FAR and DFARS › FAR Part 8: Required Sources of Supplies and Services › Subpart 8.6
FAR 8.605 Exceptions.
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 lists exceptions to the requirement to purchase supplies from Federal Prison Industries (FPI). If any exception applies, a contractor or contracting officer does not need to buy from FPI and no waiver is required. This matters because it clarifies when a contractor can buy from other sources without special approval.
Applies to: Contracting officers and contractors purchasing supplies for the Government
Key terms: FPI · waiver · contracting officer · public exigency · FPI Schedule
Written by AI from this section's text. A guide, not legal advice: the text below rules.
The text
Purchase from FPI is not mandatory and a waiver is not required if—
(a)(1) The contracting officer makes a determination that the FPI item of supply is not comparable to supplies available from the private sector that best meet the Government's needs in terms of price, quality, and time of delivery; and
(2) The item is acquired in accordance with 8.602(a)(4);
(b) Public exigency requires immediate delivery or performance;
(c) Suitable used or excess supplies are available;
(d) The supplies are acquired and used outside the United States;
(e) Acquiring listed items totaling $3,500 or less;
(f) Acquiring items that FPI offers exclusively on a competitive (non-mandatory) basis, as identified in the FPI Schedule; or
(g) Acquiring services.
Sections it refers to
- 8.602 Policy.
← 8.604 Waivers. · 8.606 Evaluating FPI performance. →
Rule changes for FAR Part 8
- Federal Acquisition Regulation: Revolutionary FAR Overhaul Parts 8, 12, 13, 15, 38, 44, and 51 ↗ · proposed 2026-09-18 · comments due 2026-10-19
- Federal Acquisition Regulation: Inflation Adjustment of Acquisition-Related Thresholds ↗ · final rule 2025-08-27 · effective 2025-10-01
- Federal Acquisition Regulation: Preventing Organizational Conflicts of Interest in Federal Acquisition ↗ · proposed 2025-01-15 · comments due 2025-03-17
- Federal Acquisition Regulation: Rerepresentation of Size and Socioeconomic Status ↗ · final rule 2025-01-03 · effective 2025-01-17
- Federal Acquisition Regulation: Inflation Adjustment of Acquisition-Related Thresholds ↗ · proposed 2024-11-29 · comments due 2025-01-28
- Federal Acquisition Regulation; Technical Amendments ↗ · final rule 2024-04-22 · effective 2024-05-22
Source: eCFR, 48 CFR chapters 1 and 2 (GPO GovInfo bulk data) ↗. Plain words for the terms: glossary.