Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 152 / Wednesday, August 11, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 44247 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

GENERAL SERVICES 

ADMINISTRATION 

NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND 

SPACE ADMINISTRATION 

48 CFR Part 19 

[FAC 2021–07; FAR Case 2020–012; Item 

III; Docket No. FAR–2020–0012; Sequence 

No. 1] 

RIN 9000–AO16 

Federal Acquisition Regulation: Scope 

of Review by Procurement Center 

Representatives 

AGENCY: Department of Defense (DoD), 

General Services Administration (GSA), 

and National Aeronautics and Space 

Administration (NASA). 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: DoD, GSA, and NASA are 

issuing a final rule amending the 

Federal Acquisition Regulation to 

implement section 1811 of the National 

Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for 

Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 to provide 

procurement center representatives with 

the discretion to review any acquisition. 

DATES: Effective September 10, 2021. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Malissa Jones, Procurement Analyst, at 

703–605–2815, or by email at 

Malissa.jones@gsa.gov, for clarification 

of content. For information pertaining to 

status or publication schedules, contact 

the Regulatory Secretariat Division at 

202–501–4755 or GSARegSec@gsa.gov. 

Please cite FAC 2021–07, FAR Case 

2020–012. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

DoD, GSA, and NASA are amending 

the Federal Acquisition Regulation 

(FAR) to implement section 1811 of the 

National Defense Authorization Act 

(NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017 (Pub. 

L. 114–328, 15 U.S.C. 644(l)(9)(A)). 

Section 1811 allows procurement center 

representatives to review any 

solicitation for a contract or task order 

without regard as to whether the 

contract or order is set aside for small 

business concerns, or reserved in the 

case of a multiple-award contract, or 

whether or not the solicitation would 

result in a bundled or consolidated 

contract or order. The Small Business 

Administration (SBA) issued a final rule 

at 84 FR 65647, dated November 29, 

2019, to implement section 1811 of the 

NDAA for FY 2017. In their final rule, 

SBA amended 13 CFR 125.2(b)(1)(i)(A) 

to allow procurement center 

representatives to review any 

acquisition, regardless of whether it is 

set aside, partially set aside, or reserved 

for small business or other 

socioeconomic categories. 

II. Discussion and Analysis 

The changes to the FAR and the 

rationale for the changes are 

summarized in the following 

paragraphs. 

A. Contracting Officer Requirements for 

Review of Acquisitions 

Section 19.202–1, Encouraging small 

business participation in acquisitions, is 

amended to require that contracting 

officers provide the procurement center 

representative a copy of any proposed 

acquisition package and other 

reasonably obtainable information 

related to the acquisition, if the 

procurement center representative 

exercises their discretion to review any 

proposed acquisition. The specific 

procedures are typically articulated in 

agreements between procuring activities 

and procurement center representatives. 

Section 19.202–1 is also amended to 

clarify the acquisitions for which the 

contracting officer must provide the 

statement described in paragraph (e)(2). 

In addition, changes are made to 

paragraph (d) of section 19.501, General, 

to provide that SBA procurement center 

representatives may review any 

proposed acquisition in excess of the 

micro-purchase threshold. 

B. Duties of Procurement Center 

Representatives 

Section 19.402, Small Business 

Administration procurement center 

representatives, is amended to update 

the description of a procurement center 

representative’s duties to better reflect 

SBA’s regulation at 13 CFR 125.2(b). 

Specifically, changes to FAR 19.402(c) 

are made to provide that procurement 

center representatives may recommend 

the set-aside or sole-source award to a 

small business; the breakout of discrete 

components, items, and requirements 

for competition; and ways to improve 

competition. Paragraph (c)(7) in section 

19.402 is relocated from section 19.403, 

Small Business Administration breakout 

procurement center representatives. 

This paragraph describes the appeal a 

procurement center representative may 

file if a contracting activity does not 

adopt the procurement center 

representative’s recommendation. 

C. Duties of Breakout Procurement 

Center Representative 

The text of section 19.403, Small 

Business Administration breakout 

procurement center representatives, is 

removed and marked ‘‘Reserved.’’ 

Paragraph (c)(8) in this section is 

relocated to section 19.402 (see section 

II.B. of this preamble). Breakout 

procurement center representatives 

were removed from the Small Business 

Act (15 U.S.C. 644) by section 1621 of 

the NDAA for FY 2013 (Pub. L. 112– 

239). Therefore, section 19.403 is no 

longer needed. 

D. Technical Amendments 

Section 19.502–8, Rejecting Small 

Business Administration 

recommendations, has a two workingday appeals period. There is a different 

appeals period for the HUBZone, 

Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small 

Business, and Women-Owned Small 

Business Programs, of five working 

days; therefore, a reference is added to 

FAR 19.502–8(b) for those sections. 

III. Publication of This Final Rule for 

Public Comment Is Not Required by 

Statute 

The statute that applies to the 

publication of the FAR is 41 U.S.C. 1707 

entitled ‘‘Publication of Proposed 

Regulations.’’ Paragraph (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 amends 

requirements related to the review of 

proposed acquisitions by SBA’s 

procurement center representatives. 

These requirements affect only the 

internal operating procedures of the 

Government. 

IV. Applicability to Contracts at or 

Below the Simplified Acquisition 

Threshold (SAT) and for Commercial 

Items, Including Commercially 

Available Off-the-Shelf (COTS) Items 

This rule amends FAR part 19, Small 

Business Programs. The objective of this 

rule is to update requirements for 

contracting officers with regard to 

reviews of proposed acquisitions by 

SBA’s procurement center 

representatives, to align with section 

1811 of the NDAA for FY 2017 (Pub. L. 

114–328, 15 U.S.C. 644(l)(9)(A)). This 

rule does not change the applicability or 

text of any FAR solicitation provisions 

or contract clauses. 


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44248 Federal Register / Vol. 86, No. 152 / Wednesday, August 11, 2021 / Rules and Regulations 

V. Expected Impact of the Rule 

The changes in this rule will affect 

Government operations, but not 

contractor operations. 

As a result of this rule, contracting 

officers may have to provide additional 

acquisition packages to procurement 

center representatives for review prior 

to issuance of the solicitation. The 

number of additional acquisitions to be 

reviewed by PCRs is unknown, as the 

reviews will be conducted at the 

discretion of the procurement center 

representatives. 

The cost impact for the Government 

will depend on how many additional 

acquisition packages contracting officers 

provide to procurement center 

representatives for review. This rule 

will have no cost impact for contractors. 

VI. 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, dated September 30, 1993. 

VII. 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, 

GSA, and NASA will send the rule and 

the ‘‘Submission of Federal Rules Under 

the Congressional Review Act’’ form to 

each House of the Congress and to the 

Comptroller General of the United 

States. A major rule cannot take effect 

until 60 days after it is published in the 

Federal Register. The Office of 

Information and Regulatory Affairs 

(OIRA) in the Office of Management and 

Budget has determined that this is not 

a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 804. 

VIII. Regulatory Flexibility Act 

Because a notice of proposed 

rulemaking and an opportunity for 

public comment are not required to be 

given for this rule under 41 U.S.C. 

1707(a)(1) (see section III of this 

preamble), the analytical requirements 

of the Regulatory Flexibility Act (5 

U.S.C. 601–612) are not applicable. 

Accordingly, no regulatory flexibility 

analysis is required, and none has been 

prepared. 

IX. 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. 

3501–3521). 

List of Subjects in 48 CFR Part 19 

Government procurement. 

William F. Clark, 

Director, Office of Government-wide 

Acquisition Policy, Office of Acquisition 

Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy. 

Therefore, DoD, GSA, and NASA 

amend 48 CFR part 19 as set forth 

below: 

PART 19—SMALL BUSINESS 

PROGRAMS 

■ 1. The authority citation for 48 CFR 

part 19 continues to read as follows: 

Authority: 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. 

chapter 137; and 51 U.S.C. 20113. 

■ 2. Amend section 19.202–1 by— 

■ a. In paragraph (e)(1)(ii) removing ‘‘; 

or’’ and adding ‘‘;’’ in its place; 

■ b. In paragraph (e)(1)(iii) removing 

‘‘Utilization.’’ and adding ‘‘Utilization; 

or’’ in its place; 

■ c. Adding paragraph (e)(1)(iv); and 

■ d. Revising paragraph (e)(2) 

introductory text. 

The addition and revision read as 

follows: 

19.202–1 Encouraging small business 

participation in acquisitions. 

* * * * * 

(e)(1) * * * 

(iv) The acquisition will be reviewed 

at the PCR’s discretion. 

(2) For acquisitions described in 

paragraph (e)(1)(i) through (iii) of this 

section, provide a statement explaining 

why the— 

* * * * * 

■ 3. Amend section 19.402 by— 

■ a. Revising paragraph (c)(1)(i); 

■ b. Removing from the end of 

paragraph (c)(1)(ii) ‘‘and’’; 

■ c. Revising paragraph (c)(1)(iii); and 

■ d. Adding paragraphs (c)(1)(iv) and 

(c)(7). 

The revisions and additions read as 

follows: 

19.402 Small Business Administration 

procurement center representatives. 

* * * * * 

(c) * * * 

(1) * * * 

(i) The set-aside or sole-source award 

to a small business of selected 

acquisitions; 

* * * * * 

(iii) Breakout of discrete components, 

items, and requirements for competitive 

acquisitions; and 

(iv) Ways to improve competition. 

* * * * * 

(7) Appealing a contracting officer’s 

rejection of PCR’s recommendation. 

Such appeal must be in writing and 

shall be filed and processed in 

accordance with the appeal procedures 

set out in 19.502–8. 

19.403 [Removed and Reserved] 

■ 4. Remove and reserve section 19.403. 

■ 5. Amend section 19.501 by revising 

paragraph (d) to read as follows: 

19.501 General. 

* * * * * 

(d) At the request of an SBA PCR (or, 

if a PCR is not assigned, see 19.402(a)), 

the contracting officer shall make 

available for review at the contracting 

office (to the extent of the SBA 

representative’s security clearance) any 

proposed acquisition in excess of the 

micro-purchase threshold. 

* * * * * 

■ 6. In section 19.502–8 amend 

paragraph (b) by revising the first 

sentence to read as follows: 

19.502–8 Rejecting Small Business 

Administration recommendations. 

* * * * * 

(b) The SBA PCR (or, if a PCR is not 

assigned, see 19.402(a)) may appeal the 

contracting officer’s rejection to the 

head of the contracting activity within 

2 working days after receiving the notice 

(except see 19.1305(d), 19.1405(d), and 

19.1505(g)). * * * 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2021–16365 Filed 8–10–21; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6820–EP–P 


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