Construction Program Guide
Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity Contracting for Federal-aid Construction (Including Job Order Contracting)
The Indefinite Delivery and Indefinite Quantity (ID/IQ) project delivery method allows an owner to procure an indefinite quantity of services for a fixed time. This method is used when a contracting agency anticipates a recurring need but has not determined, above a specified minimum, the precise quantities of services that it will require during the contract period. Contractors bid unit prices for estimated quantities of standard work items, and work orders are used to define the location and quantities for specific work. Job order contracting (JOC) is a form of ID/IQ contracting that uses a unit price book in the solicitation and the bidder's adjustment factors or multipliers to establish contract prices.
On November 16, 2020, FHWA published the ID/IQ Contracts for Federal-aid Construction Interim Final Rule and request for comments. After considering the comments, FHWA published its Final Rule for ID/IQ Contracts for Federal-aid Construction on November 9, 2022. This action adopts the interim final rule with a few minor changes and technical adjustments.
These actions allow States to use the ID/IQ method of contracting, including JOC, on Federal-aid highway projects, under certain circumstances, on a permanent basis. The Interim Final Rule also established a 12-month transition period for ID/IQ projects delivered under the Special Experimental Project Number 14 (SEP-14) authority of 23 U.S.C. 502(b)(2) and FHWA Notice N 5060.2. Per the Interim Final Rule, the Notice expired on November 16, 2021.
The ID/IQ Contracts for Federal-aid Construction Final Rule became effective on December 9, 2022. 
- Summary of Revisions - ID/IQ Final Rule (11/10/2022)
- December 14, 2020 ID/IQ Interim Final Rule (IFR) webinar recording [PDF, 0.7 MB]
Authority/Legal Basis
Laws
- 23 U.S.C. 112 Letting of Contracts (2015) (a) Letting of Contracts and (b) Bidding Requirements
- 23 U.S.C. 502 Surface transportation research, development, and technology (2012) (b)(2) Cooperation, grants, and contracts
Regulations
- Indefinite Delivery and Indefinite Quantity Contracts for Federal-aid Construction, Final Rule (11/9/2022)
- Indefinite Delivery and Indefinite Quantity Contracts for Federal-Aid Construction, Interim Final Rule (11/16/2020) Implements the use of the ID/IQ method, including requirements for FHWA approvals relating to the ID/IQ method of contracting for projects receiving Federal-Aid Highway Program funding.
- 23 CFR 635 Subpart F - ID/IQ Contracting (2020)
Policy
- Prior Federal Register notices related to ID/IQ & JOC for Federal-aid Construction
- Notice 5060.2: Indefinite Delivery/ Indefinite Quantity Contracting for Low-Cost Federal-Aid Construction Contracts (01/18/2019)
General Information
- NCHRP Synthesis 473 - Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity Contracting Practices (2015)
- SEP-14 Active Project List (Locate ID/IQ and JOC workplans and evaluations by searching for the terms ID/IQ or Job Order.)
Examples of ID/IQ Procedures
- Hawaii (HDOT) ID/IQ Procedures (9/15/2021)
- Delaware (DelDOT) ID/IQ Procedures (12/14/2021)
- Montana (MDT) ID/IQ Procedures (12/28/2021)
- North Carolina (NCDOT) ID/IQ Procedures (02/23/2022)