Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 242 / Friday, December 17, 2004 / Notices 75505

http://www.usda.gov/gipsa/referencelibrary/standards/stds.htm.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: John 

Giler, Deputy Director, Field 

Management Division, USDA, GIPSA, 

Room 2429–S, Stop 3632, 1400 

Independence Avenue, SW., 

Washington, DC, 20250–3632, telephone 

(202) 720–0252; or e-mail to: 

John.C.Giler@usda.gov.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Section 

203(c) of the Agricultural Marketing Act 

of 1946, as amended, directs and 

authorizes the Secretary of Agriculture 

‘‘to develop and improve standards of 

quality, condition, quantity, grade, and 

packaging and recommend and 

demonstrate such standards in order to 

encourage uniformity and consistency 

in commercial practices * * *’’. GIPSA 

is committed to carrying out this 

authority in a manner that facilitates the 

marketing of agricultural commodities. 

The United States Standards for Beans 

do not appear in the Code of Federal 

Regulations but are maintained by the 

U.S. Department of Agriculture. 

GIPSA is proposing to change the 

United States Standards for Beans using 

the procedures that appear at 7 CFR 

Section 868.102. GIPSA representatives 

work closely with the National Dry Bean 

Council (NDBC) and others in the bean 

industry to examine the effectiveness of 

the U.S. Standards for Beans in today’s 

marketing environment. Through 

discussions, it appears that the current 

standards continue to meet consumer/

processor needs. However, the bean 

industry has indicated the special grade 

‘‘off-color’’ in dry beans is not needed 

to market dry beans. 

The special grade designation ‘‘offcolor’’ has been in the U.S. Standards 

for Beans for many years. Because it is 

a special grade designation, it does not 

affect the numerical grade designation. 

The current written description for ‘‘offcolor’’ is: ‘‘Beans that, after removal of 

total defects, are distinctly off-color due 

to age or other natural causes but are not 

materially weathered.’’

Off-color is determined on a 

representative sample of approximately 

500 grams after the removal of total 

defects (i.e., splits, damaged beans, 

contrasting classes, and foreign 

material). Beans are considered as ‘‘offcolor’’ if they are not of a good natural 

color or are stained to an extent that 

they seriously affect the appearance of 

the lot. Beans that are discolored by 

dust or a slight amount of dirt, which 

can be removed by processing methods, 

are not considered as ‘‘off-color.’’

Bean color is dependent upon 

environmental conditions, varietal 

differences, moisture, storage, and age. 

Beans grown in various regions may 

vary greatly in general appearance. As 

beans mature and are ready for harvest, 

outside forces such as dew, rain, and 

sunlight, can greatly affect the color of 

the beans. These same forces cause 

beans in the same regions to vary in 

color from season to season. 

Further, beans of one class and variety 

grown in the Pacific Northwest may 

have an entirely different color than the 

same beans grown in the Midwest 

regions, yet both would be of good 

natural color for their regions. For 

example, the Colorado/Idaho grown 

pinto bean generally has a lighter seed 

coat color than the pinto beans grown in 

North Dakota. Both color types appeal to 

consumers and are considered a ‘‘good 

natural color.’’

Further, there is no visual reference 

for off-color, and, due to the many 

variances, attempts to develop a visual 

reference have been difficult. This can 

make assessment for off-color 

sometimes difficult. 

The majority of suppliers know their 

customer and their specific quality 

preferences. When asked to furnish a 

light, uniformly colored bean, suppliers 

generally know the implied color 

parameters, for their respective areas, 

that the customer is setting due to the 

supplier/buyer relationship. However, 

when the supplier is not clear as to the 

needs of the customers, they use ‘‘type 

samples.’’ That is, the supplier forwards 

a sample representing the color and 

quality they have available to 

prospective customers for examination 

and approval. If the color and quality 

are acceptable, comparable quality is 

shipped to the customer without 

incident. 

GIPSA recognizes that color is, at 

times, a concern to buyers. 

Consequently, GIPSA will provide, 

upon request, an analysis for color to 

determine if color is uniform or is 

representative of a ‘‘type’’ sample. When 

a request for color analysis is made, a 

statement will be added to the 

certificate in the ‘‘Remarks’’ section 

stating whether the color is uniform, not 

uniform, or meets the requirements of 

the type sample. 

GIPSA is proposing to remove the 

special grade designation ‘‘off-color’’

from the United States Standards for 

Beans. GIPSA will continue to offer 

assessments for color uniformity on a 

request only basis. This action will 

facilitate the marketing of beans from 

many different regions. 

GIPSA will solicit comments for 30 

days. This comment period is 

considered appropriate given the 

upcoming production season for beans. 

All comments received within the 

comment period will be made part of 

the public record maintained by GIPSA, 

will be available to the public for 

review, and will be considered by 

GIPSA before final action is taken on the 

proposal.

Authority: 7 U.S.C. 1621 et seq.

Donna Reifschneider, 

Administrator, Grain Inspection, Packers and 

Stockyards Administration.

[FR Doc. 04–27626 Filed 12–16–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3410–EN–P

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM 

PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR 

SEVERELY DISABLED 

Procurement List; Additions and 

Deletions

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From 

People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled.

ACTION: Additions to and deletions from 

Procurement List. 

SUMMARY: This action adds to the 

Procurement List products and a service 

to be furnished by nonprofit agencies 

employing persons who are blind or 

have other severe disabilities, and 

deletes from the Procurement List a 

product and services previously 

furnished by such agencies.

DATES: Effective Date: January 16, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase 

From People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800, 

1421 Jefferson Davis Highway, 

Arlington, Virginia, 22202–3259.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sheryl D. Kennerly, (703) 603–7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

Additions 

On October 15, and October 22, 2004, 

the Committee for Purchase From 

People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled published notice (69 FR 61202 

and 62020) of proposed additions to the 

Procurement List. 

After consideration of the material 

presented to it concerning capability of 

qualified nonprofit agencies to provide 

the products and services and impact of 

the additions on the current or most 

recent contractors, the Committee has 

determined that the products and 

service listed below are suitable for 

procurement by the Federal Government 

under 41 U.S.C. 46–48c and 41 CFR 51–

2.4. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification 

I certify that the following action will 

not have a significant impact on a 

substantial number of small entities.

75506 Federal Register / Vol. 69, No. 242 / Friday, December 17, 2004 / Notices 

The major factors considered for this 

certification were: 

1. The action will not result in any 

additional reporting, recordkeeping or 

other compliance requirements for small 

entities other than the small 

organizations that will furnish the 

products and service to the Government. 

2. The action will result in 

authorizing small entities to furnish the 

products and service to the Government. 

3. There are no known regulatory 

alternatives which would accomplish 

the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in 

connection with the products and 

service proposed for addition to the 

Procurement List. 

End of Certification 

Accordingly, the following products 

and service are added to the 

Procurement List:

Products 

Product/NSN: Cup, Drinking, Styrofoam, 

M.R. 537. 

NPA: The Oklahoma League for the Blind, 

Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. 

Contracting Activity: Defense Commissary 

Agency (DeCA), Fort Lee, Virginia.

Product/NSN: Lightsticks (Chemlights) 

6260–00–106–7478 (4′′—Green) 

6260–01–230–8601 (6′′—Red-HI) 

6260–01–074–4229 (6′′—Green) 

6260–01–074–4230 (6′′—Yellow-HI) 

6260–01–178–5559 (6′′—Red) 

6260–01–178–5560 (6′′—Blue)

6260–01–195–9753 (6′′—Orange) 

6260–01–196–0136 (6′′—Yellow) 

6260–01–218–5146 (6′′—White) 

6260–01–247–0362 (15′′—Green) 

6260–01–247–0363 (6′′—Orange/Ultra HI) 

6260–01–247–0367 (15′′—White) 

6260–01–247–0368 (6′′—White-HI) 

6260–01–265–0612 (15′′—Red) 

6260–01–265–0613 (15′′—Yellow) 

6260–01–265–0614 (15′′—Blue) 

6260–01–282–7630 (4′′—Orange) 

NPA: L.C. Industries For The Blind, Inc., 

Durham, North Carolina. 

Contract Activity: Defense Supply Center 

Philadelphia, Philadelphia, 

Pennsylvania. 

Service 

Service Type/Location: Custodial Services, 

USDA, Laboratory Research Building, 

6301 W. 750 North, West Lafayette, 

Indiana. 

NPA: Wabash Center, Inc., Lafayette, Indiana. 

Contracting Activity: USDA, Agriculture 

Research Service, Peoria, Illinois.

Deletions 

On October 22, 2004, the Committee 

for Purchase From People Who Are 

Blind or Severely Disabled published 

notice (69 FR 62020/21) of proposed 

deletions to the Procurement List. After 

consideration of the relevant matter 

presented, the Committee has 

determined that the product and 

services listed below are no longer 

suitable for procurement by the Federal 

Government under 41 U.S.C. 46–48c 

and 41 CFR 51–2.4. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification 

I certify that the following action will 

not have a significant impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

The major factors considered for this 

certification were: 

1. The action may result in additional 

reporting, recordkeeping or other 

compliance requirements for small 

entities. 

2. The action may result in 

authorizing small entities to furnish the 

product and services to the Government. 

3. There are no known regulatory 

alternatives which would accomplish 

the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in 

connection with the product and 

services deleted from the Procurement 

List. 

End of Certification 

Accordingly, the following product 

and services are deleted from the 

Procurement List: 

Product 

Product/NSN: Paper, Looseleaf, Blank, 

7530–00–286–5782. 

NPA: Alabama Industries for the Blind, 

Talladega, Alabama. 

Contracting Activity: Office Supplies & 

Paper Products Acquisition Center, 

New York, NY. 

Services 

Service Type/Location: Janitorial/

Custodial, U.S. Federal Building 

and Post Office, 104 West Magnolia, 

Bellingham, Washington. 

NPA: Cascade Christian Services, 

Bellingham, Washington. 

Contracting Activity: General Services 

Administration.

Service Type/Location: Janitorial/

Custodial, U.S. Post Office and 

Courthouse, Vicksburg, Mississippi. 

NPA: Warren County Association for 

Retarded Citizens, Inc., Vicksburg, 

Mississippi. 

Contracting Activity: General Services 

Administration.

Sheryl D. Kennerly, 

Director, Information Management.

[FR Doc. 04–27658 Filed 12–16–04; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 6353–01–P

COMMITTEE FOR PURCHASE FROM 

PEOPLE WHO ARE BLIND OR 

SEVERELY DISABLED 

Procurement List; Proposed Additions

AGENCY: Committee for Purchase From 

People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled.

ACTION: Proposed additions to 

Procurement List. 

SUMMARY: The Committee is proposing 

to add to the Procurement List products 

and services to be furnished by 

nonprofit agencies employing persons 

who are blind or have other severe 

disabilities. 

Comments Must be Received on or 

Before: January 16, 2005.

ADDRESSES: Committee for Purchase 

From People Who Are Blind or Severely 

Disabled, Jefferson Plaza 2, Suite 10800, 

1421 Jefferson Davis Highway, 

Arlington, Virginia, 22202–3259.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:

Sheryl D. Kennerly, (703) 603–7740.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: This 

notice is published pursuant to 41 

U.S.C. 47(a)(2) and 41 CFR 51–2.3. Its 

purpose is to provide interested persons 

an opportunity to submit comments on 

the proposed actions. If the Committee 

approves the proposed additions, the 

entities of the Federal Government 

identified in the notice for each product 

and service will be required to procure 

the products and services listed below 

from nonprofit agencies employing 

persons who are blind or have other 

severe disabilities. 

Regulatory Flexibility Act Certification 

I certify that the following action will 

not have a significant impact on a 

substantial number of small entities. 

The major factors considered for this 

certification were: 

1. If approved, the action will not 

result in any additional reporting, 

recordkeeping or other compliance 

requirements for small entities other 

than the small organizations that will 

furnish the products and services to the 

Government. 

2. If approved, the action will result 

in authorizing small entities to furnish 

the products and services to the 

Government. 

3. There are no known regulatory 

alternatives which would accomplish 

the objectives of the Javits-WagnerO’Day Act (41 U.S.C. 46–48c) in 

connection with the products and 

services proposed for addition to the 

Procurement List. Comments on this 

certification are invited. Commenters 

should identify the statement(s) 

underlying the certification on which