National Aeronautics and Space Administration June 2018 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement sections of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 to expand special emergency procurement authorities for acquisitions of supplies or services that facilitate defense against or recovery from cyber attack, provide international disaster assistance under the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961, or support response to an emergency or major disaster under the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act.

NASA is issuing a final rule to amend the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Supplement (NFS) to remove reference to the supplemental rights in data special works policy and associated clause.

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 existing OMB emergency clearance notice.

In a final rule published on January 19, 2017, a number of federal departments and agencies revised to the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (often referred to as the ``Common Rule''), which each department and agency adopted into regulations in its part of the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR). The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) adopted the same changes in a final rule published on September 18, 2017. The revised Common Rule was scheduled to become effective on January 19, 2018, with a general compliance date of the same date. By an interim final rule issued on January 17, 2018 and published in the Federal Register on January 22, 2018, federal departments and agencies delayed the effective date and the general compliance date for the revised Common Rule for a 6-month period, until July 19, 2018. The Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) published an interim final rule adopting the same regulatory changes on January 26, 2018. The revised Common Rule, including technical amendments made by the January 22, 2018 interim final rule, is referred to here as the ``2018 Requirements.'' On April 20, 2018, the federal departments and agencies listed here published a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM) proposing and seeking comments as to whether the general compliance date for the 2018 Requirements should be delayed for an additional 6-month period. The NPRM also proposed and sought comments on whether to allow regulated entities to implement certain burden-reducing provisions of the 2018 Requirements in specified circumstances during such continued delay period. Through this final rule, we are adopting the proposals described in the April 20, 2018 NPRM. This rule delays the general compliance date for the 2018 Requirements for an additional 6-month period, until January 21, 2019. As a result of this delay, regulated entities will be required, with an exception, to continue to comply with the requirements of the pre-2018 version of the Federal Policy for the Protection of Human Subjects (the ``pre-2018 Requirements'') until January 21, 2019. The one exception to this general rule is that institutions will be permitted (but not required) to implement, for certain research, three burden-reducing provisions of the 2018 Requirements during the delay period (July 19, 2018, through January 20, 2019). Those three provisions are: The revised definition of ``research,'' which deems certain activities not to be research covered by the Common Rule; the elimination of the requirement for annual continuing review with respect to certain categories of research; and the elimination of the requirement that institutional review boards (IRBs) review grant applications or other funding proposals related to the research. Institutions taking advantage of the three-burden reducing provisions must comply with all other pre-2018 Requirements during the delay period. The three burden-reducing provisions of the 2018 Requirements can only be implemented during the delay period with respect to studies initiated prior to January 21, 2019 that will transition to compliance with the revised Common Rule. Any study that implements these three burden-reducing provisions during the delay period must, beginning on January 21, 2019, comply with all of the 2018 Requirements for the balance of the study's duration.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announces a meeting of the Astrophysics Advisory Committee. This Committee reports to the Director, Astrophysics Division, Science Mission Directorate, NASA Headquarters. The meeting will be held for the purpose of soliciting, from the scientific community and other persons, scientific and technical information relevant to program planning.

NASA hereby gives notice of its intent to grant a partially exclusive patent license in the United States to practice the invention described and claimed in U.S. Patent Application entitled, ``Liquid- Filled Frequency-Tunable Vibration Damper'', NASA Case Number MFS- 33613-1, to Thornton Tomasetti, Inc. having its principal place of business in New York, NY. The field of use may be limited to all commercial applications where a ducted fluid absorber can be utilized in buildings 300 feet and taller. The patent rights in this invention, a new type of vibration mitigation, have been assigned to the United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA has not yet made a determination to grant the requested license and may deny the requested license even if no objections are submitted within the comment period.

This document is issued under the joint authority of DoD, GSA, and NASA. This Small Entity Compliance Guide has been prepared consistent with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996. It consists of a summary of the rules appearing in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-99, which amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation (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 2005-99, which precedes this document. These documents are also available via the internet at https://www.regulations.gov.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement a section of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2018.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to provide guidance to DoD, NASA, and the Coast Guard, consistent with a section of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017 that addresses the exception from certified cost or pricing data requirements when price is based on adequate price competition.

This agenda provides summary descriptions of regulations being developed by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council in compliance with Executive Order 12866, Regulatory Planning and Review. This agenda is being published to allow interested persons an opportunity to participate in the rulemaking process. The Regulatory Secretariat Division has attempted to list all regulations pending at the time of publication, except for minor and routine or repetitive actions; however, unanticipated requirements may result in the issuance of regulations that are not included in this agenda. There is no legal significance to the omission of an item from this listing. Also, the dates shown for the steps of each action are estimated and are not commitments to act on or by the dates shown. Published proposed rules may be reviewed in their entirety at the Government's rulemaking website at https://www.regulations.gov.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) hereby gives notice of its intent to grant a partially exclusive patent license in the United States to practice the inventions described and claimed in U.S. Patent Number 7,075,295 B2 titled ``Magnetic Field Response Sensor for Conductive Media,'' NASA Case Number LAR-16571-1; U.S. Patent Number 7,589,525 B2 titled ``Magnetic Field Response Sensor for Conductive Media,'' NASA Case Number LAR-16571-2; U.S. Patent No. 7,759,932 B2 titled ``Magnetic Field Response for Conductive Media,'' NASA Case Number LAR-16571-3; U.S. Patent No. 7,086,593 B2 titled ``Magnetic Field Response Measurement Acquisition System,'' NASA Case Number LAR-16908-1; U.S. Patent No. 7,047,807 B2 titled ``Flexible Framework for Capacitive Sensing,'' NASA Case No. LAR-16974-1; U.S. Patent No. 7,159,774 B2 titled ``Magnetic Field Response Measurement Acquisition System,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17280-1; U.S. Patent No. 8,430,327 B2 titled ``Wireless Sensing System Using Open-Circuit, Electrically-Conductive Spiral-Trace Sensor,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17294- 1; U.S. Patent No. 8,673,649 B2 titled ``Wireless Chemical Sensor and Sensing Method for Use Therewith,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17579-1; U.S. Patent No. 9,329,149 B2 titled ``Wireless Chemical Sensor and Sensing Method for Use Therewith,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17579-2; U.S. Patent No. 9,733,203 B2 titled ``Wireless Chemical Sensing Method,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17579-3; U.S. Patent No. 8,179,203 B2 titled ``Wireless Electrical Device using Open-Circuit Elements Having No Electrical Connections,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17711-1; U.S. Patent Application No. 14/193,861 titled ``Wireless Temperature Sensor Having No Electrical Connections and Sensing Method for Use Therewith,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17747-1-CON; U.S. Patent No. 9,329,153 B2 titled ``Method of Mapping Anomalies in Homogenous Material,'' NASA Case No. LAR-17848-1; U.S. Patent No. 8,636,407 B2 titled ``Wireless Temperature Sensor Having No Electrical Connections and Sensing Method for Use Therewith,'' NASA Case No. LAR- 18016-1; U.S. Patent Application No. 14/520,785 titled ``Multi-Layer Wireless Sensor Construct for Use at Electrically Conductive Material Surface,'' NASA Case No. LAR-18399-1; and U.S. Patent Application No. 14/520,863 titled ``Antenna for Far Field Transceiving,'' NASA Case No. LAR-18400-1, to Doull Site Assessments Ltd., having its principal place of business in Alberta, Canada. The fields of use may be limited to emissions detection and quantification, gas and liquid flow rate measurement, compositional analysis, and quantification for hydrocarbons and other substances, including but not limited to H2S, CO2 and SO2, associated with the oil, gas and waste management industries at the well bore and/or below grade cavern, and associated above ground facilities for each; and/or similar fields of use thereto.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announces a meeting of the National Space Council Users' Advisory Group (UAG).

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 incentive contracts.