[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 138 (Friday, July 18, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 38518-38519]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-18964]


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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.

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: August 18, 1997.

ADDRESS: 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 April 4, 1997, the Committee for Purchase 
From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled published notice (62 
F.R. 16134) of proposed addition to the Procurement List. Comments were 
received from a current contractor for this plastic postal tray, a 
contractor for the paper version of the tray, and the mayor of the city 
and a U.S. Senator from the state where the first contractor's plant is 
located. The first contractor objected to the Committee's regulation 
requiring consideration of impact on the entire corporate entity of a 
current contractor, including the parent corporation, as it stated its 
parent corporation would not subsidize any losses the contractor 
sustains if the trays are added to the Procurement List. The contractor 
also claimed that the addition would have a severe impact on the 
contractor's sales and would require layoffs having a dramatic impact 
on the local economy which has a high unemployment rate and a largely 
minority population. The mayor and Senator seconded these contentions 
about the local economy. The contractor claimed that addition of 
another postal tray to the Procurement List has raised prices and 
stopped development on the tray by eliminating competition, and 
predicted the same thing would happen with this tray. The contractor 
also claimed there would be impacts on its suppliers and 
subcontractors, and objected to being relegated to six-month contracts 
as a supplier of raw materials to the nonprofit agencies producing the 
trays as the short-term arrangement made business planning impossible.
    The Committee's assessment of impact on a contractor's entire 
corporate structure, rather than just the corporate division holding 
the contract for the commodity or service being added to the 
Procurement List, reflects the ability of large corporations to shift 
assets between divisions to minimize the impact of adverse developments 
in a way that smaller entities cannot do. Under these circumstances, 
any impact on the division is the result of the parent corporation's 
decision not to help its division, not the Committee's action.
    The contractor will continue to have the opportunity to supply raw 
materials to the nonprofit agencies producing the other tray and the 
portion of the Government requirement for this tray which is already on 
the Procurement List, as well as the opportunity to supply materials 
for the portion currently being added. Since the materials the 
contractor will continue to have the opportunity to supply constitute a 
substantial majority of the value of the contract, this fact should 
significantly mitigate the impact of this addition on the contractor, 
its suppliers, and the local economy. Moreover, approximately 25% of 
the requirements for this tray continues to be available for 
procurement outside the Committee's Program.
    The prices the nonprofit agencies charge are set by the Committee, 
which is required to establish a fair market price for each commodity 
and service on the Procurement List. The price established for this 
tray is within the Committee's guidelines. The United States Postal 
Service (USPS) and the nonprofit agencies are working to improve 
features of both trays, so it is not correct to say development ceased 
when the trays were added to the Procurement List. The Committee has 
been informed that raw material

[[Page 38519]]

suppliers, including the contractor and its competitors, not the 
nonprofit agencies, have insisted the supply contracts be only six 
months long.
    The second contractor produces only the paper version of the tray, 
not the plastic version being added to the Procurement List. The firm 
would like the opportunity to produce the plastic tray, which is 
replacing the paper version, and is taking steps to be ready to produce 
the plastic tray.
    However, the contractor's plastic tray has not been approved by 
USPS, which has also advised that the transition from paper to plastic 
will be a long-term process. Accordingly, the contractor is only losing 
an opportunity to compete for further contracts, if its product is 
approved, and the Committee has long taken the position that loss of an 
opportunity to compete is not severe adverse impact on a contractor 
without current Government sales of the item being added to the 
Procurement List. In addition, as noted above, no contractor is 
completely losing the opportunity to compete for future plastic tray 
business because approximately one-quarter of the USPS requirements for 
the tray will be available for procurement outside the JWOD Program.
    After consideration of the material presented to it concerning 
capability of qualified nonprofit agencies to provide the commodity and 
impact of the addition on the current or most recent contractors, the 
Committee has determined that the commodity listed below is 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 will not 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:

Corrugated Plastic MM Tray
P.S. Item 3925
(U.S. Postal Service requirements for East Hartford, CT; Somerville, NJ 
and Baltimore, MD)

    This action does not affect current contracts awarded prior to the 
effective date of this addition or options that may be exercised under 
those contracts.
Beverly L. Milkman,
Executive Director.
[FR Doc. 97-18964 Filed 7-17-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6353-01-P