Federal Acquisition Regulation; Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-91; Introduction, 67726-67728 [2016-23193]
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 190 / Friday, September 30, 2016 / Rules and Regulations
and National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA).
DATES:
Summary presentation of
interim and final rules.
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
GENERAL SERVICES
ADMINISTRATION
ACTION:
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND
SPACE ADMINISTRATION
SUMMARY:
48 CFR Chapter 1
[Docket No. FAR 2016–0051, Sequence No.
5]
Federal Acquisition Regulation;
Federal Acquisition Circular 2005–91;
Introduction
Department of Defense (DoD),
General Services Administration (GSA),
AGENCY:
This document summarizes
the Federal Acquisition Regulation
(FAR) rules agreed to by the Civilian
Agency Acquisition Council and the
Defense Acquisition Regulations
Council (Councils) in this Federal
Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005–91. A
companion document, the Small Entity
Compliance Guide (SECG), follows this
FAC. The FAC, including the SECG, is
available via the Internet at https://
www.regulations.gov.
For effective dates see the
separate documents, which follow.
The
analyst whose name appears in the table
below in relation to the FAR case.
Please cite FAC 2005–91 and the
specific FAR case number. For
information pertaining to status or
publication schedules, contact the
Regulatory Secretariat Division at 202–
501–4755.
RULES LISTED IN FAC 2005–91
Item
Subject
I ................
II ...............
III ..............
IV ..............
V ...............
VI ..............
VII .............
VIII ............
IX ..............
X ...............
XI ..............
Prohibition on Contracting with Corporations with Delinquent Taxes or a Felony Conviction ..........
Updating Federal Contractor Reporting of Veterans’ Employment ....................................................
Non-Retaliation for Disclosure of Compensation Information (Interim) .............................................
Sole Source Contracts for Women-Owned Small Businesses ..........................................................
Unique Identification of Entities Receiving Federal Awards ..............................................................
Consolidation and Bundling ................................................................................................................
Amendment Relating to Multi-year Contract Authority for Acquisition of Property ............................
New Designated Countries—Ukraine and Moldova ...........................................................................
Contractors Performing Private Security Functions ...........................................................................
Limitation on Allowable Government Contractor Employee Compensation Costs ............................
Technical Amendments.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Summaries for each FAR rule follow.
For the actual revisions and/or
amendments made by these rules, refer
to the specific item numbers and
subjects set forth in the documents
following these item summaries. FAC
2005–91 amends the FAR as follows:
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with RULES
Item I—Prohibition on Contracting
With Corporations With Delinquent
Taxes or a Felony Conviction (FAR
Case 2015–011)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as
final, without change, an interim rule,
which amended the FAR to implement
sections of the Consolidated and Further
Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015.
The rule prohibits the Federal
Government from entering into a
contract with any corporation having a
delinquent Federal tax liability or a
felony conviction under any Federal
law, unless the agency has considered
suspension or debarment of the
corporation and has made a
determination that this further action is
not necessary to protect the interests of
the Government.
This final rule will not have a
significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
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FAR case
Item II—Updating Federal Contractor
Reporting of Veterans’ Employment
(FAR Case 2015–036)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as
final, without change, an interim rule
amending the FAR to implement a final
rule issued by the Department of Labor’s
Veterans’ Employment and Training
Service (VETS) that revised the
regulations at 41 CFR part 61
implementing the reporting
requirements under the Vietnam Era
Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act
(VEVRAA), as amended and the Jobs for
Veterans Act (JVA) (Pub. L. 107–288).
VEVRAA requires Federal contractors
and subcontractors to annually report
on the total number of their employees
who belong to the categories of veterans
protected under VEVRAA, as amended
by the JVA, and the total number of
those protected veterans who were hired
during the period covered by the report.
The VETS rule requires contractors and
subcontractors to comply with its
revised reporting requirements using the
Form VETS–4212, in lieu of the VETS–
100 and VETS–100A, beginning with
the annual report filed in 2015.
There is no significant impact on
small entities imposed by the FAR rule.
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2015–011
2015–036
2016–007
2015–032
2015–022
2014–015
2016–006
2016–009
2014–018
2014–012
Analyst
Davis.
Delgado.
Delgado.
Uddowla.
Delgado.
Uddowla.
Jackson.
Davis.
Jackson.
Hopkins.
Item III—Non-Retaliation for
Disclosure of Compensation
Information (FAR Case 2016–007)
(Interim)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing an
interim rule amending the FAR to
implement Executive Order (E.O.)
13665, Non-Retaliation for Disclosure of
Compensation Information, amending
Executive Order 11246, Equal
Opportunity in Federal Employment.
The E.O. was signed April 8, 2014. The
interim rule is also implementing the
final rule issued by the Office of Federal
Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP)
of the Department of Labor (DOL) to
implement the E.O. The DOL final rule
was published in the Federal Register at
80 FR 54934, on September 11, 2015,
entitled Government Contractors,
Prohibitions Against Pay Secrecy
Policies and Actions.
E.O. 11246, originally issued
September 24, 1965, establishes
nondiscrimination and affirmative
action obligations in employment for
Federal contractors and subcontractors.
It prohibits employment discrimination
because of race, color, religion, sex,
sexual orientation, gender identity, and
national origin. E.O. 13665 amends E.O.
11246 and its Equal Opportunity Clause
by incorporating, as a covered
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 190 / Friday, September 30, 2016 / Rules and Regulations
prohibition, discriminating against
employees and job applicants who
inquire about, discuss, or disclose the
compensation of the employee or
applicant or another employee or
applicant. Federal contractors and
subcontractors must disseminate this
nondiscrimination provision, using
language prescribed by the Director of
OFCCP, including incorporating the
provision into existing employee
manuals or handbooks and posting it.
There is no significant impact on small
entities imposed by the FAR rule.
Item IV—Sole Source Contracts for
Women-Owned Small Businesses (FAR
Case 2015–032)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as
final, with a minor edit, an interim rule
that amends the FAR to implement
regulatory changes made by the Small
Business Administration (SBA) in its
final rule as published in the Federal
Register at 80 FR 55019, on September
14, 2015. SBA’s final rule implements
the statutory requirements of paragraph
(a)(3) of section 825 of the Carl Levin
and Howard P. ‘Buck’ McKeon National
Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal
Year 2015, Public Law 113–291, which
grants contracting officers the authority
to award sole source contracts to
economically disadvantaged womenowned small business (EDWOSB)
concerns and to women-owned small
business (WOSB) concerns eligible
under the WOSB Program. The
anticipated price, including options,
must not exceed $6.5 million for
manufacturing North American Industry
Classification System (NAICS) codes, or
$4 million for other NAICS codes.
This rule may have a positive
economic impact on women-owned
small businesses.
asabaliauskas on DSK3SPTVN1PROD with RULES
Item V—Unique Identification of
Entities Receiving Federal Awards
(FAR Case 2015–022)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a
final rule amending the FAR to
redesignate the terminology for unique
identification of entities receiving
Federal awards. The change to the FAR
eliminates references to the proprietary
Data Universal Numbering System
(DUNS®) number, and provides
appropriate references to the Web site
where information on the unique entity
identifier used for Federal contractors
will be located. The Government does
not intend to move away from the use
of the DUNS® number in the short term.
This final rule also establishes
definitions of ‘‘unique entity identifier’’,
and ‘‘electronic funds transfer (EFT)
indicator’’. There is no significant
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impact on small entities imposed by the
FAR rule.
Government and contractors, including
small business entities.
Item VI—Consolidation and Bundling
(FAR Case 2014–015)
Item IX—Contractors Performing
Private Security Functions (FAR Case
2014–018)
This final rule incorporates regulatory
changes made by the SBA in its final
rule which published in the Federal
Register at 78 FR 61113 on October 2,
2013, concerning consolidation and
bundling. SBA’s final rule implements
sections 1312 and 1313 of the Small
Business Jobs Act of 2010 (Pub. L. 111–
240), as well as section 1671 of the
National Defense Authorization Act
(NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 (Pub.
L. 112–239). The FAR final rule adds
coverage on consolidations and
reorganizes coverage on bundling at
FAR 7.107. Before conducting a
consolidated acquisition estimated to
exceed $2,000,000, the Senior
Procurement Executive or Chief
Acquisition Officer must make a written
determination that the consolidation is
necessary and justified. This rule may
have a positive economic impact on any
small business entity that participates in
the Federal procurement arena.
This final rule amends FAR 25.302
and the clause at 52.225–26, both
entitled ‘‘Contractors Performing Private
Security Functions Outside the United
States.’’
This rule removes the DoD-unique
requirements, which have been
incorporated in the Defense Federal
Acquisition Regulations Supplement
(DFARS). This rule also adds the
definition of ‘‘full cooperation’’ to FAR
clause 52.225–26 in order to affirm that
the contract clause does not foreclose
any contractor rights arising in law, the
FAR, or the terms of the contract when
cooperating with any Governmentauthorized investigation into incidents
reported pursuant to the clause.
This rule will not create any new
reporting, recordkeeping, or other
compliance requirements. The impact of
this rule on small business is not
expected to be significant.
Item VII—Amendment Relating to
Multi-Year Contract Authority for
Acquisition of Property (FAR Case
2016–006)
Item X—Limitation on Allowable
Government Contractor Employee
Compensation Costs (FAR Case 2014–
012)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are amending
FAR subpart 17.1 to implement section
811 of the NDAA for FY 2016 (Pub. L.
114–92). Section 811 amended
subsection (a)(1) of 10 U.S.C. 2306b by
striking ‘‘substantial’’ and inserting
‘‘significant’’. This rule makes
conforming changes at FAR 17.105–
1(b)(1) to state that the head of an
agency may enter into a multi-year
contract for supplies, if the use of such
a contract will result in significant
savings of the total estimated costs of
carrying out the program through
annual contracts. This change applies to
the DoD, NASA, and the Coast Guard.
This final rule is not required to be
published for public comment, because
it addresses an internal decision by the
contracting officer to enter into a multiyear contract for supplies if certain
objects are met. These requirements
affect only the internal operating
procedures of the Government.
This final rule converts the interim
rule published in the Federal Register at
79 FR 35865 on June 24, 2014 to a final
rule with minor changes including a
table summarizing the employee
compensation limits and applicability
dates is added at 31.205–6(p); several
paragraphs are reorganized; redundant
text is removed; reference links are
added for clarity.
This final rule amends the Federal
Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to
implement section 702 of the Bipartisan
Budget Act of 2013. Section 702 revises
the allowable compensation cost limit
for contractor and subcontractor
employees to be $487,000, as adjusted
annually to reflect the change in the
Employment Cost Index for all workers
as calculated by the Bureau of Labor
Statistics. Also, section 702 allows for
the narrowly targeted exceptions to this
allowable cost limit for scientists,
engineers or other specialists, upon an
agency determination that such
exceptions are needed to ensure that the
executive agency has continued access
to needed skills and capabilities.
Because most contracts awarded to
small businesses use simplified
acquisition procedures or are awarded
on a competitive, fixed-price basis, the
impact of this compensation limitation
on small businesses will be minimal.
Item VIII—New Designated Country—
Ukraine and Moldova (FAR Case 2016–
009)
This final rule amends the FAR to add
Ukraine and Moldova as new designated
countries under the World Trade
Organization Government Procurement
Agreement (WTO GPA). This final rule
has no significant impact on the
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Federal Register / Vol. 81, No. 190 / Friday, September 30, 2016 / Rules and Regulations
Item XI—Technical Amendments
Editorial changes are made at FAR
1.603–1, 4.1400, 22.805, 23.704, 26.103,
and 52.234–1.
Dated: September 19, 2016.
William F. Clark,
Director, Office of Government-wide
Acquisition Policy, Office of Acquisition
Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy.
Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005–
91 is issued under the authority of the
Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of
General Services, and the Administrator for
the National Aeronautics and Space
Administration.
Unless otherwise specified, all Federal
Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and other
directive material contained in FAC 2005–91
is effective September 30, 2016 except for
items V, VI, VII, VIII, and IX, which are
effective October 31, 2016.
Dated: September 20, 2016.
Claire M. Grady,
Director, Defense Procurement and
Acquisition Policy.
Dated: September 20, 2016.
Jeffrey A. Koses,
Senior Procurement Executive/Deputy CAO,
Office of Acquisition Policy, U.S. General
Services Administration.
Dated: September 20, 2016.
William G. Roets,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of
Procurement National Aeronautics and Space
Administration.
[FR Doc. 2016–23193 Filed 9–29–16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820–EP–P
DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
GENERAL SERVICES
ADMINISTRATION
48 CFR Parts 1, 4, 9, 12, and 52
RIN 9000–AN05
Federal Acquisition Regulation;
Prohibition on Contracting With
Corporations With Delinquent Taxes or
a Felony Conviction
Department of Defense (DoD),
General Services Administration (GSA),
and National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Final rule.
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DoD, GSA, and NASA have
adopted as final, without changes, an
interim rule amending the Federal
Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to
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II. Discussion and Analysis
The Civilian Agency Acquisition
Council and the Defense Acquisition
Regulations Council (the Councils)
reviewed the public comments in the
development of the final rule. A
discussion of the comments are
provided as follows:
B. Analysis of Public Comments
[FAC 2005–91; FAR Case 2015–011; Item
I; Docket No. 2015–0011, Sequence No. 1]
SUMMARY:
I. Background
DoD, GSA, and NASA published an
interim rule in the Federal Register at
80 FR 75903 on December 4, 2015, to
implement sections 744 and 745 of
Division E of the Consolidated and
Further Continuing Appropriations Act,
2015 (Pub. L. 113–235) and section 523
of Division B of the same act. Three
respondents submitted comments on the
interim rule.
A. Summary of Public Comments
There were no changes made in the
final rule as a result of the three public
comments.
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND
SPACE ADMINISTRATION
AGENCY:
implement sections of the Consolidated
and Further Continuing Appropriations
Act, 2015, to prohibit the Federal
Government from entering into a
contract with any corporation having a
delinquent Federal tax liability or a
felony conviction under any Federal
law, unless the agency has considered
suspension or debarment of the
corporation and has made a
determination that this further action is
not necessary to protect the interests of
the Government.
DATES: Effective: September 30, 2016.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms.
Cecelia L. Davis, Procurement Analyst,
at 202–219–0202 for clarification of
content. For information pertaining to
status or publication schedules, contact
the Regulatory Secretariat Division at
202–501–4755. Please cite FAC 2005–
91, FAR Case 2015–011.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
1. Need for the Rule
Comment: Two respondents
expressed support for the interim rule.
According to the respondents, this rule
will facilitate more rigorous scrutiny of
companies with a recent Federal
conviction or unpaid Federal taxes and
will help ensure that Federal contractors
conduct themselves with the highest
degree of integrity and honesty.
Response: Noted.
Comment: The other respondent said
the rule is unnecessary, given the
existing statutory and regulatory
framework. This respondent noted that
tax and criminal statutes already
include penalties for tax delinquency
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and felony conviction, such as the
Internal Revenue Code (title 26) and the
Criminal Code (title 18). Furthermore,
the respondent noted that the FAR
already includes Federal tax
delinquency and criminal malfeasance
as causes for debarment. The
respondent stated that agencies already
reliably utilize suspension and
debarment processes.
Response: This rule is necessary to
implement the requirements of sections
744 and 745 of Division E, title VIII of
the Consolidated and Further
Continuing Resolution Appropriations
Act, 2015, as well as section 523 of
Division B, title V of the same act
(affects Commerce, Justice, NASA, and
some related agencies). These
appropriations act restrictions, although
having some overlap with existing laws,
have specific provisions that are not
identical to existing laws and
regulations, and must be implemented
in order to avoid misuse of appropriated
funds.
2. Meaning of ‘‘Corporation’’
Comment: One respondent requested
clarification as to what entities are and
are not corporations for the purposes of
this rule. The respondent stated that the
term ‘‘corporation’’ could encompass C
corporations, S corporations, and
limited liability corporations (LLCs),
among others. The respondent is
concerned that if the rule applies to
LLCs and S corporations, through which
tax liability falls at the individual rather
than the corporate level, that failure of
one shareholder to pay taxes could
adversely affect all shareholders.
Likewise, the respondent is concerned
how the rule would be applied if a
shareholder or member of the entity is
convicted of a felony.
The respondent is also concerned
about how this rule applies to a joint
venture and teaming. First, can a
corporation avoid disclosure of a felony
conviction if it becomes a member of a
joint venture? Second, if the joint
venture is a corporate entity, are the
underlying entities that make up the
joint venture required to disclose tax
delinquencies and felonies?
Response: No change is made. The
term ‘‘corporation’’ is used throughout
the FAR without definition. If a term is
used in the FAR without definition,
then it has the standard dictionary
definition. A corporation is a legal
entity that is separate and distinct from
the entities that own, manage, or control
it. It is organized and incorporated
under the jurisdictional authority of a
governmental body, such as a State or
the District of Columbia. The law does
not specify any particular type of
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]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 190 (Friday, September 30, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 67726-67728]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-23193]
[[Page 67725]]
Vol. 81
Friday,
No. 190
September 30, 2016
Part IV
Department of Defense
General Services Administration
National Aeronautics and Space Administration
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48 CFR Chapter 1, et al.
Federal Acquisition Regulations; Final Rules
Federal Register / Vol. 81 , No. 190 / Friday, September 30, 2016 /
Rules and Regulations
[[Page 67726]]
=======================================================================
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
48 CFR Chapter 1
[Docket No. FAR 2016-0051, Sequence No. 5]
Federal Acquisition Regulation; Federal Acquisition Circular
2005-91; Introduction
AGENCY: Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration
(GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Summary presentation of interim and final rules.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation
(FAR) rules agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and
the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) in this Federal
Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-91. A companion document, the Small
Entity Compliance Guide (SECG), follows this FAC. The FAC, including
the SECG, is available via the Internet at https://www.regulations.gov.
DATES: For effective dates see the separate documents, which follow.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The analyst whose name appears in the
table below in relation to the FAR case. Please cite FAC 2005-91 and
the specific FAR case number. For information pertaining to status or
publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat Division at
202-501-4755.
Rules Listed in FAC 2005-91
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Item Subject FAR case Analyst
------------------------------------------------------------------------
I............. Prohibition on 2015-011 Davis.
Contracting with
Corporations with
Delinquent Taxes or
a Felony Conviction.
II............ Updating Federal 2015-036 Delgado.
Contractor Reporting
of Veterans'
Employment.
III........... Non-Retaliation for 2016-007 Delgado.
Disclosure of
Compensation
Information
(Interim).
IV............ Sole Source Contracts 2015-032 Uddowla.
for Women-Owned
Small Businesses.
V............. Unique Identification 2015-022 Delgado.
of Entities
Receiving Federal
Awards.
VI............ Consolidation and 2014-015 Uddowla.
Bundling.
VII........... Amendment Relating to 2016-006 Jackson.
Multi-year Contract
Authority for
Acquisition of
Property.
VIII.......... New Designated 2016-009 Davis.
Countries--Ukraine
and Moldova.
IX............ Contractors 2014-018 Jackson.
Performing Private
Security Functions.
X............. Limitation on 2014-012 Hopkins.
Allowable Government
Contractor Employee
Compensation Costs.
XI............ Technical Amendments.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Summaries for each FAR rule follow. For the
actual revisions and/or amendments made by these rules, refer to the
specific item numbers and subjects set forth in the documents following
these item summaries. FAC 2005-91 amends the FAR as follows:
Item I--Prohibition on Contracting With Corporations With Delinquent
Taxes or a Felony Conviction (FAR Case 2015-011)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as final, without change, an
interim rule, which amended the FAR to implement sections of the
Consolidated and Further Continuing Appropriations Act, 2015. The rule
prohibits the Federal Government from entering into a contract with any
corporation having a delinquent Federal tax liability or a felony
conviction under any Federal law, unless the agency has considered
suspension or debarment of the corporation and has made a determination
that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of
the Government.
This final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.
Item II--Updating Federal Contractor Reporting of Veterans' Employment
(FAR Case 2015-036)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as final, without change, an
interim rule amending the FAR to implement a final rule issued by the
Department of Labor's Veterans' Employment and Training Service (VETS)
that revised the regulations at 41 CFR part 61 implementing the
reporting requirements under the Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment
Assistance Act (VEVRAA), as amended and the Jobs for Veterans Act (JVA)
(Pub. L. 107-288). VEVRAA requires Federal contractors and
subcontractors to annually report on the total number of their
employees who belong to the categories of veterans protected under
VEVRAA, as amended by the JVA, and the total number of those protected
veterans who were hired during the period covered by the report. The
VETS rule requires contractors and subcontractors to comply with its
revised reporting requirements using the Form VETS-4212, in lieu of the
VETS-100 and VETS-100A, beginning with the annual report filed in 2015.
There is no significant impact on small entities imposed by the FAR
rule.
Item III--Non-Retaliation for Disclosure of Compensation Information
(FAR Case 2016-007) (Interim)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing an interim rule amending the FAR to
implement Executive Order (E.O.) 13665, Non-Retaliation for Disclosure
of Compensation Information, amending Executive Order 11246, Equal
Opportunity in Federal Employment. The E.O. was signed April 8, 2014.
The interim rule is also implementing the final rule issued by the
Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs (OFCCP) of the
Department of Labor (DOL) to implement the E.O. The DOL final rule was
published in the Federal Register at 80 FR 54934, on September 11,
2015, entitled Government Contractors, Prohibitions Against Pay Secrecy
Policies and Actions.
E.O. 11246, originally issued September 24, 1965, establishes
nondiscrimination and affirmative action obligations in employment for
Federal contractors and subcontractors. It prohibits employment
discrimination because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual
orientation, gender identity, and national origin. E.O. 13665 amends
E.O. 11246 and its Equal Opportunity Clause by incorporating, as a
covered
[[Page 67727]]
prohibition, discriminating against employees and job applicants who
inquire about, discuss, or disclose the compensation of the employee or
applicant or another employee or applicant. Federal contractors and
subcontractors must disseminate this nondiscrimination provision, using
language prescribed by the Director of OFCCP, including incorporating
the provision into existing employee manuals or handbooks and posting
it. There is no significant impact on small entities imposed by the FAR
rule.
Item IV--Sole Source Contracts for Women-Owned Small Businesses (FAR
Case 2015-032)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as final, with a minor edit, an
interim rule that amends the FAR to implement regulatory changes made
by the Small Business Administration (SBA) in its final rule as
published in the Federal Register at 80 FR 55019, on September 14,
2015. SBA's final rule implements the statutory requirements of
paragraph (a)(3) of section 825 of the Carl Levin and Howard P. `Buck'
McKeon National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2015, Public
Law 113-291, which grants contracting officers the authority to award
sole source contracts to economically disadvantaged women-owned small
business (EDWOSB) concerns and to women-owned small business (WOSB)
concerns eligible under the WOSB Program. The anticipated price,
including options, must not exceed $6.5 million for manufacturing North
American Industry Classification System (NAICS) codes, or $4 million
for other NAICS codes.
This rule may have a positive economic impact on women-owned small
businesses.
Item V--Unique Identification of Entities Receiving Federal Awards (FAR
Case 2015-022)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a final rule amending the FAR to
redesignate the terminology for unique identification of entities
receiving Federal awards. The change to the FAR eliminates references
to the proprietary Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS[supreg])
number, and provides appropriate references to the Web site where
information on the unique entity identifier used for Federal
contractors will be located. The Government does not intend to move
away from the use of the DUNS[supreg] number in the short term. This
final rule also establishes definitions of ``unique entity
identifier'', and ``electronic funds transfer (EFT) indicator''. There
is no significant impact on small entities imposed by the FAR rule.
Item VI--Consolidation and Bundling (FAR Case 2014-015)
This final rule incorporates regulatory changes made by the SBA in
its final rule which published in the Federal Register at 78 FR 61113
on October 2, 2013, concerning consolidation and bundling. SBA's final
rule implements sections 1312 and 1313 of the Small Business Jobs Act
of 2010 (Pub. L. 111-240), as well as section 1671 of the National
Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 (Pub. L.
112-239). The FAR final rule adds coverage on consolidations and
reorganizes coverage on bundling at FAR 7.107. Before conducting a
consolidated acquisition estimated to exceed $2,000,000, the Senior
Procurement Executive or Chief Acquisition Officer must make a written
determination that the consolidation is necessary and justified. This
rule may have a positive economic impact on any small business entity
that participates in the Federal procurement arena.
Item VII--Amendment Relating to Multi-Year Contract Authority for
Acquisition of Property (FAR Case 2016-006)
DoD, GSA, and NASA are amending FAR subpart 17.1 to implement
section 811 of the NDAA for FY 2016 (Pub. L. 114-92). Section 811
amended subsection (a)(1) of 10 U.S.C. 2306b by striking
``substantial'' and inserting ``significant''. This rule makes
conforming changes at FAR 17.105-1(b)(1) to state that the head of an
agency may enter into a multi-year contract for supplies, if the use of
such a contract will result in significant savings of the total
estimated costs of carrying out the program through annual contracts.
This change applies to the DoD, NASA, and the Coast Guard.
This final rule is not required to be published for public comment,
because it addresses an internal decision by the contracting officer to
enter into a multi-year contract for supplies if certain objects are
met. These requirements affect only the internal operating procedures
of the Government.
Item VIII--New Designated Country--Ukraine and Moldova (FAR Case 2016-
009)
This final rule amends the FAR to add Ukraine and Moldova as new
designated countries under the World Trade Organization Government
Procurement Agreement (WTO GPA). This final rule has no significant
impact on the Government and contractors, including small business
entities.
Item IX--Contractors Performing Private Security Functions (FAR Case
2014-018)
This final rule amends FAR 25.302 and the clause at 52.225-26, both
entitled ``Contractors Performing Private Security Functions Outside
the United States.''
This rule removes the DoD-unique requirements, which have been
incorporated in the Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations Supplement
(DFARS). This rule also adds the definition of ``full cooperation'' to
FAR clause 52.225-26 in order to affirm that the contract clause does
not foreclose any contractor rights arising in law, the FAR, or the
terms of the contract when cooperating with any Government-authorized
investigation into incidents reported pursuant to the clause.
This rule will not create any new reporting, recordkeeping, or
other compliance requirements. The impact of this rule on small
business is not expected to be significant.
Item X--Limitation on Allowable Government Contractor Employee
Compensation Costs (FAR Case 2014-012)
This final rule converts the interim rule published in the Federal
Register at 79 FR 35865 on June 24, 2014 to a final rule with minor
changes including a table summarizing the employee compensation limits
and applicability dates is added at 31.205-6(p); several paragraphs are
reorganized; redundant text is removed; reference links are added for
clarity.
This final rule amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to
implement section 702 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. Section 702
revises the allowable compensation cost limit for contractor and
subcontractor employees to be $487,000, as adjusted annually to reflect
the change in the Employment Cost Index for all workers as calculated
by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Also, section 702 allows for the
narrowly targeted exceptions to this allowable cost limit for
scientists, engineers or other specialists, upon an agency
determination that such exceptions are needed to ensure that the
executive agency has continued access to needed skills and
capabilities. Because most contracts awarded to small businesses use
simplified acquisition procedures or are awarded on a competitive,
fixed-price basis, the impact of this compensation limitation on small
businesses will be minimal.
[[Page 67728]]
Item XI--Technical Amendments
Editorial changes are made at FAR 1.603-1, 4.1400, 22.805, 23.704,
26.103, and 52.234-1.
Dated: September 19, 2016.
William F. Clark,
Director, Office of Government-wide Acquisition Policy, Office of
Acquisition Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy.
Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-91 is issued under the
authority of the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General
Services, and the Administrator for the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration.
Unless otherwise specified, all Federal Acquisition Regulation
(FAR) and other directive material contained in FAC 2005-91 is
effective September 30, 2016 except for items V, VI, VII, VIII, and
IX, which are effective October 31, 2016.
Dated: September 20, 2016.
Claire M. Grady,
Director, Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy.
Dated: September 20, 2016.
Jeffrey A. Koses,
Senior Procurement Executive/Deputy CAO, Office of Acquisition Policy,
U.S. General Services Administration.
Dated: September 20, 2016.
William G. Roets,
Acting Assistant Administrator, Office of Procurement National
Aeronautics and Space Administration.
[FR Doc. 2016-23193 Filed 9-29-16; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-EP-P
