[Federal Register Volume 68, Number 100 (Friday, May 23, 2003)]
[Notices]
[Pages 28194-28195]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 03-13034]


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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 Procurement List.

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

EFFECTIVE DATE: June 22, 2003.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely 
Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800, 1421 Jefferson Davis Highway, 
Arlington, Virginia 22202-3259.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Sheryl D. Kennerly, (703) 603-7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: On February 28, 2003, the Committee for 
Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled published 
notice (68 FR 9634) of a proposed addition to the Procurement List.
    Comments were received from three Native American organizations. 
All of them questioned the appropriateness of the Committee's program 
taking a service which is currently in the Small Business 
Administration's 8(a) Program for small disadvantaged businesses, 
asserting that the Committee's action affected all 8(a) contractors, 
particularly Tribal 8(a) contractors which have difficulty acquiring 
Government contracts. The commenters claimed that the Committee's 
program is targeting 8(a) and other small business set-aside programs, 
rather than going after the many other Government contracting 
opportunities said to exist.
    The Committee's program does not target 8(a) or other small 
business set-aside programs when deciding what to add to the 
Committee's Procurement List. In fact, the Committee has long had a 
policy of waiting until 8(a) contractors are no longer eligible for 
subsequent contracts, as in the instant case, before adding supplies or 
services to the Procurement List. The Committee does not believe that 
its authority to add supplies and services to the Procurement List is 
subordinate to small business set-aside authorities, a conclusion which 
is supported by a General Accounting Office protest decision as well as 
the Committee's own legal analysis, so the fact that one of these set-
asides was in place is not a bar to an addition to the Procurement List 
of suitable supplies or services. One of

[[Page 28195]]

the commenters, a Tribal 8(a) firm, claimed that it had made a 
substantial investment in preparing to perform this service after being 
told by the contracting Government agency's small business office that 
it was in line for the next 8(a) contract for the service. In addition 
to losing its investment, this commenter objected to the loss of 
revenue and employment opportunity for its tribe and reservation, which 
has low income and high unemployment.
    The contracting officer for this service informed the Committee 
that he had told this commenter after a briefing by the commenter on 
its plans to provide the service that he intended to place the service 
with the Committee's program rather than awarding it to the commenter 
under the 8(a) Program if he found the approach by the nonprofit agency 
designated by the Committee to be favorable, which he did. Under these 
circumstances, the Committee does not agree that the commenter was led 
to make the investment it now stands to lose by a clear representation 
by the Government contracting agency. This commenter is essentially 
objecting to the loss of an opportunity to perform a service on which 
it had not become dependent as a contractor. No existing employment 
will be lost by this commenter as a result of the Committee's action. 
The Committee does not normally consider loss of such an opportunity to 
constitute severe adverse impact on a firm. The people with severe 
disabilities whom the Committee's program serves also have low incomes 
and high unemployment, which this addition to the Procurement List will 
serve in a small way to mitigate.

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification

    After consideration of the material presented to it concerning 
capability of a qualified nonprofit agency to provide the service and 
impact of the addition on the current or most recent contractors, the 
Committee has determined that the service 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 service to the 
Government.
    2. The action will result in authorizing small entities to furnish 
the service to the Government.
    3. 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 service proposed for addition to the 
Procurement List.
(End of Certification)
    Accordingly, the following service is added to the Procurement 
List:

Service

Service Type/Location: National Lead Information Center (Call 
Center)/EPA, Supporting Office of Pesticide Programs/(National 
Program Chemical Division), Washington, DC.
NPA: Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired & Goodwill 
Industries of Greater Rochester, Rochester, NY.
Contract Activity: Environmental Protection Agency.

    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.

Sheryl D. Kennerly,
Director, Information Management.
[FR Doc. 03-13034 Filed 5-22-03; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6353-01-P