Federal Acquisition Regulation: Inflation Adjustment of Acquisition-Related Thresholds

Key Points

• 1The government updates dollar thresholds each year to reflect inflation, so a contract worth $50,000 today gets the same level of oversight as a contract that was worth roughly that much in purchasing power in previous years
• 2These thresholds determine when government agencies must open bids to multiple contractors, use special small business programs, or follow other procurement rules
• 3This affects any business that bids on federal contracts, as they need to know which rules apply based on the contract's dollar amount
• 4Without these adjustments, the same rules would apply to increasingly smaller contracts in real terms, eventually making regulations impractical
• 5The regulation took effect on August 27, 2025, and applies to all federal government procurement going forward

Key Dates