FAR Part 6: Other Than Full & Open Competition

FAR Part 6 applies to open-market acquisitions unless an exception in FAR 6.001 or another statute takes the action out of Part 6. If you are placing an order against an existing contract, Part 6 usually is not your lane. If you are buying commercial products or commercial services using FAR 12.201-1 simplified procedures, FAR Part 12 has its own streamlined process and authority citations. In operational contracting, many buys will be under the SAT, on existing contracts, or inside the Part 12 simplified procedures lane. So Part 6 applies less often than you might think. But when it does, you need to get it right.

RFO FAR 6.103 lists seven authorities that allow other than full and open competition. The mnemonic is IOU PAIN:

In practice, the three you will encounter most often in operational contracting are Only One Responsible Source, Unusual and Compelling Urgency, and Authorized by Statute. The rest exist but come up rarely at the base level.

Only One Responsible Source (6.103-1): This is your standard sole source authority. The supplies or services required are available from only one responsible source and no other type of supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements. This is what brand-name J&As typically cite. You need a written justification and approval (J&A) prepared and approved under FAR 6.104.

Unusual and Compelling Urgency (6.103-2): The agency's need is of such an unusual and compelling urgency that the Government would be seriously injured unless the agency is permitted to limit the number of sources. This is not "we forgot to plan." This is genuine urgency. The contracting officer must still request offers from as many potential sources as is practicable under the circumstances.

Authorized by Statute (6.103-5): A statute authorizes or requires that the acquisition be made through another agency or from a specified source. The most common operational example is the 8(a) program. This authority is different from the others because many uses do not require the normal FAR 6.104 J&A. For 8(a), coordinate with the Small Business office and SBA and follow FAR Part 19.

When you use a Part 6 authority under FAR 6.103, you generally need a Justification and Approval (J&A) document prepared under FAR 6.104. The J&A must include specific elements: a description of what you are buying, why full and open competition is not suitable, the statutory authority being cited, market research results, any actions to remove barriers to competition in future acquisitions, and the contracting officer's certification that the justification is accurate.

There are important exceptions. FAR 6.104 does not require the normal written J&A for 6.103-5 authorized-or-required-by-statute actions or 6.103-7 public-interest actions. But do not stop there. For example, RFO FAR Part 19 still requires a 6.104 justification before SBA may accept a sole-source 8(a) contract over $30 million.

FAR 6.104-1 lays out exactly what a Justification and Approval must contain. There are 12 listed content elements. Your agency template may organize them differently, but every one of these must be addressed somewhere in the document.

Element 1: Identification. Name the agency, the contracting activity, and label the document as a "Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition." Sounds obvious, but reviewers need to know who wrote it and what it is.

Element 2: Nature and Description of the Action. Is this a new contract, a modification, a follow-on? Describe what you are doing and why.

Element 3: Description of Supplies or Services. What is the Government buying, and what is the estimated value? Be specific enough that a reviewer who has never seen the requirement can understand it. Include technical specifics, part numbers, building locations, and applicable technical orders where relevant.

Element 4: Statutory Authority. Identify which FAR 6.103 authority applies. This must match the facts in the rest of the document. If you cite 6.103-1 (only one responsible source), every paragraph that follows should prove that claim.

Element 5: Demonstration That the Authority Applies. This is the heart of the J&A. You must demonstrate WHY the contractor's unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition justifies using the authority you cited. If you cited 6.103-1, you need to prove no other source can do this work. If you cited 6.103-2 (urgency), you need to explain the specific urgency and why the Government would be seriously injured by delay.

Element 6: Efforts to Solicit Offers. Describe what you did to get offers from as many sources as practicable. Even in a sole source, you should be soliciting to the extent possible. Also address whether you published a notice or what exception to the publication requirement applies.

Element 7: Fair and Reasonable Price Determination. The contracting officer must determine that the anticipated cost is fair and reasonable. How will you make that determination? Prior pricing, independent government cost estimate, market comparisons?

Element 8: Market Research. Describe the market research you conducted and what it showed. If you did not conduct market research, explain why not (this better be a very good reason).

Element 9: Other Supporting Facts. Anything else that supports the case. For follow-on actions under 6.103-1, this includes duplicated cost or delay estimates. For urgency under 6.103-2, this includes data, estimated cost, or other rationale explaining whether and how much the Government would be harmed.

Element 10: Interested Sources. List any sources that expressed written interest in the acquisition. If you posted an RFI or sources-sought notice, document the responses.

Element 11: Actions to Remove Barriers. What will the agency do to create conditions for competition in the future? Tie this to something concrete: a lifecycle event, a data rights negotiation, a market survey timeline.

Element 12: Contracting Officer Certification. The CO certifies the justification is accurate and complete to the best of their knowledge and belief. This is your signature on the line. Make sure you believe what is in the document before you sign it.

Team Support: FAR 6.104 also expects technical and requirements personnel to support the contracting officer by providing and certifying the necessary data. The people who generated the technical facts need to stand behind them.

Check the J&A Examples tab to see how this looks on paper, and how it falls apart when done wrong.

Section 2 gave you the mnemonic. Now let's walk through each exception in detail so you understand what it takes to use them, what you have to prove, and where people get it wrong.