Outreach and Advocacy Tool Kit January 2012 The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began the use of an operational name –U.S.AbilityOne Commission– on October 1, 2011 (76 FR 80608-80609) DEPARTMENT – LETTERHEAD    DATE          MEMORANDUM FOR Program Managers, Procurement Officials, and Purchase Card Holders    SUBJECT:    Mandatory Source Requirements of the AbilityOne Program    1.  The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled, now operating as  the US AbilityOne Commission (Commission) was established by the Javits‐Wagner‐O'Day (JWOD) Act  (41 USC Chapter 85) and is responsible for implementing a comprehensive program designed to  enact the Federal Government’s policy to increase employment and training opportunities for  persons who are blind or have other significant disabilities through the purchase of commodities and  services from qualified nonprofit agencies employing such individuals.  Today, this comprehensive  program is called the AbilityOne Program, and the Commission’s regulatory authorities under the  Program are described at 41 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Chapter 51 and Federal Acquisition  Regulation (FAR) Subpart 8.7.      In accordance with 41 CFR 51‐2.8, the Commission maintains a Procurement List (PL), and the JWOD  Act mandates that products or services included on the PL required by Government entities be  procured from a nonprofit agency (NPA) employing persons who are blind or have other significant  disabilities, at a price established by the Commission, if that product or service is available within the  normal period required by that Government entity.  Except for Federal Prison Industries’ higher  priority for products, the JWOD Act has priority over any other supplier of the Government's  requirements for products and services as long as the products and services provided are on the  Commission’s PL.      2.  A recently completed study by an AbilityOne Program workgroup revealed that program  managers, contracting officers, contracting specialists, and purchase card holders may not be aware  of, or fully understand, how the mandatory source requirement of the AbilityOne Program applies to  the purchase of products.   When products are on the PL and the Government has a need for them,  those products must be purchased from the AbilityOne Program.  AbilityOne products are easily  identified by the AbilityOne trademark being found on the product, product labeling, or packaging.      In contrast, Government employees are prohibited by regulation from purchasing products that are  determined to be “essentially the same” (ETS) (in terms of form, fit, and function) as products on the  PL.   “Essentially the same” products are not made by people who are blind or significantly disabled,  and their purchase reduces opportunities for employment of people with disabilities under the  AbilityOne Program.      3.  Purchases of ETS products must be avoided in order to further the goal of creating long‐term,  stable employment for people who are blind or who have other significant disabilities. Program  managers, when developing requirements, should check the PL to determine if there are AbilityOne  products already available that meet those requirements.  Procurement officials must also check the  PL and ETS products list to ensure that solicitations, or other procurement instruments, do not mistakenly require the procurement of ETS products.  And, purchase card holders can avoid  purchasing ETS products by ensuring that products purchased display the AbilityOne trademark and  by being familiar with the PL and list of ETS products available at www.abilityone.gov.       4.  I hope you will join with me to strengthen support for the AbilityOne Program by conscientiously  applying its mandatory source requirements.  Compliance with mandatory source requirements goes  a long way towards ensuring the creation of long‐term, stable employment for people with  disabilities and compliance with long‐standing Government policy.            [SIGNATURE BLOCK] COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10-800 [email protected] 1421 Jefferson Davis Highway 703-603-7740 voice 703-603-0655 fax Arlington, Virginia 22202-3259 TABLE OF CONTENTS 01. MISSION 02. ADVOCACY 02.01. Liaison Program 02.02. Memoranda of Support 02.03. Training Material 03. MANDATORY SOURCE REQUIREMENT 03.01. Essentially-the-Same (ETS) White Paper 03.02. Mandatory Source Requirement Presentation 03.03. Webinar Transcript 03.04. Standardized “Contract” Language 04. REFERENCES 04.01. Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act – United States Code – 41 USC 8501-8506, 01/04/2011 04.02. Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled – Code of Federal Regulations – 41 CFR 51 04.03. U.S. AbilityOne Commission – Adoption of Operational Name – 76 FR 60808-60809, 09/30/2011 04.04. Employment Growth / Immediate Payoff Group Report, 07/14/2011 The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began operating as the U.S. AbilityOne® Commission as of October 1, 2011 COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10-800 [email protected] 1421 Jefferson Davis Highway 703-603-7740 voice 703-603-0655 fax Arlington, Virginia 22202-3259 ABILITYONE MISSION Provide employment opportunities for people who are blind or have other significant disabilities through the manufacture and delivery of products and services to the Federal Government. Training Focus: Employment within the disability community is the AbilityOne’s primary objective. The Federal procurement system is the vehicle identified by the Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act to fulfill this need. Source: (1) Legal authority – Javits-Wagner-O’Day Act – 41 USC § 8504 (a) In General. – An entity of the Federal Government intending to procure a product or service on the procurement list referred to in section 8503 of this title shall procure that product or service from a qualified nonprofit agency for the blind or a qualified nonprofit agency for other severely disabled in accordance with regulations of the Committee and at the price the Committee establishes if the product or service is available within the period required by the entity. (2) Regulation – 41 CFR chapter 51-1.1 (b) It is the policy of the Committee to encourage all Federal entities and employees to provide the necessary support to ensure that the JWOD Act is implemented in an effective manner. This support includes purchase of products and services published on the Committee’s Procurement List through appropriate channels from nonprofit agencies employing persons who are blind or have other severe disabilities. Dec. 28, 2011 The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began operating as the U.S. AbilityOne® Commission as of October 1, 2011 COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10-800 [email protected] 1421 Jefferson Davis Highway 703-603-7740 voice 703-603-0655 fax Arlington, Virginia 22202-3259 ABILITYONE LIAISON PROGRAM The success of the AbilityOne Program can be enhanced by the establishment of an AbilityOne Liaison Program in your agency or Department. When established within your organization, AbilityOne Liaisons can help the AbilityOne team understand how it can best meet each agency’s unique acquisition needs. AbilityOne Liaisons can be a knowledgeable resource to communicate to their colleagues how supporting the AbilityOne Program helps generate jobs for thousands of Americans who are blind and have the most significant disabilities. Liaisons bring a unique combination of experience, creative energy, and vitality to spreading the AbilityOne message. Dec. 28, 2011 The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began operating as the U.S. AbilityOne® Commission as of October 1, 2011 COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10-800 [email protected] 1421 Jefferson Davis Highway 703-603-7740 voice 703-603-0655 fax Arlington, Virginia 22202-3259 LIAISON ACTIVITIES The following are broad categories of activities that AbilityOne Liaisons may engage in to enhance the success of the AbilityOne Program in their agency or Department. ADVOCACY: Liaisons can monitor the growth of AbilityOne support with your agency or department and help promote AbilityOne Program visibility by reporting on the level of AbilityOne products and services that have been purchased. They can also become aware of agency acquisition plans in order to identify new opportunities for the provision of AbilityOne Program products and/or services. Liaisons can help the AbilityOne team identify other employees in your agency who may be interested in serving as a liaison with the AbilityOne Program due to a key job responsibility or personal interest in advocating for people with disabilities. COMMUNICATIONS: Liaisons can help establish electronic links on appropriate pages of Agency websites; send [email protected] the page information and how to contact the webmaster. Even short messages about the AbilityOne Program on Log-in banners, Email The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began operating as the U.S. AbilityOne® Commission as of October 1, 2011 footers, and internal newsletters help tremendously toward improving awareness. EDUCATE: The Liaisons can facilitate further distribution of this Toolkit to groups, such as purchase card program coordinators, purchase card holders, operations and program managers, and new acquisition staff. Attending annual AbilityOne Program training conferences sponsored by NIB and NISH will strengthen their understanding of the Program. They can provide feedback to survey questionnaires about contract awards and services provided under the AbilityOne Program assist with improvement efforts within the Program. COLLABORATE: Liaisons can share ideas with others and encourage them to purchase only AbilityOne products. Dec. 28, 2011 The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began operating as the U.S. AbilityOne® Commission as of October 1, 2011 COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR SEVERELY DISABLED Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10-800 [email protected] 1421 Jefferson Davis Highway 703-603-7740 voice 703-603-0655 fax Arlington, Virginia 22202-3259 MEMORANDA OF SUPPORT Commission Members, as advocates for the AbilityOne Program, are encouraged to obtain statements of support for the AbilityOne Program from the Secretary of their Department or other senior official, as appropriate. Such statements from senior leaders encourage other employees to support the AbilityOne Program, purchase AbilityOne products through authorized distributors, and promote awareness of that the Program is a mandatory source of supply for products that display the AbilityOne logo. This section of the Toolkit contains several examples of Memoranda of Support issued by various Federal officials. They may provide useful information for similar letters that may be issued in response to this Toolkit. Dec. 28, 2011 The Committee for Purchase From People Who Are Blind or Severely Disabled began operating as the U.S. AbilityOne® Commission as of October 1, 2011