Small Business Size Standards; Notice of Waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule

SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION

13 CFR PART 121

Small Business Size Standards; Notice of Waiver of the

Nonmanufacturer Rule

AGENCY: Small Business Administration.

ACTION: Notice to waive the Nonmanufacturer Rule for Purified

Terephthalic Acid Ground (PTAG) and Un-Ground (PTAU).

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SUMMARY: This notice advises the public that the Small Business

Administration (SBA) is establishing a waiver of the Nonmanufacturer

Rule for Purified Terephthalic Acid Ground (PTAG) and Un-Ground (PTAU).

The basis for a waiver is that no small business manufacturers are

available to participate in the Federal market for these products. The

effect of a waiver will allow otherwise qualified nonmanufacturers to

supply the products of any domestic manufacturer on a Federal contract

set-aside for small businesses or awarded through the SBA 8(a) Program.

EFFECTIVE DATE: October 21, 1996.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: David Wm. Loines, Procurement Analyst,

(202) 205-6475, FAX (202) 205-7324.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Public Law 100-656, enacted on November 15,

1988, incorporated into the Small Business Act the previously existing

regulation that recipients of Federal contracts set-aside for small

businesses or the SBA 8(a) Program procurement must provide the product

of a small business manufacturer or processor if the recipient is other

than the actual manufacturer or processor. This requirement is commonly

referred to as the Nonmanufacturer Rule. The SBA regulations imposing

this requirement are found at 13 CFR 121.406(b). Section 303(h) of the

law provides for waiver of this requirement by SBA for any ``class of

products'' for which there are no small business manufacturers or

processors in the Federal market. To be considered available to

participate in the Federal market on these classes of products, a small

business manufacturer must have submitted a proposal for a contract

solicitation or received a contract from the Federal Government within

the last 24 months. The SBA defines ``class of products'' based on two

coding systems. The first is the Office of Management and Budget

Standard Industrial Classification Manual. The second is the Product

and Service Code (PSC) established by the Federal Procurement Data

System.

The SBA was asked to issue a waiver for PTAG and PTAU because of an

apparent lack of any small business manufacturers or processors for

them within the Federal market. The SBA searched its Procurement

Automated Source System (PASS) for small business participants and

found none. We then published a notice in the Federal Register on May

6, 1996 (vol. 61, no. 88, found none. We then published a notice in the

Federal Register on May 6, 1996 (vol. 61, no. 88, p. 20191), of our

intent to grant a waiver for these classes of products unless new

information was found. The proposed waiver covered PTAG and PTAU (PSC

6810). The notice described the legal provisions for a waiver, how SBA

defines the market and asked for small business participants of these

classes of products. After the 15-day comment period, no small

businesses were identified for PTAG and PTAU. This waiver is being

granted pursuant to statutory authority under section 303(h) of Public

Law 100-656 for PTAG and PTAU. The waiver will last indefinitely but is

subject to both an annual review and a review upon receipt of

information that the conditions required for a waiver no longer exist.

If such information is found, the waiver may be terminated.

Judith A. Roussel,

Associate Administrator for Government Contracting.

[FR Doc. 96-26932 Filed 10-18-96; 8:45 am]

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