Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.) District of Columbia-Room 341, 555 Pennsylvania Avenue NW., Washington, DC 20212. (District of Columbia.)

§ 50-250.8 Federal departments and agencies.

Federal executive departments and agencies in order to implement the Federal executive policy of assistance to Veterans in obtaining employment, shall

list all of their employment openings, for which they have direct-hire authority or which are in the service excepted, with the appropriate office of the Federal-State Employment Service. They shall also furnish to the Secretary of Labor such reports and information as he may require in carrying out his responsibilities under the Veterans' Employment and Readjustment Act of 1972, and Executive Order 11701.

Part

51-1 General.

51-2

Severely Handicapped.

51-3 Central nonprofit agencies.

51-4 Workshops.

(a) The Committee for Purchase from the Blind and Other Severely Handicapped was established by Public Law 92-28, June 23, 1971 (85 Stat. 77, 41 U.S.C. 46-48) (hereinafter the Act) for the purpose of directing the procurement of selected commodities and services by the Federal Government to qualified workshops serving blind and other severely handicapped individuals with the objective of increasing the employment opportunities for these individuals. The Committee is required to establish and publish in the FEDERAL REGISTER a procurement list of:

(1) Commodities produced by any qualified nonprofit agency for the blind

139 FR 35365, Oct. 1, 1974.

or by any qualified nonprofit agency for other severely handicapped, and

(2) The services provided by any such agency which the Committee determines are suitable for procurement by the Government pursuant to the Act.

(b) The Act further provides that any entity of the Government which intends to procure any commodity or service on the procurement list, shall procure such commodity or service, at the price established by the Committee, from a qualified nonprofit agency for the blind or such agency for the other severely handicapped if the commodity or service is available within the normal period required by that Government entity. However, this requirement shall not apply to the procurement of any commodity which is available from Federal Prison Industries, Inc.

[38 FR 16316, June 21, 1973, as amended at 39 FR 35365, Oct. 1, 1974] § 51-1.2 Definitions.

As used in this chapter:

(a) "Committee" means the Committee for Purchase from the Blind and Other Severely Handicapped.

(b) "Direct labor" means all work required for preparation, processing, and

packing of a commodity or work directly related to the performance of a service but not supervision, administration, inspection or shipping.

(c) "Fiscal year" means the 12-month period beginning on July 1 of each year.

(d) "Government" and "entity of the Government" means any entity of the legislative branch or the judicial branch, any executive agency or military department, the U.S. Postal Service, and any nonappropriated fund instrumentality under the jurisdiction of the Armed Forces.

(e) "State" means the 50 States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, and the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.

(f) "Blind" means an individual or class of individuals whose central visual acuity does not exceed 20/200 in the better eye with correcting lenses or whose visual acuity, if better than 20/200 is accompanied by a limit to the field of vision in the better eye to such a degree that its widest diameter subtends an angle no greater than 20°.

(g) "Other severely handicapped individual" means any person (other than a blind person) who is so severely incapacitated by any physical or mental disability that he cannot engage in normal competitive employment because of such disability.

(1) Some specific categories of severely handicapped persons include those disabled by the following:

(i) Spinal cord injury;

(ii) Deafness;

(iii) Muscular dystrophy (adults);
(iv) Multiple sclerosis;

(v) Developmental disability or other neurological disorders;

(vi) Severe orthopedic handicaps;
(vii) Multiple disabilities;

(viii) Severe personality or behavioral disorders including psychoses and neuroses;

(ix) Severe pulmonary disease; (x) Severe cardiac disorders. The foregoing represent examples only and should not be considered exclusive.

(2) A severely handicapped person who is able to engage in normal competitive employment because he has overcome his handicap or his condition has been substantially corrected is not an "other severely handicapped individual" within the meaning of this definition.

(3) Capability for normal competitive employment shall be determined from

information developed by an ongoing placement program conducted by the workshop. Such placement program shall include at least (i) a preadmission evaluation and annual review to determine each worker's capability for normal competitive employment, and (ii) maintenance of liaison with appropriate community services for the placement in such employment of any of its workers who may qualify for such placement.

(h) "Qualified nonprofit agency for the blind" (hereinafter workshop for the blind) means an agency organized under the laws of the United States or of any State, operated in the interest of blind individuals, and the net income of which does not inure in whole or in part to the benefit of any shareholder or other individual; which complies with applicable occupational health and safety standards prescribed by the Secretary of Labor; and which in the production of commodities and the provision of services (whether or not the commodities or services are procured under these regulations) during the fiscal year employs blind individuals for not less than 75 percent of the manhours of direct labor required for the production or provision of the commodities or services.

(i) "Qualified nonprofit agency for other severely handicapped" (hereinafter workshop for other severely handicapped) means an agency organized under the laws of the United States or of any State, operated in the interests of severely handicapped individuals who are not blind, and the net income of which does not inure in whole or in part to the benefit of any shareholder or other individual; which complies with applicable occupational health and safety standards prescribed by the Secretary of Labor; and which in the production of commodities and the provision of services (whether or not the commodities or services are procured under these regulations) during the fiscal year employs severely handicapped individuals (including blind) for not less than 75 percent of the man-hours of direct labor required for the production or provision of commodities or services.

(j) "Procurement list" means a list of (1) the commodities, including military resale commodities, produced by any workshop for the blind or by any workshop for other severely handicapped, and (2) the services, provided by any such workshop, which the Committee determines are suitable for procurement by

the Government pursuant to these regulations.

(k) "Military resale commodities" means commodities on the procurement list sold for the private, individual use of authorized patrons of Armed Forces commissaries and exchanges, or like activities of other Government departments and agencies.

(1) "Central nonprofit agency" means an agency organized under the laws of the United States or of any State, operated in the interest of the blind or other severely handicapped, the net income of which does not inure in whole or in part to the benefit of any shareholder or other individual, and designated by the Committee to facilitate the distribution (by direct allocation, subcontract, or any other means) of orders of the Government for commodities and services on the procurement list among workshops for the blind or workshops for other severely handicapped, and to assist the Committee in administering these regulations.

(m) "Ordering office" means any activity in an entity of the Government that places orders for the procurement of any commodity or service on the procurement list.

(n) "Workshop" means a workshop for the blind or a workshop for other severely handicapped, as appropriate. [38 FR 16316, June 21, 1973, as amended at 39 FR 35365, Oct. 1, 1974]

(a) The Committee, in assigning priorities for the procurement of commodities and services on the procurement list, will make such assignments in accordance with paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section.

(b) In the purchase by the Government of commodities, including military resale commodities, produced and offered for sale by workshops for the blind or workshops for other severely handicapped, priority shall be accorded to commodities produced and offered for sale by workshops for the blind.

(c) In the purchase by the Government of services offered by workshops for the blind or workshops for other severely handicapped, priority shall, until December 31, 1976, be accorded to services offered for sale by workshops for the blind.

AUTHORITY: Pub. L. 92-28, 85 Stat. 77; (41 U.S.C. 46-48).

SOURCE: 38 FR 16317, June 21, 1973, unless otherwise noted.

§ 51-2.1 Membership.

Under the Act the Committee is composed of 15 members appointed by the President. There is one representative from each of the following departments or agencies of the Government: The Department of Agriculture, the Department of Defense, the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, the Department of the Air Force, the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, the Department of Commerce, the Department of Justice, the Department of Labor, the Veterans Administration, and the General Services Administration. Four members are private citizens:

One who is conversant with the problems incident to the employment of blind individuals; one who is conversant with the problems incident to the employment of other severely handicapped individuals; one who represents blind individuals employed in qualified nonprofit agencies for the blind; and one who represents severely handicapped individuals (other than blind) employed in qualified nonprofit agencies for the other severely handicapped. [39 FR 35365, Oct. 1, 1974] § 51-2.2 Responsibility.

It is the Committee's responsibility to administer the Act, the purpose of which is to direct the procurement of selected products and services by the Federal Government to qualified workshops for the blind and other severely handicapped. The objective is to increase the opportunities for the employment of blind and other severely handicapped individuals and, whenever possible, to

prepare these individuals to engage in normal competitive employment.

§ 51-2.3

Duties and powers.

The duties and powers of the Committee are:

(a) To establish and publish in the FEDERAL REGISTER a procurement list of those commodities and services which it determines are suitable for workshops for the blind or other severely handicapped to supply to the Government.

(b) To determine the fair market price of the commodities or services on the procurement list and to revise its price determinations in accordance with changing market conditions.

(c) To designate a central nonprofit agency or agencies to facilitate the distribution, among the workshops for the blind and other severely handicapped, of orders of the Government for commodities or services appearing on the procurement list (by direct allocation, subcontract, or any other means).

(d) To establish rules and regulations regarding the effective implementation of the Act.

(e) To assure that workshops for the blind will have priority over workshops for other severely handicapped in the production of commodities and, until December 31, 1976, in the provision of services.

(f) To conduct a continuing study and evaluation of its activities under the Act for the purpose of assuring effective and efficient administration of the Act. On its own, or in cooperation with other public or nonprofit private agencies, the Committee may study problems relating to the employment of the blind and other severely handicapped individuals, and to the development and adaptation of production methods which would enable a greater utilization of these individuals. § 51-2.4 Procurement list.

The Committee shall issue to each ordering office a procurement list which will include commodities and services which shall be procured from the indicated central nonprofit agency or its workshops.

(a) For commodities (except military resale commodities), the procurement list includes the item description, specification identification, price, and other pertinent information.

(b) For services, the procurement list identifies the type of service to be pro

vided, the area(s) and/or agency (s) to be serviced and includes information on prices.

(c) For military resale commodities, the procurement list includes name of commodity, identification number, and price.

§ 51-2.5 Fair market price.

The Committee is responsible for determining the fair market prices including changes thereto, for commodities or services on the procurement list and shall consider recommendations from the procuring agencies and the central nonprofit agency concerned. Recommendations for fair market prices or changes thereto shall be submitted by the workshops to the central nonprofit agency representing the workshop. The central nonprofit agency shall analyze the data and submit a recommended fair market price to the Committee along with the detailed justification necessary to support the recommended price.

Under the provisions of section 2(c) of the Act, the following are designated central nonprofit agencies:

(a) To represent the workshops for the blind:

National Industries for the Blind.

(b) To represent the workshops for other severely handicapped:

National Industries for the Severely Handicapped, Inc.

Goodwill Industries of America.
International Association of Rehabilitation
Facilities.

Jewish Occupational Council.

National Association for Retarded Citizens. National Easter Seal Society for Crippled Children and Adults.

United Cerebral Palsy Association. [39 FR 35365, Oct. 1, 1974]