[Federal Register: August 30, 2002 (Volume 67, Number 169)]
[Rules and Regulations]
[Page 56126-56127]
From the Federal Register Online via GPO Access [wais.access.gpo.gov]
[DOCID:fr30au02-31]
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DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
48 CFR Chapter 1
Federal Acquisition Regulation; Small Entity Compliance Guide
AGENCIES: Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration
(GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
ACTION: Small Entity Compliance Guide.
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SUMMARY: This document is issued under the joint authority of the
Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General Services and the
Administrator for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
This Small Entity Compliance Guide has been prepared in accordance with
Section 212 of the Small Business Regulatory Enforcement Fairness Act
of 1996 (Pub. L. 104-121). It consists of a summary of rules appearing
in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2001-09 which amend the FAR. An
asterisk (*) next to a rule indicates that a regulatory flexibility
analysis has been prepared in accordance with 5 U.S.C. 604. Interested
parties may obtain further information regarding these rules by
referring to FAC 2001-09 which precedes this document.
[[Page 56127]]
These documents are also available via the Internet at http://frwebgate.access.gpo.gov/cgi-bin/leaving.cgi?from=leavingFR.html&log=linklog&to=http://www.arnet.gov/far.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Laurie Duarte, FAR Secretariat, (202)
501-4225. For clarification of content, contact the analyst whose name
appears in the table below.
List of Rules in FAC 2001-09
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Item Subject FAR case Analyst
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I........................ Task-Order and Delivery-Order 1999-303 Wise.
Contracts.
II....................... Temporary Emergency 2002-003 Moss.
Procurement Authority
(Interim).
III...................... Veterans Entrepreneurship and 2000-302 Cundiff.
Small Business Development
Act of 1999.
IV....................... Trade Agreements Thresholds... 2002-009 Davis.
V........................ Payments Under Fixed-Price 2001-012 Olson.
Construction Contracts.
VI....................... Technical Amendments
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Item I--Task-Order and Delivery-Order Contracts (FAR Case 1999-303)
This final rule amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to
further implement subsections 804(a) and (b) of the National Defense
Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2000 concerning task-order and
delivery-order contracts.
With respect to acquisition planning, the rule draws greater
attention to the capital planning requirements of the Clinger-Cohen Act
(40 U.S.C. 1422) and ensures more deliberation by agency acquisition
planners before orders are placed under a Federal Supply Schedule
contract, or task-order contract or delivery-order contract awarded by
another agency (i.e., Governmentwide acquisition contract or multi-
agency contract).
With respect to the structuring of orders and the consideration
given to contract holders prior to order placement, the rule (1)
increases attention to modular contracting principles to help agencies
avoid unnecessarily large and inadequately defined orders, (2)
facilitates information exchange during the fair opportunity process so
that contractors may develop and propose solutions that enable the
Government to award performance-based orders, and (3) revises existing
documentation requirements to address tradeoff decisions as well as the
issuance of sole-source orders as logical follow-ons to orders already
issued under the contract. This rule also adds a separate definition
for the terms ``Governmentwide acquisition contract (GWAC)'' and
``Multi-agency contract (MAC)'' to the FAR to clarify the difference
between the terms and the purpose of each contract vehicle.
Item II--Temporary Emergency Procurement Authority (FAR Case 2002-003)
This interim rule implements Section 836 of the Fiscal Year 2002
National Defense Authorization Act which increases the amount of the
micro-purchase threshold and the simplified acquisition threshold for
procurements of supplies or services by or for DoD during fiscal years
2002 and 2003, where those procurements are to facilitate the defense
against terrorism or biological or chemical attack against the United
States. Also, contracting officers acquiring biotechnology supplies or
biotechnology services, for use to facilitate the defense against
terrorism or biological or chemical attack against the United States,
may treat the supplies or services as commercial items.
Item III--Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development Act
of 1999 (FAR Case 2000-302)
This final rule finalizes two interim rules published previously at
65 FR 60542, October 11, 2000 (FAC 97-20), and 66 FR 53492, October 22,
2001 (FAC 2001-01), respectively. The first interim rule implemented
portions of the Veterans Entrepreneurship and Small Business
Development Act of 1999 (Pub. L. 106-50), which added a subcontracting
plan goal for veteran-owned small businesses and a 3 percent
Governmentwide agency goal for service-disabled veteran-owned small
businesses. The second interim rule implemented Section 803 of the
Small Business Reauthorization Act of 2000 (part of the Consolidated
Appropriations Act, 2001, Pub. L. 106-554), which added an additional
subcontracting plan goal for service-disabled veteran-owned small
business concerns. Both rules, and the correction published at 67 FR
1858, January 14, 2002 (FAC 2001-01 Correction), are adopted as final
without change.
Item IV--Trade Agreements Thresholds (FAR Case 2002-009)
This final rule amends FAR Subparts 22.15, 25.2, 25.4, 25.6, 25.11,
and the clauses at 52.213-4 and 52.222-19 to implement new dollar
thresholds for application of the Trade Agreements Act and North
American Free Trade Agreement as published by the U.S. Trade
Representative in the Federal Register at 67 FR 14763, March 27, 2002.
Contracting officers must review the new thresholds when acquiring
supplies, services, or construction in order to select the appropriate
clauses to implement the Buy American Act, trade agreements, and
sanctions of European Union country end products and services.
Item V--Payments Under Fixed-Price Construction Contracts (FAR Case
2001-012)
This final rule amends the FAR to clarify in the certification
language of the clause entitled Payments Under Fixed-Price Construction
Contracts that all payments due to subcontractors and suppliers have
been made by the prime contractor from previous progress payments
received from the Government. The rule is of special interest to
contracting officers that administer construction contracts.
Item VI--Technical Amendments
These amendments update sections and make editorial changes at FAR
22.1503, 36.606, and 52.232-16.
Dated: August 21, 2002.
Al Matera,
Director, Acquisition Policy Division.
[FR Doc. 02-21873 Filed 8-29-02; 8:45 am]
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