should use current solicitation templates and clause checklists, because these requirements are mandatory and tied to cybersecurity and supply-chain risk management.
Official Regulatory Text
(a) The contracting officer shall insert the provision at 52.204-24 , Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment– (1) In all solicitations for contracts; and (2) Under indefinite delivery contracts, in all notices of intent to place an order, or solicitations for an order ( e.g. , subpart 8.4 and 16.505 ). (b) The contracting officer shall insert the clause at 52.204-25 , Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment, in all solicitations and contracts. (c) The contracting officer shall insert the provision at 52.204-26 , Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services-Representation, in all solicitations.