Small Business Timber Set Aside Program, 15697-15699 [2015-06557]
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15697
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
Vol. 80, No. 57
Wednesday, March 25, 2015
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER
contains notices to the public of the proposed
issuance of rules and regulations. The
purpose of these notices is to give interested
persons an opportunity to participate in the
rule making prior to the adoption of the final
rules.
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
13 CFR Part 121
RIN 3245–AG69
Small Business Timber Set Aside
Program
U.S. Small Business
Administration.
ACTION: Advance notice of proposed
rulemaking.
AGENCY:
The U.S. Small Business
Administration (SBA or Agency) is
seeking comments on possible
amendments to its Small Business
Timber Set-Aside Program (the Program)
regulations. The Small Business Timber
Set-Aside Program is rooted in the
Small Business Act, which tasked SBA
with ensuring that small businesses
receive a fair proportion of the total
sales of government property. Several
timber industry stakeholders have
petitioned SBA to make changes to the
Program because they believe that the
current regulations do not provide
adequate protections to ensure that
small businesses maintain a fair share of
the National Forest timber sale market.
In response, SBA, in consultation with
the United States Forest Service, is
seeking comment on several issues to
assist the agency in formulating
potential regulatory proposals. SBA will
share the comments received in
response to this advance notice of
proposed rulemaking with the United
States Forest Service for their use in
determining whether, and if so how, to
make any corresponding changes to the
United States Forest Service Handbook.
First, SBA seeks comments on the
possibility of including saw timber
volume sold as part of a stewardship
timber or stewardship services contract
in the calculation of the timber sale
share of small business. Second, SBA
seeks comments on how timber sale
appraisals should be performed for
small business set aside sales and
associated costs and benefits to
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
SUMMARY:
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:23 Mar 24, 2015
Jkt 235001
stakeholders. The SBA is also seeking
input on various policy options.
DATES: Comments must be received on
or before May 26, 2015.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments,
identified by RIN: 3245–AG69, by any of
the following methods:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://
www.regulations.gov. Follow the
instructions for submitting comments.
• For mail, paper, disk, or CD/ROM
submissions: Brenda J. Fernandez,
Procurement Analyst, U.S. Small
Business Administration, Office of
Policy, Planning and Liaison, 409 Third
Street SW., 8th Floor, Washington, DC
20416.
• Hand Delivery/Courier: Brenda J.
Fernandez, Procurement Analyst, U.S.
Small Business Administration, Office
of Policy, Planning and Liaison, 409
Third Street SW., 8th Floor,
Washington, DC 20416.
SBA will post all comments on
www.regulations.gov. If you wish to
submit confidential business
information (CBI) as defined in the User
Notice at www.regulations.gov, please
submit the information to: Brenda J.
Fernandez, Procurement Analyst, U.S.
Small Business Administration, Office
of Policy, Planning and Liaison, 409
Third Street SW., 8th Floor,
Washington, DC 20416, or send an email
to brenda.fernandez@sba.gov. Highlight
the information that you consider to be
CBI and explain why you believe SBA
should hold this information as
confidential. SBA will review the
information and make the final
determination on whether it will
publish the information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Brenda J. Fernandez, Procurement
Analyst, Office of Policy, Planning and
Liaison, 409 Third Street SW.,
Washington, DC 20416; (202) 205–7337;
brenda.fernandez@sba.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Forest
Service, an agency of the federal
government sells saw logs in accordance
with the Small Business Act (Pub. L.
85–536 as amended) and the National
Forest Management Act (Pub. L. 94–588
as amended). Timber is regularly sold
from the federal forests managed by the
U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest
Service (USDA/FS) and the U.S.
Department of the Interior’s Bureau of
Land Management (DOI/BLM). On
occasion, timber is sold from federal
forests which are under the supervision
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Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
of the U.S. Department of the Interior’s
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S.
Department of Defense, the U.S.
Department of Energy, and the
Tennessee Valley Authority.
Collectively, these agencies are
considered the ‘‘sales agencies.’’ SBA
and the sales agencies jointly set aside
timber sales for bidding by small
concerns when market data
demonstrates that small businesses
would not obtain their fair share under
open sales. In 1971, USDA and SBA
signed a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) intended to
accomplish the declared policy of
Congress that a fair proportion of the
total sales of Government property be
made to small business enterprises
defined by SBA (Small Business Act. 15
U.S.C. 631, et seq.). In the 1980s and
1990s, efforts to protect species habitat
and watersheds in compliance with
federal law and regulation resulted in
dramatic changes to the United States
timber industry. These changes
included reduced timber harvests on
Federal and private lands which in turn
caused market failures for timber mills
that could not adapt and retool. As a
result, many small timber mills (western
mills in particular) have been forced to
close. As such, the Small Business
Timber Set-Aside Program has become
increasingly important to ensure that a
‘‘fair proportion’’ of Federal timber is
available for purchase by qualified small
business concerns.
SBA is soliciting public comment on
the Small Business Timber Set-Aside
Program to help the agency determine
what, if any, changes should be
proposed. Specifically, SBA is soliciting
public comments on methods to include
stewardship sales in the calculation of
the timber sale share for small business
and considerations for how timber sale
appraisals are performed for small
business set-aside sales. These possible
amendments would not impact the DOI/
BLM’s Timber Sale and Forest
Management Programs. DOI/BLM’s
small business set-asides, which are
limited to 8 markets in Oregon, are
made in accordance with the terms of a
separate MOU between SBA and DOI/
BLM. Rather than setting forth
computation methods for small business
market share considerations, SBA’s
MOU with DOI/BLM affords SBA the
opportunity to review DOI/BLM annual
timber sale plans prior to publication
E:\FR\FM\25MRP1.SGM
25MRP1
15698
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 57 / Wednesday, March 25, 2015 / Proposed Rules
and to request set-asides under the
authority of the Small Business Act.
When DOI/BLM agrees to set aside
certain timber sales, DOI/BLM consults
with SBA concerning financial and
other performance qualifications to be
included in the conditions of sale.
While DOI/BLM utilizes various
stewardship contracting vehicles, the
regulatory amendments contemplated
by SBA will not impact DOI/BLM’s use
of stewardship contracting. Further,
DOI’s current policy regarding small
business set-aside timber sales is to
appraise the hauling costs to the closest
mill that qualifies as a small business
under SBA’s definition located in.
Saw logs are sold through
conventional timber sales and through
stewardship contracting. The
stewardship contracting program was
established by Section 347 of the
FY1999 Omnibus Appropriations Act
(Pub. L. 105–277) to help achieve land
management goals on the national
forests, and to help meet the needs of
local and rural communities.
Stewardship contracting is a goods-forservices arrangement that requires
timber companies who cut trees on
National Forest System lands to perform
other service work in exchange for the
timber volume. Integrated Resource
Timber Contract (IRTC) formats were
developed by the Forest Service for
exclusive use in implementing
stewardship contracting projects when
the value of goods exceeds the cost of
services. Integrated Resource Service
Contract (IRSC) formats were developed
by the Forest Service for exclusive use
in implementing stewardship
contracting projects when the cost of
services exceeds the value of the goods.
As demonstrated below, stewardship
sales accounted for 31% of all timber
(sawtimber plus non-sawtimber) sold by
the FS in Fiscal Year 2013. This is the
highest percentage of total sales in the
last ten years. However, some
stakeholders believe that certain FS
Regions could/should do consistently
better in making timber sales awards to
small business.
STEWARDSHIP TIMBER/SERVICE SALES SOLD
[FY 2004–2013]
Year (FY)
R–1
R–2
R–3
R–4
R–5
R–6
R–8
R–9
R–10
All FS
All sales, sawtimber + non-sawtimber (MMbf)
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
159
243
189
135
186
216
180
149
144
115
163
132
165
198
201
199
196
159
196
210
49
72
69
57
43
21
46
54
32
129
107
49
68
69
70
41
60
46
53
71
208
386
228
272
109
236
252
212
219
229
434
392
470
489
525
498
424
464
512
527
359
414
858
501
539
476
540
556
521
475
319
364
381
352
349
319
358
379
419
393
85
54
83
29
4
6
45
37
41
13
1,883
2,105
2,511
2,101
2,026
2,011
2,100
2,056
2,137
2,162
19
30
64
91
100
96
120
105
175
202
0
4
42
34
28
62
50
62
92
90
0
2
4
23
10
22
50
50
67
61
0
1
0
1
1
0
0
33
40
0
96
105
231
308
284
343
486
427
592
661
4
8
14
19
19
19
28
23
34
38
0
1
5
7
5
13
9
11
18
19
0
1
1
6
3
7
14
13
16
16
0
1
0
2
27
0
0
9
96
0
5
5
9
15
14
17
23
21
28
31
Stewardship timber/service sales (MMbf)
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
7
12
48
44
64
45
56
43
41
36
9
9
16
16
35
38
70
33
35
39
25
17
18
28
21
15
26
31
19
107
12
7
15
9
12
11
38
21
22
51
23
23
24
62
14
54
75
47
102
75
% Stewardship
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
2004
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
2010
2011
2012
2013
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
.........................
4
5
25
33
35
21
31
29
28
32
5
7
10
8
17
19
36
21
18
19
51
23
26
49
49
72
56
59
58
83
12
13
22
14
17
27
64
47
42
72
11
6
11
23
13
23
30
22
47
33
Data Source: Timber Data Company; November 19, 2013.
To help ensure a fair proportion of
timber sales go to small businesses,
timber sales must be set aside when
small business participation falls below
a certain amount. In determining this
trigger amount, the FS calculates the
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:23 Mar 24, 2015
Jkt 235001
amount of small business market share
based on small business purchases of
saw timber volume over a five-year
period. This percentage, based upon
historical purchases, sets the framework
for what constitutes small businesses’
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Fmt 4702
Sfmt 4702
fair proportion of the total sales volume.
Currently, the computation of small
business market share does not include
saw logs from stewardship contracts.
SBA is seeking comment on whether the
calculation should also include saw
E:\FR\FM\25MRP1.SGM
25MRP1
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 57 / Wednesday, March 25, 2015 / Proposed Rules
mstockstill on DSK4VPTVN1PROD with PROPOSALS
timber purchased through stewardship
contracts. Specifically, SBA invites
comments and supporting data in
response to the following questions.
Stewardship Contracting Questions
1. How should the FS include the saw
timber volume on stewardship contracts
awarded to small business in the
computation of small business market
share?
2. How might including stewardship
saw timber volume impact future
market share calculations for small
business concerns that participate in
stewardship contracts and/or
conventional timber sales?
3. What are the potential impacts
(costs and benefits) if SBA regulations at
13 CFR 121.506 were to include the saw
timber volume from IRTCs and IRSCs in
the calculation of small business market
share?
a. What is the anticipated impact of
the inclusion of saw timber volume
from stewardship contracts on stumpage
prices?
b. If inclusion of saw timber volume
from stewardship contracts leads to
lower stumpage prices, what is the
impact to land management activities
(paid for by stumpage prices) and
retained receipts?
c. What is the anticipated impact on
sale values both from an agency
perspective and a treasury perspective?
4. What would be the most efficient
and effective way to account for actual
saw timber volume from stewardship
contracts awarded to small business?
5. Would an increase in the utilization
of stewardship contracts in a market
area result in a lower representation of
small businesses successfully bidding
for timber sales in that market area?
Should this lead to lowering the market
share for small business set-aside sales
in that market area when the FS and
SBA compute small business
participation?
6. Would including stewardship saw
timber volume on contracts awarded to
small business in the calculation result
in more accurate representation of small
business participation in the market
area?
Unrelated to stewardship contracting,
SBA is also seeking public comments on
potential amendments to its current
regulations at 13 CFR 121.507(a)(4)(i),
which provides that on a set-aside
timber sale, the small business may not
resell more than 30% of the saw timber
volume to a large business concern.
When the FS offers any timber sale, it
appraises the sale for its potential
market value and sets the minimum bid
that it will accept based on that
appraisal. One factor in the appraisal is
VerDate Sep<11>2014
20:23 Mar 24, 2015
Jkt 235001
the haul cost that the purchaser (small
or large) will absorb to bring the timber
to a manufacturing facility. Currently,
all appraisals are made to the nearest
mill. In timber sales set aside for small
businesses, large mills are ineligible to
bid. In the context of a set-aside, if the
nearest mill is a large mill, the appraisal
will not accurately capture the haul cost
to eligible bidders. As such, SBA is
seeking public comment on whether the
appraisal for a small business set-aside
sale should be made to the nearest,
small mill.
Set-aside Sale Appraisal Point
Questions
1. How can the actual haul costs to
eligible small business timber set-aside
purchasers be better reflected in the
appraisal process?
2. Should there be considerations for
keeping the appraisal point to the
nearest mill on a small business timber
set-aside sale in those market areas that
do not have mills that would qualify as
‘‘small’’ under the SBA criteria?
3. How should the prohibition against
small businesses reselling more than
30% of the saw timber volume to a large
business concern be taken into account
when making appraisals for small
business timber set-aside sales?
4. What is the financial impact to the
Forest Service if the 30% rule is
included in the appraisal point haul
cost calculation of a small business
timber set-aside sale?
5. What is the anticipated impact on
trust funds (e.g., Knutson-Vandenberg),
if any, if appraisals are made to a small
mill rather than the closest processer.
6. SBA is also requesting data on mill
size and location.
The SBA welcomes comments and
any available data to help substantiate
recommendations made in response to
the foregoing general questions, or other
potential policy options—including
status quo—that should be considered
for the Small Business Timber Sales SetAside Program.
Dated: March 16, 2015.
Maria Contreras-Sweet,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015–06557 Filed 3–24–15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025–01–P
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15699
COMMODITY FUTURES TRADING
COMMISSION
17 CFR Parts 1, 15, 17, 19, 32, 37, 38,
140, and 150
RIN 3038–AD99; 3038–AD82
Position Limits for Derivatives and
Aggregation of Positions; Correction
Commodity Futures Trading
Commission.
ACTION: Notice of proposed rulemaking;
provision of Table 11a; and reopening of
comment periods; correction.
AGENCY:
This is a correction to the
preamble of a document published by
the Commodity Futures Trading
Commission (‘‘Commission’’) in the
Federal Register of February 25, 2015,
regarding the reopening of the comment
periods for proposed rulemakings to
establish speculative position limits for
28 exempt and agricultural commodity
futures and options contracts and the
physical commodity swaps that are
economically equivalent to such
contracts (the ‘‘Position Limits
Proposal’’) and to amend existing
regulations setting out the Commission’s
policy for aggregation under its position
limits regime (the ‘‘Aggregation
Proposal’’). This correction clarifies the
closing date for the reopened comment
periods, which was inadvertently set to
fall on a non-business day.
DATES: The comment periods for the
Aggregation Proposal published
November 15, 2013, at 78 FR 68946, and
for the Position Limits Proposal
published December 12, 2013, at 78 FR
75680, which reopened on February 26,
2015, will close on March 30, 2015.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Stephen Sherrod, Senior Economist,
Division of Market Oversight, (202) 418–
5452, ssherrod@cftc.gov; or Riva Spear
Adriance, Senior Special Counsel,
Division of Market Oversight, (202) 418–
5494, radriance@cftc.gov; Commodity
Futures Trading Commission, Three
Lafayette Centre, 1155 21st Street NW.,
Washington, DC 20581.
SUMMARY:
Correction
In the Federal Register of February
25, 2015, in proposed rule FR Doc.
2015–03834, on page 10023, in the first
column, correct the DATES caption to
read:
DATES: The comment periods for the
Aggregation Proposal published
November 15, 2013, at 78 FR 68946, and
for the Position Limits Proposal
published December 12, 2013, at 78 FR
75680, will reopen on February 26,
2015, and will close on March 30, 2015.
Sfmt 4702
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25MRP1
]]>Agencies
[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 57 (Wednesday, March 25, 2015)]
[Proposed Rules]
[Pages 15697-15699]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-06557]
========================================================================
Proposed Rules
Federal Register
________________________________________________________________________
This section of the FEDERAL REGISTER contains notices to the public of
the proposed issuance of rules and regulations. The purpose of these
notices is to give interested persons an opportunity to participate in
the rule making prior to the adoption of the final rules.
========================================================================
Federal Register / Vol. 80, No. 57 / Wednesday, March 25, 2015 /
Proposed Rules
[[Page 15697]]
SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION
13 CFR Part 121
RIN 3245-AG69
Small Business Timber Set Aside Program
AGENCY: U.S. Small Business Administration.
ACTION: Advance notice of proposed rulemaking.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA or Agency) is
seeking comments on possible amendments to its Small Business Timber
Set-Aside Program (the Program) regulations. The Small Business Timber
Set-Aside Program is rooted in the Small Business Act, which tasked SBA
with ensuring that small businesses receive a fair proportion of the
total sales of government property. Several timber industry
stakeholders have petitioned SBA to make changes to the Program because
they believe that the current regulations do not provide adequate
protections to ensure that small businesses maintain a fair share of
the National Forest timber sale market. In response, SBA, in
consultation with the United States Forest Service, is seeking comment
on several issues to assist the agency in formulating potential
regulatory proposals. SBA will share the comments received in response
to this advance notice of proposed rulemaking with the United States
Forest Service for their use in determining whether, and if so how, to
make any corresponding changes to the United States Forest Service
Handbook. First, SBA seeks comments on the possibility of including saw
timber volume sold as part of a stewardship timber or stewardship
services contract in the calculation of the timber sale share of small
business. Second, SBA seeks comments on how timber sale appraisals
should be performed for small business set aside sales and associated
costs and benefits to stakeholders. The SBA is also seeking input on
various policy options.
DATES: Comments must be received on or before May 26, 2015.
ADDRESSES: You may submit comments, identified by RIN: 3245-AG69, by
any of the following methods:
Federal eRulemaking Portal: https://www.regulations.gov.
Follow the instructions for submitting comments.
For mail, paper, disk, or CD/ROM submissions: Brenda J.
Fernandez, Procurement Analyst, U.S. Small Business Administration,
Office of Policy, Planning and Liaison, 409 Third Street SW., 8th
Floor, Washington, DC 20416.
Hand Delivery/Courier: Brenda J. Fernandez, Procurement
Analyst, U.S. Small Business Administration, Office of Policy, Planning
and Liaison, 409 Third Street SW., 8th Floor, Washington, DC 20416.
SBA will post all comments on www.regulations.gov. If you wish to
submit confidential business information (CBI) as defined in the User
Notice at www.regulations.gov, please submit the information to: Brenda
J. Fernandez, Procurement Analyst, U.S. Small Business Administration,
Office of Policy, Planning and Liaison, 409 Third Street SW., 8th
Floor, Washington, DC 20416, or send an email to
brenda.fernandez@sba.gov. Highlight the information that you consider
to be CBI and explain why you believe SBA should hold this information
as confidential. SBA will review the information and make the final
determination on whether it will publish the information.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Brenda J. Fernandez, Procurement
Analyst, Office of Policy, Planning and Liaison, 409 Third Street SW.,
Washington, DC 20416; (202) 205-7337; brenda.fernandez@sba.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Forest Service, an agency of the federal
government sells saw logs in accordance with the Small Business Act
(Pub. L. 85-536 as amended) and the National Forest Management Act
(Pub. L. 94-588 as amended). Timber is regularly sold from the federal
forests managed by the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Forest Service
(USDA/FS) and the U.S. Department of the Interior's Bureau of Land
Management (DOI/BLM). On occasion, timber is sold from federal forests
which are under the supervision of the U.S. Department of the
Interior's U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the U.S. Department of
Defense, the U.S. Department of Energy, and the Tennessee Valley
Authority. Collectively, these agencies are considered the ``sales
agencies.'' SBA and the sales agencies jointly set aside timber sales
for bidding by small concerns when market data demonstrates that small
businesses would not obtain their fair share under open sales. In 1971,
USDA and SBA signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) intended to
accomplish the declared policy of Congress that a fair proportion of
the total sales of Government property be made to small business
enterprises defined by SBA (Small Business Act. 15 U.S.C. 631, et
seq.). In the 1980s and 1990s, efforts to protect species habitat and
watersheds in compliance with federal law and regulation resulted in
dramatic changes to the United States timber industry. These changes
included reduced timber harvests on Federal and private lands which in
turn caused market failures for timber mills that could not adapt and
retool. As a result, many small timber mills (western mills in
particular) have been forced to close. As such, the Small Business
Timber Set-Aside Program has become increasingly important to ensure
that a ``fair proportion'' of Federal timber is available for purchase
by qualified small business concerns.
SBA is soliciting public comment on the Small Business Timber Set-
Aside Program to help the agency determine what, if any, changes should
be proposed. Specifically, SBA is soliciting public comments on methods
to include stewardship sales in the calculation of the timber sale
share for small business and considerations for how timber sale
appraisals are performed for small business set-aside sales. These
possible amendments would not impact the DOI/BLM's Timber Sale and
Forest Management Programs. DOI/BLM's small business set-asides, which
are limited to 8 markets in Oregon, are made in accordance with the
terms of a separate MOU between SBA and DOI/BLM. Rather than setting
forth computation methods for small business market share
considerations, SBA's MOU with DOI/BLM affords SBA the opportunity to
review DOI/BLM annual timber sale plans prior to publication
[[Page 15698]]
and to request set-asides under the authority of the Small Business
Act. When DOI/BLM agrees to set aside certain timber sales, DOI/BLM
consults with SBA concerning financial and other performance
qualifications to be included in the conditions of sale. While DOI/BLM
utilizes various stewardship contracting vehicles, the regulatory
amendments contemplated by SBA will not impact DOI/BLM's use of
stewardship contracting. Further, DOI's current policy regarding small
business set-aside timber sales is to appraise the hauling costs to the
closest mill that qualifies as a small business under SBA's definition
located in.
Saw logs are sold through conventional timber sales and through
stewardship contracting. The stewardship contracting program was
established by Section 347 of the FY1999 Omnibus Appropriations Act
(Pub. L. 105-277) to help achieve land management goals on the national
forests, and to help meet the needs of local and rural communities.
Stewardship contracting is a goods-for-services arrangement that
requires timber companies who cut trees on National Forest System lands
to perform other service work in exchange for the timber volume.
Integrated Resource Timber Contract (IRTC) formats were developed by
the Forest Service for exclusive use in implementing stewardship
contracting projects when the value of goods exceeds the cost of
services. Integrated Resource Service Contract (IRSC) formats were
developed by the Forest Service for exclusive use in implementing
stewardship contracting projects when the cost of services exceeds the
value of the goods. As demonstrated below, stewardship sales accounted
for 31% of all timber (sawtimber plus non-sawtimber) sold by the FS in
Fiscal Year 2013. This is the highest percentage of total sales in the
last ten years. However, some stakeholders believe that certain FS
Regions could/should do consistently better in making timber sales
awards to small business.
Stewardship Timber/Service Sales Sold
[FY 2004-2013]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Year (FY) R-1 R-2 R-3 R-4 R-5 R-6 R-8 R-9 R-10 All FS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
All sales, sawtimber + non-sawtimber (MMbf)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
2004...................................... 159 163 49 107 208 434 359 319 85 1,883
2005...................................... 243 132 72 49 386 392 414 364 54 2,105
2006...................................... 189 165 69 68 228 470 858 381 83 2,511
2007...................................... 135 198 57 69 272 489 501 352 29 2,101
2008...................................... 186 201 43 70 109 525 539 349 4 2,026
2009...................................... 216 199 21 41 236 498 476 319 6 2,011
2010...................................... 180 196 46 60 252 424 540 358 45 2,100
2011...................................... 149 159 54 46 212 464 556 379 37 2,056
2012...................................... 144 196 32 53 219 512 521 419 41 2,137
2013...................................... 115 210 129 71 229 527 475 393 13 2,162
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Stewardship timber/service sales (MMbf)
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2004...................................... 7 9 25 12 23 19 0 0 0 96
2005...................................... 12 9 17 7 23 30 4 2 1 105
2006...................................... 48 16 18 15 24 64 42 4 0 231
2007...................................... 44 16 28 9 62 91 34 23 1 308
2008...................................... 64 35 21 12 14 100 28 10 1 284
2009...................................... 45 38 15 11 54 96 62 22 0 343
2010...................................... 56 70 26 38 75 120 50 50 0 486
2011...................................... 43 33 31 21 47 105 62 50 33 427
2012...................................... 41 35 19 22 102 175 92 67 40 592
2013...................................... 36 39 107 51 75 202 90 61 0 661
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% Stewardship
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2004...................................... 4 5 51 12 11 4 0 0 0 5
2005...................................... 5 7 23 13 6 8 1 1 1 5
2006...................................... 25 10 26 22 11 14 5 1 0 9
2007...................................... 33 8 49 14 23 19 7 6 2 15
2008...................................... 35 17 49 17 13 19 5 3 27 14
2009...................................... 21 19 72 27 23 19 13 7 0 17
2010...................................... 31 36 56 64 30 28 9 14 0 23
2011...................................... 29 21 59 47 22 23 11 13 9 21
2012...................................... 28 18 58 42 47 34 18 16 96 28
2013...................................... 32 19 83 72 33 38 19 16 0 31
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Data Source: Timber Data Company; November 19, 2013.
To help ensure a fair proportion of timber sales go to small
businesses, timber sales must be set aside when small business
participation falls below a certain amount. In determining this trigger
amount, the FS calculates the amount of small business market share
based on small business purchases of saw timber volume over a five-year
period. This percentage, based upon historical purchases, sets the
framework for what constitutes small businesses' fair proportion of the
total sales volume. Currently, the computation of small business market
share does not include saw logs from stewardship contracts. SBA is
seeking comment on whether the calculation should also include saw
[[Page 15699]]
timber purchased through stewardship contracts. Specifically, SBA
invites comments and supporting data in response to the following
questions.
Stewardship Contracting Questions
1. How should the FS include the saw timber volume on stewardship
contracts awarded to small business in the computation of small
business market share?
2. How might including stewardship saw timber volume impact future
market share calculations for small business concerns that participate
in stewardship contracts and/or conventional timber sales?
3. What are the potential impacts (costs and benefits) if SBA
regulations at 13 CFR 121.506 were to include the saw timber volume
from IRTCs and IRSCs in the calculation of small business market share?
a. What is the anticipated impact of the inclusion of saw timber
volume from stewardship contracts on stumpage prices?
b. If inclusion of saw timber volume from stewardship contracts
leads to lower stumpage prices, what is the impact to land management
activities (paid for by stumpage prices) and retained receipts?
c. What is the anticipated impact on sale values both from an
agency perspective and a treasury perspective?
4. What would be the most efficient and effective way to account
for actual saw timber volume from stewardship contracts awarded to
small business?
5. Would an increase in the utilization of stewardship contracts in
a market area result in a lower representation of small businesses
successfully bidding for timber sales in that market area? Should this
lead to lowering the market share for small business set-aside sales in
that market area when the FS and SBA compute small business
participation?
6. Would including stewardship saw timber volume on contracts
awarded to small business in the calculation result in more accurate
representation of small business participation in the market area?
Unrelated to stewardship contracting, SBA is also seeking public
comments on potential amendments to its current regulations at 13 CFR
121.507(a)(4)(i), which provides that on a set-aside timber sale, the
small business may not resell more than 30% of the saw timber volume to
a large business concern. When the FS offers any timber sale, it
appraises the sale for its potential market value and sets the minimum
bid that it will accept based on that appraisal. One factor in the
appraisal is the haul cost that the purchaser (small or large) will
absorb to bring the timber to a manufacturing facility. Currently, all
appraisals are made to the nearest mill. In timber sales set aside for
small businesses, large mills are ineligible to bid. In the context of
a set-aside, if the nearest mill is a large mill, the appraisal will
not accurately capture the haul cost to eligible bidders. As such, SBA
is seeking public comment on whether the appraisal for a small business
set-aside sale should be made to the nearest, small mill.
Set-aside Sale Appraisal Point Questions
1. How can the actual haul costs to eligible small business timber
set-aside purchasers be better reflected in the appraisal process?
2. Should there be considerations for keeping the appraisal point
to the nearest mill on a small business timber set-aside sale in those
market areas that do not have mills that would qualify as ``small''
under the SBA criteria?
3. How should the prohibition against small businesses reselling
more than 30% of the saw timber volume to a large business concern be
taken into account when making appraisals for small business timber
set-aside sales?
4. What is the financial impact to the Forest Service if the 30%
rule is included in the appraisal point haul cost calculation of a
small business timber set-aside sale?
5. What is the anticipated impact on trust funds (e.g., Knutson-
Vandenberg), if any, if appraisals are made to a small mill rather than
the closest processer.
6. SBA is also requesting data on mill size and location.
The SBA welcomes comments and any available data to help
substantiate recommendations made in response to the foregoing general
questions, or other potential policy options--including status quo--
that should be considered for the Small Business Timber Sales Set-Aside
Program.
Dated: March 16, 2015.
Maria Contreras-Sweet,
Administrator.
[FR Doc. 2015-06557 Filed 3-24-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025-01-P
