General Services Administration March 2008 – Federal Register Recent Federal Regulation Documents

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 value engineering requirements. A request for public comments was published in the Federal Register at 72 FR 62445, on November 5, 2007. No comments were received. The clearance currently expires on May 31, 2008. 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.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the General Services Administration 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 regarding information specific to a contract or contracting action (not required by regulation). A request for public comments was published at 72 FR 226, November 26, 2007. No comments were received. This OMB clearance expires on June 30, 2008. 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 Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (the Councils) are interested in determining if, when, and how service contractor employees' personal conflicts of interest (PCI) need to be addressed and whether greater disclosure of contractor practices, specific prohibitions, or reliance on specified principles would be most effective and efficient in promoting ethical behavior.

Under the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995 (44 U.S.C. Chapter 35), the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 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 acquisition of helium. A request for public comments was published in the Federal Register at 72 FR 67919 on December 3, 2007. No comments were received. This OMB clearance currently expires on May 31, 2008. 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.

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 extraordinary contractual action requests. A request for public comments was published in the Federal Register at 73 FR 3241, on January 17, 2008. No comments were received. The clearance currently expires on April 30, 2008. 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.

The General Services Administration (GSA) is amending the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR), by increasing the mileage reimbursement rate for use of a privately owned automobile (POA) when used for official travel. This new rate reflects current costs of operating a POA as determined in cost studies conducted by GSA. The governing regulation increases the mileage allowance for the cost of operating a POA for official travel from $0.485 to $0.505 per mile.

The General Services Administration (GSA) has reviewed the per diem rates for certain locations in the States of Alabama, California, Illinois, Missouri, and Texas, using more current lodging industry data, as well as data on where Federal travelers actually stay when visiting these locations. The county information for St. Louis, Missouri has expanded to include the counties of Crawford, Franklin, Jefferson, Lincoln, Warren, and Washington. Queens, New York will have the same per diem rates as Manhattan beginning March 17, 2008. Finally, an analysis of the meals and incidental expenses (M&IE) data reveals that the maximum M&IE rates for the State of Alabama, the city of Mobile, including the county of Mobile; the State of California, the cities of Eureka, Arcata, and McKinleyville, including the county of Humboldt; and the State of Texas, the city of Beaumont, including the county of Jefferson, should be increased and adjusted to provide for the reimbursement of Federal employees' M&IE expenses. The per diem rates prescribed in Bulletin 08-03 may be found at https://www.gsa.gov/perdiem.

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 an extension of a currently approved information collection requirement regarding GSA Forms 1364/1364A, Proposal to Lease Space (Not Required by Regulation). These forms are used to obtain information about property being offered for lease to house Federal agencies. These forms provide an equitable way to compare lessor proposals. The GSA Form 1364 is used when no tenant improvements are required. The GSA Form 1364A is used when tenant improvements are required and/or when it is a National Broker Contract. The clearance currently expires on April 30, 2008. 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; and ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected.