84 -- FPI Production in FS Group 84 - Brown and Gray T-Shirts

This notice announces the decision regarding Federal Prison Industries’ (FPI) production in Federal Supply (FS) Group 84 - Clothing, Individual Equipment, and Insignia. FPI’s new product/significant expansion guidelines were published March 12, 1997, in the Federal Register. A provision of the guidelines allows for FPI to exceed a specific product’s expansion threshold in cases of a public exigency, such as a national defense emergency. The guidelines require that FPI receive a specific order or request from the Department of Defense (DoD) or Executive Branch officials for this provision to be invoked. Upon invoking this provision, the guidelines allow that increased sales resulting from national exigencies will not be considered a violation of the guidelines ceiling in the year in which they occur. During the February 2004 Board of Directors (the Board) meeting, FPI presented a request to the Board to invoke the national exigency provision of the guidelines for FPI production of t-shirts. The Board approved FPI’s request during the February Board meeting. In July 2004, FPI posted a notice in the Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) detailing the additional production due to the national exigency. Since that time, while still under the national exigency provision, FPI has received another request from the DoD for additional gray t-shirts. The Defense Supply Center Philadelphia (DSCP) has indicated that it wants FPI to significantly reduce or terminate its production of brown t-shirts, for which DSCP has numerous vendors, and focus almost exclusively on the gray t-shirts for which DSCP has limited vendors. At the December 2004 meeting, the Board approved this request, which would increase FPI’s t-shirt sales from $15.7 million to approximately $19.2 million. The total units of t-shirts produced by FPI will not increase (from current exigency levels of 3.9 million units). Under the current exigency, FPI’s units limitations are 2.3 million units of gray t-shirts and 1.6 million units of brown undershirts. In response to DSCP’s request, FPI will reduce or eliminate its production of brown t-shirts, substituting the gray t-shirts for the brown, per the request, and exceeding sales levels on gray t-shirts to fulfill the customer’s needs. As with the previous request, the “national exigency” provision is temporary, allowing FPI to exceed the normal sales ceilings while the exigency is in effect. It does not authorize FPI to utilize the higher level as a future production baseline. FPI and DoD are uncertain as to how long the current exigency will last due to the ongoing military war efforts and the continuing war on terrorism. At a minimum, however, it is expected that increased production levels as a result of DoD’s expanded needs will continue through the balance of the current fiscal year (FY) and into FY 2006. Interested parties have a right to raise questions at any time with FPI. Any correspondence should be addressed to: Chief Administrative Officer, Research, Activation, and Corporate Support, Federal Prison Industries, Inc., 320 First Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20534. Attention: RACS Branch.