SBA

• after reviewing a determination by a contracting officer that no small business manufacturer or processor can reasonably be expected to offer a product meeting the specifications (including period of performance) required of an offeror or by the solicitation; or
• for a product or class of products after determining that no small business is available to participate in the Federal procurement market.
  
  

Class Waivers

For the purpose of waivers, a class of products is defined based on the Office of Management and Budget's North American Industry Classification (NAICS) Manual and, at the present time, on the General Services Administration's Product and Service Code Directory. Within each four-digit code are subdivisions of products that can be considered for waiver. A request for a waiver of a class of products should refer to a specific subdivision, or statement of product, within a four-digit code in one of these manuals.

Any individual or organization (government agency, business, association, etc.) may request a waiver for a class of products. The request should be in writing addressed to the Associate Administrator for Government Contracting and should specifically state the class (or classes) of products for which the waiver is sought.

Format for Submitting Class Waivers
Associate Administrator
Office of Government Contracting
U.S. Small Business Administration
409 3 rd Street, SW , MC 6700
Washington , DC 20416

Dear Associate Administrator:

In accordance with 13 Code of Federal Regulations (Reference 12l.1204(a)(2)), the ( your name and/or the name of your organization) hereby requests a class waiver of the Nonmanufacturere Rule (NMR) for name of product(s) , under the North American Industry Classification (NAICS) code (6 digit code ).

(Describe any background information relative to the product(s) you are requesting to be waived.) Include detailed information on the efforts made to identify small business manufacturers or processors for the class.

Upon the U. S. Small Business Administration's (SBA) receipt of evidence that a small business manufacturer or processor exists in the Federal market for a waived class of products, the waiver will be terminated by the Associate Administrator for Government Contracting. This evidence may be discovered by SBA during a periodic review of existing waivers or may be brought to SBA's attention by other sources. (Reference 13 Code of Federal Regulations 121.1204 (7)(i)).

I can be reached at ( ) ______, fax number ( ) _______, and mailing address_______.

Sincerely,

______________

Signed/dated

Individual Waivers

Only a contracting officer for the Federal Government may request an individual or solicitation-specific waiver. The request should be in writing, addressed to the Associate Administrator for Government Contracting, and consist of the following:

1. A definitive statement of the specific item(s) to be waived;

2. The solicitation number for the procurement on which the item(s) is required and a brief statement of the procurement history; and

3. A determination by the procuring agency's contracting officer that there are no known small business manufacturers for the requested items. The determination must contain a clear statement of the contracting officer's efforts to search for small business manufacturers or processors of the item(s) and the results of those efforts. The information should include the findings of a search on the SBA's Central Contractor Registration (CCR) "Dynamic Small Business Search" ; other market surveys performed; the results of discussions with small business representatives to find manufacturers (i.e., Office of Small Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) Representative or Procurement Center Representative (PCR)); and a statement by the contracting officer that there are no known small business manufacturers for the items and that no small business can reasonably be expected to offer the required supplies.

A contracting officer may request an individual waiver for more than one item on a solicitation. The required information indicated above must be included for each item.

Timeframes for Handling

A request for an individual waiver takes about 15 working days to process if the contracting officer provides complete information. Requests for waivers of classes of products take an average of 45 working days for processing. This period of time allows SBA staff to publish Waivers of the Nonmanufacturer Rule in the Federal Register, a required notice of an intent to grant a waiver for the class of products, a notice in the FedBizOpps of potential sources sought, and a final notice in the Federal Register of decision to grant the waiver if no small business manufacturers or processors have been identified.

Submitting Requests

A format for requesting a waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule, additional information about waivers of the Nonmanufacturer Rule, or answers to any questions regarding the information contained in this document can be obtained by contacting the Office of Government Contracting at telephone number 202-619-0422.

Requests for waivers of the Nonmanufacturer Rule should be sent to the Associate Administrator for Government Contracting at:

U. S. Small Business Administration
Office of Government Contracting
Mail Code 6700
409 3rd Street, SW
Washington, DC 20416

Waiver Request of the of the Nonmanufacture Rule (Suggested Format)

You may follow this format for convenience. Please provide all the information indicated below.

FAX a signed copy of a justification containing the information below to Edith Butler, Nonmanufacturer Rule Program Analyst, at (202) 481-1788. If you have any questions, please call (202) 619-0422. Also mail a hard copy.

Note: If a justification for other than full and open Competition has been prepared and approved for this procurement, forward the J&A as an attachment to your waiver request.

---------------------------------------------------

DATE:

TO: U.S. Small Business Administration
Arthur E. Collins, Jr. , Associate Administrator for Government Contracting
Office of Government Contracting (MC 6700)
409 Third Street, S.W.
Washington, DC 20416

FROM:

SUBJECT: Request for Waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule

In accordance with FAR 19.102(f)(5)(iii), the (name of your organization) hereby requests a waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule for (describe the supply or service for which you are requesting the waiver). It is our intent to purchase this/these item(s) from (name of company you intend to award a contract to). This small business is ("in the 8(a) program" - "women-owned" select one of these and insert in the narrative) and is offering the product of a large business. (Name of company to which you intend to make the award) is a regular dealer of this/these item(s).

1) Definitive Statement of the Specific Item(s) to be Waived.

Describe the item that you intend to procure in detail. Include any specific features that you believe are not available from any other manufacturer, and brand name, make or model.

Describe any interface that this item must have with any existing system. Describe the reason why this item, manufactured by this specific source, must be purchased in terms of interchangeability, integration, compatibility, maintainability, reliability, etc., with an existing system.

Describe the analysis you conducted to determine that this item was the only item able to satisfy your agency/department's needs.

2) Procurement History.

Period of Performance: Enter data about the period of performance under this intended contract. Discuss other options, if appropriate, and interface with other contract performance (for example, if delivery or performance must coincide with another contract or if the item is Government Furnished Equipment or Material to another contract).

NAICS: Enter the North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) you will be using for this procurement (http:www.ntis.gov/naics). NAICS uses a six-digit coding system to identify particular industries and their placement in this hierarchical structure of the classification system. If the dollar amount exceeds $500,000, provide a copy of the Statement of Work (SOW). The NAICS replaced the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code.

Contract Type: Enter contract type.

Acquisition History: Indicate whether this is a follow-on contract or a new requirement.

e) Solicitation History: Address whether a solicitation was issued and any particulars regarding the solicitation that impacted this request for waiver. Provide the solicitation number for this procurement. If more than one contract will be awarded, provide information on what items will be associated with each solicitation/contract.

g) Procurement Notice: Provide information on the date the procurement was included in the Commerce Business Daily or on other actions taken to inform the marketplace of this requirement. Indicate the outcome of these actions.

h) Factors Impacting Decision to Procure from this Specific 8(a) or non-8(a) Small Business: Discuss the factors that resulted in your decision to procure from this specific business concern. Provide the name and address of the concern and the nature of the business. Identify whether this is a small business concern, an 8(a) small business concern, or a small women-owned business concern.

i) Other Interested Small Business or 8(a) Concerns: Indicate any interest expressed by other 8(a) or small business concerns in this procurement and why you determined that only the source in subparagraph (h) was acceptable.

j) Procurement Method: Indicate whether full and open competition, sole source, limited source, set-aside, or 8(a) program award.

3) Determination That There are No Known Small Business Manufacturing Sources for the Requested Item. Describe in detail the extent of the market search that you conducted that led you to believe that there was no small business manufacturer for this particular item. Address whether you publicized your request, called manufacturers, obtained a printout from the SBA's PRO-Net System (http://pro-net.sba.gov), or any other methods used to make your determination. Include your results (e.g. market search, number or responding companies, nature of responses, etc.).

4. Contracting Officer's Determination to Seek Waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule.
On the basis of the above, I believe that there are no small business manufacturing sources for (Name of the item you intend to procure) and therefore, request a waiver to the nonmanufacturer rule.

Date: __________ (Signature of the Contracting Officer)

Print Name of the Contracting Officer

Telephone Number/Fax Number

(Note: The Contracting Officer's signature is required or the signature of the Chief of the Contracting Office.

No other signature is acceptable by statute.)