Time’s run out for TikTok with government contractors
June 7, 2023 Leave a comment
New FAR and state rules clamp down on the social media platform
By Skyler Handl, Corporate Counsel Public Sector
You’ve likely heard the rumblings in the news, at both the federal and state levels, regarding national security concerns and the popular social media application TikTok, owned by ByteDance. On August 6, 2020, President Trump issued Executive Order 13942 banning the use of TikTok in the United States. TikTok received a preliminary injunction that prohibited the enforcement of the executive order, and President Biden rescinded the executive order in 2021. In early 2023, Congress acted to renew the effort to restrict TikTok. Their action included a prohibition on TikTok in the Consolidated Appropriations Act 2023 which directed the Office of Management and Budget (“OMB”) to further implement the ban. OMB released guidance (M-23-13) on February 27, 2023, extending the prohibition to federal contractors.
On June 2, 2023, the FAR council published FAR Case 2023-010 ( Prohibition on a ByteDance Covered Application). This interim rule amends FAR part 4, adding a new subpart 4.22, Prohibition on a ByteDance Covered Application, with a corresponding new contract clause at 52.204–27, Prohibition on a ByteDance Covered Application. The FAR clause at 52.204–27 prohibits contractors from having or using a covered application, including TikTok or any successor application of TikTok, on any information technology owned or managed by the federal government or on any information technology (IT) used or provided by the contractor under a contract, including equipment provided by the contractor’s employees.
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