Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 205 / Wednesday, October 25, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 73241 

Secretary of the Navy (without further 

delegation) makes a determination; and 

(2) foreign contractors may not be used 

to perform facilities maintenance unless 

approved by the Secretary of the Navy. 

The objective of the rule is to implement 

the restrictions of section 1025 of the 

NDAA for FY 2021 on the overhaul or 

repair of a naval vessel in a shipyard 

outside the United States or Guam, with 

exceptions as described in this 

paragraph. 

No public comments were received in 

response to the initial regulatory 

flexibility analysis. 

DoD reviewed data from the Federal 

Procurement Data System for fiscal 

years 2020, 2021, and 2022 for contracts 

for the repair or overhaul of naval 

vessels outside the United States or 

Guam that exceeded the simplified 

acquisition threshold. DoD awarded a 

total of 383 contracts to an average of 76 

unique small entities. 

It is expected that this rule will 

continue to provide small businesses 

the opportunity to participate in 

acquisitions for the overhaul or repair of 

a naval vessel in a shipyard outside the 

United States or Guam, since naval 

vessel overhaul restrictions currently 

exist, and this rule provides exceptions 

that allow for U.S. contractor personnel 

to perform certain repairs and 

maintenance in accordance with 10 

U.S.C. 8680(a). 

This rule does not include any new 

reporting, recordkeeping, or other 

compliance requirements for small 

entities. 

There are no known significant 

alternative approaches to the rule that 

would meet the requirements of the 

statute. 

VIII. Paperwork Reduction Act 

This rule does not contain any 

information collection requirements that 

require the approval of the Office of 

Management and Budget under the 

Paperwork Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. 

chapter 35). 

List of Subjects in 48 CFR Part 225 

Government procurement. 

Jennifer D. Johnson, 

Editor/Publisher, Defense Acquisition 

Regulations System. 

Therefore, 48 CFR part 225 is 

amended as follows: 

PART 225—FOREIGN ACQUISITION 

■ 1. The authority citation for 48 CFR 

part 225 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 41 U.S.C. 1303 and 48 CFR 

chapter 1. 

225.7013 [Amended] 

■ 2. Amend section 225.7013 by 

removing the introductory text and 

paragraphs (a) and (b). 

■ 3. Add sections 225.7013–0, 

225.7013–1, and 225.7013–2 to read as 

follows: 

225.7013–0 Scope. 

This section implements 10 U.S.C. 

8679 and 10 U.S.C. 8680. 

225.7013–1 Definitions. 

As used in this section— 

Corrective and preventive 

maintenance or repair means— 

(1) Maintenance or repair actions 

performed as a result of a failure in 

order to return or restore equipment to 

acceptable performance levels; and 

(2) Scheduled maintenance or repair 

actions to prevent or discover functional 

failures. 

Facilities maintenance means the 

effort required to— 

(1) Provide housekeeping services 

throughout the ship; 

(2) Perform coating maintenance and 

repair to exterior and interior surfaces 

due to normal environmental 

conditions; and 

(3) Clean mechanical spaces, mission 

zones, and topside spaces. 

225.7013–2 Restrictions. 

(a) Contract award (10 U.S.C. 8679). 

Do not award a contract to construct in 

a foreign shipyard— 

(1) A vessel for any of the armed 

forces; or 

(2) A major component of the hull or 

superstructure of a vessel for any of the 

armed forces. 

(b) Overhaul, repair, or maintenance 

(10 U.S.C. 8680). (1) Do not overhaul, 

repair, or maintain, in a shipyard 

outside the United States or Guam, a 

naval vessel (or any other vessel under 

the jurisdiction of the Secretary of the 

Navy) homeported in the United States 

or Guam. 

(2) This restriction on overhaul, 

repair, or maintenance does not apply 

to— 

(i) Voyage repairs; or 

(ii) Repairs necessary to correct 

damage sustained due to hostile actions 

or interventions. 

(3) For a naval vessel classified as a 

littoral combat ship and operating on 

deployment— 

(i) Corrective and preventive 

maintenance or repair, whether 

intermediate or depot level, and 

facilities maintenance may be 

performed if the work is performed by 

U.S. Government personnel or U.S. 

contractor personnel— 

(A) In a foreign shipyard; 

(B) At a facility outside of a foreign 

shipyard; or 

(C) At any other facility convenient to 

the vessel; 

(ii) Foreign workers may be used to 

perform corrective and preventive 

maintenance or repair, only if the 

Secretary of the Navy, without power of 

delegation, determines that travel by 

U.S. Government or contractor 

personnel to perform the maintenance 

or repair is not advisable for health or 

safety reasons; and 

(iii) Foreign contractors may perform 

facilities maintenance only as approved 

by the Secretary of Navy. 

[FR Doc. 2023–23432 Filed 10–24–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6001–FR–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Defense Acquisition Regulations 

System 

48 CFR Part 252 

[Docket DARS–2023–0038] 

RIN 0750–AL98 

Defense Federal Acquisition 

Regulation Supplement: New 

Designated Country—North Macedonia 

(DFARS Case 2024–D001) 

AGENCY: Defense Acquisition 

Regulations System, Department of 

Defense (DoD). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: DoD is issuing a final rule 

amending the Defense Federal 

Acquisition Regulation Supplement 

(DFARS) to add North Macedonia as a 

new designated country under the 

World Trade Organization Government 

Procurement Agreement. 

DATES: Effective October 30, 2023. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Kimberly Bass, 703–717–3446. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

On June 7, 2023, the World Trade 

Organization (WTO) Committee on 

Government Procurement approved the 

accession of North Macedonia to the 

WTO Government Procurement 

Agreement (GPA). This final rule 

amends the DFARS to add North 

Macedonia to the list of World Trade 

Organization (WTO) Government 

Procurement Agreement (GPA) 

countries wherever it appears in the 

DFARS, as part of the definition of 

‘‘designated country’’. 

The Trade Agreements Act (19 U.S.C. 

2501 et seq.) provides the authority for 

the President to waive the Buy 


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73242 Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 205 / Wednesday, October 25, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 

American statute and other 

discriminatory provisions for eligible 

products from countries that have 

signed an international trade agreement 

with the United States (such as the 

WTO GPA). The President has delegated 

this authority to the U.S. Trade 

Representative. 

The U.S. Trade Representative has 

determined that North Macedonia will 

provide appropriate reciprocal 

competitive Government procurement 

opportunities to United States products 

and services, because North Macedonia 

is a party to the WTO GPA. The U.S. 

Trade Representative published a notice 

in the Federal Register waiving the Buy 

American statute and other 

discriminatory provisions for eligible 

products from North Macedonia at 88 

FR 68905 on October 4, 2023. The 

United States, which also is a party to 

the GPA, has agreed to waive 

discriminatory purchasing requirements 

for eligible products and suppliers of 

North Macedonia beginning on October 

30, 2023, the date on which the WTO 

GPA will enter into force for North 

Macedonia. 

II. Publication of This Final Rule for 

Public Comment Is Not Required by 

Statute 

The statute that applies to the 

publication of the Federal Acquisition 

Regulation (FAR) is 41 U.S.C. 1707, 

Publication of Proposed Regulations. 

Subsection (a)(1) of the statute requires 

that a procurement policy, regulation, 

procedure, or form (including an 

amendment or modification thereof) 

must be published for public comment 

if it relates to the expenditure of 

appropriated funds and has either a 

significant effect beyond the internal 

operating procedures of the agency 

issuing the policy, regulation, 

procedure, or form, or has a significant 

cost or administrative impact on 

contractors or offerors. This final rule is 

not required to be published for public 

comment, because it only amends the 

DFARS definition of ‘‘designated 

country’’ to reflect that North 

Macedonia is now a party to the WTO 

GPA, without significant effect beyond 

the internal operating procedures of the 

Government. 

III. Applicability to Contracts at or 

Below the Simplified Acquisition 

Threshold (SAT) and for Commercial 

Products (Including Commercially 

Available Off-the-Shelf (COTS) Items), 

or for Commercial Services 

This final rule amends the clauses at 

DFARS 252.225–7017, Photovoltaic 

Device; 252.225–7021, Trade 

Agreements; and 252.225–7045, Balance 

of Payments Program—Construction 

Material Under Trade Agreements. 

However, this final rule does not impose 

any new requirements on contracts at or 

below the SAT, for commercial products 

including COTS items, or for 

commercial services. This final rule 

does not change the applicability of the 

clauses to acquisitions at or below the 

SAT, to acquisitions of commercial 

products including COTS items, or to 

acquisitions of commercial services. 

IV. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

Executive Orders (E.O.s) 12866 and 

13563 direct agencies to assess all costs 

and benefits of available regulatory 

alternatives and, if regulation is 

necessary, to select regulatory 

approaches that maximize net benefits 

(including potential economic, 

environmental, public health and safety 

effects, distributive impacts, and 

equity). E.O. 13563 emphasizes the 

importance of quantifying both costs 

and benefits, of reducing costs, of 

harmonizing rules, and of promoting 

flexibility. This is not a significant 

regulatory action and, therefore, was not 

subject to review under section 6(b) of 

E.O. 12866, Regulatory Planning and 

Review, as amended. 

V. Congressional Review Act 

As required by the Congressional 

Review Act (5 U.S.C. 801–808) before an 

interim or final rule takes effect, DoD 

will submit a copy of the interim or 

final rule with the form, Submission of 

Federal Rules under the Congressional 

Review Act, to the U.S. Senate, the U.S. 

House of Representatives, and the 

Comptroller General of the United 

States. A major rule under the 

Congressional Review Act cannot take 

effect until 60 days after it is published 

in the Federal Register. The Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs has 

determined that this rule is not a major 

rule as defined by 5 U.S.C. 804. 

VI. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

The Regulatory Flexibility Act does 

not apply to this rule because this final 

rule does not constitute a significant 

DFARS revision within the meaning of 

FAR 1.501–1, and 41 U.S.C. 1707 does 

not require publication for public 

comment. 

VII. Paperwork Reduction Act 

This final rule affects the information 

collection requirements in the 

provisions at DFARS 252.225–7018, 

Photovoltaic Devices-Certificate; and 

252.225–7020, Trade Agreements 

Certificate, currently approved under 

OMB Control Number 0704–0229, 

entitled DFARS Part 225, Foreign 

Acquisition, and associated clauses, in 

accordance with the Paperwork 

Reduction Act (44 U.S.C. chapter 35). 

DFARS provisions 252.225–7018 and 

252.225–7020 rely on the definition of 

‘‘designated country’’ in DFARS clauses 

252.225–7017 and 252.225–7021, which 

now includes North Macedonia. The 

impact of this rule, however, is 

negligible, because the addition of North 

Macedonia to the definition of 

‘‘designated country’’ merely provides 

another possible source of the items 

covered by these provisions and clauses. 

List of Subjects in 48 CFR Part 252 

Government procurement. 

Jennifer D. Johnson, 

Editor/Publisher, Defense Acquisition 

Regulations System. 

Therefore, 48 CFR part 252 is 

amended as follows: 

PART 252—SOLICITATION 

PROVISIONS AND CONTRACT 

CLAUSES 

■ 1. The authority citation for 48 CFR 

part 252 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 41 U.S.C. 1303 and 48 CFR 

chapter 1. 

252.225–7017 [Amended] 

■ 2. Amend section 252.225–7017— 

■ a. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(DEC 2022)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; and 

■ b. In paragraph (a) of the clause, in the 

definition of ‘‘Designated country’’ in 

paragraph (1), by adding, in alphabetical 

order, the country of ‘‘North 

Macedonia’’. 

252.225–7021 [Amended] 

■ 3. Amend section 252.225–7021— 

■ a. In the basic clause— 

■ i. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(JAN 2023)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; 

■ ii. In paragraph (a), in the definition 

of ‘‘Designated country’’ in paragraph 

(1), by adding, in alphabetical order, the 

country of ‘‘North Macedonia’’; 

■ b. In the Alternate II clause— 

■ i. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(JAN 2023)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; and 

■ ii. In paragraph (a), in the definition 

of ‘‘Designated country’’ in paragraph 

(1), by adding, in alphabetical order, the 

country of ‘‘North Macedonia’’. 

252.225–7045 [Amended] 

■ 4. Amend section 252.225–7045— 

■ a. In the basic clause— 

■ i. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(JAN 2023)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; 


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Federal Register / Vol. 88, No. 205 / Wednesday, October 25, 2023 / Rules and Regulations 73243 

■ ii. In paragraph (a), in the definition 

of ‘‘Designated country’’ in paragraph 

(1), by adding, in alphabetical order, the 

country of ‘‘North Macedonia’’; 

■ b. In the Alternate I clause— 

■ i. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(JAN 2023)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; 

■ ii. In paragraph (a), in the definition 

of ‘‘Designated country’’ in paragraph 

(1), by adding, in alphabetical order, the 

country of ‘‘North Macedonia’’; 

■ c. In the Alternate II clause— 

■ i. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(JAN 2023)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; 

■ ii. In paragraph (a), in the definition 

of ‘‘Designated country’’ in paragraph 

(1), by adding, in alphabetical order, the 

country of ‘‘North Macedonia’’; and 

■ d. In the Alternate III clause— 

■ i. By removing the clause date of 

‘‘(JAN 2023)’’ and adding ‘‘(OCT 2023)’’ 

in its place; 

■ ii. In paragraph (a), in the definition 

of ‘‘Designated country’’ in paragraph 

(1), by adding, in alphabetical order, the 

country of ‘‘North Macedonia’’. 

[FR Doc. 2023–23434 Filed 10–24–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6001–FR–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 648 

[Docket No. 231018–0249; RTID 0648– 

XD380] 

Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog 

Fisheries; 2024 Fishing Quotas for 

Atlantic Surfclams and Ocean 

Quahogs; and Suspension of Atlantic 

Surfclam Minimum Size Limit 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: NMFS announces that the 

quotas for the Atlantic surfclam and 

ocean quahog fisheries for 2024 will 

remain status quo. NMFS also suspends 

the minimum size limit for Atlantic 

surfclams for the 2024 fishing year. 

Regulations for these fisheries require 

NMFS to notify the public of the 

allowable harvest levels for Atlantic 

surfclams and ocean quahogs from the 

Exclusive Economic Zone even if the 

previous year’s quota specifications 

remain unchanged. The 2024 quotas 

were previously announced as projected 

values. This action confirms the final 

quotas are unchanged from those 

projections. This action would not 

result in harm to these fisheries. 

DATES: Effective January 1, 2024, 

through December 31, 2024. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Douglas Potts, Fishery Policy Analyst, 

978–281–9341. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The 

Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean Quahog 

Fishery Management Plan (FMP) 

requires that NMFS issue notice in the 

Federal Register of the upcoming year’s 

quota, even if the quota remains 

unchanged from the previous year. At 

its June 2023 meeting, the Mid-Atlantic 

Fishery Management Council (Council) 

recommended no change to the quota 

specifications for Atlantic surfclams and 

ocean quahogs for the 2024 fishing year. 

We are announcing 2024 quota levels of 

3.4 million bushels (bu) (181 million L) 

for Atlantic surfclams, 5.36 million bu 

(285 million L) for ocean quahogs, and 

100,000 million bu (3.52 million L) for 

Maine ocean quahogs. These quotas 

were published as projected 2024 limits 

in the Federal Register on May 13, 2021 

(86 FR 26186). This rule establishes 

these quotas as unchanged from 2021 

and final. 

The regulations at 50 CFR 648.75(b)(3) 

allow the Regional Administrator to 

annually suspend the minimum size 

limit for Atlantic surfclams unless 

discard, catch, and biological sampling 

data indicate that 30 percent or more of 

the Atlantic surfclams have a shell 

length less than 4.75 inches (121 mm) 

and the overall reduced size is not 

attributable to harvest from beds where 

growth of the individual clams has been 

reduced because of density-dependent 

factors. The default minimum size limit 

is intended to prevent the fishery from 

harvesting too many small clams such 

that it could harm the overall 

population. The size limit is 

unnecessary if small clams are not a 

significant portion of overall catch. At 

its June 2023 meeting, the Council 

reviewed recent developments in the 

fishery and recommended the Regional 

Administrator once again suspend the 

minimum size limit for Atlantic 

surfclams for the 2024 fishing year. 

Commercial surfclam data for 2023 

indicated that 19.7 percent of the overall 

commercial landings were composed of 

surfclams that were less than the 4.75- 

inch (121-mm) default minimum size. 

Based on the information available, 

the Regional Administrator concurs 

with the Council’s recommendation and 

is suspending the minimum size limit 

for Atlantic surfclams for the upcoming 

fishing year (January 1 through 

December 31, 2024). 

Classification 

Pursuant to section 304(b)(1)(A) of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, the Assistant 

Administrator for Fisheries, NOAA, has 

determined that this rule is consistent 

with the Atlantic Surfclam and Ocean 

Quahog FMP, other provisions of the 

Magnuson-Stevens Act, and other 

applicable law. 

This action does not introduce any 

new reporting, recordkeeping, or other 

compliance requirements. This rule 

does not duplicate, overlap, or conflict 

with other Federal rules. 

Pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 553(b)(B), there 

is good cause to waive prior notice and 

an opportunity for public comment on 

this action, as notice and comment 

would be unnecessary and contrary to 

the public interest. This rule is routine 

and formulaic. The public was given the 

opportunity to comment on the 

proposed rule for the 2021–2026 

specifications (86 FR 9901, February 17, 

2021), including the projected 2024 

specifications, which remain 

unchanged. Delaying this action would 

prolong public uncertainty about the 

final quotas for the 2024 fishing year, 

and could delay issuance of 2024 

Individual Transferable Quota cage tags 

to quota shareholders. The public and 

industry participants expect this action 

because we previously alerted the 

public that we would conduct this 

review in interim years of the multi-year 

specifications and announce the final 

quotas before or as close as possible to 

the January 1 start of the fishing year. 

This rule could not be published earlier 

because of the time necessary to collect 

data and conduct the analysis to support 

suspending the minimum size limit for 

Atlantic surfclams. 

This rule is exempt from the 

requirements of Executive Order 12866 

because it contains no implementing 

regulations. 

Because prior notice and opportunity 

for public comment are not required for 

this rule by 5 U.S.C. 553, or any other 

law, the analytical requirements of the 

Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601 

et seq., are inapplicable. Accordingly, 

no Regulatory Flexibility Analysis is 

required and none has been prepared. 

Authority: 16 U.S.C. 1801 et seq. 

Dated: October 19, 2023. 

Jonathan M. Kurland, 

Acting Deputy Assistant Administrator for 

Regulatory Programs, National Marine 

Fisheries Service. 

[FR Doc. 2023–23522 Filed 10–24–23; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3510–22–P 


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