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FAR and DFARS › FAR Part 4: Administrative and Information Matters › Subpart 4.4

FAR 4.403 Responsibilities of contracting officers.

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 tells contracting officers what they must do at each stage of a classified acquisition: before the solicitation, during the solicitation, and at award. It matters to contractors because it drives whether solicitations include security requirements clauses and whether a DD Form 254 is used to spell out the security classification requirements for the work.

Applies to: Contracting officers handling solicitations and contracts that may require access to classified information

What it requires

  • Review proposed solicitations to determine whether offerors or a contractor during performance may need access to classified information
  • If another agency's classified information may be required, determine if that agency is covered by the NISP and follow its procedures for determining security clearances of firms to be solicited
  • If the classified information is from the contracting officer's own agency, follow agency procedures
  • Ensure the classified acquisition is conducted as required by the NISP or agency procedures

Key terms: classified information · NISP · Security Requirements clause · DD Form 254 · Contract Security Classification Specification

Written by AI from this section's text. A guide, not legal advice: the text below rules.

The text

(a) Presolicitation phase. Contracting officers shall review all proposed solicitations to determine whether access to classified information may be required by offerors, or by a contractor during contract performance.

(1) If access to classified information of another agency may be required, the contracting officer shall—

(i) Determine if the agency is covered by the NISP; and

(ii) Follow that agency's procedures for determining the security clearances of firms to be solicited.

(2) If the classified information required is from the contracting officer's agency, the contracting officer shall follow agency procedures.

(b) Solicitation phase. Contracting officers shall—

(1) Ensure that the classified acquisition is conducted as required by the NISP or agency procedures, as appropriate; and

(2) Include—

(i) An appropriate Security Requirements clause in the solicitation (see 4.404); and

(ii) As appropriate, in solicitations and contracts when the contract may require access to classified information, a requirement for security safeguards in addition to those provided in the clause (52.204-2, Security Requirements).

(c) Award phase. Contracting officers shall inform contractors and subcontractors of the security classifications and requirements assigned to the various documents, materials, tasks, subcontracts, and components of the classified contract as identified in the requirement documentation as follows:

(1) Nondefense agencies that have industrial security services agreements with DoD, and DoD components, shall use the Contract Security Classification Specification, DD Form 254. The contracting officer, or authorized agency representative, is the approving official for the DD Form 254 associated with the prime contract and shall ensure the DD Form 254 is properly prepared, distributed by and coordinated with requirements and security personnel in accordance with agency procedures, see 4.402(d)(1).

(2) Contracting officers in agencies not covered by the NISP shall follow agency procedures.

Sections it refers to

Sections that refer to it

  • 53.204-1 Safeguarding classified information within industry (DD Form 254, DD Form 441).

← 4.402 General. · 4.404 Contract clause. →

Rule changes for FAR Part 4

Source: eCFR, 48 CFR chapters 1 and 2 (GPO GovInfo bulk data) ↗. Plain words for the terms: glossary.

FAR 4.403 Responsibilities of contracting officers · SpendQuery