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DFARS Clause ACTIVE

252.227-7016

Rights in Bid or Proposal Information.
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Effective Date
JAN 2025
Active Deviations
1
Versions
3 (since 2016-12-22)
RFO
Superseded Under RFO

This clause (252.227-7016) has been renumbered to 252.227-7991 under the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul (Deviation 2026-O0036). For contracts using the RFO model, use the replacement clause.

View deviation details
252.227-7016 Rights in Bid or Proposal Information.

As prescribed in 227.7103-6(e)(1), 227.7104-4(b)(1), or 227.7203-6(b), use the following clause:

Rights In Bid or Proposal Information (JAN 2025)

(a)
Definitions.

(a)
Definitions.
As used in this clause—

Computer software
is defined in—

(1) The 252.227-7014, Rights in Other Than Commercial Computer Software and Other Than Commercial Computer Software Documentation, clause of this contract; or

(2) If this is a contract awarded under the Small Business Innovation Research Program or Small Business Technology Transfer Program, the 252.227-7018, Rights in Other Than Commercial Technical Data and Computer Software—Small Business Innovation Research Program and Small Business Technology Transfer Program, clause of this contract.

Technical data
is defined in—

(1) The 252.227-7013, Rights in Technical Data—Other Than Commercial Products and Commercial Services, clause of this contract; or

(2) If this is a contract awarded under the Small Business Innovation Research Program or Small Business Technology Transfer Program, the 252.227-7018, Rights in Other Than Commercial Technical Data and Computer Software—Small Business Innovation Research Program and Small Business Technology Transfer Program, clause of this contract.

(b)
Government rights to contract award.
By submission of its offer, the Offeror agrees that the Government—

(1) May reproduce the bid or proposal, or any portions thereof, to the extent necessary to evaluate the offer.

(2) Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this clause, shall use information contained in the bid or proposal only for evaluational purposes and shall not disclose, directly or indirectly, such information to any person including potential evaluators, unless that person has been authorized by the head of the agency, his or her designee, or the Contracting Officer to receive such information.

(c)
Government rights subsequent to contract award.
The Contractor agrees—

(1) Except as provided in paragraphs (c)(2), (d), and (e) of this clause, the Government shall have the rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose information contained in the Contractor's bid or proposal within the Government. The Government shall not release, perform, display, or disclose such information outside the Government without the Contractor's written permission.

(2) The Government's right to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose information that is technical data or computer software required to be delivered under this contract are determined by the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) 252.227-7013, Rights in Technical Data—Other Than Commercial Products and Commercial Services; DFARS 252.227-7014, Rights in Other Than Commercial Computer Software and Other Than Commercial Computer Software Documentation; or DFARS 252.227-7018, Rights in Other Than Commercial Technical Data and Computer Software—Small Business Innovation Research Program and Small Business Technology Transfer Program, clause of this contract.

(d)
Government-furnished information.
The Government's rights with respect to technical data or computer software contained in the Contractor's bid or proposal that were provided to the Contractor by the Government are subject only to restrictions on use, modification, reproduction, release, performance, display, or disclosure, if any, imposed by the developer or licensor of such data or software.

(e)
Information available without restrictions.
The Government's rights to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or, disclose information contained in a bid or proposal, including technical data or computer software, and to permit others to do so, shall not be restricted in any manner if such information has been released or disclosed to the Government or to other persons without restrictions other than a release or disclosure resulting from the sale, transfer, or other assignment of interest in the information to another party or the sale or transfer of some or all of a business entity or its assets to another party.

(f)
Flowdown.
Contractor shall include this clause in all subcontracts or similar contractual instruments and require its subcontractors or suppliers to do so without alteration, except to identify the parties.

(End of clause)

[60 FR 33498, June 28, 1995, as amended at 76 FR 3538, Jan. 20, 2011; 88 FR 6594, Jan. 31, 2023; 89 FR 103356, Dec. 18, 2024]
RFO
Prescription superseded under the RFO

The prescription shown below is from the codified eCFR. Under the RFO, the prescribing section may have been revised, relocated or reserved. See the deviation memorandum for the current prescription authority.

View deviation: 2026-O0036 →
227.7103-6(e)
(e) Use the following clauses in solicitations and contracts that include the clause at 252.227-7013 :
(1) 252.227-7016, Rights in Bid or Proposal Information.

(2) 252.227-7030, Technical Data--Withholding of Payment.

(3) 252.227-7037, Validation of Asserted Restrictions on Technical Data (paragraph (e) of the clause contains information that must be included in a challenge).
Prescription data sourced from eCFR as of 2026-06-10 03:16 UTC. Cross-references within the prescription are not resolved automatically.

Regulatory Stack

The layers of regulation that govern this clause, from the FAR prescription through agency-specific supplements and any active deviations.

R-DFARS R-DFARS Prescription Per Deviation 2026-O0036 (DFARS Part 227)
2026-O0036: DFARS RFO Implementation (Part 27) — DFARS Part 227

View Deviation 2026-O0036 →

DFARS DFARS Supplement (eCFR) ⚠ May be superseded by RFO 227.7103-6(e)
(e) Use the following clauses in solicitations and contracts that include the clause at 252.227-7013 :
(1) 252.227-7016, Rights in Bid or Proposal Information.

(2) 252.227-7030, Technical Data--Withholding of Payment.

(3) 252.227-7037, Validation of Asserted Restrictions on Technical Data (paragraph (e) of the clause contains information that must be included in a challenge).

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Version History

Version history is sourced from the codified eCFR. Changes published only as class deviations or by the Revolutionary FAR Overhaul do not appear here until they are incorporated into the eCFR. For RFO-driven changes see the RFO Version tab and any active deviations cited above.

3 versions tracked from 2016-12-22 to 2025-01-17.
JAN 2025 January 17, 2025 CURRENT SUBSTANTIVE
Removed in this version
Added in this version
Unchanged
DEC 2024 (previous)
JAN 2025 (current)
10 added
(a)
(a) Definitions.
(a)
(a) Definitions. As used in this clause— Computer software is defined in—
20 added, 4 removed
(2)
(2) The Government's right to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose information that is technical data or computer software required to be delivered under this contract are determined by the Rights in Technical Data—Other Than Commercial Products and Commercial Services, Rights in Other Than Commercial Computer Software and Other Than Commercial Computer Software Documentation, or Rights in Other Than Commercial Technical Data and Computer Software—Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program clause(s) of this contract.
(2)
(2) The Government's right to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose information that is technical data or computer software required to be delivered under this contract are determined by the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (DFARS) 252.227-7013, Rights in Technical Data—Other Than Commercial Products and Commercial Services; DFARS 252.227-7014, Rights in Other Than Commercial Computer Software and Other Than Commercial Computer Software Documentation; or DFARS 252.227-7018, Rights in Other Than Commercial Technical Data and Computer Software—Small Business Innovation Research Program and Small Business Technology Transfer Program, clause of this contract.
DEC 2024 December 18, 2024 SUBSTANTIVE
Removed in this version
Added in this version
Unchanged
DEC 2016 (previous)
DEC 2024 (current)
66 removed
(a)
(a) Definitions. (1) For contracts that require the delivery of technical data, the terms "technical data" and "computer software" are defined in the Rights in Technical Data - Noncommercial Item clause of this contract or, if this is a contract awarded under the Small Business Innovation Research Program, the Rights in Noncommercial Technical Data and Computer Software - Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program clause of this contract.
(a)
(a) Definitions.
17 added, 10 removed
(2)
(2) The Government's right to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose information that is technical data or computer software required to be delivered under this contract are determined by the Rights in Technical Data - Noncommercial Items, Rights in Noncommercial Computer Software and Noncommercial Computer Software Documentation, or Rights in Noncommercial Technical Data and Computer Software - Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program clause(s) of this contract.
(2)
(2) The Government's right to use, modify, reproduce, release, perform, display, or disclose information that is technical data or computer software required to be delivered under this contract are determined by the Rights in Technical Data—Other Than Commercial Products and Commercial Services, Rights in Other Than Commercial Computer Software and Other Than Commercial Computer Software Documentation, or Rights in Other Than Commercial Technical Data and Computer Software—Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Program clause(s) of this contract.
DEC 2016 December 22, 2016 SUBSTANTIVE
Earliest version available from the eCFR

Active Class Deviations

DFARS RFO Implementation (Part 27) Modified by RFO class deviation
MODIFIED
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