Here We Go Again: DFARS Changes to the "Only One Offer" Rule
Client Alert | 1 min read | 07.30.19
As we noted in a recent post, for several years, the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) has contained a rule at DFARS 215.371-3(a) that if only one offer is received, even if submitted with the expectation of competition, the adequate price competition exception from the requirement to submit certified cost or pricing data does not apply unless an official at a level above the Contracting Officer (CO) approves the determination that the price is reasonable. On June 28, 2019, DoD issued a final rule to implement Section 822 of the Fiscal Year 2017 National Defense Authorization Act, which eliminates DFARS 215.371-3(a) and, thus, the applicability of the adequate price competition exception under FAR 15.403-1(b)(1) to single-offer situations. The rule also, among other things:
- Streamlines the existing requirements at DFARS 215.371-3(b), with additional emphasis on the requirement to obtain certified cost or pricing data when only one offer is received; and
- Imposes responsibility on offerors for determining whether a subcontractor qualifies for an exception from the certified cost or pricing data requirement on the basis of adequate competition.
On July 16, 2019, DoD issued minor technical corrections to the rule, which is effective July 31, 2019.
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Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.21.25
On November 7, 2025, in Thornton v. National Academy of Sciences, No. 25-cv-2155, 2025 WL 3123732 (D.D.C. Nov. 7, 2025), the District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed a False Claims Act (FCA) retaliation complaint on the basis that the plaintiff’s allegations that he was fired after blowing the whistle on purported illegally discriminatory use of federal funding was not sufficient to support his FCA claim. This case appears to be one of the first filed, and subsequently dismissed, following Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche’s announcement of the creation of the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative on May 19, 2025, which “strongly encourages” private individuals to file lawsuits under the FCA relating to purportedly discriminatory and illegal use of federal funding for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives in violation of Executive Order 14173, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity (Jan. 21, 2025). In this case, the court dismissed the FCA retaliation claim and rejected the argument that an organization could violate the FCA merely by “engaging in discriminatory conduct while conducting a federally funded study.” The analysis in Thornton could be a sign of how forthcoming arguments of retaliation based on reporting allegedly fraudulent DEI activity will be analyzed in the future.
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.20.25
Client Alert | 3 min read | 11.20.25
Client Alert | 6 min read | 11.19.25
