NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION (NASA)
Statement of Regulatory Priorities
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) aim is to increase human understanding of the solar system and the universe that contains it and to improve American aeronautics ability. NASA's basic organization consists of the Headquarters, nine field Centers, the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (a Federally Funded Research and Development Center), and several component installations which report to Center Directors. Responsibility for overall planning, coordination, and control of NASA programs is vested in NASA Headquarters located in Washington, DC.
NASA continues to implement programs according to its 2014 Strategic Plan. The Agency's mission is to "Drive advances in science, technology, aeronautics, and space exploration to enhance knowledge, education, innovation, economic vitality, and stewardship of the Earth." The FY 2014 Strategic Plan, (available at http://www.nasa.gov/sites/default/
files/files/2014 NASA Strategic Plan.pdf), guides NASA's program activities through a framework of the following three strategic goals:
In the decades since Congress enacted the National Aeronautics and Space Act of 1958, NASA has challenged its scientific and engineering capabilities in pursuing its mission, generating tremendous results and benefits for humankind. NASA will continue to push scientific and technical boundaries in pursuit of these goals.
International Regulatory Cooperation
As the President noted in Executive Order 13609, "international regulatory cooperation, consistent with domestic law and prerogatives and U.S. trade policy, can be an important means of promoting" public health, welfare, safety, and our environment as well as economic growth, innovation, competitiveness, and job creation. Accordingly, in Executive Order 13609, the President requires each executive agency to include in its Regulatory Plan a summary of its international regulatory cooperation activities that are reasonably anticipated to lead to significant regulations.
In August 2009, the President directed a broad-based interagency review of the U.S. export control system, with the goal of strengthening national security by focusing efforts on controlling the most critical products and technologies and by enhancing the competitiveness of US manufacturing and technology sectors. While NASA does not have any regulations implementing this initiative, the Agency does serve on the interagency review team in a consultative and supportive role for this process, along with the Department of Defense, the Department of State, and the Department of Commerce.
In addition, NASA serves as one of the signatories to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). The FAR at 48 CFR chapter 1, contains procurement regulations that apply to NASA and other Federal agencies. Pursuant to 41 U.S.C. section 1302 and FAR 1.103(b), the FAR is jointly prepared, issued, and maintained by the Secretary of Defense, the Administrator of General Services, and the Administrator, National Aeronautics and Space Administration, under their several statutory authorities. NASA implements and supplements FAR requirements through the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS), 48 CFR chapter 18. NASA finalized the entire NFS rewrite initiative this year to eliminate unnecessary and burdensome regulations, clarify regulatory language, and simplify processes. More than 1.9 million hours of information collection requirements (ICRs) were identified as no longer required and duplicative of active FAR-level ICRs. Specifically, OMB control numbers 2700-0085, 2700-0086, and 2700-0087 were discontinued as part of the NFS rewrite initiative. The Agency will continue to analyze the NFS to implement procurement-related statutes, Executive orders, NASA initiatives, and Federal procurement policy that streamline current processes and procedures.
Retrospective Review of Existing Regulations
Pursuant to section 6 of Executive Order 13579 "Regulation and Independent Regulatory Agencies" (Jul. 11, 2011), NASA regulations associated with its retrospective review and analysis are described in the Agency's final retrospective plan of existing regulations. NASA's final plan and updates can be found at http://www.nasa.gov/open, under the Open Government News. Below describes the rulemakings that were recently completed or are near completion.
Rulemakings that were streamlined and reduced unjustified burdens
1. Discrimination on Basis of Handicap [14 CFR 1251] - NASA has finalized its section 504 regulations to incorporate changes to the definition of disability required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Amendments Act of 2008; include an affirmative statement of the longstanding requirement for reasonable accommodations in programs, services, and activities; include a definition of direct threat and a provision describing the parameters of the existing direct threat defense to a claim of discrimination; clarify the existing obligation to provide auxiliary aids and services to qualified individuals with disabilities; update the methods of communication that recipients may use to inform program beneficiaries of their obligation to comply with section 504 to reflect changes in technology, adopt updated accessibility standards applicable to the design, construction, and alteration of buildings and facilities; establish time periods for compliance with these updated accessibility standards; provide NASA with access to recipient data and records to determine compliance with section 504; and make administrative updates to correct titles. These amendments will reduce administrative burdens imposed on the public [81 FR 3703].
2. NASA FAR Supplement: Safety and Health Measures and Mishap Reporting [48 CFR 1852.233] - NASA finalized its regulations to revise a current clause related to safety and health measures and mishaps reporting by narrowing the application of the clause, resulting in a decrease in the reporting burden on contractors while reinforcing the measures contractors at NASA facilities must take to protect the safety of their workers, NASA employees, the public, and high-value assets. These amendments streamlined and reduced reporting requirements imposed on the public [80 FR 73675].
3. Clarification of Award Fee Evaluations and Payments - [48 CFR 1816 and 1852] NASA issued a final rule amending the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (NFS) to clarify NASA's award fee process by incorporating terms used in award-fee contracting; guidance relative to final award-fee evaluations; release of source selection information; and the calculation of the provisional award fee payment percentage in NASA end-item award-fee contracts [81 FR 50365].
4. Cooperative Agreements with Commercial Firms - [14 CFR 1274] NASA issued a final rule amending its regulation on Cooperative Agreements with Commercial Firms to implement the requirements of section 872 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2009 for recipients and NASA staff to report information that will appear in the Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System (FAPIIS) [81 FR 35583].
Rulemakings that were modified, streamlined, expanded, or repealed
5. Space Flight [14 CFR 1214] - NASA amended its regulations to remove language that refers to the retired Space Shuttle Program and to clarify language for other ongoing programs that require some of this rule to remain in place [81 FR 8545].
6. NASA Protective Services [14 CFR 1204] - NASA amended its traffic enforcement regulation to correct citations and to clarify the regulation's scope, policy, responsibilities, procedures, and violation descriptions [81 FR 70151].
7. Processing of Monetary Claims [14 CFR 1261] - NASA is amending its regulations to change the amount to collect installment payments from $20,000 to $100,000 to align with Title II, Claims of the United States Government, section 3711(a)(2) Collection and Compromise. This regulation will also be amended to include the rules for the use of contractors for debt collection and new provisions allowing for debts to be transferred to the Treasury Department for direct collection, as prescribed by Federal Debt Collection Procedures Act of 1990.
8. Duty Free Entry of Space Articles [14 CFR 1217] - NASA amended its regulations to remove language that refers to the Space Shuttle Program and to clarify language for other ongoing programs that require some of this rule to remain in place [80 FR 45864].
9. Removal of Obsolete Regulations [14 CFR 1216] - NASA amended its regulations to remove regulatory text that is covered in internal NASA policies and requirements [80 FR 30352].
10. Administrative Updates [14 CFR 1207, 1245, 1262, 1263, 1264, & 1266] NASA amended its regulations to make administrative updates to correct spelling citations [80 FR 42028].
11. Removal of Outdated and Duplicative Guidance [48 CFR 1817 and 1852] - NASA amended the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) to remove duplicative language of the FAR and superseded NFS guidance. The revision is part of NASA's retrospective plan under Executive Order (EO) 13563 completed in August 2011 [81 FR 39871].
Rulemaking that is of particular concerns to small business
Abstracts for other regulations that will be amended or repealed between October 2016 and October 2017 are reported in the fall 2016 edition of Unified Agenda of Federal Regulatory and Deregulation actions.
Regulations that Office of Procurement intends to publish between now and October 2017.
1. Contractor Financial Reporting of Property [48 CFR 1845, 1852) - NASA is proposing to amend the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (NFS) to add a monthly reporting requirement for contractors having custody of $10 million or more in NASA-owned property, plant, and equipment (PP&E) [81 FR 48726].
2. Revised Voucher Submission & Payment Process [48 CFR 1816, 1832, 1842, 1852] - NASA is proposing to issue an interim rule amending the NASA Federal Acquisition Regulation Supplement (NFS) to implement revisions to the voucher submittal and payment process. These revisions are necessary due to section 893 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2016 prohibiting the Defense Contract Audit Agency (DCAA) from performing audit work for non-Defense Agencies. NASA had delegated to DCAA the task of reviewing contractor requests for payment under NASA cost-type contracts.
3. Removal of NFS clause 1852.243-70, Engineering Change Proposals [48 CFR 1852] - NASA is proposing to amend the NASA FAR Supplement (NFS) to remove NFS clause 1852.243-70, Engineering Change Proposals (ECPs) basic clause with its Alternate I & II and associated information collection from the NFS.
4. Award Term [48 CFR 1816 and 1852] - NASA is proposing to revise the NFS to implement policy addressing the use of "award terms" or additional contract periods of performance for which a contractor may earn if the contractor's performance is superior, the Government has an ongoing need for the requirement, and funds are available for the additional period of performance. The purpose of the policy is to provide a non-monetary incentive for contractors whose performance is better than the "average" or "acceptable" level.
5. Revisions to Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards [2 CFR 1800] - NASA is proposing to amend the NASA regulation, titled Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards to modify the requirements related to information contained in a Federal award for commercial firms with no cost sharing requirement and to add new or modify existing terms and conditions related to indirect cost charges and access to research results.