[VendTalk] FW: The Blitz 2018 in Review
David Andrews
dandrews at visi.com
Sat Feb 23 16:18:28 UTC 2019
>
>Subject: [il-talk] FW: The Blitz 2018 in Review
>From: Edward Birmingham via IL-Talk <il-talk at nfbnet.org>
>Cc: Edward Birmingham <ebirm18 at wowway.com>
>
> NABM President Nicky Gacos asked that I share
> the latest Blitz with you. He would appreciate
> it if you could share it with other blind
> entrepreneurs and interested stakeholders. The
> National Association of Blind Merchants A
> Division of the National Federation of the
> Blind The Blitz 18 in 18 The National
> Association of Blind Merchants a Division of
> the National Federation of the Blind, each
> January publishes a special issue of The Blitz
> highlighting some of the accomplishments and
> bigger stories for the prior year. 2018 was an
> exciting year. An entire chapter in the history
> of Randolph-Sheppard could be devoted to 2018
> and that is no exaggeration. But no one has
> time to read an entire chapter. Plus if we get
> any complaints about The Blitz it is that is
> too long and an example of information
> overload. So, we decided to take a little
> different angle this year andoffer up 18
> highlights for 2018. There are many successes
> to celebrate so let’s get started. 1. Rest
> Area Commercialization Perhaps, the largest
> legislative threat too Randolph-Sheppard in
> decades was the effort to allow states to
> commercialize interstate rest areas. The
> President included commercialization in his
> infrastructure plan and the Chair of the House
> Committee with jurisdiction endorsed the idea.
> However, NABM joined with a coalition of other
> groups who opposed rest area commercialization
> to fight it. That coalition included the
> National Association of Truck Stop Operators,
> National Association of Convenience Stores,
> National Automated Merchandising Association,
> and others. Our National Federation of the
> Blind Office in Baltimore got involved in
> support of the blind merchants. Consequently,
> the legislative effort gained no traction and
> now has been pushed to the back burner. NABM
> made it easy for blind entrepreneurs and other
> stakeholders to communicate their opposition by
> creating a website that allowed them to send
> letters to their members of Congress. NABM
> met with the Assistant Secretary of the
> Department of Transportation to discuss the
> issue and later sponsored a roundtable
> discussion with DOT. Although we enjoyed
> success in 2018, we must remain vigilant in
> 2019. The issue is not going because governors
> are looking for new sources of
> revenue. 2. DoD Successes We couuld devote
> pages to Department of Defense issues. We
> won’t analyze each arbitration decision or
> court ruling. DoD issues can best be summarized
> with the following: * DoD Withdraws Proposed
> Rules In 2016, DoD published propposed rules
> that would have drastically impacted the
> Randolph-Sheppard priority for military dining
> contracts. The rules would have limited the
> priority to only a few contracts. The intent of
> the rules was to implement the Joint Policy
> Statement of 2006 which attempted to resolve
> the conflict over when the priority applies.
> NABM and the National Federation of the Blind
> led the charge in opposition to these rules. We
> created a website that allowed our stakeholders
> to generate over 5,000 public comments in
> opposition to the proposed regulations. We
> advocated with the Department of Education. We
> solicited help from members of Congress. We
> advocated with DoD and OMB. Ultimately, the
> Department of Education advised DoD that the
> Joint Policy Statement no longer represented
> the views of the Department. DoD was left with
> little choice except to withdraw the rules.
> Kudos to RSA and the Department of Education
> for its willingness to denounce the Joint
> Policy Statement; thus, bringing an end to
> DoD’s attempt to torpedo the priority.
> * The Priority Applies to DFA Contracts
> In line with its stance that it no longer
> supported the Joint Policy Statement,
> Department of Education Secretary Betsy DeVos
> responded to an inquiry from Congressman Pete
> Sessions regarding the applicability of the
> Randolph-Sheppard priority to military dining
> contracts. Specifically, the Congressman wanted
> to know if the priority applies to Dining
> Facility Attendant (DFA) services. The
> Secretary was unambiguous in her reply. Her
> answer was yes. The letter was a shot in the
> arm for the Randolph-Sheppard community which
> had always maintained that this was the case.
> It also gave states ammunition in arbitration
> cases and court appeals where states had
> challenged the military’s position that the
> priority did not apply. A federal judge in
> Texas who was hearing the State of Texas’
> appeal of a Fort Bliss arbitration panel
> decision took note of he letter and ruled in
> favor of the SLA. There were other arbitration
> panels who issued rulings stating the priority
> applies. 2018 was a huge year in terms of
> victories on this issue. However, the battle
> rages on. The military doesn’t take much
> stock in the Secretary’s letter or the
> court’s rulings. They continue to issue
> solicitations without the Randolph-Sheppard
> priority forcing states willing to fight the
> fight to litigate. And you can bet there are
> folks trying to make the case with members of
> Congress that they need to change the law. This
> means we have to be even more vigilant in
> protecting our priority. We must do our part to
> educate members on this very important issue. *
> Games Being Played with Competitive Range “
> Even in those cases where the military concedes
> that the Randolph-Sheppard priority applies,
> they still attempt to circumvent the priority.
> At Fort Dix, the Army said the priority only
> applies if the SLA’s bid is in the
> competitive range so they set no competitive
> range. An arbitration panel ruled a competitive
> range had to be set. At Fort Benning, the Army
> ruled the SLA’s bid to be outside of the
> competitive range but used some unorthodox
> procedure to make that determination. The SLA
> is challenging this. The prior year we saw the
> same thing at Fort Lee and now Fort Jackson is
> having issues related to the application of the
> competitive range. It seems to be the
> Army’s new strategy. * Vending on
> Military Bases In early 2018, an arbitration
> panel in Florida ruled that the SLA has a
> priority to establish vending facilities at
> Tyndall Air Force Base. NABM provided expert
> testimony in that case. The panel went further
> and ruled that the SLA is also entitled to
> income sharing from vending machines operated
> by the post-exchange. This was a landmark
> ruling and is in conflict with a federal court
> ruling in Texas over 25 years ago. The SLA has
> not gone to court to enforce the ruling. The
> hurricane practically leveled the base which is
> being rebuilt. The SLA hopes to address the
> issues as new structures go up or old ones are
> repaired. If unsuccessful, court will be the
> next step. If a federal court were to rule that
> SLA’s are entitled to income sharing, it
> would be huge and would create dozens if not
> hundreds of opportunities for blind
> entrepreneurs nationwide. * Marines Reject
> SLA Bids for Multi-State Contracts The
> RRandolph-Sheppard community had high hopes
> that 2018 would be the year that an SLA would
> be awarded its first multi-state
> contract. California took the lead and
> submitted a bid for the military dining at the
> Marine bases in California and Arizona. South
> Carolina submitted a bid on behalf of South
> Carolina, Virginia, and North Carolina. Both
> states selected FSIG as its teaming partner.
> Unfortunately, both bids were rejected on
> technical grounds that were very suspect. South
> Carolina has filed for arbitration. 3. BLAST
> Was a Texas Size Success Regardless of wwhat
> your tool is for measuring a successful
> conference, the 2018 BLAST in San Antonio would
> qualify as a whopping success. Records were set
> for attendance and the quality of the
> programming was second to none. BLAST has
> become the premiere training and networking
> event in the Randolph-Sheppard community. It is
> THE event to learn, network, and to be
> inspired. We have been bombarded by questions
> about when and where the 2019 BLAST will be.
> Unfortunately, there will not be a full-scale
> BLAST in 2019. The next one will be in 2020 and
> we will be announcing the location soon.
> Instead, we hope to announce a smaller
> conference, a mini BLAST if you will, in the
> coning weeks. Be on the lookout for both
> announcements. 4. Regional and State Training
> In 2018, NABM sponsored one regional
> confference and contracted with one state to do
> its annual training conference. In September,
> we sponsored a two-day training conference in
> Des Moines, Iowa for the states in the Midwest.
> Approximately 50 SLA staff and blind
> entrepreneurs from Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas,
> Oklahoma, Illinois, Minnesota, Nevada, and
> Wisconsin attended. It was a great experience
> that included an afternoon at the U-Select-It
> manufacturing facility and headquarters. NABM
> expects to do more of these regional type
> trainings. In August, NABM contracted with the
> State of Tennessee to do its annual Statewide
> Managers Meeting. Again, the quality of the
> training was outstanding. NABM would like to
> have the opportunity to do similar training in
> other states. If you think you’d like to see
> a regional training in your area or your state
> wants to enhance the quality of its annual
> training conference, get in touch with Nicky
> Gacos or Terry Smith. 5. President Gacos
> Launches Women’s Initiative In 2018, NABM
> President Nicky Gacos realizeed that women are
> seriously underrepresented in
> Randolph-Sheppard. He wanted to do something
> about it so he launched what is now being
> referred to as WiSE Women’s Iniitiative
> Supporting Entrepreneurship. The states were
> surveyed and it was determined that only 24% of
> current Randolph-Sheppard entrepreneurs are
> women. Furthermore, it was discovered that
> women are represented in even smaller
> percentages in the larger income facilities
> such as troop dining contracts. Melba Taylor, a
> blind entrepreneur from Maryland, is heading up
> the initiative. She conducted a workshop at
> BLAST and the group came up with
> recommendations on how to address the problems.
> Those recommendations have been incorporated
> into a white paper that will soon be released.
> You will want to watch for that. 6. NABM
> Releases White Paper on GSA Issues In recent
> years,, the Randolph-Sheppard community has
> become increasingly frustrated by what it views
> as abuses of the law by the U.S. General
> Services Administration. NABM has had
> significant dialogue with GSA officials in
> Washington, D.C. but the problems persist. In
> an effort to get GSA’s attention and to give
> the SLA’s some ammunition in their fights to
> protect the rights of blind entrepreneurs on
> federal properties, NABM released a white paper
> that addresses a number of the problems. You
> can view the white paper by going to
> https://blindmerchants.org/gsa-compliance-issues
> / 7. Hadley Training Becoming the Cornerstone
> of Entry Level Training - 34 blind individuals
> enrolled in the NABM / Hadley Institute for the
> Blind on-line entry-level training program in
> 2018. This represents approximately 30% of all
> newly trained Randolph-Sheppard entrepreneurs
> in the country. That percentage will continue
> to rise as more and more states look to cut
> costs and increase referrals. The on-line
> training accomplishes both. 8. States Jumping
> On Board with Subscription Service The
> nuumber of states subscribing to the National
> Federation of the Blind Entrepreneurs
> Initiative (NFBEI) increased to 37 in 2018.
> They see value in the services that NFB and
> NABM have to offer and see great benefits in
> the training and technical assistance services
> that are being made available. 9. Emerging
> Leaders Growing in Numbers - In May 2018, NABM
> conducted its third Emerging Leaders Training.
> This class was held in Washington, D.C. with 13
> future leaders from 11 different states in
> attendance. NABM recognizes the need for future
> leaders in our community and is trying to
> develop the leaders of tomorrow. 10. Critical
> Issues Conference NABM conducted a Critical
> Isssues Conference in Washington, D.C. It was a
> two-day event that afforded an opportunity to
> discuss and address many of the challenges
> being faced by Randolph-Sheppard today. The
> highlight of the 2018 Conference was the
> roundtable discussions held with federal
> entities. Participants had an opportunity to
> sit down with representatives from the
> Department of Education, U.S. General Services
> Administration, and Department of
> Transportation to discuss critical issues
> specific to those federal agencies. During the
> conference, a work group identified the most
> critical issues. To review those go to
> https://blindmerchants.org/critical-issues-conference/
> 11. Blind Entrepreneurs Let Their Voices Be
> Heard at D.C. Fly In - With the support of the
> National Federation of the Blind’s national
> office, NABM sponsored its most successful D.C.
> Fly In ever with 125 individuals going to
> Congress to educate members about the
> Randolph-Sheppard Program and to urge their
> support of the Program. They talked with their
> members about 3 issues rest area
> commercialization, the Departtment of
> Defense’s non-compliance with the Act, and
> bureaucratic delays in RSA. 12. NAMA News: The
> Partnership Grows NABM President Nicky Gacos
> was re-elected to his second term on the NAMA
> Board of Directors. His re-election is
> reaffirmation of the importance of the role
> Randolph-Sheppard plays in the convenience
> industry as a whole. Nicky is helping raise
> that visibility. As an example of how the
> partnership has grown, a large contingent of
> blind entrepreneurs attended NAMA’s Fly In
> which was held in July. What was NAMA’s
> number one issue to push to members of
> Congress? It was rest area commercialization.
> That never would have happened just 5 or 6
> years ago. NABM and blind entrepreneurs were
> also very visible at NAMA’s One Show in Las
> Vegas. NABM helped sponsor a half-day of
> training especially for Randolph-Sheppard
> attendees. 13. RSA Prior Approval and Policy
> Changes Pose Major Threats Although RSA is to
> be applauded for its stronng stance in support
> of Randolph-Sheppard against the Department of
> Defense, NABM and the state agencies are very
> concerned about two policy decisions. One
> requires state agencies to seek prior approval
> from RSA for all purchases that exceed $5,000.
> Additionally, prior approval must be sought
> before the SLA can hold a Committee of Blind
> Vendors Meeting, conduct its annual training
> conference, and when sending blind
> entrepreneurs out-of-state to training
> conferences such as BLAST. But there is also
> growing concern about RSA’s position on not
> allowing states to use federal dollars to
> renovate space for a vending facility. It has
> told states that such simple things as
> painting, putting tile down, running
> electricity or water, etc. are not allowable.
> This is a dramatic change that threatens
> opportunities for blind people to go to work.
> NABM has communicated its concerns in writing
> and has met with the Assistant Secretary in
> person. We proposed a number of recommendations
> to address the issues. 14. Healthy Vending
> Issues Still on the Front Page Blind
> entrepreneurrs continue to face challenges as
> health advocates, particularly the American
> Heart Association, push for healthier foods in
> vending machines. They are advocating an
> unreasonable position in that in many instances
> they want every item in a machine to meet
> strict guidelines. In Louisiana, the American
> Heart Association convinced the Governor to
> issue an executive order requiring 100% healthy
> items in all vending machines on state
> property. It was an ill-advised strategy as it
> affected all state properties including the
> state universities. NABM got involved and
> solicited help from NAMA. NABM President Nicky
> Gacos facilitated a compromise. He traveled to
> Baton Rouge to meet with the Governor’s
> Office and other officials and eventually
> brokered a deal whereby blind entrepreneurs
> would ensure that 25% of all vended products
> meet the NAMA Fit Pick guidelines. NABM
> supports offering healthier options to
> customers but it rejects the idea of mandates
> believing instead that the market should
> determine what products will be sold. 15.
> Having SSDI Issues? NABM continues to offer
> a service to its members who are experiencing
> problems with the Social Security
> Administration over their SSDI. The
> organization contracts with a nationally
> recognized Social Security expert who aided
> several dozen blind entrepreneurs in 2018. He
> also prepared information that all blind
> entrepreneurs should know about SSDI and
> unincurred business expenses. These are posted
> on our website and can be viewed at
> https://blindmerchants.org/ssdi-instructions-vendors-randolph-sheppard-program-2019/.
> 16. On the Road Again NABM made on-site
> visits to 26 sttates presenting at annual blind
> vendor meetings, providing training to Elected
> Committees of Blind Vendors, conducting staff
> training, and/or providing technical assistance
> on Randolph-Sheppard compliance and best
> practices; 17. Accessibility is a Priority
> The National Federaation of the Blind is a
> strong advocate on accessibility issues. NABM
> President Nicky Gacos is carrying on that
> tradition when it comes to the accessibility of
> micromarkets. He is devoting much time and
> resources to assisting companies who
> manufacture micromarket kiosks in making them
> accessible for blind users. This will remain a
> priority until all micromarket kiosks are
> accessible for blind users and blind business
> owners. 18. National Federation of the Blind
> Convention News NABM members joined 2,5500
> other blind men and women in Orlando in July
> for the NFB national convention. As always, the
> merchants division held its annual business
> meeting in conjunction with the convention. The
> meeting included a strong training component.
> Earlier in the year, NABM held its midyear
> meeting at the Washington Seminar in D.C. Blind
> entrepreneurs joined hundreds of other blind
> individuals in educating members of Congress
> about blindness issues. Yes, 2018 was a very
> busy year. 2019 is already shaping up to be
> just as busy. NABM is prepared to work hard to
> protect Randolph-Sheppard and create new
> opportunities for blind entrepreneurs. Dates to
> Remember April 1012 Na National Council of
> State Agencies for the Blind Spring Conference
> in Bethesda, Maryland April 24-26
> National Automatic Merchandising Association
> One Show in Las Vegas May 20-21 Critical
> Issues Conference, Washington, DD.C. May 20-22
> Emerging Leaders Training Washingtngton,
> D.C. July 7-12 National Federation of the
> Blindd National Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada
> July 16-17 “ NAMA Fly In Check Us Out on
> Facebook Like the NNational Association of
> Blind Merchants on Facebook and keep up with
> the latest and greatest when it comes to
> Randolph-Sheppard. You Can Still Help Do you
> like whaat the National Federation of the Blind
> and NABM are doing to advocate for the program
> on a national level and to assist individual
> state programs and blind entrepreneurs? Do you
> enjoy reading The Blitz and being kept informed
> about what is going on in the Randolph-Sheppard
> community? If so, we can use your financial
> support. Over half of our support comes from
> the NFBEI subscriptions, but we count on
> donations to make up the rest. If you would
> like to contribute to the cause, we would
> welcome your donation. You can donate by
> sending a check to: National Association of
> Blind Merchants 7450 Chapman Highway, #319
> Knoxville, TN 37920 Make the check payable to
> NABM and write “NFBEI†in the memo portion
> of the check. Your support is greatly
> appreciated. You can also donate by going to
> our website at www.blindmerchants.org where we
> have added a new way you can contribute. We can
> create a bank draft for you so you can sign up
> for monthly giving. Contact Terry Smith if you
> are interested in setting up bank draft
> donations. If your state is one of the 11 that
> doesn’t subscribe to the services of the
> NFBEI, we’d welcome your involvement. Terry
> Smith would be happy to discuss the services
> with you. Share Your News with Everyone- Help
> us keep everyone informed about what is
> happening around the country. Let us hear from
> you. Tell us what is going on in your state.
> What is happening in one state affects what is
> going on in another. NABM and the NFBEI offer
> the best vehicle to keep everyone updated on
> what is going on out there. GET THE BLITZ-READ
> THE BLITZ-SHARE THE BLITZ PLEASE FEEL FREE TO
> SHARE THE BLITZ WITH OTHERS AND DISTRIBUTE ON
> YOUR LISTSERVS. WE WANT ALL BLIND
> ENTREPRENEURS, BEP ADMINISTRATORS, and OTHER
> STAKEHOLDERS TO KNOW WHAT NABM AND THE NFBEI
> ARE DOING The National Federation of the Blind
> knows that blindness is not the characteristic
> that defines you or your future. Every day we
> raise the expectations of blind people, because
> low expectations create obstacles between blind
> people and our dreams. You can live the life
> you want; blindness is not what holds you back.
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