FAR and DFARS › DFARS Part 237: Service Contracting › Subpart 237.76
DFARS 237.7602 Policy.
The codified text (eCFR, as of 2026-10-02). Under the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul ↗, agencies follow class deviations with new text for many parts while the formal rules go through the Federal Register: check the solicitation and your contract's clauses, which rule.
In plain English
This section states that contractors providing services designated as essential contractor services must be ready to keep providing them during periods of crisis, per their contract terms. Such contractors must also provide a written plan, incorporated into the contract, for continuing these services in a crisis, and may activate that plan only when the contracting officer authorizes it during a crisis.
Applies to: Contractors providing services designated as essential contractor services
What it requires
- Be prepared to continue providing essential contractor services during periods of crisis, in accordance with the contract terms and conditions
- Provide a written plan to be incorporated in the contract to ensure continuation of these services in crisis situations
- Activate such plans only during periods of crisis, as authorized by the contracting officer
Key terms: essential contractor services · periods of crisis · written plan · functional commander or civilian equivalent · contracting officer
Written by AI from this section's text. A guide, not legal advice: the text below rules.
The text
(a) Contractors providing services designated as essential contractor services shall be prepared to continue providing such services, in accordance with the terms and conditions of their contracts, during periods of crisis. As a general rule, the designation of services as essential contractor services will not apply to an entire contract but will apply only to those service functions that have been specifically identified as essential contractor services by the functional commander or civilian equivalent.
(b) Contractors who provide Government-determined essential contractor services shall provide a written plan to be incorporated in the contract, to ensure the continuation of these services in crisis situations. Contracting officers shall consult with a functional manager to assess the sufficiency of the contractor-provided written plan. Contractors will activate such plans only during periods of crisis, as authorized by the contracting officer, who does so at the direction of the appropriate functional commander or civilian equivalent.
(c) The contracting officer shall follow the procedures at PGI 207.105U(b)(20)(C) in preparing an acquisition plan.
Sections it refers to
- 207.105 Contents of written acquisition plans.
← 237.7601 Definitions. · 237.7603 Solicitation provision and contract clause. →
Rule changes for DFARS Part 237
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Preventing Conflicts of Interest for Certain Consulting Services (DFARS Case 2024-D007) ↗ · final rule 2025-08-25 · effective 2025-10-24
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Inflation Adjustment of Acquisition-Related Thresholds (DFARS Case 2024-D002) ↗ · proposed 2025-01-17 · comments due 2025-03-18
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement; Technical Amendments ↗ · final rule 2024-10-10 · effective 2024-10-10
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Preventing Conflicts of Interest for Certain Consulting Services (DFARS Case 2024-D007) ↗ · proposed 2024-09-26 · comments due 2024-11-25
- Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement: Transfer and Adoption of Military Animals (DFARS Case 2020-D021) ↗ · final rule 2024-02-15 · effective 2024-02-15
Source: eCFR, 48 CFR chapters 1 and 2 (GPO GovInfo bulk data) ↗. Plain words for the terms: glossary.