83 FR 17626 - Tribal Consultation for Small Business HUBZone Program and Government Contracting Programs and Consolidation of Mentor Protégé Programs and Other Government Contracting Amendments

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 78 (April 23, 2018)

The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announces that it is holding a tribal consultation meeting in Anchorage, Alaska concerning the regulations governing the 8(a) Business Development (BD) program and the HUBZone program. SBA seeks to reduce unnecessary or excessive regulatory burdens in those programs and to make them more attractive to procuring agencies and small businesses. Testimony presented at this tribal consultation will become part of the administrative record for SBA's consideration when the Agency deliberates on approaches to changes in the regulations pertaining to these programs.

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 78 (Monday, April 23, 2018)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 17626-17627]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-08410]


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Proposed Rules
                                                Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________

This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of 
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these 
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in 
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.

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Federal Register / Vol. 83, No. 78 / Monday, April 23, 2018 / 
Proposed Rules

[[Page 17626]]



SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

13 CFR Parts 124 and 126

RIN 3245-AG38; 3245-AG94


Tribal Consultation for Small Business HUBZone Program and 
Government Contracting Programs and Consolidation of Mentor 
Prot[eacute]g[eacute] Programs and Other Government Contracting 
Amendments

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business Administration.

ACTION: Notification of tribal consultation meeting.

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SUMMARY: The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announces that it 
is holding a tribal consultation meeting in Anchorage, Alaska 
concerning the regulations governing the 8(a) Business Development (BD) 
program and the HUBZone program. SBA seeks to reduce unnecessary or 
excessive regulatory burdens in those programs and to make them more 
attractive to procuring agencies and small businesses. Testimony 
presented at this tribal consultation will become part of the 
administrative record for SBA's consideration when the Agency 
deliberates on approaches to changes in the regulations pertaining to 
these programs.

DATES: The Tribal Consultation meeting date is Wednesday, May 9, 2018, 
10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. (AKDT), Anchorage, Alaska. The Tribal 
Consultation meeting pre-registration deadline date is May 2, 2018.

ADDRESSES: 
    1. The Tribal Consultation meeting will be held at Z.J. Loussac 
Public Library, 3600 Denali Street, Anchorage, AK 99503.
    2. Send pre-registration requests to attend and/or testify to 
Chequita Carter of SBA's Office of Native American Affairs, U.S. Small 
Business Administration, 409 3rd Street SW, Washington, DC 20416; 
[email protected]; or Facsimile to (202) 481-2177.
    3. You may submit comments, identified by RIN 3245-AG38, for Small 
Business HUBZone Program and Government Contracting Programs and RIN 
3245-AG94, for Consolidation of Mentor Prot[eacute]g[eacute] Programs 
and Other Government Contracting Amendments, by any of the following 
methods:
     Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov and 
follow the instructions for submitting comments.
     Mail (for paper, disk, or CD-ROM submissions): To Kenneth 
Dodds, Director, Office of Procurement Policy and Liaison, U.S. Small 
Business Administration, 409 3rd Street SW, Washington, DC 20416; or 
[email protected]; or Facsimile to (202) 481-2950, 409 Third Street 
SW, Washington, DC 20416.
    Instructions: All submissions received must include the agency name 
and docket number or Regulatory Information Number (RIN) for this 
rulemaking. All comments received will be posted on http://www.regulations.gov. If you wish to submit confidential business 
information (CBI) as defined in the User Notice at http://www.regulations.gov, please submit the comments to Kenneth Dodds and 
highlight the information that you consider to be CBI and explain why 
you believe this information should be held confidential. SBA will make 
a final determination as to whether the comments will be published or 
not.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Chequita Carter, Program Assistant for 
SBA's Office of Native American Affairs, at [email protected] or 
(202) 205-6680 or by facsimile to (202) 481-2177.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

I. Background

    SBA is contemplating making substantive changes to the regulations 
governing both the 8(a) BD (13 CFR part 124) and HUBZone (13 CFR part 
126) programs, and requests comments and input on how best to reduce 
unnecessary or excessive regulatory burdens in those programs. 
Particularly, SBA is interested in comments related to two planned 
rulemakings: (1) Small Business HUBZone Program and Government 
Contracting Programs (RIN 3245-AG38); and (2) Consolidation of Mentor 
Prot[eacute]g[eacute] Programs and Other Government Contracting 
Amendments (RIN 3245-AG94). The first-mentioned planned rulemaking 
would constitute a comprehensive revision of part 126 of SBA's 
regulations to clarify current HUBZone program regulations, and 
implement various new procedures. The latter planned rulemaking would 
consolidate the All Small Mentor Prot[eacute]g[eacute] Program and the 
8(a) Mentor Prot[eacute]g[eacute] Program into one program and would 
revise SBA's process for approving management changes in entity-owned 
8(a) firms. It is SBA's intent to implement changes that will make it 
easier for small business concerns to understand and comply with the 
programs' requirements. SBA is also seeking to make these programs more 
effective and improve the delivery of them to the small business 
community. SBA understands that some of its regulations have 
significantly adversely affected small business concerns owned and 
controlled by tribes and Alaska Native Corporations (ANCs), including 
8(a) change of ownership requirements, and seeks tribal participation 
to ease these burdens. Additionally, SBA notes that the HUBZone program 
is often not being fully utilized by procuring agencies, and seeks 
input on what changes could be made to make the HUBZone program more 
attractive to both procuring agencies and small businesses.

II. Tribal Consultation Meeting

    The purpose of this tribal consultation meeting is to conform to 
the requirements of Executive Order 13175, Tribal Consultations; to 
provide interested parties with an opportunity to discuss their views 
on the issues; and for SBA to obtain the views of SBA's stakeholders on 
approaches to the 8(a) BD program and HUBZone program regulations. SBA 
considers tribal consultation meetings a valuable component of its 
deliberations and believes that this tribal consultation meeting will 
allow for constructive dialogue with the Tribal community, Tribal 
Leaders, Tribal Elders, elected members of Alaska Native Villages or 
their appointed representatives, and principals of tribally-owned and 
ANC-owned firms participating in the 8(a) BD and HUBZone programs. SBA 
intends to hold additional tribal consultations in order to obtain 
comments and input from Tribal communities representing other 
geographic regions.

[[Page 17627]]

    The format of this tribal consultation meeting will consist of a 
panel of SBA representatives who will preside over the session. The 
oral and written testimony as well as any comments SBA receives will 
become part of the administrative record for SBA's consideration. 
Written testimony may be submitted in lieu of oral testimony. SBA will 
analyze the testimony, both oral and written, along with any written 
comments received. SBA officials may ask questions of a presenter to 
clarify or further explain the testimony. The purpose of the tribal 
consultation is to assist SBA with gathering information to guide SBA's 
review process and to potentially develop new proposals. SBA requests 
that the comments focus on SBA's two planned rulemakings relating to 
the 8(a) BD and HUBZone programs, general issues as they pertain to the 
8(a) BD and HUBZone regulations, input related to what changes could be 
made to make these programs more attractive to procuring agencies and 
small businesses, or the unique concerns of the Tribal communities. SBA 
requests that commenters do not raise issues pertaining to other SBA 
small business programs. Presenters are encouraged to provide a written 
copy of their testimony. SBA will accept written material that the 
presenter wishes to provide that further supplements his or her 
testimony. Electronic or digitized copies are encouraged.
    The tribal consultation meeting will be held for one day. The 
meeting will begin at 10:00 a.m. and end at 3:30 p.m. (AKDT), with a 
break from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m. SBA will adjourn early if all those 
scheduled have delivered their testimony.

III. Registration

    SBA respectfully requests that any elected or appointed 
representative of the tribal communities or principal of a tribally-
owned or ANC-owned 8(a) firm that is interested in attending please 
pre-register in advance and indicate whether you would like to testify 
at the hearing. Registration requests should be received by SBA by May 
2, 2018. Please contact Chequita Carter of SBA's Office of Native 
American Affairs in writing at [email protected] or by facsimile 
to (202) 481-2177. If you are interested in testifying please include 
the following information relating to the person testifying: Name, 
Organization affiliation, Address, Telephone number, Email address and 
Fax number. SBA will attempt to accommodate all interested parties that 
wish to present testimony. Based on the number of registrants it may be 
necessary to impose time limits to ensure that everyone who wishes to 
testify has the opportunity to do so. SBA will confirm in writing the 
registration of presenters and attendees.

IV. Information on Service for Individuals With Disabilities

    For information on facilities or services for individuals with 
disabilities or to request special assistance at the tribal 
consultation meeting, contact Chequita Carter at the telephone number 
or email address indicated under the FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT 
section of this notice.

    Authority: 15 U.S.C. 634 and E.O. 13175, 65 FR 67249.

Allen Gutierrez,
Associate Administrator for the Office of Entrepreneurial Development.
[FR Doc. 2018-08410 Filed 4-20-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 8025-01-P