Contract delivery
Who can authorize extra work? Check contract authority before you commit
Understand the difference between a contracting officer and a COR, then use a practical request log to clarify possible scope changes without losing the facts.
A helpful request can become a costly misunderstanding
An agency contact asks your team to cover an extra location, produce another report, or finish earlier. Before promising the change, separate three things: what was requested, what the current contract already requires, and who has authority to change it.
This article is a preparation workflow for federal contractors, not a ruling on whether a particular instruction changes your contract. Read the applicable clauses and agency instructions, and seek qualified contracts or legal advice when obligations are unclear. State, local, and subcontract arrangements need their own review.
Know the roles, not just the names
Under FAR 43.102, contract modifications on the Government's behalf are executed by contracting officers acting within their authority. Other government personnel are not authorized to execute those modifications or encourage work that should require one. A contact's seniority or familiarity with your team does not replace that authority.
A contracting officer's representative, or COR, can have important oversight duties. FAR 1.602-2 requires a written designation describing the extent, limits, and period of the COR's authority. It also states that a COR cannot make commitments or changes affecting price, quality, quantity, delivery, or other contract terms.
At kickoff, locate the named contracting officer and any COR designation provided to your company. Record the official communication channel and internal person responsible for contract questions. Ask for clarification if a role or designation is missing rather than assuming every agency contact can approve extra work.
Compare the request with the current baseline
Keep the awarded contract, statement of work, relevant attachments, and executed modifications together. When a request arrives, identify the exact task, location, quantity, deadline, or deliverable involved. Compare it with that current baseline rather than an old proposal draft.
Write down what appears different and what remains uncertain. A request may be ordinary coordination within existing requirements, or it may raise a scope, price, or schedule issue. Do not treat your first impression as a formal determination either way.
Estimate practical effects separately: added hours, equipment, supplier commitments, access requirements, and schedule conflicts. Mark estimates as provisional and retain the assumptions. This makes a clarification request more useful than simply saying that the work feels out of scope.
Use a short, factual clarification record
A useful internal record has six fields: contract or order reference; date and source of the request; requested action; baseline requirement being compared; potential cost or schedule effects; and the question requiring resolution. Add the original message or a contemporaneous note of a conversation without altering it.
Send the issue through the contract's prescribed channel to the appropriate contracting officer. Keep the tone cooperative: explain your understanding, identify the relevant requirement, and ask how the request should be handled. Copy others only as appropriate under the communication instructions.
A saved email is evidence of a conversation, not automatically a contract modification. Confirm the response and any required formal documentation before treating a proposed change as settled. Have a qualified adviser review any notice deadlines or rights-preservation requirements that may apply; a generic email template is not a substitute for those requirements.
Illustrative example: an additional service location
This scenario is invented. A facilities-support contractor's working file lists two service locations. A site contact asks for support at a third location next Monday. The project lead records the request, checks the current location attachment and modifications, and notes possible staffing and travel effects.
An illustrative clarification could read: 'Our current location attachment lists Sites A and B. Today's request adds Site C beginning Monday. Please confirm whether this task is required under the existing contract and identify the applicable provision, or advise on the appropriate change process. Our preliminary staffing and schedule impacts are attached for review.' Adapt the wording and routing to the actual contract.
The team labels the matter unresolved until it receives appropriate direction. It does not describe the added site as approved revenue merely because the contact requested it. This example does not tell a contractor to stop or refuse required performance: performance duties while an issue is unresolved depend on the contract and circumstances and warrant prompt professional review.
Close the loop with the people doing the work
Once the issue is resolved, record the decision, effective date, authority, and supporting document. Update the working scope, schedule, and cost assumptions as applicable. Tell the delivery team and affected partners which version to use, and keep the superseded material clearly labeled for the record.
For your next pursuit, turn the experience into a preparation question: who will manage contract communications and track changes after award? BidGovAI can help organize company information and contract pursuits, with features depending on membership. It does not determine a government official's authority or replace contract administration and legal advice.
Your next steps
- Locate the contracting officer and any written COR designation.
- Keep the current contract and executed modifications together.
- Record the exact requested work and compare it with the baseline.
- Separate provisional impact estimates from confirmed facts.
- Use the contract's designated channel for clarification.
- Check applicable notice requirements and performance obligations with qualified help.
- Record the resolution and distribute the correct working version.