FAIR AND REASONABLE PRICE A price that is fair to both parties, considering the agreed-upon conditions, promised quality, and timeliness of contract performance. “Fair and reasonable” price is subject to statutory and regulatory limitations.

FAIR MARKET VALUE What a qualified buyer will pay for goods, services, or property.

FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION (FAR) The body of regulations which is the primary source of authority governing the government procurement process. The FAR, which is published as Chapter 1 of Title 48 of the Code of Federal Regulations, is prepared, issued, and maintained under the joint auspices of the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General Services Administration, and the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Actual responsibility for maintenance and revision of the FAR is vested jointly in the Defense Acquisition Regulatory Council (DARC) and the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council (CAAC).

FINANCIAL REPORTS A written report which quantitatively describes the financial health of a company. This includes an income statement and a balance sheet, and often also includes a cash flow statement. Financial statements are usually compiled on a quarterly and annual basis.

FINANCING New funds provided to a business, by either loans or purchase of debt securities or capital stock.

FINANCIAL FORECAST Projection of revenues and expenses for the next one to five years.

FINANCIAL PLAN An outline for how to use the money (capital) you have and how to raise the money you will need.

FINANCIAL RATIOS Measures of capital, including debt to asset, current, and debt to worth. See individual definitions for “acid,” “current,” “quick” ratios.

FIVE “Cs” OF CREDIT A system used by lending officers to evaluate a loan application: Character, Cash Flow, Collateral, Capitalization and Conditions.

FIXED ASSETS Equipment, buildings, etc., which are purchased and used for long-term purposes.

FIXED COSTS Costs of doing business such as rent, utilities, depreciation, taxes, etc., that remain generally the same regardless of the amount of sales of goods or services.

FLOW CHART A graphical representation for the definition, analysis, or solution of a problem, in which symbols are used to represent operations, data, flow, equipment, etc.

FOIA Freedom of Informaton Act. The FOIA, enacted in 1966, generally provides that any person has a right of access to federal agency records. This right of access is enforceable in court except for those records that are protected from disclosure by the nine exemptions to the FOIA, which are discussed in the text.

FORECLOSURE The act by the mortgagee or trustee upon default, in the payment of interest or principal of a mortgage of enforcing payment of the debt by selling the underlying security.

FORMS – IRS Internal Revenue Service (IRS) Forms (USA).

FRANCHISING A continuing relationship in which the franchisor provides a licensed privilege to the franchisee to do business, and offers assistance in organizing, training, merchandising, marketing and managing in return for a consideration. Franchising is a form of business by which the owner (franchisor) of a product, service or method obtains distribution through affiliated dealers(franchisees). The product, method or service being marketed is usually identified by the franchisor’s brand name, and the holder of the privilege (franchisee) is often given exclusive access to a defined geographical area.

FRANCHISE REGISTRY The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Franchise Registry is helping small businesses owners through cooperation between government and industry.

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) The FOIA, enacted in 1966, generally provides that any person has a right of access to federal agency records. This right of access is enforceable in court except for those records that are protected from disclosure by the nine exemptions to the FOIA, which are discussed in the text.

FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION With respect to a contract action, “full and open” competition means that all responsible sources are permitted to compete.