2014-21853. Federal Acquisition Regulation; Enhancements to Past Performance Evaluation Systems

AGENCIES:

Department of Defense (DoD), General Services Administration (GSA), and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

ACTION:

Proposed rule.

SUMMARY:

DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to amend the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) to accommodate the Architect-Engineer Contract Administration Support System (ACASS) and Construction Contractor Appraisal Support System (CCASS) modules within the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) database.

DATES:

Interested parties should submit written comments to the Regulatory Secretariat at one of the addresses shown below on or before November 14, 2014 to be considered in the formation of the final rule.

ADDRESSES:

Submit comments in response to FAR Case 2014-010 by any of the following methods:

• Regulations.gov: http://www.regulations.gov. Submit comments via the Federal eRulemaking portal by searching for “FAR Case 2014-010”. Select the link “Comment Now” that corresponds with FAR Case 2014-010. Follow the instructions provided at the “Comment Now” screen. Please include your name, company name (if any), and “FAR Case 2014-010” on your attached document.
• Fax: [phone].
• Mail: General Services Administration, Regulatory Secretariat (MVCB), ATTN: Hada Flowers, 1800 F Street NW., 2nd Floor, Washington, DC 20405.

Instructions: Please submit comments only and cite FAR case 2014-010, in all correspondence related to this case. All comments received will be posted without change to http://www.regulations.gov,, including any personal and/or business confidential information provided.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Mr. Curtis E. Glover, Sr., Procurement Analyst, at [phone] for clarification of content. For information pertaining to status or publication schedules, contact the Regulatory Secretariat at [phone]. Please cite FAR Case 2014-010.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background

Effective July 1, 2014, the CPARS, ACASS, and CCASS modules were merged into a single application under the CPARS name in order to standardize the contractor performance evaluation process across the entire Federal Government. DoD, GSA, and NASA are proposing to revise the language at FAR 42.1502, Policy, to remove references to the ACASS and CCASS modules. This action will standardize the past performance reporting requirements under the CPARS database in FAR subpart 42.15.

II. Executive Orders 12866 and 13563

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.

III. Regulatory Flexibility Act

DoD, GSA, and NASA do not expect this rule to 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 this rule removes references to the ACASS and CCASS modules since these modules were merged into CPARS on July 1, 2014. This action will standardize the past performance reporting requirements for architect-engineer contracts and construction contracts under the CPARS database. This change does not place any new requirements on small entities. Therefore, an initial regulatory flexibility Analysis has not been performed. DoD, GSA, and NASA invite comments from small business concerns and other interested parties on the expected impact of this rule on small entities.

DoD, GSA, and NASA will also consider comments from small entities concerning the existing regulations in subparts affected by the rule consistent with 5 U.S.C. 610. Interested parties must submit such comments separately and should cite 5 U.S.C. 610, FAR Case 2014-010, in correspondence.

IV. 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 Part 42

• Government procurement

Dated: September 9, 2014.

William Clark,

Acting Director, Office of Government-wide Acquisition Policy, Office of Acquisition Policy, Office of Government-wide Policy.

Therefore, DoD, GSA, and NASA propose amending 48 CFR part 42 as set forth below:

PART 42—CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION AND AUDIT SERVICES

1. The authority citation for 48 CFR part 42 continues to read as follows:

Authority: 40 U.S.C. 121(c); 10 U.S.C. chapter 137; and 51 U.S.C. 20113.

2. Amend section 42.1502 by revising paragraph (a) to read as follows:

42.1502

Policy.

(a) General. Past performance evaluations shall be prepared at least annually and at the time the work under a contract or order is completed. Past performance evaluations are required for all contracts and orders that exceed the specified thresholds, including contracts and orders performed outside the United States. These evaluations are generally for the entity, division, or unit that performed the contract or order. Past performance information shall be entered into CPARS, the Governmentwide evaluation reporting tool for all past performance reports on contracts and orders. Instructions for submitting evaluations into CPARS are available at http://www.cpars.gov/​.

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