[Code of Federal Regulations]

[Title 48, Volume 1]

[Revised as of October 1, 2005]

From the U.S. Government Printing Office via GPO Access

[CITE: 48CFR11.103]



[Page 183]

 

            TITLE 48--FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATIONS SYSTEM

 

                CHAPTER 1--FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION

 

PART 11_DESCRIBING AGENCY NEEDS--Table of Contents

 

      Subpart 11.1_Selecting and Developing Requirements Documents

 

Sec. 11.103  Market acceptance.



    (a) Section 8002(c) of Pub. L. 103-355 provides that, in accordance 

with agency procedures, the head of an agency may, under appropriate 

circumstances, require offerors to demonstrate that the items offered--

    (1) Have either--

    (i) Achieved commercial market acceptance; or

    (ii) Been satisfactorily supplied to an agency under current or 

recent contracts for the same or similar requirements; and

    (2) Otherwise meet the item description, specifications, or other 

criteria prescribed in the public notice and solicitation.

    (b) Appropriate circumstances may, for example, include situations 

where the agency's minimum need is for an item that has a demonstrated 

reliability, performance or product support record in a specified 

environment. Use of market acceptance is inappropriate when new or 

evolving items may meet the agency's needs.

    (c) In developing criteria for demonstrating that an item has 

achieved commercial market acceptance, the contracting officer shall 

ensure the criteria in the solicitation--

    (1) Reflect the minimum need of the agency and are reasonably 

related to the demonstration of an item's acceptability to meet the 

agency's minimum need;

    (2) Relate to an item's performance and intended use, not an 

offeror's capability;

    (3) Are supported by market research;

    (4) Include consideration of items supplied satisfactorily under 

recent or current Government contracts, for the same or similar items; 

and

    (5) Consider the entire relevant commercial market, including small 

business concerns.

    (d) Commercial market acceptance shall not be used as a sole 

criterion to evaluate whether an item meets the Government's 

requirements.

    (e) When commercial market acceptance is used, the contracting 

officer shall document the file to--

    (1) Describe the circumstances justifying the use of commercial 

market acceptance criteria; and

    (2) Support the specific criteria being used.