[Federal Register Volume 78, Number 40 (Thursday, February 28, 2013)]
[Notices]
[Pages 13675-13677]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2013-04488]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

[OMB Control No. 9000-0129; Docket 2012-0076; Sequence 56]


Federal Acquisition Regulation; Submission for OMB Review; Cost 
Accounting Standards Administration

AGENCY: Department of Defense (DOD), General Services Administration 
(GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION: Notice of request for comments regarding an extension to an 
existing OMB clearance.

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SUMMARY: 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 cost 
accounting standards administration. A notice was published in the 
Federal Register at 77 FR 69441, on November 19, 2012. Two respondents 
submitted comments.

DATES: Submit comments on or before April 1, 2013.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments identified by Information Collection 9000-
0129, Cost Accounting Standards Administration by any of the following 
methods:
     Regulations.gov: http://www.regulations.gov. Submit 
comments via the Federal eRulemaking portal by searching the OMB 
control number. Select the link ``Submit a Comment'' that corresponds 
with ``Information Collection 9000-0129, Cost Accounting Standards 
Administration''. Follow the instructions provided at the ``Submit a 
Comment'' screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), and 
``Information Collection 9000-0129, Cost Accounting Standards 
Administration'' on your attached document.
     Fax: 202-501-4067.
     Mail: General Services Administration, Regulatory 
Secretariat (MVCB), 1275 First Street NE., Washington, DC 20417. ATTN: 
Hada Flowers/IC 9000-0129, Cost Accounting Standards Administration.
    Instructions: Please submit comments only and cite Information 
Collection 9000-0129, Cost Accounting Standards Administration, in all 
correspondence

[[Page 13676]]

related to this collection. All comments received will be posted 
without change to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal 
and/or business confidential information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Mr. Edward N. Chambers, Procurement 
Analyst, Office of Acquisition Policy, GSA, (202) 501-3221 or email a 
[email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A. Purpose

    FAR Subpart 30.6 and the provision at 52.230-6 include pertinent 
rules and regulations related to the Cost Accounting Standards (CAS) 
along with necessary administrative policies and procedures. These 
administrative policies require certain contractors to submit cost 
impact estimates and descriptions in cost accounting practices and also 
to provide information on CAS-covered subcontractors. Specifically, FAR 
52.230-6 requires contractors to submit to the cognizant Contracting 
Officer a description of any cost accounting practice change, the total 
potential impact of the change on contracts containing a CAS provision, 
a general dollar magnitude or detailed cost-impact proposal of the 
change which identifies the potential shift of costs between CAS-
covered contracts by contract type (i.e., firm fixed-price, incentive 
cost-plus-fixed-fee, etc.) and other contractor business activity.

B. Discussion and Analysis

    Two respondents submitted public comments on the extension of the 
previously approved information collection. The analysis of the public 
comments is summarized as follows:
    Respondent One: Respondent one offered a single comment.
    Comment: The purpose of this standard is to require that each type 
of cost is allocated only once and on only one basis to any contract or 
other cost objective. Provide measures of cost effectiveness within the 
activity. This may be accomplished by relating performance costs to 
standard costs or cost estimates by established cost centers and by 
end-product with development of appropriate analyses of cost variances.
    Response: This comment concerned the purpose of the cost accounting 
principles and not the burden of reporting on the application of these 
standards.
    Respondent Two: Respondent two offered the following comments:
    Comment: The respondent commented that the extension of the 
information collection would violate the fundamental purposes of the 
Paperwork Reduction Act because of the burden it puts on the entity 
submitting the information and the agency collecting the information.
    Response: In accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act (PRA), 
agencies can request OMB approval of an existing information 
collection. The PRA requires that agencies use the Federal Register 
notice and comment process, to extend OMB's approval, at least every 
three years. This extension, to a previously approved information 
collection, pertains to FAR clause 52.230-6. This clause requires 
certain contractors to submit cost impact estimates and descriptions in 
cost accounting practices and also to provide information on CAS-
covered subcontractors when making changes to their cost accounting 
practices. Without this information, the Government would be unable to 
approve changes to contractors cost accounting practices, resulting in 
the disallowance of contractor charges to contracts. This clause has 
existed substantially the same since the inception of the FAR.
    Comment: The respondent commented that the agency did not 
accurately estimate the public burden challenging that the agency's 
methodology for calculating it is insufficient and inadequate and does 
not reflect the total burden. The respondent questioned the basis for 
the estimated number of responses per respondent of 2.27. The 
respondent also stated that the estimate of 175 hours per response per 
respondent is understated, and that the actual burden is at least 12 
times that, but more likely 24 to 48 times this estimate. For this 
reason, the respondent provided that the agency should reassess the 
estimated total burden hours and revise the estimate upwards to be more 
accurate, as was done in FAR Case 2007-006. The same respondent also 
provided that the burden of compliance with the information collection 
requirement outweighs any potential utility of the extension.
    Response: Serious consideration is given, during the open comment 
period, to all comments received and adjustments are made to the 
paperwork burden estimate based on reasonable considerations provided 
by the public. This is evidenced, as the respondent notes, in FAR Case 
2007-006 where an adjustment was made from the total preparation hours 
from three to 60. This change was made considering particularly the 
hours that would be required for review within the company, prior to 
release to the Government.
    The burden is prepared taking into consideration the necessary 
criteria in OMB guidance for estimating the paperwork burden put on the 
entity submitting the information. For example, consideration is given 
to an entity reviewing instructions; using technology to collect, 
process, and disclose information; adjusting existing practices to 
comply with requirements; searching data sources; completing and 
reviewing the response; and transmitting or disclosing information. The 
estimated burden hours for a collection are based on an average between 
the hours that a simple disclosure by a very small business might 
require and the much higher numbers that might be required for a very 
complex disclosure by a major corporation. Also, the estimated burden 
hours should only include projected hours for those actions which a 
company would not undertake in the normal course of business. Careful 
consideration went into assessing the estimated burden hours for this 
collection, and although, the respondent provided estimates of 
responses and burden hours, the estimates cannot be confirmed with any 
degree of certainty to totally rely on the information.
    Based on consultation with a Government subject matter expert (SME) 
the estimated burden of 175 hours per response is consider a reasonable 
average for all submissions associated with the requirements of this 
collection. The Government SME also confirmed that the 2.27 responses 
per respondent reflects a reasonable average over the course of a year, 
as some contractors may not have any cost accounting practice changes 
while others could have up to four or five.
    The estimated annual reporting burden is increased from that 
published in the Federal Register at 75 FR 3236, on January 20, 2010. 
Based on data from the Federal Procurement Data System for fiscal year 
2011, an upward adjustment is made to the estimated annual reporting 
burden, which reflected an increase in the number of respondents. 
However, the estimated number of hours per response and the estimated 
number of responses per respondent remains unchanged based on 
consultation with the Government SME. At any point, members of the 
public may submit comments for further consideration, and are 
encouraged to provide data to support their request for an adjustment.

C. Annual Reporting Burden

    Number of Respondents: 1,288.
    Responses per Respondent: 2.27.
    Total Responses: 2,924.

[[Page 13677]]

    Average Burden Hours per Response: 175.00.
    Total Burden Hours: 511,700.
    Obtaining Copies of Proposals: Requesters may obtain a copy of the 
information collection documents from the General Services 
Administration, Regulatory Secretariat (MVCB), 1275 First Street NE., 
Washington, DC 20417, telephone (202) 501-4755. Please cite OMB Control 
Number 9000-0129, Cost Accounting Standards Administration, in all 
correspondence.

    Dated: February 21, 2013.
William Clark,
Acting Director, Federal Acquisition Policy Division, Office of 
Governmentwide Acquisition Policy, Office of Acquisition Policy, Office 
of Governmentwide Policy.
[FR Doc. 2013-04488 Filed 2-27-13; 8:45 am]
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