[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 94 (Monday, May 16, 2016)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 30428-30429]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2016-10995]



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Vol. 81

Monday,

No. 94

May 16, 2016

Part II





Department of Defense





General Services Administration





National Aeronautics and Space Administration





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48 CFR Chapter 1





Federal Acquisition Regulations; Rules

  Federal Register / Vol. 81 , No. 94 / Monday, May 16, 2016 / Rules 
and Regulations  

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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

48 CFR Chapter 1

[Docket No. FAR 2016-0051, Sequence No. 2]


Federal Acquisition Regulation; Federal Acquisition Circular 
2005-88; Introduction

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

ACTION: Summary presentation of final rules.

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SUMMARY: This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation 
(FAR) rules agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and 
the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) in this Federal 
Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-88. A companion document, the Small 
Entity Compliance Guide (SECG), follows this FAC. The FAC, including 
the SECG, is available via the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.

DATES: For effective dates see the separate documents, which follow.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The analyst whose name appears in the 
table below in relation to the FAR case. Please cite FAC 2005-88 and 
the specific FAR case number. For information pertaining to status or 
publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat Division at 
202-501-4755.

                                           Rules Listed in FAC 2005-88
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
               Item                           Subject               FAR case                 Analyst
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I................................  High Global Warming                 2014-026  Gray.
                                    Potential
                                    Hydrofluorocarbons.
II...............................  Simplified Acquisition              2015-020  Francis.
                                    Threshold for Overseas
                                    Acquisitions in Support of
                                    Humanitarian or
                                    Peacekeeping Operations.
III..............................  Basic Safeguarding of               2011-020  Davis.
                                    Contractor Information
                                    Systems.
IV...............................  Improvement in Design-Build         2015-018  Glover.
                                    Construction Process.
V................................  Technical Amendments.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Summaries for each FAR rule follow. For the 
actual revisions and/or amendments made by these rules, refer to the 
specific item numbers and subjects set forth in the documents following 
these item summaries. FAC 2005-88 amends the FAR as follows:

Item I--High Global Warming Potential Hydrofluorocarbons (FAR Case 
2014-026)

    This final rule implements Executive branch policy in the 
President's Climate Action Plan to procure, when feasible, alternatives 
to high global warming potential--hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs). The rule 
also requires contractors to report annually the amount of HFCs 
contained in equipment delivered to the Government or added or taken 
out of Government equipment under service contracts. This will allow 
agencies to better meet the greenhouse gas emission reduction goals and 
reporting requirements of the Executive Order 13693 on Planning for 
Sustainability in the Next Decade. This rule applies to small entities 
because about three-quarters of the affected contractors are small 
businesses and precluding them would undermine the overall intent of 
this policy. However, to minimize the impact this rule could have on 
all businesses, especially small businesses, this rule only requires 
tracking and reporting on equipment that normally contain 50 or more 
pounds of HFCs. In addition, this rule does not impose a labeling 
requirement for products that contain or are manufactured with HFCs, 
unlike the labeling requirement that is required by statute for ozone-
depleting substances.

Item II--Simplified Acquisition Threshold for Overseas Acquisitions in 
Support of Humanitarian or Peacekeeping Operations (FAR Case 2015-020)

    This final rule amends the FAR to implement 41 U.S.C. 153, which 
establishes a higher simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) for 
overseas acquisitions in support of humanitarian or peacekeeping 
operations. When FAR Case 2003-022 was published as a rule in 2004, the 
definition for SAT at FAR 2.101 was changed, but the drafters of the 
rule also inadvertently deleted the reference to overseas humanitarian 
or peacekeeping missions and the requisite doubling of the SAT in those 
circumstances. This rule reinstates the increased SAT for overseas 
acquisitions for peacekeeping or humanitarian operations. Accordingly, 
this rule provides contracting officers with more flexibility when 
contracting in support of overseas humanitarian or peacekeeping 
operations. This final rule does not place any new requirements on 
small entities.

Item III--Basic Safeguarding of Contractor Information Systems (FAR 
Case 2011-020)

    This final rule amends the FAR to add a new FAR subpart 4.19 and 
contract clause 52.204-21 for the basic safeguarding of covered 
contractor information systems, i.e., that process, store, or transmit 
Federal contract information. The clause does not relieve the 
contractor of any other specific safeguarding requirement specified by 
Federal agencies and departments as it relates to covered contractor 
information systems generally or other Federal requirements for 
safeguarding controlled unclassified information (CUI) as established 
by Executive Order 13556. Systems that contain classified information, 
or CUI such as personally identifiable information, require more than 
the basic level of protection. This rule will not have a significant 
economic impact on contractors (including small business concerns) or 
the Government.

Item IV--Improvement in Design-Build Construction Process (FAR Case 
2015-018)

    This final rule revises the FAR to implement section 814 of the 
Carl Levin and Howard P. `Buck' McKeon National Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2015. When a two-phase design-build construction 
acquisition is valued at greater than $4 million, section 814 requires 
the head of the contracting

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activity to approve a contracting officer determination to select more 
than five offerors to submit phase-two proposals. The approval level is 
delegable no lower than the senior contracting official within the 
contracting activity. This rule change does not place any new 
requirements on small entities.

Item V--Technical Amendments

    Editorial changes are made at FAR 1.106.

    Dated: May 5, 2016.
William Clark,
Director, Office of Government-wide Acquisition Policy, Office of 
Acquisition Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy.

    Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-88 is issued under the 
authority of the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General 
Services, and the Administrator for the National Aeronautics and Space 
Administration.
    Unless otherwise specified, all Federal Acquisition Regulation 
(FAR) and other directive material contained in FAC 2005-88 is 
effective May 16, 2016 except for items I, II, III, and IV, which are 
effective June 15, 2016.

    Dated: May 4, 2016.

Claire M. Grady,

Director, Defense Procurement and Acquisition Policy.

    Dated: May 5, 2016.

Jeffrey A. Koses,

Senior Procurement Executive/Deputy CAO, Office of Acquisition 
Policy, U.S. General Services Administration.

    Dated: April 28, 2016.

William P. McNally,

Assistant Administrator, Office of Procurement National Aeronautics 
and Space Administration.

[FR Doc. 2016-10995 Filed 5-13-16; 8:45 am]
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