Document

Agency Information Collection Activities: Homeland Security Acquisition Regulation (HSAR) Post-Award Contract Information

The DHS OCPO will submit the following Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwor...

Department of Homeland Security

AGENCY:

Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO), Department of Homeland Security (DHS).

ACTION:

30-Day notice and request for comments; Extension of a currently approved collection, 1600-0003.

SUMMARY:

The DHS OCPO will submit the following Information Collection Request (ICR) to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) for review and clearance in accordance with the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995. The information requested is used by the Government's contracting officers and other acquisition personnel, including technical and legal staff, for various reasons such as determining the suitability of contractor personnel accessing DHS facilities; to ensure no organizational conflicts of interest exist during the performance of contracts; to ensure the contractor maintains applicable licenses and permits for the removal and disposal of hazardous materials; and to otherwise ensure firms are performing in the Government's best interest. DHS previously published this ICR in the Federal Register on Wednesday, April 4, 2018 for a 60-day public comment period. No comments were received by DHS. The purpose of this notice is to allow an additional 30 days for public comments.

DATES:

Comments are encouraged and will be accepted until April 29, 2019. This process is conducted in accordance with 5 CFR 1320.1.

ADDRESSES:

Interested persons are invited to submit written comments on the proposed information collection to the Office of Information and Regulatory Affairs, Office of Management and Budget. Comments should be addressed to OMB Desk Officer, Department of Homeland Security and sent via electronic mail to .

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

DHS collects information, when necessary, in administering public contracts for supplies and services. The information is used to determine compliance with contract terms placed in the contract as authorized by the Federal Property and Administrative Services Act (41 U.S.C. 251 et seq.), the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) (48 CFR Chapter 1), and the HSAR (48 CFR Chapter 30). Respondents submit information based on the terms of the contract; the instructions in the contract deliverables mandatory reporting requirements; and correspondence from acquisition personnel requesting post-award contract information. The least active contracts and the simplest contracts will have little to no data to report. The most active and complex contracts, however, will contain more reporting requirements. DHS believes that some of this information is already readily available as part of a company's business processes and that the largest businesses use computers to compile the data. However, a significant amount of time is spent correlating information to specific contract actions and gathering information for more complex contract actions.

The prior information collection request for OMB No. 1600-0003 was approved through February 28, 2019 by OMB. The purpose of this ICR is to identify the additional clauses that fall under for OMB No. 1600-0003. The collections under the HSAR are as follows:

The information requested is used by the Government's contracting officers and other acquisition personnel, including technical and legal staff, for various reasons such as determining the suitability of contractor personnel accessing DHS facilities; to ensure no organizational conflicts of interest exist during the performance of contracts; to ensure the contractor maintains applicable licenses and permits for the removal and disposal of hazardous materials; and to otherwise ensure firms are performing in the Government's best interest. Failure to collect this information would adversely affect the quality of products and services DHS receives from contractors. For example, potentially, contractors who are lead system integrators could acquire direct financial interests in major systems the contractors are contracted to procure, which would compromise the integrity of acquisitions for the Department. In addition, contractors who own, control or operate a business providing protective guard services could possess felony convictions during the performance of contracts, putting the Department at risk. Furthermore, contractors could change key personnel during the performance of contracts and use less experienced or less qualified personnel to reduce costs, which would adversely affect DHS's fulfillment of its mission requirements.

Many sources of the requested information use automated word processing systems, databases, spreadsheets, project management and other commercial software to facilitate preparation of material to be submitted. With Government-wide implementation of e-Government initiatives, it is commonplace within many of DHS's Components for submissions to be electronic.

Disclosure/non-disclosure of information is handled in accordance with the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), other disclosure statutes, and Federal and agency acquisition regulations.

The burden estimates are based upon definitive contract award data reported by DHS and its Components to the Federal Procurement Data System (FPDS) for Fiscal Year 2016. No program changes occurred, however the burden was adjusted to reflect an increase in the number of respondents within DHS for Fiscal Year 2016, as well as an increase in the average hourly wage rate. The decrease in the previously reported average burden per response (from 14 hours to 6.2 hours) is as a result of the addition of clauses to the burden hour analysis with relatively low burden hours.

This is an extension of a currently approved collection, 1600-0003. OMB is particularly interested in comments which:

1. Evaluate whether the proposed collection of information is necessary for the proper performance of the functions of the agency, including whether the information will have practical utility;

2. Evaluate the accuracy of the agency's estimate of the burden of the proposed collection of information, including the validity of the methodology and assumptions used;

3. Enhance the quality, utility, and clarity of the information to be collected; and

4. Minimize the burden of the collection of information on those who are to respond, including through the use of appropriate automated, electronic, mechanical, or other technological collection techniques or other forms of information technology, e.g., permitting electronic submissions of responses.

Analysis

Agency: Office of the Chief Procurement Officer, DHS.

Title: Agency Information Collection Activities: Homeland Security Acquisition Regulation (HSAR) Post-Award Contract Information.

OMB Number: 1600-0003.

Frequency: On Occasion.

Affected Public: Individuals or Households.

Number of Respondents: 12,627.

Estimated Time per Respondent: 6.2 hours.

Total Burden Hours: 234,862.

Dated: March 19, 2019.

Scott Ewalt,

Acting Executive Director, Enterprise Business Management Office.

[FR Doc. 2019-05967 Filed 3-27-19; 8:45 am]

BILLING CODE 9110-9B-P

Legal Citation

Federal Register Citation

Use this for formal legal and research references to the published document.

84 FR 11809

Web Citation

Suggested Web Citation

Use this when citing the archival web version of the document.

“Agency Information Collection Activities: Homeland Security Acquisition Regulation (HSAR) Post-Award Contract Information,” thefederalregister.org (March 28, 2019), https://thefederalregister.org/documents/2019-05967/agency-information-collection-activities-homeland-security-acquisition-regulation-hsar-post-award-contract-information.