[Federal Register Volume 64, Number 48 (Friday, March 12, 1999)]
[Notices]
[Page 12283]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 99-6131]



[[Page 12283]]

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COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED


Procurement List; Additions

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

ACTION: Additions to the Procurement List.

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: April 12, 1999.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely 
Disabled, Crystal Gateway 3, Suite 310, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, 
Arlington, Virginia 22202-4302.

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

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On October 3, 1997, August 28, 1998 and 
January 29, 1999, the Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind 
or Severely Disabled published notices (62 FR 51827, 63 FR 45996 and 64 
FR 4638) of proposed additions to the Procurement List.
    The following comments pertain to Bag, Contamination.
    Comments were received from the two current contractors for these 
contamination bags and from the mayor of the contractor's city and 
three Members of Congress. Two Members and the mayor expressed concern 
that a number of one contractor's employees would be displaced by the 
Committee's action. That contractor expressed the same concern, but 
also objected to the loss of opportunity to bid on contracts for the 
bags, which it claimed represent a sizable portion of its sales, and 
questioned whether the nonprofit agencies designated by the Committee 
have the ability to make the bags to the Government's specifications. 
The mayor questioned whether this Procurement List addition is at odds 
with Clinton Administration initiatives on welfare-to-work and 
increasing Federal contracting with distressed urban areas. The other 
contractor, supported by a third Member of Congress, claimed that it 
would lose a portion of its sales and its investment in new machinery 
if the bags were added to the Procurement List.
    Prior to 1993, all five of the contamination bags were purchased 
locally by individual Navy shipyards. In 1990 and 1991, the Committee 
added to its Procurement List the requirements of three specific Naval 
shipyards for all five bags. The same nonprofit agency has successfully 
supplied the bags since their addition. When the Naval Inventory 
Control Point (NAVICP) began buying these bags, it was unaware that 
part of the requirement was already on the Procurement List. As a 
result, the current contractors have gained sales they should not have 
received.
    In addition, the Navy ordering staff has advised the Committee that 
it has purchased far more of these containment bags than were needed 
and, with the exception of one bag, does not expect to purchase 
additional bags for several years. Equally important, based on recent 
demand data, the Navy estimates that the number of bags purchased 
annually in the future will be far less than has been the case in the 
past.
    Most significant, data provided by the contractors reveal that 
percentage of each firm's sales represented by the four bags affected 
by this action is extremely small. In one case, the contractor has had 
no sales for more than a year. In the other case, there have been no 
buys for several months. Sales of the fifth bag initially proposed for 
addition represented a more significant percentage of one of the 
current contractor's business, and that bag is not being added to the 
Procurement List at this time.
    As a consequence of these factors, the Committee has concluded that 
the current contractors will not experience severe adverse impacts as a 
result of adding four of the five proposed bags to the Procurement List 
at this time. The firms, their investment in machinery, their employees 
and the areas in which they are located have already been impacted by 
the downturn in containment bag business. Moreover, they will continue 
to be impacted in the coming months whether or not the items are added 
to the Procurement List because of the overstocking and reduced demand. 
Similarly, as there will be no Government buys for some time for three 
of the four bags and only a small buy for the fourth, losing the 
opportunity to compete for Government business is something that will 
happen regardless of the Committee's action.
    The following material pertains to Pen, Rollerball, Free Ink and 
Bag, Contamination.
    After consideration of the material presented to it concerning 
capability of qualified nonprofit agencies to provide the commodities 
and impact of the additions on the current or most recent contractors, 
the Committee has determined that the commodities 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 commodities to the 
Government.
    2. The action will not have a severe economic impact on current 
contractors for the commodities.
    3. The action will result in authorizing small entities to furnish 
the commodities 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 commodities proposed for addition to the 
Procurement List.
    Accordingly, the following commodities are hereby added to the 
Procurement List:

Pen, Rollerball, Free Ink

7520-01-461-2660
7520-01-461-2663
7520-01-461-2664
7520-01-461-2665

Bag, Contamination

8105-01-352-1390
8105-01-352-1391
8105-01-352-1392
8105-01-352-1394

    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. 99-6131 Filed 3-11-99; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6353-01-P