[Federal Register Volume 86, Number 160 (Monday, August 23, 2021)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47110-47111]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2021-18022]


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GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION

[OMB Control No. 3090-0317; Docket No. 2021-0001; Sequence No. 7]


Information Collection; Notarized Document Submittal for System 
for Award Management Registration

AGENCY: Office of Acquisition Policy, General Services Administration 
(GSA).

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 Division will be submitting to the Office of 
Management

[[Page 47111]]

and Budget (OMB) a request to review and approve an existing OMB 
clearance regarding a notarized document submittal for System for Award 
Management (SAM) Registration.

DATES: Submit comments on or before October 22, 2021.

ADDRESSES: Submit comments regarding this burden estimate or any other 
aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for 
reducing this burden to http://www.regulations.gov. Submit comments via 
the Federal eRulemaking portal by searching for the OMB Control number 
3090-0317. Select the link ``Comment Now'' that corresponds with 
``Information Collection 3090-0317; Notarized Document Submittal for 
System for Award Management Registration''. Follow the instructions on 
the screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), and 
``Information Collection 3090-0317; Notarized Document Submittal for 
System for Award Management Registration'' on your attached document.
    Instructions: Please submit comments only and cite Information 
Collection 3090-0317; Notarized Document Submittal for System for Award 
Management Registration, in all correspondence related to this 
collection. Comments received generally will be posted without change 
to http://www.regulations.gov, including any personal and/or business 
confidential information provided. To confirm receipt of your 
comment(s), please check www.regulations.gov, approximately two-to-
three days after submission to verify posting.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Nancy Goode, Integrated Award 
Environment, GSA, 703-605-2175, or via email at [email protected].

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 
4.11 prescribes policies and procedures for requiring contractor 
registration in the System for Award Management (SAM) database to: (1) 
Increase visibility of vendor sources (including their geographical 
locations) for specific supplies and services; and (2) establish a 
common source of vendor data for the Government.
    In the past, the GSA Office of Inspector General (OIG) conducted an 
investigation into fraudulent activities discovered within SAM. Certain 
bad actors have, through electronic means, used public information to 
impersonate legitimate entities and established new entity 
registrations for those entities in SAM. By establishing fraudulent 
entity registrations, bad actors submitted bids in certain U.S. 
Government procurement systems or shipped deficient or counterfeit 
goods to the U.S. Government.
    GSA established this information collection request (ICR) to 
collect additional information to support increased validation of 
entities registered and registering in the System for Award Management 
(SAM). This additional information is contained in a notarized letter 
in which an officer or other signatory authority of the entity formally 
appoints the Entity Administrator for the entity registering or 
recertifying in SAM. The original, signed letter is mailed to the 
Federal Service Desk for SAM prior to the registration's activation or 
re-registration.
    The collection of the notarized letter information is essential to 
GSA's acquisition mission to meet the needs of all federal agencies, as 
well as the needs of the grant community. A key element of GSA's 
mission is to provide efficient and effective acquisition solutions 
across the Federal Government. SAM is essential to the accomplishment 
of that mission. In addition to federal contracts, federal assistance 
programs also rely upon the integrity and security of the information 
in SAM. Without assurances that the information in SAM is protected and 
is at minimal risk of compromise, GSA would risk losing the confidence 
of the federal acquisition and assistance communities which is serves. 
As a result, some entities may prefer not to do business with the 
Federal Government.

B. Annual Reporting Burden

    Respondents: 686,400.
    Responses per Respondent: 1.
    Total Annual Responses: 686,400.
    Hours per Response: 2.25.
    Total Burden Hours: 1,544,400.
    The information collection allows GSA to request the notarized 
letter and apply this approach to new registrants (an average of 7,200 
per month) and to existing SAM registrants (an average of 50,000 re-
register per month).
    Entities registered and registering in SAM are provided the 
template for the requirements of the notarized letter. It is estimated 
that the Entity Administrator will take on average 0.5 hour to create 
the letter and 0.25 hour to mail the hard copy letter. GSA proposes 
that an Entity Administrator equivalent to a GS-5, Step 5 
Administrative Support person within the Government would perform these 
tasks. The estimated hourly rate of $24.70 (Base + Locality + Fringe) 
was used for the calculation.
    Based on historical data of the ratio of small entities to other 
than small entities registering in SAM, GSA approximates 32,200 of the 
57,200 new and existing entities (re-registrants) will have in-house 
resources to notarize documents. GSA proposes that the entities with 
in-house notaries will typically be large businesses where the 
projected salary of the executive or officer responsible for signing 
the notarized letter is on average approximately $150 per hour. The 
projected time for signature and notarizing the letter internally is 
0.5 hour.
    The other remaining 25,000 new and existing entities (re-
registrants) per month are estimated to be small entities where the 
projected salary of the executive or officer responsible signing the 
notarized letter is on average approximately $100 per hour. These 
entities will more than likely have to obtain notary services from an 
outside source. The projected time for signature and notarizing the 
letter externally is 1 hour. The estimate includes a nominal fee 
($5.00) usually charged by third- party notaries.

C. Public Comments

    Public comments are particularly invited on: Whether this 
collection of information is necessary, 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.
    Obtaining Copies of Proposals: Requesters may obtain a copy of the 
information collection documents from the Regulatory Secretariat 
Division by calling 202-501-4755 or emailing [email protected]. Please 
cite OMB Control No. 3090-0317, Notarized Document Submittal for System 
for Award Management Registration, in all correspondence.

Beth Anne Killoran,
Deputy Chief Information Officer.
[FR Doc. 2021-18022 Filed 8-20-21; 8:45 am]
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