Small Business Size Standards; Waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule

Resumo

The Small Business Administration (SBA) is considering granting a waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule for Minicomputers. A Minicomputer is ``a digital computer whose price and capability lies above that of a personal computer or workstation, and below that of a mainframe computer'' as defined by the Ralston and Reilly Encyclopedia of Computer Science Third Edition. The SBA adds that most Minicomputers are run in a closed-shop environment, with the user acting as operator, programmer, and application analyst. The basis for a waiver of the Nonmanufacturer Rule for this product is that there are no small business manufacturers or processors available to supply these products to the Federal Government. The effect of a waiver would be to allow otherwise qualified regular dealers to supply other than the product of a domestic small business manufacturer or processor on a Federal contract set aside for small businesses or awarded through the SBA 8(a) Program. The purpose of this notice is to solicit comments and potential source information from interested parties.