FAR Council Rewrites Part 15 Negotiations, Part 12 Commercial Buying
The shift from "discussions" to "negotiations" is the most consequential competitive-procurement rewrite in decades, and the proposed rule doesn't resolve whether multiple competitive ranges or late-stage re-entries open new bid protest exposure.
TL;DR
The FAR Council released proposed rule FAR Case 2026-003, restructuring Part 12 (commercial buying), Part 15 (competitive procurements), and related parts to emphasize negotiations, streamlined deficiency definitions, and commercial market practices. The Part 15 rewrite shifts the default from discussions (where agencies pointed out flaws so bidders could fix them) to negotiations aimed at improving the deal for both sides. The proposal also opens the door to keeping lower-ranked proposals in the competitive range. Comments are due October 19, 2026. This is the second major tranche of the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul under EO 14275; eight of twelve proposed rules are now published.
The FAR Council published three proposed rules on September 18, 2026, and FAR Case 2026-003 (covering Parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, 51, and associated clauses in Part 52) carries the heaviest operational weight. Part 12 and Part 15 together govern how the government buys commercial goods and services and how it runs competitive procurements. The proposed changes to both aren't cosmetic.
Part 15 retires "discussions" in favor of "negotiations." That's not a relabeling. Under the current framework, discussions are about identifying deficiencies and giving offerors a chance to resolve them so they can compete. Negotiations, as the proposal frames them, are about substance (price, terms, technical approach) and the government is encouraged to negotiate toward a more advantageous award, not just clear a bar. The council's language: "Government and industry can benefit from meaningful negotiations that lead to a more advantageous contract award for both parties."
The proposal also simplifies the definition of "deficiency" during evaluations and pushes contracting officers to address significant weaknesses through negotiation rather than exclusion. The council's theory is that giving agencies more flexibility to engage with a broader set of proposals will improve competition, a priority the rule backs with a striking data point: in fiscal year 2025, 45% of contract dollars were awarded without competition or with only one responsive proposal.
What's unresolved
The proposed rule opens the door to keeping proposals in the competitive range even when they aren't the top-rated offer, as long as their terms are worth negotiating. But the text doesn't clarify whether agencies may hold multiple competitive ranges simultaneously or bring a previously excluded proposal back into play late. Both scenarios create bid protest risk that the proposal doesn't address, and that the Government Accountability Office will likely have to resolve through case law if the rule finalizes as drafted.
Part 12's rewrite reorganizes commercial buying around "user-centric, faster, simpler" processes aligned with customary commercial practices, a through-line of the entire overhaul under EO 14275. Construction is newly classified as a commercial service, a change that pulls a significant category of procurement into a streamlined framework.
The council also eliminated Part 38 (Federal Supply Schedule contracting), folding it into GSA's own regulatory authority, and Part 51 (government sources), merged into Part 8.
This is the second major tranche of proposed rules under the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul. The first batch, covering Parts 1, 2, 4, 33, 39, 40, and 53, published June 23, 2026. Eight of twelve proposed rules are now out; comments on this set close October 19, 2026.
Published ·Deep Fathom