Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

For official guidance or specific questions on allowability, please contact Defense Procurement Acquisition Policy (DPAP) at dpap@osd.mil. DPAP is responsible for all Contracting and Procurement policy matters including e-Business in the Department of Defense (DoD). DPAP executes that policy through the timely update of the DFARS, PGI, and 5000.1&2. Source: https://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/.

Following are answers to Frequently Asked Questions, arranged by category:

General
  • Q: Who is leading the updates to the Independent Research & Development (IR&D) program?
    • A: The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Research and Engineering (ASD(R&E)) will manage the current IR&D efforts. ASD(R&E) is coordinating with the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Manufacturing and Industrial Base Policy, Defense Contracts Management Agency, Defense Procurement Acquisition Policy, Defense Technical Information Center and the Services.
  • Q: Why was a DFARS rule needed to collect this information?
    • A: In the 1990s, DoD reduced its technical exchanges with industry, in part to ensure the independence of research and development. Since this time, there has been a loss of visibility into the technical opportunities available from industry's IR&D investments and an updated DFARS rule was a mechanism to do this.