Federal Acquisition Regulation; Clarification of Standards for Computer Generation of Forms, 79609-79610 [2011-32722]

Download as PDF Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 246 / Thursday, December 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules .xml, .ppt, searchable .pdf). Participants in this proceeding should familiarize themselves with the Commission’s ex parte rules. Federal Communications Commission. Sharon E. Gillett, Chief, Wireline Competition Bureau. [FR Doc. 2011–32823 Filed 12–21–11; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6712–01–P DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION I. Background 48 CFR Part 53 [FAR Case 2011–022; Docket 2011–0093; Sequence 1] RIN 9000–AM15 Federal Acquisition Regulation; Clarification of Standards for Computer Generation of Forms Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). ACTION: Proposed rule. AGENCY: DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to remove any reference to Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 161 and codify requirements for standards already in use. DATES: Interested parties should submit written comments to the Regulatory Secretariat at one of the addressees shown below on or before February 21, 2012 to be considered in the formation of the final rule. ADDRESSES: Submit comments in response to FAR Case 2011–022 by any of the following methods: • Regulations.gov: https:// www.regulations.gov. Submit comments via the Federal eRulemaking portal by inputting ‘‘FAR Case 2011–022’’ under the heading ‘‘Enter Keyword or ID’’ and selecting ‘‘Search.’’ Select the link ‘‘Submit a Comment’’ that corresponds with ‘‘FAR Case 2011–022.’’ Follow the instructions provided at the ‘‘Submit a Comment’’ screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), and ‘‘FAR Case 2011–022’’ on your attached document. • Fax: (202) 501–4067. • Mail: General Services Administration, Regulatory Secretariat (MVCB), Attn: Hada Flowers, 1275 First jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS SUMMARY: VerDate Mar<15>2010 19:15 Dec 21, 2011 Street NE., 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20417. Instructions: Please submit comments only and cite FAR Case 2011–022, in all correspondence related to this case. All comments received will be posted without change to https:// www.regulations.gov, including any personal and/or business confidential information provided. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Deborah Lague, Procurement Analyst, at (202) 694–8149 for clarification of content. For information pertaining to status or publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat at (202) 501– 4755. Please cite FAR Case 2011–022. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Jkt 226001 DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to revise the FAR to implement the removal of FIPS 161. FIPS 161 is being removed based on the notice posted in the Federal Register (73 FR 51276) on September 2, 2008, by the Department of Commerce. This FIPS requirement was withdrawn by the Secretary of Commerce because it was obsolete, and had not been updated to adopt current voluntary industry standards, Federal specifications, Federal data standards, or current good practices for information security. The withdrawal of this standard created a gap in the FAR. This proposed case, if adopted, closes that gap by clarifying the use of American National Standards Institute X12, as the valid standard to use for computer-generated forms. FAR 53.105 is being amended; it will continue allowing agencies and the public to generate standard and optional forms on their computers. In addition to clarifying that FIPS 161 is no longer in use, public comments are invited to identify other voluntary industry standards, Federal specifications, Federal data standards, or current good practices for the computer generation of forms. II. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 Executive Orders (E.O.s) 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess all costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public health and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). E.O. 13563 emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and benefits, of reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, and of promoting flexibility. This is not a significant regulatory action and, therefore, was not PO 00000 Frm 00062 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 79609 subject to review under Section 6(b) of E.O. 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review, dated September 30, 1993. This rule is not a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 804. III. Regulatory Flexibility Act DoD, GSA, and NASA do not expect this rule to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities within the meaning of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601, et seq., because it is removing FIPS 161 which is obsolete or has not been updated to adopt current voluntary industry standards, Federal specifications, Federal data standards, or current good practices for information security. This is a technical change acknowledging the removal by the Department of Commerce of FIPS 161. Small businesses will continue to be able to generate forms by computer. Therefore, an Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis has not been performed. DoD, GSA, and NASA invite comments from small business concerns and other interested parties on the expected impact of this rule on small entities. DoD, GSA, and NASA will also consider comments from small entities concerning the existing regulations in subparts affected by the rule in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 610. Interested parties must submit such comments separately and should cite 5 U.S.C. 610 (FAR Case 2011–022), in correspondence. IV. Paperwork Reduction Act The rule does not contain any information collection requirements that require the approval of the Office of Management and Budget under the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35). List of Subjects in 48 CFR Part 53 Government procurement. Dated: December 15, 2011. William Clark, Acting Director, Federal Acquisition Policy Division, Office of Governmentwide Acquisition Policy. Therefore, DoD, GSA, and NASA propose amending 48 CFR part 53 as set forth below: PART 53—FORMS 1. The authority citation for 48 CFR part 53 continues to read as follows: Authority: 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 137; and 42 U.S.C. 2473(c). 2. Revise section 53.105 to read as follows: E:\FR\FM\22DEP1.SGM 22DEP1 79610 53.105 Federal Register / Vol. 76, No. 246 / Thursday, December 22, 2011 / Proposed Rules Computer generation. (a) The forms prescribed by this part may be computer generated without exception approval (see 53.103), provided— (1) There is no change to the name, content, or sequence of the data elements, and the form carries the Standard or Optional Form number and edition date (see 53.111); or (2) The form is in an electronic format covered by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) X12 Standards published by the Accredited Standards Committee X12 on Electronic Data Interchange or a format that can be translated into one of those standards. (b) The standards listed in paragraph (a)(2) above may also be used for submission of data set forth in other parts for which specific forms have not been prescribed. [FR Doc. 2011–32722 Filed 12–21–11; 8:45 am] BILLING CODE 6820–EP–P DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration 50 CFR Part 648 [Docket No. 111207734–1733–01] RIN 0648–BB50 Fisheries of the Northeastern United States; Atlantic Herring Fishery; Adjustment to 2012 Annual Catch Limits National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), Commerce. ACTION: Proposed rule; request for comments. AGENCY: This action proposes to reduce the 2012 annual catch limits (ACLs) for the Atlantic herring (herring) fishery to account for catch overages in 2010 and to prevent overfishing. DATES: Public comments must be received no later than 5 p.m., Eastern Standard Time, on January 6, 2012. ADDRESSES: Copies of supporting documents, the 2010–2012 Herring Specifications and Amendment 4 to the Herring Fishery Management Plan (FMP), are available from: Paul J. Howard, Executive Director, New England Fishery Management Council, 50 Water Street, Mill 2, Newburyport, MA 01950, telephone (978) 465–0492. These documents are also accessible via the Internet at https:// www.nero.nmfs.gov. jlentini on DSK4TPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS SUMMARY: VerDate Mar<15>2010 19:15 Dec 21, 2011 Jkt 226001 You may submit comments, identified by NOAA–NMFS–2011–0275, by any one of the following methods: • Electronic Submission: Submit all electronic public comments via the Federal e-Rulemaking Portal www.regulations.gov. To submit comments via the e-Rulemaking Portal, first click the ‘‘submit a comment’’ icon, then enter NOAA–NMFS–2011–0275 in the keyword search. Locate the document you wish to comment on from the resulting list and click on the ‘‘Submit a Comment’’ icon on the right of that line. • Mail: NMFS, Northeast Regional Office, 55 Great Republic Drive, Gloucester, MA 01930. Mark the outside of the envelope ‘‘Comments on Adjustment to 2012 Herring Catch Limits.’’ • Fax: (978) 281–9135, Attn: Carrie Nordeen. Instructions: Comments must be submitted by one of the above methods to ensure that the comments are received, documented, and considered by NMFS. Comments sent by any other method, to any other address or individual, or received after the end of the comment period, may not be considered. All comments received are a part of the public record and will generally be posted for public viewing on www.regulations.gov without change. All personal identifying information (e.g., name, address) submitted voluntarily by the sender will be publicly accessible. Do not submit confidential business information, or otherwise sensitive or protected information. NMFS will accept anonymous comments (enter ‘‘N/A’’ in the required fields if you wish to remain anonymous). Attachments to electronic comments will be accepted in Microsoft Word or Excel, WordPerfect, or Adobe PDF formats only. FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Carrie Nordeen, Fishery Policy Analyst, (978) 281–9272, fax (978) 281–9135. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Background The Atlantic herring harvest in the United States is managed under the Herring FMP developed by the New England Fishery Management Council (Council), and implemented by NMFS, in 2000. The Council developed herring specifications for 2010–2012, which were approved by NMFS on August 12, 2010 (75 FR 48874). Although herring is not overfished and is not experiencing overfishing, the herring annual acceptable biological catch for fishing years 2010–2012 (106,000 mt) was reduced from previous years (145,000 PO 00000 Frm 00063 Fmt 4702 Sfmt 4702 mt in 2009) due to concerns about a retrospective pattern in the 2009 herring stock assessment that over-estimates biomass. The stock-wide herring ACL (91,200 mt) is divided among three management areas, one of which has two sub-areas. Area 1 is located in the Gulf of Maine (GOM) and is divided into an inshore section (Area 1A) and an offshore section (Area 1B). Area 2 is located in the coastal waters between Massachusetts and North Carolina, and Area 3 is on Georges Bank (GB). The herring stock complex is considered to be a single stock, but there are inshore (GOM) and offshore (GB) stock components. The GOM and GB stock components segregate during spawning and mix during feeding and migration. Each management area has its own subACL to allow greater control of the fishing mortality on each stock component. While the stock-wide herring ACL for 2010–2012 was not reduced below the 2008 catch level, the management area sub-ACLs were reduced from 2009 levels by 20 to 60 percent. The management area subACLs established for 2010–2012 were: 26,546 mt for Area 1A, 4,362 mt for Area 1B, 22,146 mt for Area 2, and 38,146 mt for Area 3. Amendment 4 to the Herring FMP (Amendment 4) (76 FR 11373, March 2, 2011) revised the specification-setting process, bringing the Herring FMP into compliance with ACL and accountability measure (AM) requirements of the Magnuson-Stevens Fishery Conservation and Management Act (MSA). Under the FMP, if NMFS determines catch will reach 95 percent of the sub-ACL allocated to a management area or seasonal period, then NMFS prohibits vessels from fishing for, possessing, catching, transferring, or landing more than 2,000 lb (907.2 kg) of herring per trip from that area or period. This AM slows catch to prevent or minimize catch in excess of a management area or seasonal period sub-ACL. As a way to account for ACL overages in the herring fishery, Amendment 4 established an AM that provided for overage deductions. If the catch of herring in any given fishing year exceeds any ACL or sub-ACL, the overage will subsequently be deducted from the corresponding ACL/sub-ACL. Fishing year 2010 was the first year that NMFS monitored herring catch against the recently reduced management area sub-ACLs. NMFS experienced difficulty determining when to implement the 2,000-lb (907.2kg) possession limit in Area 1B because of a pulse of fishing effort in that area. NMFS had similar difficulties E:\FR\FM\22DEP1.SGM 22DEP1

Agencies

[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 246 (Thursday, December 22, 2011)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 79609-79610]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-32722]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

48 CFR Part 53

[FAR Case 2011-022; Docket 2011-0093; Sequence 1]
RIN 9000-AM15


Federal Acquisition Regulation; Clarification of Standards for 
Computer Generation of Forms

AGENCY: Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration 
(GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION: Proposed rule.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal 
Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to remove any reference to Federal 
Information Processing Standard (FIPS) 161 and codify requirements for 
standards already in use.

DATES: Interested parties should submit written comments to the 
Regulatory Secretariat at one of the addressees shown below on or 
before February 21, 2012 to be considered in the formation of the final 
rule.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments in response to FAR Case 2011-022 by any of 
the following methods:
     Regulations.gov: https://www.regulations.gov. Submit 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking portal by inputting ``FAR Case 
2011-022'' under the heading ``Enter Keyword or ID'' and selecting 
``Search.'' Select the link ``Submit a Comment'' that corresponds with 
``FAR Case 2011-022.'' Follow the instructions provided at the ``Submit 
a Comment'' screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), 
and ``FAR Case 2011-022'' on your attached document.
     Fax: (202) 501-4067.
     Mail: General Services Administration, Regulatory 
Secretariat (MVCB), Attn: Hada Flowers, 1275 First Street NE., 7th 
Floor, Washington, DC 20417.
    Instructions: Please submit comments only and cite FAR Case 2011-
022, in all correspondence related to this case. All comments received 
will be posted without change to https://www.regulations.gov, including 
any personal and/or business confidential information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Deborah Lague, Procurement 
Analyst, at (202) 694-8149 for clarification of content. For 
information pertaining to status or publication schedules, contact the 
Regulatory Secretariat at (202) 501-4755. Please cite FAR Case 2011-
022.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to revise the FAR to implement the 
removal of FIPS 161. FIPS 161 is being removed based on the notice 
posted in the Federal Register (73 FR 51276) on September 2, 2008, by 
the Department of Commerce. This FIPS requirement was withdrawn by the 
Secretary of Commerce because it was obsolete, and had not been updated 
to adopt current voluntary industry standards, Federal specifications, 
Federal data standards, or current good practices for information 
security. The withdrawal of this standard created a gap in the FAR. 
This proposed case, if adopted, closes that gap by clarifying the use 
of American National Standards Institute X12, as the valid standard to 
use for computer-generated forms. FAR 53.105 is being amended; it will 
continue allowing agencies and the public to generate standard and 
optional forms on their computers.
    In addition to clarifying that FIPS 161 is no longer in use, public 
comments are invited to identify other voluntary industry standards, 
Federal specifications, Federal data standards, or current good 
practices for the computer generation of forms.

II. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563

    Executive Orders (E.O.s) 12866 and 13563 direct agencies to assess 
all costs and benefits of available regulatory alternatives and, if 
regulation is necessary, to select regulatory approaches that maximize 
net benefits (including potential economic, environmental, public 
health and safety effects, distributive impacts, and equity). E.O. 
13563 emphasizes the importance of quantifying both costs and benefits, 
of reducing costs, of harmonizing rules, and of promoting flexibility. 
This is not a significant regulatory action and, therefore, was not 
subject to review under Section 6(b) of E.O. 12866, Regulatory Planning 
and Review, dated September 30, 1993. This rule is not a major rule 
under 5 U.S.C. 804.

III. Regulatory Flexibility Act

    DoD, GSA, and NASA do not expect this rule to have a significant 
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities within the 
meaning of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601, et seq., 
because it is removing FIPS 161 which is obsolete or has not been 
updated to adopt current voluntary industry standards, Federal 
specifications, Federal data standards, or current good practices for 
information security. This is a technical change acknowledging the 
removal by the Department of Commerce of FIPS 161. Small businesses 
will continue to be able to generate forms by computer. Therefore, an 
Initial Regulatory Flexibility Analysis has not been performed. DoD, 
GSA, and NASA invite comments from small business concerns and other 
interested parties on the expected impact of this rule on small 
entities.
    DoD, GSA, and NASA will also consider comments from small entities 
concerning the existing regulations in subparts affected by the rule in 
accordance with 5 U.S.C. 610. Interested parties must submit such 
comments separately and should cite 5 U.S.C. 610 (FAR Case 2011-022), 
in correspondence.

IV. Paperwork Reduction Act

    The rule does not contain any information collection requirements 
that require the approval of the Office of Management and Budget under 
the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35).

List of Subjects in 48 CFR Part 53

    Government procurement.

    Dated: December 15, 2011.
William Clark,
Acting Director, Federal Acquisition Policy Division, Office of 
Governmentwide Acquisition Policy.
    Therefore, DoD, GSA, and NASA propose amending 48 CFR part 53 as 
set forth below:

PART 53--FORMS

    1. The authority citation for 48 CFR part 53 continues to read as 
follows:

    Authority: 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 137; and 42 
U.S.C. 2473(c).

    2. Revise section 53.105 to read as follows:

[[Page 79610]]

53.105   Computer generation.

    (a) The forms prescribed by this part may be computer generated 
without exception approval (see 53.103), provided--
    (1) There is no change to the name, content, or sequence of the 
data elements, and the form carries the Standard or Optional Form 
number and edition date (see 53.111); or
    (2) The form is in an electronic format covered by the American 
National Standards Institute (ANSI) X12 Standards published by the 
Accredited Standards Committee X12 on Electronic Data Interchange or a 
format that can be translated into one of those standards.
    (b) The standards listed in paragraph (a)(2) above may also be used 
for submission of data set forth in other parts for which specific 
forms have not been prescribed.

[FR Doc. 2011-32722 Filed 12-21-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-EP-P
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