07-5797. Federal Acquisition Regulation; Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-22; 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.

SUMMARY:

This document is issued under the joint authority of the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General Services and the Administrator of 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. It consists of a summary of rules appearing in Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2005-22 which amend the FAR. An asterisk (*) next to a rule indicates that a regulatory flexibility analysis has been prepared. Interested parties may obtain further information regarding these rules by referring to FAC 2005-22 which precedes this document. These documents are also available via the Internet at http://www.regulations.gov.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT

Laurieann Duarte, FAR Secretariat, [phone]. For clarification of content, contact the analyst whose name appears in the table below.

List of Rules in FAC 2005-22

Item	Subject	FAR case	Analyst
I	Implementation of Section 104 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005	2006-008	Clark.
II	Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct	2006-007	Woodson.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Summaries for each FAR rule follow. For the actual revisions and/or amendments to these FAR cases, refer to the specific item number and subject set forth in the documents following these item summaries.

FAC 2005-22 amends the FAR as specified below:

Item I—Implementation of Section 104 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 (FAR Case 2006-008)

This final rule implements Section 104 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005. Section 104 requires that all acquisitions of energy consuming-products and all contracts that involve the furnishing of energy-consuming products require acquisition of ENERGY STAR® or Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) designated products. The final rule provides a clause for the Contracting Officer to insert in solicitations and contracts to ensure that suppliers and service and construction contractors recognize when energy-consuming products must be ENERGY STAR® or FEMP-designated.

Item II—Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct (FAR Case 2006-007)

This final rule amends Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Parts 2, 3, and 52 to address the requirements for a contractor code of business ethics and conduct and the display of Federal agency Office of the Inspector General (OIG) Fraud Hotline Posters. In response to public comments, this final rule reduces the burden on small entities by making the requirements for a formal training program and internal control system inapplicable to small businesses. If a small business subsequently finds itself in trouble ethically during the performance of a contract, the need for a training program and internal controls will likely be addressed by the Federal Government at that time, during a criminal or civil lawsuit or debarment or suspension.

Dated: November 16, 2007.

Al Matera,

Director, Office of Acquisition Policy.