83 FR 49092 - Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request

FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM

Federal Register Volume 83, Issue 189 (September 28, 2018)

The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, with revision, the Procurement Solicitation Package (FR 1400; OMB No. 7100-0180).

[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 189 (Friday, September 28, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 49092-49094]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2018-21126]


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FEDERAL RESERVE SYSTEM


Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment 
Request

AGENCY: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System.

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ACTION: Notice; request for comment.

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SUMMARY: The Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Board) 
invites comment on a proposal to extend for three years, with revision, 
the Procurement Solicitation Package (FR 1400; OMB No. 7100-0180).

DATES: Comments must be submitted on or before November 27, 2018.

ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by FR 1400, by any of 
the following methods:
     Agency website: http://www.federalreserve.gov. Follow the 
instructions for submitting comments at https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx.
     Email: [email protected]. Include OMB 
number in the subject line of the message.
     Fax: (202) 452-3819 or (202) 452-3102.
     Mail: Ann E. Misback, Secretary, Board of Governors of the 
Federal Reserve System, 20th Street and Constitution Avenue NW, 
Washington, DC 20551.
    All public comments are available from the Board's website at 
https://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/foia/proposedregs.aspx as 
submitted, unless modified for technical reasons or to remove sensitive 
PII (personally identifiable information) at the commenter's request. 
Public comments may also be viewed electronically or in paper form in 
Room 3515, 1801 K Street NW (between 18th and 19th Streets NW), 
Washington, DC 20006 between 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. on weekdays. For 
security reasons, the Board requires that visitors make an appointment 
to inspect comments. You may do so by calling (202) 452-3684. Upon 
arrival, visitors will be required to present valid government-issued 
photo identification and to submit to security screening in order to 
inspect and photocopy comments.
    Additionally, commenters may send a copy of their comments to the 
OMB Desk Officer--Shagufta Ahmed--Office of Information and Regulatory 
Affairs, Office of Management and Budget, New Executive Office 
Building, Room 10235, 725 17th Street NW, Washington, DC 20503 or by 
fax to (202) 395-6974.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: A copy of the PRA OMB submission, 
including the proposed reporting form and instructions, supporting 
statement, and other documentation will be placed into OMB's public 
docket files, once approved. These documents will also be made 
available on the Board's public website at: http://www.federalreserve.gov/apps/reportforms/review.aspx or may be requested 
from the agency clearance officer, whose name appears below.
    Federal Reserve Board Clearance Officer--Nuha Elmaghrabi--Office of 
the Chief Data Officer, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve 
System, Washington, DC 20551 (202) 452-3829. Telecommunications Device 
for the Deaf (TDD) users may contact (202) 263-4869, Board of Governors 
of the Federal Reserve System, Washington, DC 20551.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 15, 1984, the Office of Management 
and Budget (OMB) delegated to the Board authority under the Paperwork 
Reduction Act (PRA) to approve of and assign OMB control numbers to 
collection of information requests and requirements conducted or 
sponsored by the Board. In exercising this delegated authority, the 
Board is directed to take every reasonable step to solicit comment. In 
determining whether to approve a collection of information, the Board 
will consider all comments received from the public and other agencies.

Request for Comment on Information Collection Proposal

    The Board invites public comment on the following information 
collection, which is being reviewed under authority delegated by the 
OMB under the PRA. Comments are invited on the following:
    a. Whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for 
the proper performance of the Board's functions; including whether the 
information has practical utility;
    b. The accuracy of the Board's estimate of the burden of the 
proposed information collection, including the validity of the 
methodology and assumptions used;
    c. Ways to enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the 
information to be collected;
    d. Ways to minimize the burden of information collection on 
respondents, including through the use of automated collection 
techniques or other forms of information technology; and
    e. Estimates of capital or startup costs and costs of operation, 
maintenance, and purchase of services to provide information.
    At the end of the comment period, the comments and recommendations 
received will be analyzed to determine the extent to which the Board 
should modify the proposal prior to giving final approval.

Proposal To Approve Under OMB Delegated Authority the Extension for 
Three Years, With Revision, of the Following Reports

    Report title: Vendor Database.
    Agency form number: FR 1400A.
    OMB control number: 7100-0180.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Respondents: Businesses.
    Estimated number of respondents: 250.
    Estimated average hours per response: 1.
    Estimated annual burden hours: 250.
    Report title: Solicitation Package.
    Agency form number: FR 1400B.
    OMB control number: 7100-0180.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Respondents: Businesses.
    Estimated number of respondents: 300.
    Estimated average hours per response: 81.
    Estimated annual burden hours: 24,300.

    Report title: Vendor Risk Management Offeror Questionnaire.
    Agency form number: FR 1400C.
    OMB control number: 7100-0180.
    Frequency: On occasion.
    Respondents: Businesses.
    Estimated number of respondents: 20.
    Estimated average hours per response: 12.
    Estimated annual burden hours: 240.

    Report title: Subcontracting Report.
    Agency form number: FR 1400D.
    OMB control number: 7100-0180.
    Frequency: Quarterly.
    Respondents: Businesses.
    Estimated number of respondents: 75.
    Estimated average hours per response: 0.5.
    Estimated annual burden hours: 150.

    General description of report: The Board is continuously seeking 
vendors who are interested in doing business with the Board through 
various outreach events, minority/diversity conferences, meetings, and 
events targeted to either a specific industry classification of vendors 
or an upcoming acquisition. Vendors are encouraged during these efforts 
to register in the Board's database of interested vendors (FR 1400A). 
In announcing an acquisition, Board staff contacts vendors registered 
in the Board database via electronic mail or by telephone, and provides 
the Solicitation Package (FR 1400B) and applicable attachments. The 
Solicitation, Offer, and Award form (SOA) (Attachment A of FR 1400B) is 
required with proposals offered in response to a solicitation issued by 
the Board. The Supplier Information Form (Attachment N of FR 1400B) is 
required for the entry of a

[[Page 49094]]

vendor into the Board's contract writing and invoice payment system. As 
a result of the criteria used by the Board to evaluate proposals, the 
Solicitation Package may also include the Past Performance Data Sheet 
and Past Performance Questionnaire (Attachment I of FR 1400B) if past 
performance is an evaluation factor. Typically, if past performance is 
considered an evaluation factor, the vendor is asked to submit 
information on up to three previous contracts whose effort is recent 
and relevant to the effort required by the solicitation.
    Solicitations that require the vendor to process, store, or 
transmit data from the Board will contain the Vendor Risk Management 
Offeror Questionnaire (FR 1400C). The questionnaire will be specific to 
the security controls surrounding the vendor's proposed application 
that will be used to process, store, or transmit the data. Security 
controls will be defined and prioritized based on the Federal 
Information Security Modernization Act of 2014 (FISMA) and the National 
Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication 800-53 
(Security Controls and Assessment Procedures for Federal Information 
Systems and Organizations). In addition, for solicitations that have 
subcontracting opportunities and are expected to exceed $100,000 
($300,000 for construction), a non-covered company vendor is required 
to submit a subcontracting plan in its own format, with its proposal. 
Then, if the vendor is the chosen vendor and awarded a contract, the 
vendor is required to provide the quarterly Subcontracting Reports (FR 
1400D) to the Board, which shall document the vendor's participation 
achievement on a cumulative basis. Information from the Subcontracting 
Report is used to assist the Board in fulfilling the requirement in 
Section 342(e) of the Dodd-Frank Act that requires the Board to submit 
to Congress an annual report regarding the fair inclusion of minorities 
and women in contracting.
    Proposed revisions: To assist the Board's competitive vendor 
solicitation process, the Board is proposing to revise the FR 1400 by 
(1) reformatting and updating the Solicitation Package, including the 
Solicitation, Offer, and Award Form (SOA), Supplier Information Form, 
Past Performance Data Sheet, and Past Performance Questionnaire (FR 
1400B); (2) adding the Vendor Risk Management Offeror Questionnaire (FR 
1400C); and (3) revising the Subcontracting Report (FR 1400D) to 
improve clarity and gather specific information in accordance with the 
Board's subcontracting goals. Lastly, the Board proposes to discontinue 
the use of the Request for Price Quotation Form (RFP/RFPQ). The purpose 
of the RFPQ form will be absorbed into the FR 1400B.
    Legal authorization and confidentiality: The FR 1400A is voluntary. 
For prospective vendors that decide to submit proposals to the Board, 
the FR 1400B, 1400C, and 1400D are required to obtain a benefit, in 
order to be eligible for the award of a contract.
    The FR 1400 is authorized pursuant to sections 10 and 11 of the 
Federal Reserve Act (``FRA''), and section 342(c) of the Dodd-Frank 
Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (``Dodd-Frank''). 
Sections 10(3) and 11 of the FRA (12 U.S.C. 243 and 248(l)) grant the 
Board full authority to manage its buildings and its staff. Section 
10(4) of the FRA (12 U.S.C. 244) authorizes the Board to determine and 
prescribe the manner in which its obligations shall be incurred and its 
disbursements and expenses allowed and paid. Therefore, the Board can 
solicit proposals and seek the information in FR 1400 from prospective 
vendors.
    Additionally, the FR 1400 is authorized by section 342(c) of Dodd-
Frank (12 U.S.C. 5452(c)), which requires the Board to develop and 
implement standards and procedures for the review and evaluation of 
contract proposals and for hiring service providers that include a 
component that gives consideration to the diversity of a prospective 
vendor and the fair inclusion of women and minorities in the workforce 
of such vendor and any subcontractor.
    A vendor generally may request confidential treatment for 
information submitted during the solicitation process, and the Board 
will review the request to determine if the data may be kept 
confidential under exemption 4 of the Freedom of Information Act, which 
protects from disclosure trade secrets and commercial or financial 
information (5 U.S.C. 552(b)(4)).

    Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, September 24, 
2018.
Michele Taylor Fennell,
Assistant Secretary of the Board.
[FR Doc. 2018-21126 Filed 9-27-18; 8:45 am]
 BILLING CODE 6210-01-P