Source: http://farsite.hill.af.mil/reghtml/changes/fac/fac2005-61.htm
Timestamp: 2018-10-20 04:44:53
Document Index: 329702889

Matched Legal Cases: ['art 33', 'art 33', 'art 6', 'art 33', 'arts 7', 'arts 7']

FAC2005-61
[Pages 56737-56738]
[FR Doc No: 2012-22572]
Federal Register / Vol. 77, No. 178 / Thursday, September 13, 2012 / Rules and Regulations
SUMMARY: This document summarizes the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) rules agreed to by the Civilian Agency Acquisition Council and the Defense Acquisition Regulations Council (Councils) in this Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-61. A companion document, the Small Entity Compliance Guide (SECG), follows this FAC. The FAC, including the SECG, is available via the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.
DATES: For effective dates and comment dates see separate documents, which follow.FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: The analyst whose name appears in the table below in relation to each FAR case. Please cite FAC 2005-61 and the specific FAR case numbers. For information pertaining to status or publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat at 202-501-4755.
United States--Korea Free Trade Agreement.
Delete Outdated FAR Reference Lague to the DoD Industrial Preparedness Program.
Bid Protest and Appeal Authorities.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Summaries for each FAR rule follow. For the actual revisions and/or amendments made by these FAR cases, refer to the specific item numbers and subjects set forth in the documents following these item summaries. FAC 2005-61 amends the FAR as specified below:
Item I--United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FAR Case 2012-004) This final rule adopts without change the interim rule published in the Federal Register on March 7, 2012 (77 FR 13952), to implement the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement. The Republic of Korea is already party to the World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement (WTO GPA). The Korea Free Trade Agreement now covers acquisition of supplies and services between $100,000 and the current WTO GPA threshold of $202,000. This final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.
Item II--Delete Outdated FAR Reference to the DoD Industrial Preparedness Program (FAR Case 2012-026)
This final rule amends the FAR to delete outdated references to the ``DoD Industrial Preparedness Program'', which is no longer in existence. There is no impact to the Government or small business because this program was discontinued in 1992.
Item III--NAICS and Size Standards (FAR Case 2012-021)
Item IV--Bid Protest and Appeal Authorities (FAR Case 2012-008) This final rule amends FAR part 33 to note that there are other Federal-court related protest authorities and dispute-appeal authorities that are not covered by FAR part 33. This rule also provides contracting officers with appropriate references to their office of legal counsel and the Web site for the rules of the U.S. Court of Federal Claims. This is a final rule because it only impacts the Federal Government's internal operating procedures.
[FR Doc No: 2012-22574]
[FAC 2005-61; FAR Case 2012-004; Item I; Docket 2012-0004, Sequence 1]
SUMMARY: DoD, GSA, and NASA are adopting as final, without change, an interim rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to implement the United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement. The Republic of Korea is already party to the World Trade Organization Government Procurement Agreement, but this trade agreement implements a lower procurement threshold.
DATES: Effective Date: September 13, 2012.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ms. Cecelia L. Davis, Procurement Analyst, at 202-219-0202 for clarification of content. For information pertaining to status or publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat at 202-501-4755. Please cite FAC 2005-61, FAR Case 2012-004.
The interim rule added the Republic of Korea to the definition of
``Free Trade Agreement country'' in multiple locations in the FAR. The Republic of Korea was already listed as a designated country because it is party to the WTO GPA. The excluded services for the Korea FTA are the same as for the WTO GPA. By implementation of this Korea FTA, eligible goods and services from Korea are now covered when valued at or above $100,000, rather than at or above the WTO GPA threshold of $202,000. The threshold for the Korea FTA for construction is the same as the threshold for the WTO GPA for construction.
However, as discussed in the section on Regulatory Flexibility, the lowering of the threshold from $202,000 to $100,0000 only applies to the supplies and services covered by the Korea Free Trade Agreement. For DoD, it only covers the non-defense items listed at Defense Federal Acquisition Regulations System (DFARS) 225.401-70. Acquisitions that are set aside or provide other form of preference for small businesses are exempt from the Korea Free Trade Agreement. FAR 19.502-2 states that acquisitions that do not exceed $150,000 (except as described in paragraph (1) of the definition of ``simplified acquisition threshold'' at 2.101) are automatically reserved exclusively for small business concerns, unless the contracting officer determines that there is not a reasonable expectation of obtaining offers from two or more responsible small business concerns.
Response: This question is not unique to the Korea Free Trade Agreement. The FAR does not provide provisions or clauses for the specific implementation of any trade agreements. The FAR provisions and clauses address only end products, because the provisions and clauses are necessary to--
Response: The FAR has not included the list of Federal entities subject to any other free trade agreement or the WTO GPA. Therefore, the Councils do not consider inclusion of such a list in the FAR for the Korea Free Trade Agreement to be necessary or appropriate.4. Past Performance
Comment: One respondent expressed appreciation of the specific reference to Article 17.5.2(b) of the Korea Free Trade Agreement in the Federal Register preamble to the interim rule. Article 17.5.2.(b) stipulates that an agency shall not impose a condition that, in order for an offeror to be allowed to submit an offer or be awarded a contract, the offeror has been previously awarded one or more contracts by an agency of the United States Government or that the offeror has prior work experience in the United States. The respondent suggested that Office of Management and Budget guidance on ``best practices for collecting and using current and past performance information'' be updated by adding best practices related to Articles 17.5.2(b) of the Korea Free Trade Agreement. Response: Changes to the Office of Management and Budget guidance are outside the scope of this rule. The Councils note, however, that FAR 15.305(a)(2)(iv) already requires that, in the case of an offeror without a record of relevant past performance or for whom information on past performance is not available, the offeror may not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably on past performance.
The Department of Defense, the General Services Administration, and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration certify that this final rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities within the meaning of the Regulatory Flexibility Act, 5 U.S.C. 601, et seq., because Korea is already a designated country under the WTO GPA. Although the rule opens up Government procurement to the goods and services of Korea at or above the threshold of $100,000, the Department of Defense only applies the trade agreements to the non-defense items listed at DFARS 225.401-70, and acquisitions that are set aside or provide other form of preference for small businesses are exempt from coverage of the agreement. FAR 19.502-2 states that acquisitions that do not exceed $150,000 (except as described in paragraph (1) of the definition of ``simplified acquisition threshold'' at 2.101) are automatically reserved exclusively for small business concerns, unless the contracting officer determines that there is not a reasonable expectation of obtaining offers from two or more responsible small business concerns.
[FR Doc No: 2012-22577]
SUMMARY: DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a final rule amending the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to delete references to the obsolete ``DoD Industrial Preparedness Program''.
DATES: Effective Date: October 15, 2012
DoD, GSA, and NASA are issuing a final rule to delete references to the obsolete ``DoD Industrial Preparedness Program'' at FAR 6.302-3(b)(iv).
``Publication of proposed regulations'', 41 U.S.C. 1707, is the statute which applies to the publication of the FAR. 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 operation 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 deletes references to an obsolete program; which has neither a significant effect beyond the internal operation procedures of the agency issuing the policy, regulation, procedure or form, nor has a significant cost or administrative impact on contractors or offerors.
1. The authority citation for 48 CFR part 6 is revised to read as follows:
[FR Doc No: 2012-22578]
The Small Business Administration (SBA) is responsible for developing size standards for each NAICS category on an industry by industry basis. Before a size standard is made available for use by industry, the SBA must solicit comments from the public through the rulemaking process and then coordinate with General Services Administration to update the associated acquisition systems, to reflect industry size standards that have been adopted for new NAICS codes. SBA publishes the corresponding industry size standards on their Web site at http://www.sba.gov/content/table-small-business-size-standards and at 13 CFR 121.201.
This final rule revises--
(1) FAR 19.001, to remove the Uniform Resource Locator (URL) for the NAICS manual, at the end of the definition for ``Industry,'' since this information is already provided in FAR 19.102(b)(1).
``Publication of proposed regulations'', 41 U.S.C. 1707, is the statute which applies to the publication of the FAR. 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 does not have a significant effect beyond the internal operating procedures of the Federal Government, nor will it have a significant cost or administrative impact on contractors or offerors. These requirements affect only the internal operating procedures of the Government.
2. Amend section 19.001 by removing from the definition ``Industry'' the words ``(available via the Internet at http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html)''.
3. Amend section 19.102 by--
b. Removing from paragraph (b)(1) ``via the Internet at http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html'' and adding ``at http://www.census.gov/eos/www/naics/'' in its place; and
c. Removing paragraph (g) to read as follows:
[FR Doc. 2012-22578 Filed 9-12-12; 8:45 am]
[FR Doc No: 2012-22584]
``Publication of proposed regulations'', 41 U.S.C. 1707, is the statute which applies to the publication of the FAR. 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 only refers to the statutory authorities and provides an internal requirement for contracting officers to contact their designated legal advisor for additional information whenever they become aware of any litigation related to their contracts. The FAR does not address the substance of these authorities. These requirements affect only the internal operating procedures of the Government.III. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563
z 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. This rule is not a major rule under 5 U.S.C. 804.
1. The authority citation for 48 CFR part 33 is revised to read as follows:
3. Amend section 33.101 by adding, in alphabetical order, the definition ``Protest venue'' to read as follows.
[FR Doc No: 2012-22588]
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: In order to update certain elements in 48 CFR parts 7 and 15, this document makes editorial changes to the FAR.
1. The authority citation for 48 CFR parts 7 and 15 is revised to read as follows:
3. Amend section 15.404-1 by removing from paragraph (a)(7) ``http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/cpf/contract_pricing_reference_guides.html'' and adding ``http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/cpic/cp/contract_pricing_reference_guides.html'' in its place.
[FR Doc No: 2012-22589]
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 rule appearing in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-61, 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 this rule by referring to FAC 2005-61, which precedes this document. These documents are also available via the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.
Item I--United States-Korea Free Trade Agreement (FAR Case 2012-004)
Item II--Delete Outdated FAR Reference to the DoD Industrial
Preparedness Program (FAR Case 2012-026)
Item IV--Bid Protest and Appeal Authorities (FAR Case 2012-008)