FAROut Changes Ahead:
Highlights from the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul
by Ray Ward
September 15, 2025
(This is the third in a series of biweekly blogs on the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul)
The Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (RFO) didn’t just simmer during these past two weeks in late summer—it boiled. On September 4, the updated versions of Parts 7 (Acquisition Planning), 24 (Protection of Privacy and Freedom of Information), and 44 (Subcontracting) were issued. That same release also corrected FAR 8.104(a) to clarify that the Office of Federal Procurement Policy will establish new “required‑use” contracts—distinct from Best‑in‑Class vehicles. Required‑use contracts will be mandatory, with Best-in-Class contracts prioritized but not mandatory. On September 11, another wave landed for Parts 3 (Improper Business Practices and Personal Conflicts of Interest), 17 (Special Contracting Methods), 27 (Patents, Data, and Copyrights) and 45 (Government Property). The FAR Council also released the highly anticipated FAR Companion to help acquisition officials exercise their discretion. The document provides context, additional information, and practical advice for planning, awarding, managing, and closing out contracts, consistent with the FAR’s core buying principles.
The RFO team continues its revisions of FAR parts by using plain language, pruning non‑statutory clutter, and publishing model deviation text to give agencies and contractors a working bridge as the regulation evolves. The new Acquisition Planning (Part 7) text is a signal to re‑validate planning templates and milestone checklists; Privacy & Freedom of Information (Part 24) merits a fresh look at data‑handling clauses and release protocols; Subcontracting (Part 44) invites a tune‑up of evaluation practices for subcontracting plans. Each FAR part’s Practitioner Album summarizes changes and links supporting tools so you can spot what moved, what stayed, and what simply got written better. The Latest News and Announcements and updated FAR parts are displayed on Acquisition.gov’s RFO hub and its FAR Part Deviation Guide.
Whew, all this is a lot to follow! Hopefully the effort spent now to keep pace with these fast-breaking changes will lead to simpler acquisition processes and outcomes next year when the dust has finally settled.
Zooming out, the FAR’s inflation‑adjusted thresholds final rule take effect October 1, 2025, implementing the most recent five‑year update. These changes are designed to ensure acquisition rules keep pace with inflation so that fewer contracts are unintentionally subject to additional administrative burdens going forward. The adjustments generally apply to new solicitations and contracts issued on or after October 1, 2025. The increases with the most impact visibility are follows:
- The micro-purchase threshold increases from $10,000 to $15,000.
- The simplified acquisition threshold increases from $250,000 to $350,000
- The ceiling for simplified procedures for certain commercial products and commercial services (FAR 13.500(a)) increases from $7.5 million to $9 million
- The cost or pricing data threshold (at FAR 15.403-4) for contracts awarded before July 1, 2018, increases from $750,000 to $950,000; for contracts issued on or after July 1, 2018, the threshold increases from $2 million to $2.5 million.
- The prime contractor subcontracting plan (FAR 19.702) threshold increases from $750,000 to $900,000, while the associated threshold for construction increases from $1.5 million to $2 million.
Full coverage can be found in the Federal Register notice at this link. These changes mean that means acquisition systems—and threshold‑triggered workflows—will need to be queued for refresh so the numbers in agency strategies, synopses, and clauses don’t lag the rule. Will Congress raise the thresholds even higher in an out-of-cycle move? A $2,000,000 simplified acquisition threshold, anyone? Rumors are swirling that it could happen.
What to do this week: Bookmark the RFO homepage and the FAR Part Deviation Guide; scan the latest parts’ change summaries and “line‑out” versions of the FAR parts; and use the built‑in feedback forms while the windows are open (through October, depending on the part). If your near‑term acquisitions touch the recently updated FAR parts mentioned in the first paragraph, schedule a quick internal huddle with your stakeholders to ensure alignment!
The views expressed in this blog post are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of any agency of the federal government.