Foreword under secretary of defense for acquisition and. Congress and dod should refactor statutes, regulations, and processes for software, enabling rapid deployment and continuous improvement of software to the field and providing increased insight to reduce the risk of slow, costly, and overgrown programs. Make computing, storage, and bandwidth abundant to dod developers and users. Under the proposed rule, dod would be given additional flexibility to release technical data or computer software to third parties. In practice, nearly all open source software is released under one of a very few licenses that are known to meet this definition. The fiveyear contract will provide microsoft product engineering services for software developers and product teams to leverage a range of proprietary. Cap can not be used on a different contract unless it is. Intellectual property rules in government contracts. Congress should not effectively close dod to any software option that might better serve taxpayers.
Unlimited rights means the government has the right to use, disclose, reproduce, prepare derivative works, distribute copies to the public, publicly perform and display the material in any manner and for any purpose it. The defense department procurement process can be confusing and complicated. Us government software acquisition policies dfars and. Department of defense dod sustainable product purchasing summary the departments vision of sustainability is to maintain the ability to operate into the future without decline either in the mission or in the natural and manufactured systems that support it. The standard license in computer software documentation conveys unlimited rights. Jun 05, 20 on may 22, 20, the department of defense revised the defense federal acquisition regulation supplement dfars to allow the dod to disclose a contractors proprietary limited rights technical data and restricted rights software to certain other contractors providing support to the dod. To make it easier for companies to understand how to engage in the business process with dod, dpap is pleased to offer an introductory overview for companies based in the united states as well as a guide for foreign companies. Offerors shall not be required, as a condition of being responsive to a solicitation or as a condition for award, to sell or otherwise relinquish to the government any. Part ii analyzes the history of software development and the historical regulations governing dod s procurement of software. Data rights focus sheet final defense acquisition university.
Frequently asked questions regarding open source software oss and the department of defense dod this page is an educational resource for government employees and government contractors to understand the policies and legal issues relating to the use of open source software oss in the department of defense dod. Below is a summary of the 2018 ndaa provisions affecting ip rights and the. The department of defense is actively pursuing other transactions ots instead of procurement. Procurements under an existing multiple award contract are becoming much more common. A new approach to dod software development and acquisition. The department of defense is actively pursuing other transactions ots instead of procurement contracts. Require suppliers to provide access to source code, software frameworks, and development toolchains, with appropriate intellectual property ip rights, for all dodspecific code, enabling the dod to perform full security testing and rebuilding of binaries from the source. Department of defense dod sustainable product purchasing. A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, the department of defense dod and industry came together after more than seven years of discussions and created a rational, logical, and fair constellation of regulations and laws governing the dods and contractors rights in technical data and computer software. Jun 06, 2018 commercial offtheshelf cots a commercial offthe shelf cots item is one that is sold, leased, or licensed to the general public. What are some of the relevant dfars provisions governing data rights. Where applicable, the definitions are taken from federal acquisition regulation far or defense. Kim herrington currently serves as the acting principal director, defense pricing and contracting dpc, in the office of the secretary of defense osd, u.
The basic rights granted to the government in computer software come in two categories. Doing business with the department of defense dod u. Pentagon issues new procurement guidelines and adds. A collection of tools and services to help you and your organization manage, enable, and share procurement information across the department of defense. Among other things, the report urges the dod to immediately. Computer software cs includes executable code, source code, code listings, design details, processes, flow charts, and related material. Dec 23, 2019 cybersecurity, supply chain risks, data rights, software acquisitions, and cost or pricing data are among the procurement related issues targeted in the fiscal year fy 2020 national defense.
Dpap wants to encourage companies to do business with dod. The department of defense dod and open source software. A practical handbook for acquisition professionals. Dod enterprise software initiative esi best value toolkit dod experimentation guidebook dod government charge card guidebook for establishing and managing purchase, travel, and fuel card programs. Cybersecurity, supply chain risks, data rights, software acquisitions, and cost or pricing data are among the procurementrelated issues targeted in the fiscal year fy 2020 national defense. Jul 31, 2019 how to handle intellectual property rights in ots. Part ii analyzes the history of software development and the historical regulations governing dods procurement of software. Oct 23, 2017 congress should not effectively close dod to any software option that might better serve taxpayers. The procurement division ensures that products and services that are procured meet or exceed the customers requirements, are obtained at a fair and reasonable price using the best acquisition strategy, and the procurement instruments and procedures utilized are fully compliant with all federal and department of defense procurement laws, regulations, and policies. A guide to software and services procurement ezgovopps. Dods policies, procedures, and practices for information. Title to cost reimbursable line items on fixed price contracts is the same as title under a cost contract. Dod and open source software 1 introduction with tight budgets, aggressive schedules, and a pressing need to adapt quickly to meet changing business conditions, organizations throughout the u.
Government software acquisition policies dfars and data rights vicki e. Lord, dod s undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment said the program will be the most transformational acquisition policy change the department has seen in decades. Microsoft could score billions under recent dod deals. Transformational change comes to dod acquisition policy.
This dilemma is not necessarily due to any ambiguities that may exist in such regulations. Allums, office of the general counsel defense information systems agency disa department of defense 703 6810378 vicki. The distinct conceptual difference between the two is the. Part iii examines the current dfars provisions governing rights in software. For acquisitions involving major weapon systems and subsystems of major weapon systems, see the additional requirements at dfars 207. Defense procurement overview of the fy 2020 national defense. Contractor is always able to use the same data for its own commercial purposes unless there are restrictions, e. Arguably, the proper acquisition of technical data and computer software rights by the governmenta hybrid of the ip concepts of trade secrets and sis one of the most complicated subjects in federal procurement law. Proposal for a new rights in software clause for software. What every company should know about ip rights when selling. However, many tabs on this page were not captured in the archiving proces.
In addition, the report found that dods sps acquisition strategy limited dods rights to modify and maintain the software, and there were no standard policies in place for using the system. Most distributed software can be categorized according to its license type see table. Oppose ndaa it procurement provisions council for citizens. Dod adopts final rules that may allow project management. On may 22, 20, the department of defense revised the defense federal acquisition regulation supplement dfars to allow the dod to disclose a contractors proprietary limited rights technical data and restricted rights software to certain other contractors providing support to the dod. These licenses include the mit license, revised bsd license and its 2clause variant, the apache 2. The regulations can be daunting since they seem to be the size of the tax code. Transformational change comes to dod acquisition policy u. Most of the issues in the field are about software, defense procurement expert and industry consultant jonathan etherton told national defense. Much like the game, the us armys computer hardware, enterprise software and solutions chess fathoms many a seasoned contractor. Offerors shall not be required, as a condition of being responsive to a. Acting principal director, defense pricing and contracting. The policy establishes an intellectual property group that will develop dod guidance, training and assistance as part of the governments effort to address protection of data rights. A commercial offthe shelf cots item is one that is sold, leased, or licensed to the general public.
Two common categories for software under law, and therefore with licenses which grant the licensee specific rights, are proprietary software and free and opensource software foss. For contracts that do not require the development, use, or delivery of items. Gpr is essentially a middle path unique to defense contracts that offers a. The standard license rights in computer software that a licensor grants to the government are unlimited rights, government purpose rights, or restricted rights. Multiple award contracts mac such as gsa schedules, navy seaporte, and air force netcents ii involve companies obtaining a contract and then compete for task orders. Dod finally issues proposed rule addressing 2012 ndaa. The department of defense dod procurement process is the backbone for developing dod military capability. Defense finance accounting service contractorsvendors. This allows dod and its contractors to avoid many of the most burdensome aspects of. There are a variety of contract types each with its own pluses and minuses. What every company should know about ip rights when. Jul 08, 2009 government obtains data rights to use technical data and computer software from the data rights clauses in government procurement contract. Pentagon issues new procurement guidelines and adds hurdles to sole source awards by nooree lee and covington team on september 5, 2014 posted in procurement policy on august 21, 2014, the undersecretary of defense for acquisition, technology and logistics issued a memorandum titled actions to improve department of defense competition. Department of defense dod see the appeal of the open source model.
Proposal for a new rights in software clause for software acquisitions by the department of defense september 1986 technical report pam samuelson, kevin m. When technical data rights laws were written in 1995, he said, software was not a big issue. This article focusses on procurement of services and software through chess. A government purpose rights license means the rights to use, modify, reproduce, release or disclose the technical data or computer software within the government without restriction and outside the government for a government purpose any activity in which the united states government is a party. Provides a practical cradletograve approach to acquiring technical. Secondly, in the event that the defense department chooses to adopt a data rights procurement policy diierent from that found in the data rights provisions of the proposed far, this report recommends that the dod adopt a separate rights in software clause for software acquisitions. Government software acquisition policies dfars and data. Lord, dods undersecretary for acquisition and sustainment said the program will be the most transformational acquisition policy change the department has seen in. Procurement reports and data files for download summary webpage containing historial data on u. General of the department of defense, the defense agencies, the dod field activities, and all other organizational entities within the dod referred to collectively in this issuance as the dod components. Important things to remember title is not changed by incorporation of government property into property owned by the contractor.
Defense acquisition university, cle 068 data rights and intellectual property. Dpc executes policy through the timely update of the dfars and pgi. This paper examines the current dfars software ip rights scheme and provides a roadmap for further reform. Defense procurement overview of the fy 2020 national. Jul 01, 2016 most of the issues in the field are about software, defense procurement expert and industry consultant jonathan etherton told national defense. Data is either noncommercial military or commercial technical data recorded information, regardless of the form or method of recording, of a scientific or technical nature, e. Combat material without demil or other dod authorization flight safety critical aircraft parts and critical safety items unless meeting the provisions of 10233. Only those companies with a multiple award contract can compete for the task orders and task. Defense innovation board ten commandments of software. Provides a practical cradletograve approach to acquiring technical data and computer software rights.
This article is a guide to everything there is to know about chess and the latest developments in the procurement tools housed within chess. Data rights for proprietary software used in dod programs. Its govern by the policy and principals of dod directive 5000. When contracting with a dod entity, the government receives unlimited rights in technical data and computer software developed exclusively with government funds or that is preexisting intellectual property delivered to the government without the appropriate restrictions. Dfas esolutions gpc program helps to develop and maintain an interface for automated receipt, processing of gpc invoices, and automated posting of obligations in accordance with electronic data interchange edi ansi x12 standards. Dods policies, procedures, and practices for information security management of covered systems visit us at. Apr 16, 2020 a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away, the department of defense dod and industry came together after more than seven years of discussions and created a rational, logical, and fair constellation of regulations and laws governing the dods and contractors rights in technical data and computer software. Budgets should be constructed to support the full, iterative lifecycle of the. While the defense federal acquisition regulation supplement has long. Change the practice of how software is procured and developed. This report 1986 recommends regulatory strategies for addressing difficulties the dod has experienced with respect to legal issues related to software acquisitions. He is responsible for contract pricing and procurement policy matters within dod, read more. Dpc is responsible for all pricing, contracting, and procurement policy matters, including ebusiness, in the department of defense dod.
Rights in computer software under federal goverment contracts. Dod finally issues proposed rule addressing 2012 ndaa changes. Dcma has published dcma guidebook for government contract property administration. This data can include proposal, source selection, software, management. Microsoft could score billions under recent dod deals fedscoop. Dod policy is to acquire only the td and cs, and the data rights in tdcs, necessary to satisfy dod needs dfars 227. Establish one or more new acquisition pathways for software that prioritize continuous integration and delivery of working. But it also allows for even more confusion than usual about how to handle intellectual property rights, particularly rights in technical data and computer software, because there are no standard ip clauses for ots. All software procurement programs should start small, be iterative, and build on success. On june 16, 2016, the department of defense dod issued a proposed rule to implement section 815 of the national defense authorization act for fiscal year 2012, which was originally enacted in december 2011. Government software acquisition policies dfars and. Acquisition excellence through leadership with integrity. Acquiring and enforcing the governments rights in technical data and computer software under dod contracts.
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