[Federal Register Volume 60, Number 179 (Friday, September 15, 1995)]
[Notices]
[Pages 47934-47935]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 95-22975]



=======================================================================
-----------------------------------------------------------------------

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED


Procurement List Addition

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely 
Disabled.

ACTION: Addition to the Procurement List.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

SUMMARY: This action adds to the Procurement List a distress marker 
light to be furnished by nonprofit agencies employing persons who are 
blind or have other severe disabilities.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 16, 1995.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely 
Disabled, Crystal Square 3, Suite 403, 1735 Jefferson Davis Highway, 
Arlington, Virginia 22202-3461.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Beverly Milkman (703) 603-7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On June 2, 1995, the Committee for Purchase 
From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled published notice (60 
F.R. 28781) of proposed addition to the Procurement List. Comments were 
received from two producers of the distress marker light, one of which 
is a current contractor with the Government for the light. The 
contractor stated that the light is a large percentage of its sales, 
and that losing these sales would have a severe impact on the company 
and its employees. The contractor claimed that addition of this light 
to the Procurement List would unreasonably foreclose the contractor 
from the Government market for strobe marker distress lights, as the 
Committee has already added the other version the Government buys to 
the Procurement List. The contractor asked that the Committee not add 
the light to the Procurement List at least until the current commercial 
procurement is completed, to allow the contractor to develop a 
commercial item which would replace the loss of Government sales of the 
light. 

[[Page 47935]]

    The figures the contractor initially provided to show how the 
addition would deprive it of a large part of its sales made the 
assumption that the contractor would receive the contract for the 
entire requirement for which the Government currently has a 
solicitation outstanding if the Committee were not to add the light to 
the Procurement List. The Committee does not consider this assumption 
to be realistic, because the contractor received less than half of the 
Government requirements under the most recent procurements, and the 
contractor has not received a substantial contract for this light since 
1992, so it should not be unusually dependent on Government sales of 
the light.
    The contractor subsequently provided other sales information, which 
indicated that, while the contractor's total sales are considerably 
less than the forecast the Committee used to estimate impact, the 
percentage represented by sales of the light to the Government is small 
enough that its loss is unlikely to have a severe adverse impact on the 
contractor. Additionally, the contracting activity which buys the light 
for the Government has indicated that it will complete its current buy 
before the addition of the light to the Procurement List becomes 
legally effective. Consequently, the contractor will receive the 
opportunity it seeks to sell the light to the Government long enough to 
develop its commercial item.
    The other strobe marker distress light was added to the Procurement 
List in 1973. The commenting contractor was not the contractor for that 
light at the time; it did not even exist at the time. Consequently, it 
did not lose sales as a result of the Committee's action.
    The other producer of the light is a new company which claimed that 
it was in line for a contract award for the light earlier this year 
when the contracting activity cancelled the solicitation, on the basis 
that the light had been added to the Procurement List, before the 
producer could obtain a certificate of competency from the Small 
Business Administration to qualify for the contract award. The producer 
also objected to the loss of the opportunity to recoup its investment 
in producing the light.
    While the basis for the cancellation of the solicitation was 
erroneous, as the light was not then on the Procurement List, the 
contracting activity has informed the Committee that it has 
subsequently rescinded the cancellation. The contracting activity also 
informed the Committee that it found the producer nonresponsible, and 
the producer failed to apply for its certificate of competency within 
the required period, so it is not eligible for a contract award. These 
events occurred before the solicitation was erroneously cancelled. 
Accordingly, the producer's loss of the contract cannot be attributed 
to the Committee's action in adding the light to the Procurement List.
    Similarly, the producer's loss of the opportunity to recoup its 
investment was caused by its failure to take an action needed to 
receive a contract award, not by the Committee's action. While the 
producer will lose further opportunities to recoup its investment once 
the light is on the Procurement List, it should be noted that it would 
risk losing these opportunities even if the light had not been added to 
the Procurement List because no one is guaranteed a contract under the 
competitive bidding system.
    After consideration of the material presented to it concerning 
capability of qualified nonprofit agencies to provide the commodity, 
fair market price, and impact of the addition on the current or most 
recent contractors, the Committee has determined that the commodity 
listed below are suitable for procurement by the Federal Government 
under 41 U.S.C. 46-48c and 41 CFR 51-2.4.
    I certify that the following action will not have a significant 
impact on a substantial number of small entities. The major factors 
considered for this certification were:
    1. The action will not result in any additional reporting, 
recordkeeping or other compliance requirements for small entities other 
than the small organizations that will furnish the commodity to the 
Government.
    2. The action does not appear to have a severe economic impact on 
current contractors for the commodity.
    3. The action will result in authorizing small entities to furnish 
the commodity to the Government.
    4. There are no known regulatory alternatives which would 
accomplish the objectives of the Javits-Wagner-O'Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46-
48c) in connection with the commodity proposed for addition to the 
Procurement List.
    Accordingly, the following commodity is hereby added to the 
Procurement List:

Light, Marker, Distress
    6230-01-143-4778

    This action does not affect current contracts awarded prior to the 
effective date of this addition or options exercised under those 
contracts.
Beverly L. Milkman,
Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 95-22975 Filed 9-14-95; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6820-33-P