[Federal Register Volume 71, Number 48 (Monday, March 13, 2006)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 12660-12661]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: E6-3518]
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ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
48 CFR Parts 1532 and 1552
[FRL-8044-3]
EPAAR Prescription and Clause--Simplified Acquisition Procedures
Financing
AGENCY: Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
ACTION: Proposed rule.
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SUMMARY: EPA is proposing to revise the EPA Acquisition Regulation
(EPAAR) Subparts 1532 and 1552 to implement a procedure for simplified
acquisition procedures financing. This proposed EPAAR revision will add
a prescription and clause for contracting officers to use when
approving advance or interim payments on simplified acquisitions. The
proposed prescription and clause apply to commercial item orders at or
below the simplified acquisition threshold. This action revises the
EPAAR, but does not impose any new requirements on Agency contractors.
The procedure will allow contractors to invoice for advance and interim
payments in accordance with standard commercial practices when
authorized by the contracting officer and identified in the clause
payment schedule.
DATES: Interested parties should submit comments in writing on or
before May 12, 2006.
ADDRESSES: Submit your comments, identified by Docket ID No. OARM-2006-
0126, by one of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the on-line instructions for submitting comments.
Agency Web site: http://www.epa.gov/edocket. EDOCKET,
EPA's electronic public docket and comment system, is EPA's preferred
method for receiving comments. Follow the on-line instructions for
submitting comments.
E-mail: [email protected].
Surface Mail: EPA Docket Center, Environmental Protection
Agency, Mailcode: 28221T, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, DC
20460. Attention Docket ID No. OARM-2006-0126.
Instructions: Direct your comments to Docket ID No. EPA's policy is
that all comments received will be included in the public docket
without change and may be made available online at http://www.epa.gov/edocket, including any personal information provided, unless the
comment includes information claimed to be Confidential Business
Information (CBI) or other information whose disclosure is restricted
by statute. Do not submit information that you consider to be CBI or
otherwise protected through EDOCKET, regulations.gov, or e-mail. The
EPA EDOCKET and the federal regulations.gov Web sites are ``anonymous
access'' systems, which means EPA will not know your identity or
contact information unless you provide it in the body of your comment.
If you send an e-mail comment directly to EPA without going through
EDOCKET or regulations.gov, your e-mail address will be automatically
captured and included as part of the comment that is placed in the
public docket and made available on the Internet. If you submit an
electronic comment, EPA recommends that you include your name and other
contact information in the body of your comment and with any disk or
CD-ROM you submit. If EPA cannot read your comment due to technical
difficulties and cannot contact you for clarification, EPA may not be
able to consider your comment. Electronic files should avoid the use of
special characters, any form of encryption, and be free of any defects
or viruses. For additional information about EPA's public docket visit
EDOCKET on-line or see the Federal Register of May 31, 2002 (67 FR
38102).
Docket: All documents in the docket are listed in the EDOCKET index
at http://www.epa.gov/edocket. Although listed in the index, some
information is not publicly available, i.e., CBI or other information
whose disclosure is restricted by statute. Certain other material, such
as copyrighted material, is not placed on the Internet and will be
publicly available only in hard copy form. Publicly available docket
materials are available either electronically in EDOCKET or in hard
copy at the OEI Docket, EPA/DC, EPA West, Room B102, 1301 Constitution
Ave., NW., Washington, DC. The Public Reading Room is open from 8:30
a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday,
[[Page 12661]]
excluding legal holidays. The telephone number for the Public Reading
Room is (202) 566-1744, and the telephone number for the OEI Docket is
(202) 566-1752).
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Tiffany Schermerhorn, Policy, Training
and Oversight Division, Office of Acquisition Management, Mail Code
3802R, Environmental Protection Agency, 1200 Pennsylvania Ave., NW.,
Washington, DC 20460; e-mail address: [email protected],
telephone (202) 564-9902.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
I. General Information
The proposed EPAAR additions are necessary so that contracting
officers may provide simplified acquisition procedures financing that
is appropriate or customary in the commercial marketplace when
purchasing commercial items at or below the simplified acquisition
threshold. It does not impose any new requirements regarding submission
of invoices or vouchers since Agency contractors currently submit
invoices or vouchers for payment of orders. The EPAAR changes are
consistent with the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
II. Statutory and Executive Order Reviews
A. Executive Order 12866
It has been determined that this rule is not a ``significant
regulatory action'' under the terms of Executive Order 12866 and is
therefore not subject to OMB review.
B. Paperwork Reduction Act
This action does not impose an information collection burden under
the provisions of the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq.
This rule does not impose any new information collection or other
requirements on Agency contractors.
C. Regulatory Flexibility Act
The Regulatory Flexibility Act (RFA) generally requires an agency
to prepare a regulatory flexibility analysis of any rule subject to
notice and comment rulemaking requirements under the Administrative
Procedure Act or any other statute unless the agency certifies that the
rule will not have a significant economic impact on a substantial
number of small entities. Small entities include small businesses,
small organizations, and small governmental jurisdictions.
For purposes of assessing the impacts of today's rule on small
entities, small entity is defined as: (1) A small business as defined
by the Small Business Administration's (SBA) regulations at 13 CFR
121.201; (2) a small governmental jurisdiction that is a government of
a city, county, town, school district or special district with a
population of less than 50,000; and (3) a small organization that is
any not-for-profit enterprise which is independently owned and operated
and is not dominant in its field.
After considering the economic impacts of today's proposed rule on
small entities, I certify that this action will not have a significant
economic impact on a substantial number of small entities. This
proposed rule will not impose any new requirements on small entities.
List of Subjects in 48 CFR Parts 1532 and 1552
Government procurement.
Dated: February 15, 2006.
Judy S. Davis,
Director, Office of Acquisition Management.
For the reasons set forth in the Preamble, Chapter 15 of Title 48
Code of Federal Regulations, parts 1532 and 1552 are proposed to be
amended as follows:
1. The authority citation for 48 CFR parts 1532 and 1552 continues
to read as follows:
Authority: Sec. 205(c), 63 Stat. 390 as amended, 40 U.S.C.
486(c).
PART 1532--CONTRACT FINANCING
2. Add section 1532.003 to read as follows.
1532.003 Simplified acquisition procedures financing.
(a) Scope. This subpart provides for authorization of advance and
interim payments on commercial item orders not exceeding the simplified
acquisition threshold. Advance payments are payments that are made
prior to performance. Interim payments are payments that are made
during the order period according to a payment schedule.
(b) Procedures for micropurchases. Contracting officers may
authorize advance and interim payments on orders for commercial items
only at or below the micro-purchase threshold.
(c) Procedures for purchases exceeding micropurchase threshold.
Contracting officers must secure approval at one level above the
contracting officer, on a case-by-case basis, for advance and interim
payments on orders for commercial items exceeding the micropurchase
threshold and not exceeding the simplified acquisition threshold. The
contracting officer shall submit a recommendation for approval of
financing terms, along with the supporting rationale for the action, to
one level above the contracting officer. Simplified acquisition
contracting officers (SACO) shall forward recommendations through their
OAM Advisors to one level above the contracting officer.
(d) Supporting rationale. Regardless of dollar value, the
contracting officer shall document the file with supporting rationale
demonstrating that the purchase meets the conditions of FAR 32.202-
1(b)(1), (3) and (4).
(e) Administration. Regardless of dollar value, the contracting
officer is responsible for ensuring that supplies or services have been
delivered. The contracting officer shall document the file with
evidence of receipt of supplies or services throughout the order period
as appropriate to the acquisition.
(f) Clause. The contracting officer shall insert the clause at
1552.232-74, Payments--Simplified Acquisition Procedures Financing, in
solicitations and orders that will provide simplified acquisition
procedures financing.
PART 1552--SOLICITATION PROVISIONS AND CONTRACT CLAUSES
3. Add section 1552.232-74 to read as follows.
1552.232-74 Payments--Simplified Acquisition Procedures Financing.
As prescribed in 1532.003, insert the following clause in
solicitations and orders that will provide simplified acquisition
procedures financing.
PAYMENTS--SIMPLIFIED ACQUISITION PROCEDURES FINANCING (XXX 2006)
Simplified acquisition procedures financing in the form of ----
-------- [contracting officer insert advance (prior to performance)
and/or interim (according to payment schedule] payment(s) will be
provided under this commercial item order in accordance with the
payment schedule below. If both advance and interim payments are to
be made, the payment schedule shown below will specify the type of
payment provided for each line item.
The Government shall pay the contractor as follows upon the
submission of invoices or vouchers approved by the project officer:
----------------[insert payment schedule].
[FR Doc. E6-3518 Filed 3-10-06; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6560-50-P