General Services Administration June 2014 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

The Commission to Eliminate Child Abuse and Neglect Fatalities (CECANF), a Federal Advisory Committee established by the Protect Our Kids Act of 2012, Public Law 112-275, will hold a meeting open to the public on Thursday, July 10, 2014 in Tampa, Florida.

DoD, GSA, and NASA have adopted as final, without change, an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to remove the dollar limitation for set-asides to economically disadvantaged women-owned small business concerns and to women-owned small business concerns eligible under the Women-Owned Small Business Program.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement section 702 of the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013. In accordance with section 702, the interim rule revises the allowable cost limit relative to the compensation of contractor and subcontractor employees. Also, in accordance with section 702, this interim rule implements the possible exception 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.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement changes in the Electronic Product Environmental Assessment Tool (EPEAT[supreg]) registry.

Pursuant to the requirements of the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969 (NEPA), 42 United States Code [U.S.C.] 4321-4347; the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations (Code of Federal Regulations [CFR], Title 40, chapter V, parts 1500-1508); GSA Order PBS P 1095.1F (Environmental considerations in decision-making, dated October 19, 1999); and the GSA Public Buildings Service NEPA Desk Guide, dated October 1999, GSA plans to prepare an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Potomac Hill Campus Master Plan (PHCMP) at Potomac Hill in the Foggy Bottom neighborhood of Northwest Washington, DC. GSA will be initiating related consultation under Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA) (16 U.S.C. 470(f) and 470(h-2), 36 CFR Part 800 [Protection of Historic Properties]) for the project.

This agenda announces the proposed regulatory actions that GSA plans for the next 12 months and those that were completed since the fall 2013 edition. This agenda was developed under the guidelines of Executive Order 12866 ``Regulatory Planning and Review.'' GSA's purpose in publishing this agenda is to allow interested persons an opportunity to participate in the rulemaking process. GSA also invites interested persons to recommend existing significant regulations for review to determine whether they should be modified or eliminated. Proposed rules may be reviewed in their entirety at the Government's rulemaking Web site at https://www.regulations.gov. Since the fall 2007 edition, the Internet has been the basic means for disseminating the Unified Agenda. The complete Unified Agenda will be available online at www.reginfo.gov, in a format that offers users a greatly enhanced ability to obtain information from the Agenda database. Because publication in the Federal Register is mandated for the regulatory flexibility agendas required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 U.S.C. 602), GSA's printed agenda entries include only: (1) Rules that are in the Agency's regulatory flexibility agenda, in accordance with the Regulatory Flexibility Act, because they are likely to have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities; and (2) Any rules that the Agency has identified for periodic review under section 610 of the Regulatory Flexibility Act. Printing of these entries is limited to fields that contain information required by the Regulatory Flexibility Act's Agenda requirements. Additional information on these entries is available in the Unified Agenda published on the Internet. In addition, for fall editions of the Agenda, the entire Regulatory Plan will continue to be printed in the Federal Register, as in past years, including GSA's regulatory plan.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Regulatory Secretariat Division will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an extension of a previously approved information collection requirement concerning payment by electronic fund transfer.

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) is amending the Federal Management Regulation (FMR) by revising its mail management policy. This amendment revises the term ``commercial payment process'' and removes the requirement that agencies pay the United States Postal Service (USPS) using only commercial payment processes. This final rule changes the date of the annual mail management report, removes the description of facility and program mail manager responsibilities, and requires all agencies to expand existing mail security policy to include guidance for employees receiving incoming and sending outgoing official mail at alternative worksites. Finally, this final rule encourages agencies to implement the process of mail consolidation, increase sustainable activities in their mail programs, and makes editorial and technical corrections. This case is included in GSA's retrospective review of existing regulations under Executive Order 13563.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35), the Regulatory Secretariat Division (MVCB) will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request for extension and revision of the expiration dates of the following four information collection requirements: 9000-0024, 9000-0025, 9000-141 and 9000-0130. This request also merges the four previously approved information collections into one (OMB Control No. 9000-0024).

DoD, GSA and NASA are issuing corrections to amend the meeting time and registration time that was published in the Federal Register on May 15, 2014.

Notice of this meeting and these conference calls is being provided according to the requirements of the Federal Advisory Committee Act, 5 U.S.C. App. 10(a)(2). This notice provides the agenda and schedule for the September 10, 2014 meeting of the Green Building Advisory Committee Meeting (the Committee) and the schedule for a series of conference calls, supplemented by Web meetings, for two task groups of the Committee. The meeting is open to the public and the site is accessible to individuals with disabilities. The conference calls are open for the public to listen in. Interested individuals must register to attend as instructed below under SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION.