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COMMERCE BUSINESS DAILY ISSUE OF JULY 11,1997 PSA#1885FEDERAL PRISON INDUSTRIES PUBLIC INVOLVEMENT PROCEDURES The following
steps will be followed whenever FPI proposes to produce a new product
or to significantly expand production of an existing product. These
procedures are substantially identical to the original procedures which
were adopted following consultation with private industry and labor,
shortly after the passage of the industry involvement guidelines. The
principal changes are to provide for early accumulation of data and
removal of strict page limitations, so as to make it easier to file
comments with the Board. 1.) Parties who are known to have an interest
in a proposal by FPI to produce a new specific product or
significantly expand in the production of an existing product will be
contacted prior to the drafting of any market impact study to obtain
relevant information for purposes of developing a comprehensive and
fair study. Such information may include, but is not limited to, how a
specific product is defined, size of the market, future market trends,
and dependence of industry providers on the federal market. 2.) All
proposals to produce a new product or to significantly expand the
production of an existing product shall be announced in the Commerce
Business Daily (CBD), and a copy of the announcement shall be mailed to
known interested parties. 3.) The announcement will state that
interested parties may obtain a copy of the study which analyzes the
impact, if any, on the private sector resulting from the proposed
production initiatives by writing to the Manager, Planning, Research,
and Activation, Federal Prison Industries, 320 First Street, N.W.,
Washington, D.C. 20534. The announcement will further state that
comments on the study should be submitted in writing to the Chief
Operating Officer. It will further state that comments are due no later
than 45 days from the date of the announcement and that the comments
should address the issue of what percentage, if any, of the government
market for the specific product constitutes a reasonable share of the
market. All comments related to definition of the product,
determination of the size of the market, impact on the private sector,
and study methodology should be submitted at this time, to allow time
for adequate consideration of these comments prior to FPI's
dissemination of its final study and recommendations. Failure to
provide this information in a timely manner may result in the
information not being considered or being given less weight by the
Board. 4.) Comments including all attachments should be kept as concise
as possible. 5.) FPI will contact known trade associations representing
manufacturers of the relevant product, provide them with a copy of the
announcement and the market analysis, and request their written and
oral comments in an attempt to arrive at a mutually agreeable
percentage figure as to what constitutes a reasonable share of the
market. FPI will also provide a copy to the appropriate labor
representatives. 6.) A recommendation will be prepared by FPI to be
provided to the Board of Directors on what constitutes a reasonable
market share for the specific product in question. The recommendation
will address all comments which are timely and relevant. 7.) A copy of
the written comments submitted in response to the announcement, FPI's
responses to the comments, and FPI's final recommendation to the Board
of Directors shall also be provided to commenters who filed a timely
submission. The material will be provided to the commenters no less
than forty-five (45) days before the date of the Board meeting at which
the proposal for production of the specific product at issue will be
considered. In addition, all commenters will be advised, in an
appropriate manner, of the date, time, and location of the Board
meeting at which the proposal will be discussed, and advised of the
opportunity to address the Board in person. 8.) A final submission,
whose sole purpose is to comment on FPI's recommended production
levels, may be provided by commenters to the Board for its
consideration. The final submission, including any attachments, should
be as brief as possible. Comments related to the study methodology,
i.e., how the specific product is defined, determination of the size of
the market, and impact of FPI on the private sector, should be
submitted within the 45 day review period after announcement of the
study in the CBD (see Step #3), and not at this stage of the process,
in order to be given due consideration by the Board. This final
submission should be sent to the Ombudsman of FPI for transmittal to
the Board. If a commenter wishes to appear at the Board meeting to make
a statement, that request should be made in connection with the final
submittal, together with the names of the individuals desiring to
appear before the Board. 9.) All final submittals, together with any
request to appear before the Board, must be received by the Ombudsman
at least fifteen (15) days in advance of the Board meeting. 10.) The
following rules will apply at the in-person presentation: (a) A maximum
of 30 minutes will be allotted to eachcommenter for presentation to the
Board, unless the Board extends the time; (b) The presentation to the
Board is open to the public. However, the hearing may be closed, or
other safeguards taken, where the Board determines that proprietary
information must be safeguarded, or for other good and sufficient
reason. (c) The record before the Board at the time of the presentation
is limited to the market study, comments and materials submitted in
response to the market study, FPI's recommendations, and materials
submitted by commenters in response to FPI's recommendations. No new
documentation or arguments from commenters should be presented at the
presentation that have not been submitted in compliance with these
rules, unless permitted by the Board. The Board reserves the right to
exclude from consideration or give less weight to information which
should have been submitted at Step #3. (d) The Chairman of the Board
will preside at the hearing and impose such further rules as are
reasonable to assure a full and orderly presentation, covering such
matters as who may address the Board, the order in which presentations
are made, what documents will constitute the record, what issues are
relevant, and any questions concerning how much time is to be allotted
to each presentation. The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure and formal
rules of evidence will not be followed. (e) The Board members may
direct questions to a commenter to elicit further information, and may
request that additional material be provided for the record. 11.) The
Board will determine whether a proposed new product may be produced or
whether a proposed expansion of an existing product should be approved,
and what the reasonable market share is with regard to the specific
product in question. In determining the reasonable market share for a
specific product, the Board will balance the interests of the
corporation with the interests of the affected private sector,
employing the criteria spelled out in the relevant statutes,
legislative history, and corporate regulations. 12.) The decision of
the Board will be made by majority vote. In the case of a tie, the
position of the group which includes the Chairman will prevail. 13.)
The decision, together with the reasons for the decision, will be
published in the CBD within 10 days of the date of the Board's
decision. 14.) Modification of these rules will be granted by the Board
only in compelling circumstances. Requests should be addressed to
Chairman, Board of Directors, Federal Prison Industries, Inc., 320
First Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20534. Loren Data Corp. http://www.ld.com (SYN# 0549 19970711\SP-0004.MSC)
SP - Special Notices Index Page
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