28788 Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 99 / Monday, May 24, 2010 / Notices 

Technical Plan, the Mooring Plan is of 

greatest importance, and the Towing 

Plan, Maintenance Plan and 

Environmental Plan are individually of 

equal importance but of lesser 

importance to the Mooring Plan. The 

Curatorial/Museum Plan and 

Community Support Plan are of equal 

importance, but of lesser importance 

than the aforementioned plans. 

Evaluation of the application(s) will 

be performed by the DON to ensure the 

application(s) are compliant with the 

minimum acceptable application 

criteria and requirements. In the event 

of multiple compliant applications for 

the same battleship, the DON will 

perform a comparative evaluation of the 

applications to determine the best 

qualified applicant. The adjectival 

ratings to be used for each criterion 

include: Outstanding, Good, 

Satisfactory, Marginal, and 

Unsatisfactory. The Secretary of the 

Navy or his designee will make the final 

donation decision. 

Applicants should review 

NAVSEAINST 4520.1A for additional 

requirements on the application 

process. That instruction can be found 

at the Navy Inactive Ships Program Web 

site: http://www.navsea.navy.mil/ 

teamships/Inactiveships/donation. 

The Letter of Intent and donation 

application must be submitted to the 

Navy Inactive Ships Program Office in 

hard copy and electronically on a CD– 

ROM in either a MS Word document or 

word-searchable PDF format. The 

complete application should be mailed 

to: The Columbia Group, 1201 M Street, 

SE., Suite 020, Washington, DC 20003; 

marked for the Ship Donation Project 

Manager within six months of this 

notice. As stated above, the DON 

reserves the right to provide a 

reasonable extension for receipt of 

applications, or to reject a request for 

extension and to proceed with other 

applications received within the 6- 

month deadline. The DON also reserves 

the right to re-open the solicitation 

process at any point prior to donation of 

the vessel if doing so is in the DON’s 

best interest. 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Ship 

Donation Project Manager: Ms. Angela 

Rexrode; telephone number 202–781– 

4847 or e-mail at 

angela.rexrode@navy.mil. 

Dated: May 13, 2010. 

A.M. Vallandingham, 

Lieutenant Commander, Judge Advocate 

General’s Corps, U.S. Navy, Federal Register 

Liaison Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2010–12351 Filed 5–21–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3810–FF–P 

DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE 

Department of the Navy 

Preferred Supplier Program (PSP) 

AGENCY: Department of the Navy, DoD. 

ACTION: Notice of proposed policy letter. 

SUMMARY: The Deputy Assistant 

Secretary of the Navy, Acquisition and 

Logistics Management (DASN (A&LM)), 

is soliciting comments that the 

Department of the Navy (DON) may use 

in drafting a policy that will establish a 

Preferred Supplier Program (PSP). 

Under the PSP, contractors that have 

demonstrated exemplary performance, 

at the corporate level; in the areas of 

cost, schedule, performance, quality, 

and business relations would be granted 

Preferred Supplier Status (PSS). 

Contractors that achieved PSS would 

receive more favorable contract terms 

and conditions in DON contracts. Upon 

approval of the policy by the Assistant 

Secretary of the Navy for Research, 

Development and Acquisition, DON 

will initiate the pilot phase of the PSP. 

DATES: DON invites interested parties 

from both the public and private sectors 

to provide comments to be considered 

in the formulation of the final policy 

letter. In particular, DON encourages 

respondents to offer their views as 

discussed below, in Section D, 

‘‘Solicitation of Public Comment.’’ 

Interested parties should submit 

comments, in writing, to the address 

below, on or before July 23, 2010. 

ADDRESSES: Comments may be 

submitted by any of the following 

methods: 

E-mail: preferredsupplier@navy.mil. 

Facsimile: 703–614–9394. 

Mail: DASN (A&LM), Attn: Clarence 

Belton, 1000 Navy Pentagon, Room 

BF992, Washington, DC 20350–1000. 

Instructions: Please submit comments 

only and cite ‘‘Proposed DON PSP 

Policy Letter’’ in all correspondence. All 

comments received will be posted, 

without change or redaction, to https:// 

acquisition.navy.mil/rda/home/ 

acquisition_one_source/ 

business_opportunities/ 

preferred_supplier, so commenters 

should not include information that 

they do not wish to be posted (for 

example, personal or businessconfidential). 

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: 

Clarence Belton, 703–693–4006 or 

clarence.belton@navy.mil. 

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: 

A. Background 

Companies in the private sector that 

have implemented PSPs have 

significantly improved performance. 

Cash flow, profit, and contract terms 

and conditions that reduce contractor 

costs and risk are powerful incentives 

that can be used to motivate contractors 

to perform at a high level. DON and its 

contractors negotiate these key 

components of the business 

arrangement contract by contract. As a 

result of this decentralized and 

individual approach, DON loses an 

extremely important opportunity. This 

policy would establish the PSP to 

recover that opportunity through the use 

of favorable contract terms and 

conditions that would be available to 

Preferred Suppliers (i.e., suppliers that 

have demonstrated exemplary 

performance, at the corporate level, in 

the areas of cost, schedule, performance, 

quality, and business relations). 

The proposed policy is now in the 

conceptual stage. After consideration of 

the comments, DON may publish a draft 

proposed policy letter for additional 

public comments. 

B. Proposed Policy Letter Concepts 

The general outline of the pilot phase 

of the PSP, to be established under the 

proposed policy letter, is set forth 

below. 

DASN (A&LM) shall be responsible 

for the assessment of contractors under 

the PSP. DASN (A&LM) will confer PSS 

at the corporate level, and will not rate 

individual affiliates or subdivisions of 

corporations. 

DASN (A&LM) shall use the 

Contractor Performance Assessment 

Reporting System (CPARS) as the 

baseline data during the pilot phase of 

the PSP. In the course of the pilot phase, 

DON also will identify other sources of 

data, including information available to 

Navy program offices and government 

contract administration organizations 

that the Department may use to 

supplement CPARS data in 

implementing the PSP. The factors that 

DASN (A&LM) will use to assess 

contractors during the pilot phase 

include, at a minimum, the following 

CPARS areas: 

Technical (Quality of Product); 

Schedule; 

Cost Control; 

Management Responsiveness; 

Management of Key Personnel; 

Utilization of Small Business; 

Other CPARS Factors As Appropriate. 

DASN (A&LM) shall assess Energy 

Efficiency for all contractors as an 

‘‘excellence factor,’’ in addition to the 

areas above. 

During the pilot phase of the PSP, 

DON will use a 5-star system based 

upon the 5-color ratings used in CPARS, 

as follows: 

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Federal Register / Vol. 75, No. 99 / Monday, May 24, 2010 / Notices 28789 

CPARS PSP 

Red ................................................. 0 

Yellow ............................................. 1 

Green .............................................. 2 

Purple ............................................. 3 

Dark Blue ........................................ 4 

DON will use the CPARS conversion 

table above, based upon CPARS data, 

and, as appropriate, other sources of 

information and weighting factors. 

Contractors must achieve at least a 3– 

Star rating to be designated as a 

Preferred Supplier. 

If a contractor provides 

documentation sufficient to establish 

that it has an Energy Efficiency Program, 

it will receive an additional star, up to 

a maximum rating of 5 Stars. A 5–Star 

rating can only be achieved if the 

contractor maintains an active Energy 

Efficiency Program, and otherwise has 

received a 4–Star rating. Failure to 

demonstrate an active Energy Efficiency 

Program will not diminish the 

contractor’s PSP rating. 

During each fiscal year, DASN 

(A&LM) shall reassess and rate the top 

25 DON contractors. The top 25 DON 

contractors will be determined by the 

value of contract awards for the most 

recent fiscal year. Other contractors may 

apply to join the PSP. DASN (A&LM) 

shall evaluate all applicants currently 

eligible for assessment in CPARS using 

the same process as it does to evaluate 

the top 25 contractors. DASN (A&LM) 

will establish a 30-day application 

period that will begin no later than 

January 1, annually. 

In negotiating contracts with Preferred 

Suppliers, DON contracting officers will 

be authorized to offer some or all of the 

following more favorable contract terms 

and conditions: 

Æ More favorable progress payments. 

Æ Recognition of PSS in the 

development of profit or fee based upon 

weighted guidelines. 

Æ Tailored contract reporting 

requirements. 

Æ Special award fee pools. 

PSS shall not be used as a factor or 

sub-factor in any source selection. 

However, where the contracting officer 

has a reasonable belief that a Preferred 

Supplier may submit a bid or proposal, 

the solicitation shall contain terms and 

conditions that will be applicable, after 

award, only if the successful offeror is 

a Preferred Supplier. 

These special terms and conditions, 

applicable to contracts with Preferred 

Suppliers, shall be consistent with the 

limitations specified in regulations 

promulgated pursuant to the Federal 

Acquisition Regulatory System. 

C. Solicitation of Public Comment 

DON invites interested parties from 

both the public and private sectors to 

provide comments for consideration in 

the formulation of a policy letter 

establishing the PSP. In particular, DON 

seeks to better understand how to 

incentivize contractors, at the corporate 

level, to achieve sustained superior 

performance in the areas of cost, 

schedule, performance, quality, and 

business relations. Accordingly, DON 

welcomes feedback regarding the 

following questions. 

1. What clauses are currently being 

used in government subcontracts, and 

commercial contracts and subcontracts, 

to incentivize superior performance, at 

the corporate level, in the areas of cost, 

schedule, performance, quality, and 

business relations? 

2. What solicitation provisions, 

contract clauses, and performance 

incentives will provide contractors with 

the greatest motivation to achieve PSS? 

3. Energy Efficiency is a critical DON 

requirement significantly impacting the 

successful achievement of DON’s 

missions. How should a contractor’s use 

of energy, as it relates to the entire lifecycle of a product—design, 

manufacture, use, maintenance, and 

disposal—be considered in the 

designation of Preferred Suppliers? 

4. Is there any other aspect of the 

proposed PSP on which you wish to 

comment? 

Dated: May 14, 2010. 

A. M. Vallandingham, 

Lieutenant Commander, Office of the Judge 

Advocate General, U.S. Navy, Federal 

Register Liaison Officer. 

[FR Doc. 2010–12349 Filed 5–21–10; 8:45 am] 

BILLING CODE 3810–FF–P 

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION 

Office of Innovation and Improvement; 

Overview Information; Charter Schools 

Program (CSP) Grants for Replication 

and Expansion of High-Quality Charter 

Schools; Notice Inviting Applications 

for New Awards for Fiscal Year (FY) 

2010 

Catalog of Federal Domestic 

Assistance (CFDA) Number: 84.282M. 

Dates: 

Applications Available: May 24, 2010. 

Date of Pre-Application Meeting: June 

8, 2010. 

Deadline for Transmittal of 

Applications: July 7, 2010. 

Deadline for Intergovernmental 

Review: September 7, 2010. 

Full Text of Announcement 

I. Funding Opportunity Description 

Purpose of Program: The purpose of 

the CSP is to increase national 

understanding of the charter school 

model and to expand the number of 

high-quality charter schools available to 

students across the Nation by providing 

financial assistance for the planning, 

program design, initial implementation, 

or expansion of charter schools, and to 

evaluate the effects of charter schools, 

including their effects on students, 

student academic achievement, staff, 

and parents. 

The purpose of this competition 

(CFDA 84.282M) is to award grants to 

eligible applicants to enable them to 

replicate or expand high-quality charter 

schools with demonstrated records of 

success, including success in increasing 

student academic achievement. Eligible 

applicants may use their CSP funds to 

expand the enrollment of one or more 

existing charter schools by substantially 

increasing the number of available seats 

per school, or to open one or more new 

charter schools that are based on the 

charter school model for which the 

eligible applicant has presented 

evidence of success. 

Priorities: This competition includes 

one absolute priority, three competitive 

preference priorities, and one 

invitational priority. We are establishing 

these priorities for the FY 2010 grant 

competition and any subsequent year in 

which we make awards from the list of 

unfunded applicants from this 

competition, in accordance with section 

437(d)(1) of the General Education 

Provisions Act (GEPA), 20 U.S.C. 

1232(d)(1). 

Absolute Priority: This priority is an 

absolute priority. Under 34 CFR 

75.105(c)(3) we consider only 

applications that meet this priority. 

This priority is: 

Experience Operating or Managing 

High-Quality Charter Schools 

The applicant must have experience 

operating or managing more than one 

high-quality charter school. For 

purposes of this priority, a high-quality 

charter school is a school that shows 

evidence of strong academic results, 

based on the criteria described in 

Selection Criterion (a), and has no 

significant issues in the areas of student 

safety, financial management, or 

statutory or regulatory compliance. For 

purposes of this competition, significant 

issue means something that did, will, or 

could lead to the revocation of a 

school’s charter. 

Competitive Preference Priorities: 

These priorities are competitive 

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