Glossary / Regulations, Acquisition
Defense Pricing and ContractingDPC
Defense Pricing and Contracting (DPC), formerly DPAP (Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy), is the DoW organization within OUSD(A&S) responsible for acquisition policy, DFARS rulemaking, class deviations, Defense Contract Pricing policy, and oversight of contracting across the department. DPC issues memoranda interpreting DFARS, authorizes class deviations during crises, and publishes DoW-wide guidance on emerging issues like CMMC, supply chain risk, and commercial item determinations.
Why it matters to your pipeline
DPC memoranda often reach contractors before the corresponding DFARS rule changes. Tracking DPC actions such as class deviations, pricing memos, and commercial-item guidance gives competitive intelligence on where DoW contracting is headed. During crises (COVID, CR-driven workarounds), DPC class deviations are the first signal of which flexibilities are available to contracting officers.
When this term shows up in an opening GovSmith finds for you, your vCM explains what it means for that pursuit and does whatever it calls for. You decide; we do the work.
Example
During COVID-19, DPC issued a class deviation raising progress payment rates on defense contracts. A contractor's CFO flags the memo, the company asks for a modification to apply the higher rate, and the extra cash carries it through a supplier disruption.
Find out what applies to you
Some terms will matter to your business right away and some won’t for years. A vCM can tell you which are which.