25152 Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 82 / Thursday, April 28, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 

subcontractor in accordance with the 

Disputes clause of this contract. In order 

to sustain the challenge for commercial 

items, the Contracting Officer will 

provide information demonstrating that 

the commercial item was not developed 

exclusively at private expense. This 

final decision will be issued as soon as 

possible after the expiration of the time 

period of paragraph (e)(1)(ii) or (e)(2) of 

this clause. Following issuance of the 

final decision, the Contracting Officer 

will comply with the procedures in 

paragraphs (g)(2)(ii) through (iv) of this 

clause. 

(g) * * * 

(2)(i) If the Contracting Officer 

determines that the validity of the 

restrictive marking is not justified, the 

Contracting Officer will issue a final 

decision to the Contractor or 

subcontractor in accordance with the 

Disputes clause of this contract. In order 

to sustain the challenge for commercial 

items, the Contracting Officer will 

provide information demonstrating that 

the commercial item was not developed 

exclusively at private expense. 

Notwithstanding paragraph (e) of the 

Disputes clause, the final decision will 

be issued within 60 days after receipt of 

the Contractor’s or subcontractor’s 

response to the challenge notice, or 

within such longer period that the 

Contracting Officer has notified the 

Contractor or subcontractor that the 

Government will require. The 

notification of a longer period for 

issuance of a final decision will be made 

within 60 days after receipt of the 

response to the challenge notice. 

* * * * * 

[FR Doc. 2022–08811 Filed 4–27–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Defense Acquisition Regulations 

System 

48 CFR Parts 232 and 252 

[Docket DARS–2022–0009] 

RIN 0750–AL53 

Defense Federal Acquisition 

Regulation Supplement: Repeal of 

DFARS Provision ‘‘Payment in Local 

Currency (Afghanistan)’’ (DFARS Case 

2022–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 remove a solicitation 

provision that is no longer necessary. 

DATES: Effective April 28, 2022. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. 

Barbara J. Salcido, telephone 571–372– 

6102. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background 

As required at DFARS subpart 232.72, 

Payment in Local Currency 

(Afghanistan), DFARS solicitation 

provision 252.232–7014, Payment in 

Local Currency (Afghanistan), is 

included in all solicitations, including 

solicitations using Federal Acquisition 

Regulation (FAR) part 12 procedures for 

the acquisition of commercial items, for 

performance in Afghanistan. The 

provision notifies host nation (Afghan) 

vendors that the contract resulting from 

the solicitation will be paid in local 

currency (Afghani) via electronic funds 

transfer to a local (Afghan) banking 

institution unless an exception applies. 

It also notifies host nation vendors that 

contracts would not be awarded if they 

did not bank locally. Host nation 

vendors were required to submit 

quotations and offers in U.S. dollars, but 

the contract would be converted to 

Afghani using the current U.S. budget 

rate (i.e., U.S. Treasury rate of exchange) 

upon award. 

Due to the drawdown of operations in 

Afghanistan, the text at DFARS 232.72 

and solicitation provision 252.232–7014 

are no longer required. The U.S. 

Department of the Treasury has placed 

the Taliban, the de facto government in 

Afghanistan, on the Office of Foreign 

Assets Control Sanction List. Therefore, 

payment cannot be made to an Afghan 

vendor in Afghani via electronic funds 

to an Afghan banking institution. 

Consequently, this rule is repealing 

DFARS subpart 232.72 and solicitation 

provision 252.232–7014, since these 

requirements are rendered inoperable 

with the drawdown of operations in 

Afghanistan. 

II. 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, 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 the rule is merely 

removing an obsolete solicitation 

provision from the DFARS. The rule 

does not have a significant cost or 

administrative impact on contractors or 

offerors and does not have a significant 

effect beyond DoD’s internal operating 

procedures. 

III. Applicability to Contracts at or 

Below the Simplified Acquisition 

Threshold, for Commercial Products 

Including Commercially Available Offthe-Shelf Items, and for Commercial 

Services 

This rule only removes obsolete 

DFARS subpart 232.72, Payment in 

Local Currency (Afghanistan), and 

DFARS solicitation provision 252.232– 

7014, Payment in Local Currency 

(Afghanistan). The rule does not impose 

any new requirements on contracts 

valued at or below the simplified 

acquisition threshold, for commercial 

products including commercially 

available off-the-shelf items, or for 

commercial services. 

IV. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563 

Executive Orders (E.O.) 12866 and 

E.O. 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. 

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 


jspears on DSK121TN23PROD with RULES1
Federal Register / Vol. 87, No. 82 / Thursday, April 28, 2022 / Rules and Regulations 25153 

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 

The 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 Parts 232 and 

252 

Government procurement. 

Jennifer D. Johnson, 

Editor/Publisher, Defense Acquisition 

Regulations System. 

Therefore, 48 CFR parts 232 and 252 

are amended as follows: 

■ 1. The authority citation for 48 CFR 

parts 232 and 252 continues to read as 

follows: 

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

chapter 1. 

PART 232—CONTRACT FINANCING 

Subpart 232.72 [Removed and 

Reserved] 

■ 2. Subpart 232.72, consisting of 

sections 232.7200, 232.7201, and 

232.7202, is removed and reserved. 

PART 252—SOLICITATION 

PROVISIONS AND CONTRACT 

CLAUSES 

252.232–7014 [Removed and Reserved] 

■ 3. Section 252.232–7014 is removed 

and reserved. 

[FR Doc. 2022–08816 Filed 4–27–22; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 5001–06–P 

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE 

National Oceanic and Atmospheric 

Administration 

50 CFR Part 665 

[Docket No. 220421–0102] 

RIN 0648–BK74 

Pacific Island Fisheries; Pelagic 

Longline Gear and Operational 

Requirements 

AGENCY: National Marine Fisheries 

Service (NMFS), National Oceanic and 

Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), 

Commerce. 

ACTION: Final rule. 

SUMMARY: In this final rule, NMFS 

prohibits the use of wire leaders in the 

Hawaii deep-set longline fishery, and 

requires the removal of fishing gear from 

any oceanic whitetip shark caught in all 

of the region’s domestic longline 

fisheries. The rule is intended to 

increase post-hooking survival of 

threatened oceanic whitetip sharks. 

DATES: The final rule is effective May 

31, 2022. 

ADDRESSES: Copies of the Fishery 

Ecosystem Plan for Pelagic Fisheries of 

the Western Pacific (FEP) are available 

from the Western Pacific Fishery 

Management Council (Council), 1164 

Bishop St., Suite 1400, Honolulu, HI 

96813, tel. 808–522–8220, fax 808–522– 

8226, or www.wpcouncil.org. 

Copies of the environmental analyses 

and other supporting documents for this 

action are available from https://

www.regulations.gov/docket?D=NOAANMFS-2021-0099, or from Michael D. 

Tosatto, Regional Administrator, NMFS 

Pacific Islands Regional Office (PIRO), 

1845 Wasp Blvd., Bldg. 176, Honolulu, 

HI 96818. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

David O’Brien, NMFS Pacific Islands 

Regional Office, Sustainable Fisheries, 

808–725–5038. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: NMFS and 

the Western Pacific Fishery 

Management Council (Council) manage 

the Hawaii (shallow-set and deep-set) 

and America Samoa longline fisheries 

under the FEP as authorized by the 

Magnuson-Stevens Fishery 

Conservation and Management Act 

(Magnuson-Stevens Act). These fisheries 

occasionally catch oceanic whitetip 

sharks (Carcharhinus longimanus). 

NMFS listed oceanic whitetip sharks as 

threatened under the Endangered 

Species Act (ESA) on January 30, 2018 

(83 FR 4153). In an effort to improve 

survival of oceanic whitetip sharks 

unintentionally caught in the FEP 

longline fisheries, this rule prohibits the 

use of wire leaders, specifically steel 

wire line within 1 meter of the hook, in 

the Hawaii deep-set fishery. Wire 

leaders are difficult for sharks to bite off 

and free themselves and difficult for 

fishermen to cut from deck height as 

compared to alternative monofilament 

leaders. The rule also requires, with 

limited exceptions for safety and data 

collection, that fishermen remove 

fishing gear from any oceanic whitetip 

shark caught in all longline fisheries 

operating under the FEP. The rule is 

intended to reduce the amount of 

fishing gear (aka, trailing gear) attached 

to released oceanic whitetip sharks. 

Long trailing gear reduces survivorship 

of oceanic whitetip sharks 

unintentionally caught in the fisheries. 

You may find additional background 

information on this action in the 

preamble to the proposed rule 

published on January 19, 2022 (87 FR 

2742). 

Comments and Responses 

On January 19, 2022, NMFS 

published a proposed rule, an 

Environmental Assessment (EA), and 

Regulatory Impact Review (RIR) for 

public comment (86 FR 2742). The 

comment period ended February 18, 

2022. We received 46 comments from 

individuals and 2 from organizations. In 

general, all comments supported the 

proposed rule. All comments related to 

the proposed rule; there were no 

comments directed at analysis presented 

in the EA or the RIR. We summarize and 

respond to the comments here, 

combining substantially similar 

comments. 

Comment 1: Many commenters 

expressed strong support for the 

proposed rule noting the importance of 

sharks to marine ecosystem and threats 

to the species, including fisheries 

interactions and climate change. 

Response: NMFS agrees and will 

continue to manage and regulate Federal 

fisheries for sustainability, and to 

minimize bycatch, bycatch mortality, 

and interactions with protected species 

consistent with the Magnuson-Stevens 

Act, the ESA, the FEP, and 

implementing regulations. 

Comment 2: Several commenters 

expressed strong support for the 

proposed rule, noting benefits to both 

marine species and fishing industry 

participants. 

Response: We agree. Building from an 

industry-led initiative and 

recommendation from the Council, the 

Council and NMFS developed this rule 

to improve post-hooking survival of 

threatened oceanic whitetip sharks 


jspears on DSK121TN23PROD with RULES1