Reference Library
Authoritative source backbone for GovCon AI training
Use this page as the shared evidence spine for all modules. Treat FAR and DFARS as the legal acquisition foundation, OMB and GAO as budget and governance anchors, NIST/CISA/FedRAMP/CMMC as cyber and AI risk anchors, and SAM, USAspending, GSA tools, and agency forecasts as market and pricing intelligence sources.
Reference categories
Every category below is written to support both government acquisition teams and federal contractors. Use it to ground analysis, prompts, templates, reviews, and decision support outputs in authoritative source material.
1. Core acquisition law, regulation, and policy
| Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) | Primary government-wide acquisition rulebook for planning, solicitation, evaluation, award, administration, closeout, pricing, protests, small business, contract types, and clauses. |
|---|---|
| DFARS | DoD-specific supplement covering cybersecurity, CUI, supply chain, cost/pricing, technical data, and defense industrial base requirements. |
| PGI | DoD implementation guidance for applying DFARS requirements. |
| Agency FAR supplements | Agency-specific acquisition rules such as GSAM, VAAR, HHSAR, HSAR, DOSAR, DEARS, EPAAR, NFS, AFARS, and DAFFARS. |
| Key FAR parts | Parts 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 22, 31, 42, 44, and 52 anchor lifecycle planning, requirements, source selection, pricing, administration, and closeout. |
2. Budget, mission planning, and capital investment
| OMB Circular A-11 | Federal budget formulation, execution, capital planning, and performance guidance. |
|---|---|
| OMB Capital Programming Guide | Planning, budgeting, acquisition, and management of capital assets. |
| GAO cost and schedule guides | Best-practice methodologies for reliable cost estimates, schedule realism, and program control. |
| Agency strategic plans, CBJs, President's Budget | Mission alignment, funding signals, modernization priorities, and program rationale. |
3. Market research and opportunity intelligence
| SAM.gov | Solicitations, RFIs, notices, awards, vendor eligibility, representations, certifications, UEI, and exclusions. |
|---|---|
| USAspending / FPDS | Historical obligations, agency spend, vendors, NAICS, PSC, vehicles, place of performance, and award patterns. |
| GSA eBuy / Advantage / MRAS | RFQs, catalog pricing, and market research support. |
| SBA DSBS and size standards | Small business market research, size eligibility, classification, and capability matching. |
4. Pricing, cost, rates, and financial realism
| FAR Part 31 | Cost principles and allowability rules. |
|---|---|
| Truthful Cost or Pricing Data | Basis for certified cost or pricing data when applicable. |
| DCAA guidance | Accounting, incurred cost, estimating systems, provisional billing, and audit expectations. |
| CAS | Cost accounting consistency for applicable contracts. |
5. Source selection, evaluation, and award
| FAR 15.304 / 15.305 / 15.306 / 15.308 | Evaluation factors, proposal evaluation, discussions, and source selection decision documentation. |
|---|---|
| Procurement Integrity Act | Protects source selection information and controls improper disclosure. |
| GAO protest decisions | Useful for understanding defendable documentation, evaluation consistency, and risk areas. |
6. Cybersecurity, CUI, privacy, and technology risk
| NIST SP 800-53 | Security and privacy controls for federal systems and organizations. |
|---|---|
| NIST SP 800-171 / 172 | Protection of CUI in nonfederal systems and advanced protection considerations. |
| FedRAMP | Cloud security authorization baseline and continuous monitoring expectations. |
| CMMC | DoD contractor cybersecurity maturity and assessment framework. |
7. AI governance, AI acquisition, and responsible AI
| NIST AI RMF 1.0 | Core risk-management foundation for trustworthy AI. |
|---|---|
| OMB M-25-21 | Agency safeguards for federal AI use, rights, privacy, and public trust. |
| OMB M-25-22 | Efficient and secure AI acquisition guidance. |
| Internal AI policy / OKL / RAG controls | Governed prompting, validation, traceability, and role-aware use of enterprise knowledge. |
8. Data, records, evidence, and auditability
| FAR Part 4 | Contract files, systems, and records requirements. |
|---|---|
| FAR 4.805 | Handling, storing, and disposing of contract files per NARA requirements. |
| Federal Records Act / NARA | Retention, disposition, and records governance. |
| FOIA | Disclosure context and records sensitivity considerations. |
9. Labor, workforce, socioeconomic, and compliance references
| SCA / DBA | Labor standards and wage determinations where applicable. |
|---|---|
| Section 508 | Accessibility requirements for ICT acquisitions. |
| Small Business Act / FAR Part 19 | Set-asides, socioeconomic programs, and participation strategy. |
| OCI rules | Conflict-of-interest identification and mitigation. |
10. Supply chain, domestic preference, and industrial base
| EO 14028 / Zero Trust | Cyber modernization and federal trust architecture expectations. |
|---|---|
| Domestic preference rules | Buy American / Trade Agreements implications depending on procurement context. |
| Industrial base and supply chain guidance | Vendor concentration, sourcing risk, and resilience considerations. |
11. Contract administration, performance, and closeout
| FAR Parts 42, 43, 46, 49 | Administration, modifications, quality assurance, and termination/closeout considerations. |
|---|---|
| CPARS | Past-performance reporting and contractor performance records. |
| DCMA manuals and guidebooks | Administration, EVMS, CPSR, property, quality, and surveillance. |
12. Proposal and capture best-practice references
| APMP | Proposal management best practices, color reviews, and response development. |
|---|---|
| NCMA | Contract management, policy interpretation, and governance resources. |
| DAU | Acquisition learning, glossaries, frameworks, and practical job support. |
13. High-value decision mapping by acquisition phase
Planning
Use FAR Parts 7, 10, 11, OMB A-11, NIST AI RMF, and agency strategic plans to ground mission need, requirements framing, and acquisition strategy assumptions.
Market research
Use SAM.gov, USAspending, SBA DSBS, vehicle data, and incumbent analysis to support evidence-based vendor and competition assessments.
Solicitation
Use Sections C/L/M, clause matrices, labor and cyber requirements, and policy overlays to ensure instructions, evaluation, and compliance are aligned.
Evaluation & award
Use published factors, FAR 15 source selection rules, protest precedent, and documentation requirements to keep decisions traceable and defensible.
Administration & closeout
Use FAR administration, CPARS, records rules, and cyber monitoring references to manage performance, modifications, lessons learned, and final disposition.