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

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 (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 that addresses the allowability of legal costs incurred by a contractor or subcontractor related to a whistleblower proceeding commenced by the submission of a complaint of reprisal by the contractor or subcontractor employee.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to strengthen protections against trafficking in persons in Federal contracts. These changes are intended to implement E.O. 13627 and Title XVII of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2013.

Pursuant to sections 14(b)(1) and 9(c) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act (Pub. L. 92-463), and after consultation with the Committee Management Secretariat, General Services Administration, the NASA Administrator has determined that renewal and amendment of the charter of the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel is in the public interest in connection with the performance of duties imposed on NASA by law. The renewed charter is for a two-year period ending September 12, 2015. It is identical to the previous charter in all respects except it adds verbiage that a member of the panel shall be allowed necessary travel expenses per statute and updates the annual operating cost.

Patent applications on the inventions listed below assigned to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, have been filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and are available for licensing.

Patent applications on the inventions listed below assigned to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, have been filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and are available for licensing.

The inventions listed below assigned to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, have been filed in the United States Patent and Trademark office, and are available for licensing.

Patent applications on the inventions listed below assigned to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, have been filed in the United States Patent and Trademark Office, and are available for licensing.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announces a meeting of the Applied Sciences Advisory Committee. 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.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration announces a forthcoming meeting of the Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Regulatory Secretariat will be submitting to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an extension of a currently approved information collection requirement concerning reporting purchases from sources outside the United States.

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969, as amended (NEPA) (42 U.S.C. 4321, et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR parts 1500-1508), and NASA policy and procedures (14 CFR part 1216 subpart 1216.3), NASA intends to conduct scoping and prepare an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the Mars 2020 mission. NASA is seeking input on environmental issues and concerns associated with the proposed action, as well as alternatives that should be addressed in the EIS. The mission would fly a near-duplicate of the Mars Science Laboratory mission's rover, Curiosity, outfitted with new scientific instruments. The mission would be designed to seek signs of past life on Mars, collect and store a compelling set of soil and rock samples that could be returned to Earth in the future, and test new technology to benefit future robotic and human exploration of Mars. The Proposed Action is to continue preparation for and implement the Mars 2020 mission. The Mars 2020 mission would launch the spacecraft from the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station (CCAFS), Brevard County, Florida during the summer of 2020. NASA would select the launch vehicle for the mission through NASA's launch services procurement process. There is a backup launch opportunity for the mission during the summer of 2022. The baseline mission plan would include the use of one multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG) for rover electrical power and temperature control while on the surface of Mars. Some science instruments may require the use of small quantities of radioactive material for instrument calibration or for experimentation. Environmental impacts to be considered in the EIS are those impacts associated with a normal launch from CCAFS, and radiological and non-radiological risks associated with a potential launch accident.

NASA announces its annual invitation for public nominations for service on NASA Federal advisory committees. U.S. citizens may nominate individuals and also submit self- nominations for consideration as potential members of NASA's Federal advisory committees. NASA's Federal advisory committees have member vacancies from time to time throughout the year, and NASA will consider nominations and self-nominations to fill such intermittent vacancies. NASA is committed to selecting members to serve on its Federal advisory committees based on their individual expertise, knowledge, experience, and current/past contributions to the relevant subject area.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Regulatory Secretariat, 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 the American Recovery and Reinvestment ActReporting RequirementsOne Time-Reporting, Compensation Requirements.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, Regulatory Secretariat, 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 the American Recovery and Reinvestment ActReporting RequirementsOne Time Reporting Requirements for Prime Contractors.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration announces a public conference to provide a status on the Agency's Asteroid Initiative planning and to enable feedback and discussion from the global community and the public.

This notice is issued in accordance with 51 U.S.C. 20144(c). The 2014 Sample Return Robot Challenge is scheduled and teams that wish to compete may register. Centennial Challenges is a program of prize competitions to stimulate innovation in technologies of interest and value to NASA and the nation. The 2014 Sample Return Robot Challenge is a prize competition designed to encourage development of new technologies or application of existing technologies in unique ways to create robots that can autonomously seek out samples and return to a designated point in a set time period. Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) of Worcester, Massachusetts administers the Challenge for NASA. NASA is providing the prize purse.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, the Regulatory Secretariat 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 report of shipment. A notice was published in the Federal Register at 78 FR 11885, on February 20, 2013. One comment was received.

In accordance with the Federal Advisory Committee Act, Public Law 92-463, as amended, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration announces a meeting of the NASA International Space Station (ISS) Advisory Committee. The purpose of the meeting is to assess all aspects related to the safety and operational readiness of the ISS, and to assess the possibilities for using the ISS for future space exploration.

DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement provisions of law limiting the periods allowed for contractor comments on past performance evaluations and making past performance evaluations available to source selection officials sooner.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration, as part of its continuing effort to reduce paperwork and respondent burden, invites the general public and other Federal agencies to take this opportunity to comment on proposed and/or continuing information collections, as required by the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (Pub. L. 104-13, 44 U.S.C. 3506(c)(2)(A)).

Pursuant to the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA), as amended (42 U.S.C. 4321 et seq.), the Council on Environmental Quality Regulations for Implementing the Procedural Provisions of NEPA (40 CFR Parts 1500-1508), and NASA's NEPA policy and procedures (14 CFR Part 1216, subpart 1216.3), NASA has prepared a DEIS for demolition and cleanup activities at SSFL in Ventura County, California. Furthermore, pursuant to 36 CFR Section 800.8(c) of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), NASA will use the NEPA process and the DEIS it produces to comply with Section 106 of NHPA in lieu of the procedures set forth in Sections 800.3 through 800.6.

This notice is issued in accordance with 35 U.S.C. 209(e) and 37 CFR 404.7(a)(1)(i). NASA hereby gives notice of its intent to grant an exclusive license in the United States to practice the invention described and claimed in U.S. Patent Application Serial No. 13/424,898 entitled Rapidly Deployed Modular Telemetry System to Orbital Telemetry having its principal place of business in Huntsville, AL. The patent rights in these inventions as applicable have been assigned to the United States of America as represented by the Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. The prospective partially exclusive license will comply with the terms and conditions of 35 U.S.C. 209 and 37 CFR 404.7.

This document makes amendments to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) in order to make editorial changes.