[Federal Register: March 12, 2004 (Volume 69, Number 49)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Page 11828-11829]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr12mr04-20]
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NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
48 CFR Parts 1827, 1828, 1829, 1830, 1831, 1832, and 1833
RIN 2700-AC68
Re-Issuance of NASA FAR Supplement Subchapter E
AGENCY: National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: This proposed rule would amend the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS)
by removing from the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) those portions
of the NFS containing information that consists of internal Agency
administrative procedures and guidance that does not control the
relationship between NASA and contractors or prospective contractors.
This change is consistent with the guidance and policy in FAR Part 1
regarding what comprises the Federal Acquisition Regulations System and
requires publication for public comment. The NFS document will continue
to contain both information requiring codification in the CFR and
internal Agency guidance in a single document that is available on the
Internet. This change will reduce the administrative burden and time
associated with maintaining the NFS by only publishing in the Federal
Register for codification in the CFR material that is subject to public
comment.
DATES: Comments should be submitted on or before May 11, 2004 to be
considered in formulation of the final rule.
ADDRESSES: Interested parties may submit comments, identified by RIN
number 2700-AC86, via the Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
Comments may also be submitted to Celeste Dalton, NASA, Office of
Procurement, Contract Management Division (Code HK), Washington, DC
20546. Comments can also be submitted by e-mail to:
Celeste.M.Dalton@nasa.gov.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Celeste Dalton, NASA, Office of
Procurement, Contract Management Division (Code HK); (202) 358-1645; e-
mail: Celeste.M.Dalton@nasa.gov
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
A. Background
Currently the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) contains information to
implement or supplement the FAR. This information contains NASA's
policies, procedures, contract clauses, solicitation provisions, and
forms that govern the contracting process or otherwise control the
relationship between NASA and contractors or prospective contractors.
The NFS also contains information that consists of internal Agency
administrative procedures and guidance that does not control the
relationship between NASA and contractors or prospective contractors.
Regardless of the nature of the information, as a policy, NASA has
submitted to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs (OIRA)
within the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and published in the
Federal Register all changes to the NFS. FAR 1.101 states in part that
the “Federal Acquisition Regulations System consists of the Federal
Acquisition Regulation (FAR), which is the primary document, and agency
acquisition regulations that implement or supplement the FAR. The FAR
System does not include internal agency guidance of the type described
in 1.301(a)(2).” FAR 1.301(a)(2) states in part “an agency head may
issue or authorize the issuance of internal agency guidance at any
organizational level (e.g., designations and delegations of authority,
assignments of responsibilities, work-flow procedures, and internal
reporting requirements).” Further, FAR 1.303 states that issuances
under FAR 1.301(a)(2) need not be published in the Federal Register.
Based on the foregoing, NASA is not required to publish and codify
internal Agency guidance.
This proposed rule will modify the existing practice by only
publishing those regulations which may have a significant effect beyond
the internal operating procedures of the Agency or have a significant
cost or administrative impact on contractors or offerors. The NFS will
continue to integrate into a single document both regulations subject
to public comments and internal Agency guidance and procedures that do
not require public comment. Those portions of the NFS that require
public comment will continue to be amended by publishing changes in the
Federal Register. NFS regulations that require public comment are
issued as Chapter 18 of Title 48, CFR. Changes to portions of the
regulations contained in the CFR, along with changes to internal
guidance and procedures, will be incorporated into the NASA-maintained
Internet version of the NFS through Procurement Notices (PNs). The
single official NASA-maintained version of the NFS will remain
available on the Internet. NASA personnel must comply with all
regulatory and internal guidance and procedures contained in the NFS.
This change will result in savings in terms of the number of rules
subject to publication in the Federal Register and provide greater
responsiveness to internal administrative changes.
B. Regulatory Flexibility Act
This proposed rule is not expected to have a significant economic
impact on a substantial number of small entities with the meaning of
the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601. et seq., because this
proposed rule would only remove from the CFR information that is
considered internal Agency administrative procedures and guidance. The
information removed from the CFR will continue to be made available to
the public via the Internet.
C. Paperwork Reduction Act
The Paperwork Reduction Act does not apply because the changes do
not impose recordkeeping or information collection requirements which
require the approval of the Office of Management and Budget under 44
U.S.C. 3501, et seq.
List of Subjects in 48 CFR Parts 1827 through 1833.
Government Procurement.
Tom Luedtke,
Assistant Administrator for Procurement.
Accordingly, 48 CFR parts 1827 through 1833 are amended as follows:
1. The authority citation for 48 CFR parts 1827 through 1833
continue to read as follows:
Authority: 42 U.S.C. 2473(c)(1).
[[Page 11829]]
PART 1827--PATENTS, DATA, AND COPYRIGHTS
2. Amend part 1827 by removing sections 1827.305-3, 1827.305-370,
1827.305-371, paragraphs (d), (e), (f), (g)(3)(B), (g)(3)(C),
(g)(3)(D), (h), and (i) in section 1827.404, sections 1827.405,
1827.406, 1827.408, and paragraphs (b), (c), (d), and (e) in section
1827.409.
PART 1828--BONDS AND INSURANCE
3. Amend part 1828 by removing sections 1828.106, 1828.106-6,
Subpart 1828.2, and sections 1828.307, 1828.307-1, 1828.307-2, and
1828.307-70.
PART 1829--TAXES
4. Remove part 1829.
PART 1830--COST ACCOUNTING STANDARDS ADMINISTRATION
5. Amend part 1830 by removing Subpart 1830.2 and removing and
reserving sections 1830.7001-1, 1830.7001-2, and 1830.7001-3.
PART 1831--CONTRACT COST PRINCIPLES AND PROCEDURES
6. Amend part 1831 by removing sections 1831.205-6, 1831.205-670,
and 1831.205-32, and removing the phrase “under 1831.205-32” in
section 1831.205-70.
PART 1832--CONTRACT FINANCING
7. Amend part 1832 by--
(a) Removing sections 1832.006-2, 1832.007;
(b) Removing “(see 1832.402)” in paragraph (b)(6) of section
1832.202-1; and
(c) Removing sections 1832.402, 1832.406, 1832.407, 1832.409,
1832.409-1, 1832.409-170, 1832.410, 1832.501-2, 1832.502, 1832.502-2,
1832.503, 1832.503-5, 1832.504, 1832.702, 1832.702-70, 1832.704,
1832.704-70, Subpart 1832.9, and sections 1832.1001, 1832.1004,
paragraph (b)(2) in section 1832.1005, and paragraph (c) in section
1832.1110.
PART 1833--PROTESTS, DISPUTES, AND APPEALS
8. Amend part 1833 by removing paragraph (f) in section 1833.103,
and sections 1833.104, 1833.106, 1833.209, 1833.210, and 1833.211.
[FR Doc. 04-5693 Filed 3-11-04; 8:45 am]
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