H. R. 1107—72 
(A) increase or maintain competition and likely result 
in reduced overall cost for the procurement, or for an 
anticipated procurement, of the property or services; 
(B) be in the interest of national defense in having a 
facility (or a producer, manufacturer, or other supplier) 
available for furnishing the property or service in case 
of a national emergency or industrial mobilization; 
(C) be in the interest of national defense in establishing 
or maintaining an essential engineering, research, or 
development capability to be provided by an educational 
or other nonprofit institution or a Federally funded 
research and development center; 
(D) ensure the continuous availability of a reliable source 
of supply of the property or service; 
(E) satisfy projected needs for the property or service 
determined on the basis of a history of high demand for 
the property or service; or 
(F) satisfy a critical need for medical, safety, or emer-
gency supplies. 
(2) DETERMINATION FOR CLASS DISALLOWED.—A determina-
tion under paragraph (1) may not be made for a class of 
purchases or contracts. 
(b) EXCLUSION OF OTHER THAN SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS.— 
An executive agency may provide for the procurement of property 
or services covered by section 3301 of this title using competitive 
procedures, but excluding other than small business concerns in 
furtherance of sections 9 and 15 of the Small Business Act (15 
U.S.C. 638, 644). 
(c) NONAPPLICATION OF JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL REQUIRE-
MENTS.—A contract awarded pursuant to the competitive procedures 
referred to in subsections (a) and (b) is not subject to the justification 
and approval required by section 3304(e)(1) of this title. 
§ 3304. Use of noncompetitive procedures 
(a) WHEN NONCOMPETITIVE PROCEDURES MAY BE USED.—An 
executive agency may use procedures other than competitive proce-
dures only when— 
(1) the property or services needed by the executive agency 
are available from only one responsible source and no other 
type of property or services will satisfy the needs of the execu-
tive agency; 
(2) the executive agency’s need for the property or services 
is of such an unusual and compelling urgency that the Federal 
Government would be seriously injured unless the executive 
agency is permitted to limit the number of sources from which 
it solicits bids or proposals; 
(3) it is necessary to award the contract to a particular 
source— 
(A) to maintain a facility, producer, manufacturer, or 
other supplier available for furnishing property or services 
in case of a national emergency or to achieve industrial 
mobilization; 
(B) to establish or maintain an essential engineering, 
research, or development capability to be provided by an 
educational or other nonprofit institution or a Federally 
funded research and development center; 
(C) to procure the services of an expert for use, in any 
litigation or dispute (including any reasonably foreseeable
H. R. 1107—73 
litigation or dispute) involving the Federal Government, 
in any trial, hearing, or proceeding before a court, adminis-
trative tribunal, or agency, whether or not the expert is 
expected to testify; or 
(D) to procure the services of an expert or neutral for 
use in any part of an alternative dispute resolution or 
negotiated rulemaking process, whether or not the expert 
is expected to testify; 
(4) the terms of an international agreement or treaty between 
the Federal Government and a foreign government or an inter-
national organization, or the written directions of a foreign 
government reimbursing the executive agency for the cost of 
the procurement of the property or services for that government, 
have the effect of requiring the use of procedures other than 
competitive procedures; 
(5) subject to section 3105 of this title, a statute expressly 
authorizes or requires that the procurement be made through 
another executive agency or from a specified source, or the 
agency’s need is for a brand-name commercial item for author-
ized resale; 
(6) the disclosure of the executive agency’s needs would com-
promise the national security unless the agency is permitted 
to limit the number of sources from which it solicits bids 
or proposals; or 
(7) the head of the executive agency (who may not delegate 
the authority under this paragraph)— 
(A) determines that it is necessary in the public interest 
to use procedures other than competitive procedures in 
the particular procurement concerned; and 
(B) notifies Congress in writing of that determination 
not less than 30 days before the award of the contract. 
(b) PROPERTY OR SERVICES DEEMED AVAILABLE FROM ONLY ONE 
SOURCE.—For the purposes of subsection (a)(1), in the case of— 
(1) a contract for property or services to be awarded on 
the basis of acceptance of an unsolicited research proposal, 
the property or services are deemed to be available from only 
one source if the source has submitted an unsolicited research 
proposal that demonstrates a unique and innovative concept, 
the substance of which is not otherwise available to the Federal 
Government and does not resemble the substance of a pending 
competitive procurement; or 
(2) a follow-on contract for the continued development or 
production of a major system or highly specialized equipment, 
the property may be deemed to be available only from the 
original source and may be procured through procedures other 
than competitive procedures when it is likely that award to 
a source other than the original source would result in— 
(A) substantial duplication of cost to the Federal Govern-
ment that is not expected to be recovered through competi-
tion; or 
(B) unacceptable delay in fulfilling the executive agency’s 
needs. 
(c) PROPERTY OR SERVICES NEEDED WITH UNUSUAL AND COMPEL-
LING URGENCY.— 
(1) ALLOWABLE CONTRACT PERIOD.—The contract period of 
a contract described in paragraph (2) that is entered into by 
an executive agency pursuant to the authority provided under 
subsection (a)(2)—
H. R. 1107—74 
(A) may not exceed the time necessary— 
(i) to meet the unusual and compelling requirements 
of the work to be performed under the contract; and 
(ii) for the executive agency to enter into another 
contract for the required goods or services through 
the use of competitive procedures; and 
(B) may not exceed one year unless the head of the 
executive agency entering into the contract determines that 
exceptional circumstances apply. 
(2) APPLICABILITY
OF
ALLOWABLE
CONTRACT
PERIOD.—This 
subsection applies to any contract in an amount greater than 
the simplified acquisition threshold. 
(d) OFFER REQUESTS
TO POTENTIAL SOURCES.—An executive 
agency using procedures other than competitive procedures to pro-
cure property or services by reason of the application of paragraph 
(2) or (6) of subsection (a) shall request offers from as many potential 
sources as is practicable under the circumstances. 
(e) JUSTIFICATION FOR USE OF NONCOMPETITIVE PROCEDURES.— 
(1) PREREQUISITES FOR AWARDING CONTRACT.—Except as pro-
vided in paragraphs (3) and (4), an executive agency may 
not award a contract using procedures other than competitive 
procedures unless— 
(A) the contracting officer for the contract justifies the 
use of those procedures in writing and certifies the accuracy 
and completeness of the justification; 
(B) the justification is approved, in the case of a contract 
for an amount— 
(i) exceeding $500,000 but equal to or less than 
$10,000,000, by the advocate for competition for the 
procuring activity (without further delegation) or by 
an official referred to in clause (ii) or (iii); 
(ii) exceeding $10,000,000 but equal to or less than 
$50,000,000, by the head of the procuring activity or 
by a delegate who, if a member of the armed forces, 
is a general or flag officer or, if a civilian, is serving 
in a position in which the individual is entitled to 
receive the daily equivalent of the maximum annual 
rate of basic pay payable for level IV of the Executive 
Schedule (or in a comparable or higher position under 
another schedule); or 
(iii) exceeding $50,000,000, by the senior procure-
ment executive of the agency designated pursuant to 
section 1702(c) of this title (without further delegation); 
and 
(C) any required notice has been published with respect 
to the contract pursuant to section 1708 of this title and 
the executive agency has considered all bids or proposals 
received in response to that notice. 
(2) ELEMENTS OF JUSTIFICATION.—The justification required 
by paragraph (1)(A) shall include— 
(A) a description of the agency’s needs; 
(B) an identification of the statutory exception from the 
requirement to use competitive procedures and a dem-
onstration, based on the proposed contractor’s qualifications 
or the nature of the procurement, of the reasons for using 
that exception; 
(C) a determination that the anticipated cost will be 
fair and reasonable;