2020-15294. Federal Acquisition Regulation; Federal Acquisition Circular 2020-08; Small Entity Compliance Guide

AGENCY:

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 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) 2020-08, 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 2020-08, which precedes this document. These documents are also available via the internet at https://www.regulations.gov.

DATES:

July 14, 2020.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

[e-mail] or call 202-969-4075. Please cite FAC 2020-08, FAR case 2019-009.

Rule Listed in FAC 2020-08

Subject	FAR case
* Prohibition on Contracting with Entities Using Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment	2019-009

ADDRESSES:

The FAC, including the SECG, is available via the internet at https://www.regulations.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

A summary for each FAR rule follows. For the actual revisions and/or amendments made by this FAR case, refer to the specific subject set forth in the document following this summary. FAC 2020-08 amends the FAR as follows:

Prohibition on Contracting With Entities Using Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment (FAR Case 2019-009)

This interim rule amends the Federal Acquisition Regulation to implement section 889(a)(1)(B) of Title VII of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232). Paragraph (a)(1)(B) of section 889 prohibits executive agencies from entering into, or extending or renewing, a contract with an entity that uses any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system, on or after August 13, 2020 unless an exception applies or a waiver is granted.

To implement paragraph (a)(1)(B) of section 889, the provision at 52.204-24 requires all offerors to represent, after conducting a reasonable inquiry, whether covered telecommunications equipment or services are used by the offeror, and if so, to provide further information. The clause at 52.204-25 prohibits the head of an executive agency from entering into a contract, or extending or renewing a contract, with an entity that uses any equipment, system or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system, unless an exception applies or a waiver is granted. The contractor must report use of any such equipment, systems, or services discovered during contract performance.

This rule applies to all acquisitions, including acquisitions at or below the simplified acquisition threshold and to acquisitions of commercial items, including commercially available off-the-shelf items. It may have a significant economic impact on a substantial number of small entities.

This interim rule is being implemented as a national security measure to protect Government information and information and communication technology systems.

William F. Clark,

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