General Services Administration March 2005 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The General Services Administration (GSA) is proposing to amend the Federal Property Management Regulations (FPMR) by revising coverage on utilization, donation, or disposal of abandoned and forfeited personal property and moving it into the Federal Management Regulation (FMR). A cross-reference is added to the FPMR to direct readers to the coverage in the FMR. The FMR coverage is written in plain language to provide agencies with updated regulatory material that is easy to read and understand.

This document is issued under the joint authority of the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General Services and the Administrator for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This Small Entity Compliance Guide has been prepared in accordance with Section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996. It consists of a summary of the rule appearing in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-02 which amends the FAR. An asterisk (*) next to a rule indicates that a regulatory flexibility analysis has been prepared. Interested parties may obtain further information regarding this rule by referring to FAC 2005-02, which precedes this document. These documents are also available via the Internet at http:/ /www.acqnet.gov/far.

This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rule agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council in this Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-02. 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.acqnet.gov/far.

The General Services Administration (GSA) announces its intent to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) under the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) of 1969 to assess the potential impacts of the construction of a New Border Station Facility on Interstate 91 in Derby Line, Vermont (the ``Proposed Action''). At the request of the US Customs and Border Protection, the GSA is proposing to construct a new border station facility on Interstate Highway 91 at Derby Line, Vermont. The existing facilities are undersized and obsolete, and consequently incapable of providing the level of security now required. The Proposed Action has been defined and will likely include: (a) identification of land requirements, including acquisition of adjoining land if appropriate; (b) demolition of all existing government structures at the border station; (c) construction of a main administration building and ancillary support buildings; and (d) relocation a portion of the I-91 roadway and interchange and consequent potential alterations to secondary roads. The location of the new border station facility is set by the requirement that the facility be located at the intersection of the interstate highway and the U. S. Border. Therefore, alternatives to be studied will identify alternative locations for the components of the border station including the main administration and ancillary support buildings, the roadway and interchange. A No Action alternative will also be studied that will evaluate the consequences of not constructing the new border station facility. This alternative is included to provide a basis for comparison to the action alternatives described above as required by NEPA regulations (40 CFR 1002.14(d)). GSA invites individuals, organizations and agencies to submit comments concerning the scope of the EIS. The public scoping period starts with the publication of this notice in the Federal Register and will continue for forty five (45) days from the date of this notice. GSA will consider all comments received or postmarked by that date in defining the scope of the EIS. GSA expects to issue a Draft EIS in summer 2005 at which time its availability will be announced in the Federal Register and local media. A public comment period will commence upon publication of the Notice of Availability. The GSA will consider and respond to comments received on the Draft EIS in preparing the Final EIS.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the General Services Administration will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve a renewal of a currently approved information collection requirement regarding transfer order-surplus personal property and continuation sheet. Public comments are particularly invited on: Whether this collection of information is necessary and whether it will have practical utility; whether our estimate of the public burden of this collection of information is accurate, and based on valid assumptions and methodology; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected.

The Federal, State, and Puerto Rico tax tables for calculating the relocation income tax (RIT) allowance must be updated yearly to reflect changes in Federal, State, and Puerto Rico income tax brackets and rates. The Federal, State, and Puerto Rico tax tables contained in this rule are for calculating the 2005 RIT allowance to be paid to relocating Federal employees.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Secretariat has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an extension of a currently approved information collection requirement concerning claims and appeals. A request for public comments was published at 70 FR 4096 on January 28, 2005. No comments were received. Public comments are particularly invited on: Whether this collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of functions of the FAR, and whether it will have practical utility; whether our estimate of the public burden of this collection of information is accurate, and based on valid assumptions and methodology; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways in which we can minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, through the use of appropriate technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.

This notice advises users that the 2005 Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Reissue will be available for downloading and use on March 18, 2005, at https://www.acqnet.gov/far. Periodically, the FAR is reissued because of administrative necessity, i.e., headers and change bars are removed. A FAR reissue does not revise the FAR language; however, the flow of the context changes. Therefore, users are required to refer to this latest version (current through FAC 2001-27). The FAR is available in HTML and PDF formats. Users intending to print the FAR can refer to the downloadable, print-only version in PDF.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed on a final rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) by revising language pertaining to the Cost Accounting Standards Administration, and the related FAR contract clause, Administration of Cost Accounting Standards. In addition, a new contract clause is added, Proposal DisclosureCost Accounting Practice Changes. The rule describes the process for determining and resolving the cost-impact on contracts and subcontracts when a contractor makes a compliant change to a cost accounting practice or follows a noncompliant practice. To assist in understanding the changes between the current FAR rule and this final FAR rule, a matrix that summarizes the major changes is provided in Section C, Supplementary Information, below.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed on a final rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to require that the FAR clause, Subcontracts for Commercial Items, be inserted in solicitations and contracts other than those for commercial items.

This document is issued under the joint authority of the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General Services and the Administrator for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. This Small Entity Compliance Guide has been prepared in accordance with Section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996. It consists of a summary of rules appearing in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-01 which amend the FAR. An asterisk (*) next to a rule indicates that a regulatory flexibility analysis has been prepared. Interested parties may obtain further information regarding these rules by referring to FAC 2005-01 which precedes this document. These documents are also available via the Internet at http:/ /www.acqnet.gov/far.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed on an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) regarding the addition of landscaping and pest control services to the Small Business Competitiveness Demonstration Program. This FAR revision implements Section 821 of the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005, Public Law 108-375, which amends Section 717 of the Small Business Competitiveness Demonstration Program Act of 1988 (15 U.S.C. 644 note) to include landscaping and pest control services.

The Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) have agreed on an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to increase the justification and approval thresholds for DoD, NASA, and the U.S. Coast Guard, as a result of Section 815 of the Ronald W. Reagan National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2005, Public Law 108-375, which amends 10 U.S.C. 2304(f)(1)(B) by striking $50,000,000 both places it appears and inserting $75,000,000 in its place. In addition, the FAR is amended by replacing the outdated reference to ``grade GS- 16'' with ``a grade above GS-15.''

This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rules agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council in this Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-01. 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.acqnet.gov/far.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Secretariat has submitted to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an extension of a currently approved information collection requirement concerning delivery schedules. A request for public comments was published at 69 FR 74505, December 14, 2004. No comments were received. Public comments are particularly invited on: Whether this collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of functions of the FAR, and whether it will have practical utility; whether our estimate of the public burden of this collection of information is accurate, and based on valid assumptions and methodology; ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and ways in which we can minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, through the use of appropriate technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology.