(F) a statement of any actions the agency may take to remove 
or overcome a barrier to competition before a subsequent procure-
ment for those needs. 
(3) JUSTIFICATION ALLOWED AFTER CONTRACT AWARDED.—In the 
case of a procurement permitted by subsection (a)(2), the justification 
and approval required by paragraph (1) may be made after the con-
tract is awarded. 
(4) JUSTIFICATION NOT REQUIRED.—The justification and approval 
required by paragraph (1) are not required if— 
(A) a statute expressly requires that the procurement be made 
from a specified source; 
(B) the agency’s need is for a brand-name commercial item for 
authorized resale; 
(C) the procurement is permitted by subsection (a)(7); or 
(D) the procurement is conducted under chapter 85 of this title 
or section 8(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 637(a)). 
(5) RESTRICTIONS ON EXECUTIVE AGENCIES.— 
(A) CONTRACTS AND PROCUREMENT OF PROPERTY OR SERV-
ICES.—In no case may an executive agency— 
(i) enter into a contract for property or services using pro-
cedures other than competitive procedures on the basis of the 
lack of advance planning or concerns related to the amount 
available to the agency for procurement functions; or 
(ii) procure property or services from another executive 
agency unless the other executive agency complies fully with 
the requirements of this division in its procurement of the 
property or services. 
(B) ADDITIONAL RESTRICTION.—The restriction set out in sub-
paragraph (A)(ii) is in addition to any other restriction provided 
by law. 
(f) PUBLIC AVAILABILITY OF JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL REQUIRED 
FOR USING NONCOMPETITIVE PROCEDURES.— 
(1) TIME REQUIREMENT.— 
(A) WITHIN 14 DAYS AFTER CONTRACT AWARD.—Except as pro-
vided in subparagraph (B), in the case of a procurement permitted 
by subsection (a), the head of an executive agency shall make pub-
licly available, within 14 days after the award of the contract, the 
documents containing the justification and approval required by 
subsection (e)(1) with respect to the procurement.
(B) WITHIN 30 DAYS AFTER CONTRACT AWARD.—In the case of 
a procurement permitted by subsection (a)(2), subparagraph (A) 
shall be applied by substituting ‘‘30 days’’ for ‘‘14 days’’. 
(2) AVAILABILITY ON WEBSITES.—The documents referred to in sub-
paragraph (A) of paragraph (1) shall be made available on the website 
of the agency and through a Government-wide website selected by the 
Administrator. 
(3) EXCEPTION TO AVAILABILITY AND APPROVAL REQUIREMENT.— 
This subsection does not require the public availability of information 
that is exempt from public disclosure under section 552(b) of title 5. 
§ 3305. Simplified procedures for small purchases 
(a) AUTHORIZATION.—To promote efficiency and economy in contracting 
and to avoid unnecessary burdens for agencies and contractors, the Federal 
Acquisition Regulation shall provide for special simplified procedures for 
purchases of property and services for amounts— 
(1) not greater than the simplified acquisition threshold; and 
(2) greater than the simplified acquisition threshold but not greater 
than $5,000,000 for which the contracting officer reasonably expects, 
based on the nature of the property or services sought and on market 
research, that offers will include only commercial items. 
(b) LEASEHOLD INTERESTS IN REAL PROPERTY.—The Administrator of 
General Services shall prescribe regulations that provide special simplified 
procedures for acquisitions of leasehold interests in real property at rental 
rates that do not exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. The rental rate 
under a multiyear lease does not exceed the simplified acquisition threshold 
if the average annual amount of the rent payable for the period of the lease 
does not exceed the simplified acquisition threshold. 
(c) PROHIBITION ON DIVIDING CONTRACTS.—A proposed purchase or 
contract for an amount above the simplified acquisition threshold may not 
be divided into several purchases or contracts for lesser amounts to use the 
simplified procedures required by subsection (a). 
(d) PROMOTION OF COMPETITION.—In using the simplified procedures, 
an executive agency shall promote competition to the maximum extent prac-
ticable. 
(e) COMPLIANCE WITH SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS OF FEDERAL ACQUISI-
TION REGULATION.—An executive agency shall comply with the Federal Ac-
quisition Regulation provisions referred to in section 1901(e) of this title. 
§ 3306. Planning and solicitation requirements 
(a) PLANNING AND SPECIFICATIONS.— 
(1) PREPARING FOR PROCUREMENT.—In preparing for the procure-
ment of property or services, an executive agency shall—
(A) specify its needs and solicit bids or proposals in a manner 
designed to achieve full and open competition for the procurement; 
(B) use advance procurement planning and market research; 
and 
(C) develop specifications in the manner necessary to obtain full 
and open competition with due regard to the nature of the prop-
erty or services to be acquired. 
(2) REQUIREMENTS OF SPECIFICATIONS.—Each solicitation under 
this division shall include specifications that— 
(A) consistent with this division, permit full and open competi-
tion; and 
(B) include restrictive provisions or conditions only to the extent 
necessary to satisfy the needs of the executive agency or as au-
thorized by law. 
(3) TYPES OF SPECIFICATIONS.—For the purposes of paragraphs (1) 
and (2), the type of specification included in a solicitation shall depend 
on the nature of the needs of the executive agency and the market 
available to satisfy those needs. Subject to those needs, specifications 
may be stated in terms of— 
(A) function, so that a variety of products or services may qual-
ify; 
(B) performance, including specifications of the range of accept-
able characteristics or of the minimum acceptable standards; or 
(C) design requirements. 
(b) CONTENTS OF SOLICITATION.—In addition to the specifications de-
scribed in subsection (a), each solicitation for sealed bids or competitive pro-
posals (other than for a procurement for commercial items using special 
simplified procedures or a purchase for an amount not greater than the sim-
plified acquisition threshold) shall at a minimum include— 
(1) a statement of— 
(A) all significant factors and significant subfactors that the ex-
ecutive agency reasonably expects to consider in evaluating sealed 
bids (including price) or competitive proposals (including cost or 
price, cost-related or price-related factors and subfactors, and 
noncost-related or nonprice-related factors and subfactors); and 
(B) the relative importance assigned to each of those factors 
and subfactors; and 
(2)(A) in the case of sealed bids— 
(i) a statement that sealed bids will be evaluated without discus-
sions with the bidders; and 
(ii) the time and place for the opening of the sealed bids; or
(B) in the case of competitive proposals— 
(i) either a statement that the proposals are intended to be eval-
uated with, and the award made after, discussions with the 
offerors, or a statement that the proposals are intended to be eval-
uated, and the award made, without discussions with the offerors 
(other than discussions conducted for the purpose of minor clari-
fication) unless discussions are determined to be necessary; and 
(ii) the time and place for submission of proposals. 
(c) EVALUATION FACTORS.— 
(1) IN GENERAL.—In prescribing the evaluation factors to be in-
cluded in each solicitation for competitive proposals, an executive agen-
cy shall— 
(A) establish clearly the relative importance assigned to the 
evaluation factors and subfactors, including the quality of the 
product or services to be provided (including technical capability, 
management capability, prior experience, and past performance of 
the offeror); 
(B) include cost or price to the Federal Government as an eval-
uation factor that must be considered in the evaluation of pro-
posals; and 
(C) disclose to offerors whether all evaluation factors other than 
cost or price, when combined, are— 
(i) significantly more important than cost or price; 
(ii) approximately equal in importance to cost or price; or 
(iii) significantly less important than cost or price. 
(2) RESTRICTION
ON
IMPLEMENTING
REGULATIONS.—Regulations 
implementing paragraph (1)(C) may not define the terms ‘‘significantly 
more important’’ and ‘‘significantly less important’’ as specific numeric 
weights that would be applied uniformly to all solicitations or a class 
of solicitations. 
(d) ADDITIONAL INFORMATION IN SOLICITATION.—This section does not 
prohibit an executive agency from— 
(1) providing additional information in a solicitation, including nu-
meric weights for all evaluation factors and subfactors on a case-by- 
case basis; or 
(2) stating in a solicitation that award will be made to the offeror 
that meets the solicitation’s mandatory requirements at the lowest cost 
or price. 
(e) LIMITATION ON EVALUATION OF PURCHASE OPTIONS.—An executive 
agency, in issuing a solicitation for a contract to be awarded using sealed 
bid procedures, may not include in the solicitation a clause providing for the