By George W. Thompson
“Cuba, Montenegro and New Zealand” could be the answer to a question on the Jeopardy! game show, if the question was “what three countries with pretty much nothing else in common were covered by Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) amendments published on October 30, 2015.”
Having acceded to the World Trade Organization’s Government Procurement Agreement, Montenegro and New Zealand have made their products and services eligible for purchase by the United States government on a non-discriminatory basis. Their new status is now reflected in DFARS. Both are now numbered among the “designated countries” that are not disadvantaged by the “Buy American” preference and other origin-based procurement restrictions. The Federal Register notice is here.
A similar amendment to the Federal Acquisition Regulations is in the works, according to page 3 of the Open FAR Cases website.
The second DFARS amendment reflects Cuba’s removal as a state sponsor of terrorism. The DFARS prohibits the acquisition of commercial satellite services from such countries. It also prohibits any contract awards to companies owned or controlled by their governments and requires disclosure of this status in any contract offer. Cuba is no longer subject to these requirements. The announcement of the change is found here.
