Source Selection Plan (SSP)
A Source Selection Plan (SSP) documents how a competitive negotiated acquisition will be evaluated and decided: the organization of the evaluation team, the factors and subfactors, their relative importance, and the methodology for reaching an award decision.
The SSP is written before the solicitation goes out and governs everything after proposals arrive. It establishes the source selection authority, evaluation board structure, rating method, and the factors — technical, past performance, price — that the RFP's Sections L and M must mirror exactly. Divergence between the SSP, the solicitation, and the actual evaluation is a classic protest-sustainer.
DoD source selections follow the DoD Source Selection Procedures, which prescribe standard rating scales and documentation requirements beyond the FAR baseline.
Regulatory Reference
FAR 15.303; DoD Source Selection Procedures
RFO Status
The Part 15 model deviation (September 30, 2025, adopted by agencies beginning November 3, 2025) collapses Part 15 into five subparts and carries source selection planning with it, and DoD Source Selection Procedures continue to apply on top of whichever text an agency has adopted; Part 15 is not in the June 2026 first-batch proposed rules, so verify section numbers against your agency's adopted deviation. (verified September 12, 2026)
Category
Documents & Artifacts
How AcqBot Helps
AcqBot generates the SSP, the matching Section L/M language, and evaluator worksheets from one set of factors — structurally eliminating the consistency gaps protests feed on.
Related glossary entries
Justification & Approval (J&A)
A Justification & Approval (J&A) is the formal document required by FAR 6.303 to justify awarding a federal contract without full and open competition, citing one of seven statutory exceptions and approved at thresholds based on dollar value.
Performance Work Statement (PWS)
A Performance Work Statement (PWS) describes required outcomes and measurable performance standards for a services acquisition rather than prescribing how the work must be done, enabling contractors to propose their own methods under performance-based acquisition.
Statement of Work (SOW)
A Statement of Work (SOW) is the contract document that prescribes, in specific and directive terms, the tasks a contractor must perform, the deliverables due, and the schedule — placing responsibility for the approach on the government.
Statement of Objectives (SOO)
A Statement of Objectives (SOO) is a brief government document stating top-level acquisition objectives and desired outcomes, leaving offerors free to propose their own technical approach and performance work statement in response.