The initial comment period deadline was July 27, 2015 but was extended to August 11, 2015. The proposed regulations and the DOL guidance are lengthy and significant. Thus, after the first extension was announced, several members of Congress requested that the DOL and the FAR Council withdraw both or alternatively, provide an additional ninety (90) days for notice and comment "to ensure that interested parties have adequate time to review, assess, and provide meaningful input."
On August 5, 2015, the DOL published a notice in the Federal Register announcing that both it and the FAR Council had extended the notice and comment period for both the proposed regulations and guidance to August 26, 2015. It is unclear what the motivation is for this second extension of the comment period, but it falls short of the requested ninety (90) days and considering the far-reaching impacts of the regulations and guidance, should be extended further.
For any questions on the proposed regulations and DOL guidance, please contact us at: (808) 369-9710 or info@holomuaconsulting.com. To submit comments on the proposed regulations or guidance, please visit www.regulations.gov.