[Federal Register Volume 85, Number 128 (Thursday, July 2, 2020)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Pages 40077-40078]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2020-12758]


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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION

48 CFR Chapter 1

[Docket No. FAR-2020-0051, Sequence No. 3]


Federal Acquisition Regulation; Federal Acquisition Circular 
2020-07; Small Entity Compliance Guide

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

ACTION: Small Entity Compliance Guide.

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SUMMARY: This document is issued under the joint authority of DOD, GSA, 
and NASA. This Small Entity Compliance Guide has been prepared in 
accordance with section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory 
Enforcement Fairness Act of 1996. It consists of a summary of the rules 
appearing in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2020-07, which amends 
the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). An asterisk (*) next to a 
rule indicates that a regulatory flexibility analysis has been 
prepared. Interested parties may obtain further information regarding 
these rules by referring to FAC 2020-07, which precedes this document. 
These documents are also available via the internet at https://www.regulations.gov.

DATES: July 2, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: For clarification of content, contact 
the analyst whose name appears in the table below. Please cite FAC 
2020-07 and the FAR Case number. For information pertaining to status 
or publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat Division 
at 202-501-4755 or [email protected].

                                           Rule Listed in FAC 2020-07
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             Item                          Subject                FAR case                  Analyst
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*I............................  Requirements for DD Form 254,        2015-002  Glover.
                                 Contract Security
                                 Classification Specification.
*II...........................  Increased Micro-Purchase and         2018-004  Jackson.
                                 Simplified Acquisition
                                 Thresholds.
*III..........................  Evaluation Factors for               2017-010  Jackson.
                                 Multiple-Award Contracts.
*IV...........................  Modifications to Cost or             2018-005  Delgado.
                                 Pricing Data Requirements.
*V............................  Orders Issued Via Fax or             2018-022  Glover.
                                 Electronic Commerce.
VI............................  Technical Amendments.........  ..............  .................................
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ADDRESSES: The FAC, including the SECG, is available via the internet 
at https://www.regulations.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Summaries for each FAR rule follow. For the 
actual revisions and/or amendments made by these FAR rules, refer to 
the specific item numbers and subjects set forth in the documents 
following these item summaries. FAC 2020-07 amends the FAR as follows:

Item I--Requirements for DD Form 254, Contract Security Classification 
Specification (FAR Case 2015-002)

    This final rule amends the FAR to provide procedures for use of the 
DD Form 254, Contract Security Classification Specification, and the 
use of the Procurement Integrated Enterprise Environment (PIEE) for 
electronic submission to streamline the submission process. It requires 
use of the DD Form 254 by DoD components, and by nondefense agencies 
that have industrial security services agreements with DoD, and 
requires the use of the National Industrial Security Program Contracts 
Classification System module of the PIEE, unless the nondefense agency 
has an existing DD Form 254 information system.

Item II--Increased Micro-Purchase and Simplified Acquisition Thresholds 
(FAR Case 2018-004)

    This final rule increases the micro-purchase threshold (MPT) from 
$3,500 to $10,000, increases the simplified acquisition threshold (SAT) 
from $150,000 to $250,000, and increases the special emergency 
procurement authority in paragraph (2) from $300,000 to $500,000. The 
rule also clarifies certain procurement terms, as well as aligns some 
non-statutory thresholds with the MPT and SAT. It implements section 
217(b) of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 
(FY) 2017 and sections 805, 806, and 1702(a) of the NDAA for FY 2018.
    This final rule will likely have a positive significant economic 
impact on a substantial number of small entities.

Item III--Evaluation Factors for Multiple-Award Contracts (FAR Case 
2017-010)

    DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a final rule amending the FAR to 
implement section 825 of the National Defense Authorization Act for 
Fiscal Year 2017 (Pub. L. 114-328). The final rule modifies the 
requirement to consider price or cost as an evaluation factor for the 
award of certain multiple-award task order contracts issued by DoD, 
NASA, and the Coast Guard. Specifically, the rule provides that, at the 
Government's discretion, solicitations for multiple-award contracts for 
the same or similar services that state the Government intends to award 
a contract to each qualifying offeror do not require price or cost as 
an evaluation factor for contract award. This exception does not apply 
to solicitations for multiple-award contracts that provide for sole 
source orders pursuant to 8(a) of the Small Business Act (15 U.S.C. 
637(a)). When price or cost is not evaluated during contract award, the 
contracting officer shall consider price or cost as a factor for the 
award of each order under the

[[Page 40078]]

contract. Section 825 also amends 10 U.S.C. 2304c(b) to add exemptions 
for the use of competitive procedures when placing an order under a 
multiple-award contract.

Item IV--Modifications to Cost or Pricing Data Requirements (FAR Case 
2018-005)

    This final rule increases the threshold for requesting certified 
cost or pricing data from $750,000 to $2 million for contracts entered 
into after June 30, 2018. For earlier contracts, contractors may 
request a modification to use the new clause Alternates, with the new 
$2 million threshold for subcontracts awarded on or after July 1, 2018. 
The rule implements section 811 of the National Defense Authorization 
Act for Fiscal Year 2018, Public Law 115-91.
    This final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a 
substantial number of small entities.

Item V--Orders Issued Via Fax or Electronic Commerce (FAR Case 2018-
022)

    This final rule amends a FAR clause to permit the issuance of task 
or delivery orders via facsimile or electronic commerce and clarify 
when an order is considered ``issued'' when using these methods. As a 
result, contracting officers will no longer need to include 
supplemental ordering language in the contract when anticipating the 
use of fax or electronic commerce to issue task or delivery orders. The 
authority to issue orders orally must still be separately authorized in 
the contract. A common understanding of when a task or delivery order 
is considered issued, in such situations, will be applied 
Governmentwide.

Item VI--Technical Amendments

    Editorial changes are made at FAR 5.205, 9.109-4, 27.405-3, 52.209-
13, and 52.212-5.

William F. Clark,
Director, Office of Government-wide Acquisition Policy, Office of 
Acquisition Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy.
[FR Doc. 2020-12758 Filed 7-1-20; 8:45 am]
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