Q-A 2022 Annual Review.pdf

Questions for 2022 Annual Review

On the cover page (Form FS-6300-44) it states in part:

****COMPANIES THAT HAVE EXISTING BPA’S ARE NOT REQUIRED TO SUBMIT COMPLETE PACKAGES.

ONLY SUBMIT DOCUMENTATION RELEVANT TO YOUR CHANGES (FOR EXAMPLE: IF YOU ARE QUOTING NEW CAPACITY OR NEW KEY PERSONNEL THEN RELEVANT DOCUMENATION TO REPRESENT YOU HAVE

THE CAPABILITY TO PROVIDE ADDITIONAL CAPACITY AND THAT KEY PERSONNEL MEET THE

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS.)****

Question: Are form SF-1449, section E.4, and Section E.9 required forms to be submitted when submitting a change/update to an existing BPA?

Answer: If you currently have a Type 2 BPA then you do not need to submit the SF-1449 again.

Section E.4 and E.9 unless something has changed since your BPA was established.

Question: What are the instructions for submitting a change in pricing and/or location (DDP) to an existing BPA? (What forms or in what format should the changes be submitted, and should they be submitted to the email address listed under section E.2)?

Answer: If you plan to update pricing and/or location on an existing BPA then you would use Section B.5 to do so. Make sure you use the same Crew Identifiers to limit any confusion.

Question: Are there any restrictions to the use/designation of the same location (address) by multiple bidders as the Designated Dispatch Point (DDP) for crews from different companies?

Answer: There is no restriction on two companies using the same physical address for their DDP if both crews are located at that DDP physically.

Section C.24 subsection f reads in part:

If status is not updated by 9:00 am Mountain Time, then the NICC will use the status listed in IROC for determining who is available to receive an order for that day.

Question: Is this section indicating that only crews that have updated their status by 9:00 will be considered for dispatch that day, or that if crew status is not updated by 9:00 the status for the crew from the previous day will be used to determine their status and availability for dispatch?

Answer: This is indicating that the status of the crew at 9:00 am is the status that will be used for the day. You need to ensure that by 9:00 am that status is correct.

Clarification: Section C.24 Ordering:

Question: Section C.24 Ordering, (b) (4) Ordering/Dispatch Procedure. NICC will use the “calculation” to determine which T2C is dispatched to which incident: Will agency use this calculation and dispatch procedure at all levels of fire, to include Level 5 during the fire season?

Answer: This is the ordering procedure that will be used each time an order is placed under these Type 2 Crew BPA’s.

Section C.24 Ordering, (c) (1) Notification/Receipt of an Order:

Question: What is the standard turnaround time from the Incident Request to NICC Dispatch?

Answer: There is no standard turnaround time.

Question: Once the order is received from the Incident at NICC, what is the turnaround time to develop into Resource Order for T2C dispatch?

Answer: There is no standard turnaround time.

Question: Scenario: Contractor receives a NICC Dispatch request at 1200 hrs timeframe to respond to an incident outside of their HUCC. The DTN is 1600 hrs on the same day. Could incident response DTN times be negotiated at the time of NICC initial request without turning away the assignment?

Answer: No, DTN is not negotiable. The Government determines what the DTN is.

Question: Section C.24 Ordering, (c) (3), Submittal of SF-245. What is the method of submittal for the Passenger and Cargo Manifest (SF-245)? If electronically, what is the email address?

Answer: blm_fa_nicc_crews@blm.gov , 208-387-5400

Question: What role will the HUCCs play in any given T2C NICC Dispatch?

Answer: None as HUCC’s no longer exist. The Designated Dispatch Center is used merely as a reference point for the 100-mile radius that the crew must be located.

Question: Is NICC using HUCC Dispatchers for communications and documentation of T2C.

Answer: No.

Question: Section C.24 Ordering, (i) RELEASE AND REASSIGNMENT, (1) RELEASE: T2C must notify the NICC of status and estimated time of arrival back to their DDP. What method of notification will the T2C use to notify NICC of status?

Answer: By email or phone call.

Question: If the NICC is the only acceptable authority a T2C may receive assignment from, how will this play out in Northern CA GACC? Past experience with Northern CA is notorious for re-assignment within their region until the 14-days are met.

Answer: Once a T2C is ordered into a GACC, that GACC can utilize the resource how they see fit until the end of a 14-day assignment. After 14 days the GACC must receive approval from the NICC to extend the resource.

Question: If NICC is the only acceptable authority to issue T2C RO, and there is a potential opportunity for reassignment of a T2C within their 14-day assignment, will the NICC issue a new RO while the T2C is in the field and before demobilization?

Answer: See answer above. The GACC will handle reassignments as long as it is within the 14-day period.

Question: For companies with existing BPA’s do they have to submit an updated Key Personnel template for previously accepted crew bosses or only for new crew bosses?

mailto:blm_fa_nicc_crews@blm.gov

Answer: Key personnel that have already been verified need not be resubmitted.

Question: Companies with existing BPA’s do they have to submit a quality control plan after award?

Answer: If your quality control/safety/training plan has already been accepted then it does not need to be submitted again.

Question: For each crew proposed where do we list our alternatives?

Answer: Alternate key personnel are not considered for establishment of a BPA. I encourage you to submit after BPA has been established on the same form used to submit primary key personnel.

Question: When an alternative replaces a crew boss do, we have to notify the contracting officer? I think this only applies when making a substitution with a crew boss that wasn’t approved when you submitted your contract? That is when you submit their key personnel template to see if the change can be made?

Answer: If an alternate is approved and listed in your BPA for that specified crew then notification is not needed.

Question: Can a Crew Boss that is listed as the key personnel be listed as an alternative for another crew?

Answer: Primary Key Personnel are not interchangeable.

Question: Can you have more than one crew listed in the same Designated Dispatch Center?

Answer: Yes

Question: For Existing BPAs, do responding offerors with existing BPAs that wish to make changes/updates to their BPA need to submit two separate documents (business and technical)? Given that their updates may require components that would fall under both the Technical and Business Part, can they submit all documents in a single file or do they need to separate them and submit them separately?

Answer: If you are submitting changes for both Business and Technical then two separate documents need to be submitted.

Question: Would a WCFT and RT130 from May of 2021 at time of bid submission be acceptable to meet qualifications and certifications for Key Personnel, or are bidders required to submit a current year RT130 and WCFT for Key Personnel for them to be considered qualified and certified?

Answer: Those trainings are valid for 12 months from when completed.

Question: Is the December date in the BPA for the annual review accurate or shall we expect future annual reviews of the BPA to be in March?

Answer: We intend to issue the annual review solicitation on or around December of every year and complete those reviews before the May time frame that the BPAs were originally established.

Question: If firefighter takes a refresher/pack test in October 2021, their refresher/pack test is valid til November 2022, correct?

Answer: Those trainings are valid for 12 months from when completed.

Question: Is a crew allowed to have more than one CRWB(T)?

Answer: No. You must have a coach/evaluator for each trainee. Therefore, you could only have one CRWB(T) at any given time.

Question: If a crew is accepted by the government with 18 members at the time of dispatch with no plans on bringing the crew up to full strength, will they be paid travel time to and from the incident?

Answer: Yes, if the size of the crew is agreed upon and documented in the Resource Order at time of dispatch. See Section D.1.24 (a).

Question: When can we expect our alternates to be approved?

Answer: Alternates are not considered for establishment of BPA’s. After BPA’s are established, you may submit your alternates and we will get them verified/added as quickly as possible.

Question: Under the FS Type 2IA Contract FF1/ICT5 (Sam) is on the awarded contract, since time of bid, this individual has advanced to CRWB. Can Sam be listed as a primary or alternate CRWB on the FS Type 2 BPA and remain on the Type 2IA contract as a FFT1/ICT5 primary or alternate?

Answer: Primary Key Personnel are not interchangeable.

Under Section E.3 of the solicitation states in part that fair and reasonable rates will be a basis for award.

Question: Will the rates be assessed for fairness across the board, or will they be assessed individually by geographic areas? That is to say, will crew rates be grouped and evaluated by HUCC or will the location where they are located be disregarded for this purpose? I am wondering if there will ultimately be different price ranges that are considered fair and reasonable for different regions.

Answer: Price fair and reasonableness is determined by analyzing all pricing across the board and at each location.

Under Section E.2 it states in part "Therefore, the technical portion must present enough information to reflect a thorough understanding of the requirements and a detailed, description of the techniques, procedures and program for achieving the objectives of the specifications/statement of work."

Question: How do we meet this requirement within our bid package? Is this a requirement to include a narrative as part of the bid package due on March 30th that explains the bidders understanding of the contract terms and conditions and how it will meet them? or will the quality control plan be used by USFS to verify that the bidder understands the requirements of the contract (and how it plans to meet them)?

Answer: First this is not a contract. All quoters must be able to demonstrate their understanding of the requirement. The quality control/safety/training plan is not submitted at time of quote but is submitted after establishment of the BPA. Your quote must contain detailed information that demonstrates a thorough understanding of the requirement.

Question: We have one crew boss who was accepted as an alternate during the previous year, but we are now looking to add him as a primary crew boss on another crew. Would we need to re-submit his resume and documentation showing he is a qualified crew boss?

Answer: No. Key personnel that have already been verified need not be resubmitted.

Question: We did not have any H2B employees during the last solicitation, but we were approved for some this year. Are we allowed to re-submit form E.9 and the relevant documentation to utilize the H2B employees in this upcoming fire season?

Answer: Yes. Proper documentation needs to be submitted to represent your intent.

Question: Lastly, would you like us to submit the changes in two separate documents similar to the previous solicitation period? Where we would need to submit a business proposal and a technical proposal, or would it be acceptable to combine the relevant changes into one document?

Answer: If you are proposing changes to both technical and business then two separate documents need to be submitted.

I have the following question/concern regarding the Type 2 crew solicitation.

I am concerned that there may be confusion regarding returning Crew Bosses. I would like B.5 to have a line (checkbox) added that allows contractors to confirm that a crew boss is a returning employee from the original 2021 solicitation. This will help reduce confusion and ease the processing process for your office and also give us peace of mind.

At the moment I would rather go through the work of submitting all training documentation for each crew boss than risk a crew boss be erroneously labeled as new (and thus rejected for lack of documentation). Having a simple checkbox in B.5 that allows us to identify returning crew bosses is in the best interest of both contractors and procurement staff.

Answer: Companies that have existing BPA’s do not submit quotes unless they plan to make changes from last year. That being said if you have returning key personnel then you would not have to submit anything for them. You would only submit documentation for new key personnel.

Question: Companies with existing BPAs need to submit section E.4 and E.9?

Answer: If you currently have a Type 2 BPA then you do not need to submit the SF-1449 again.

Section E.4 and E.9 unless something has changed since your BPA was established.

Question: Are we submitting an updated form B.5.3 or just the new key personnel proposed?

Answer: You would only need to submit information that is relevant to changes you would like to make.

Question: For companies with existing BPAs: Is changing the name of crews allowed or do they need to stay the same as last year?

Answer: To limit confusion I would like to keep the company unique crew identifier the same throughout the life of the BPA. However, after establishment of BPA’s is completed, you may contact your CO for a possible administrative modification to your agreement.

Question: Do we submit insurance certificates ?

Answer: Insurance certificates shall be submitted to the CO when the previous certificate is no longer valid.

Question: Will crews need falling axe and wedges? If so, does each chainsaw kit requires its own set of wedges and axe? What are the dimensions required for the falling axe and how many wedges are required?

Answer: Yes, falling wedges and axe are required in accordance with Section D.1.3 (b). There are no standard dimensions for falling wedges and axe.

Question: On the important notice (front page FS-6300-44) Reads : If you are quoting new capacity or new key personnel then relevant documentation to represent you have the capacity to provide additional capacity and that key personnel meet the qualifications requirements. What documentation do we need to provide to represent that we can provide additional capacity ?

Answer: Reference Section E.2 of the solicitation. The technical part instructions state you must present enough information to reflect a thorough understanding of the requirements and a detailed, description of the techniques, procedures, and program for achieving the objectives of the specifications/statement of work. Therefore, if you propose additional capacity, you must demonstrate your ability to do so based on the requirements of the specifications/statement of work.

Question: Do CRWBs rollover to next contract? Do we need to resubmit Exhibit D.9 with an updated fire history for each CRWB listed in 2021 solicitation?

Answer: Unless you are making changes to key personnel then you need not submit updated information.

Question: Can a primary CRWB be listed as an ALTERNATE as well?

Answer: No. Primary Key Personnel are not interchangeable.

Question: If I have three crews and I have two extra crew bosses, can my two crew bosses that I have extra can be replaced for any of my three principal crew bosses.

Answer: Alternate Key Personnel can be listed on more than one crew. However, alternates are limited to two per crew.

Question: Do verifications under the MOU apply for Verification of Key personnel.

Answer: No. Verifications must come from a Government Wildland Fire Agency (state or federal).

Question: Do you have an estimate of the number of crews you hope to award?

Answer: No.

Question: 50 MPH is unreasonable in the formula for placing orders will you consider changing?

Answer: No that is a measurement to determine who will get the order. Not an expectation of how long it will take to travel.

Question: Will you consider changing the calculation for travel time.

Answer: No. The Government has determined this is the best way to calculate the amount of compensable travel time under this agreement.

Question: The statement on C.3 page 21 does not apply to this agreement. Am I correct, please clarify?

Answer: It does apply. However, the wages in there are for reference only. The wage determination will contain the required minimum wages.

Question: What is the process to make an already verified alternate crew boss from last year into a primary crew boss on a new proposed crew (since verified key personnel resumes do not need to be resubmitted)?

Answer: You would list them as Primary Key Personnel and indicate that they were already verified as an alternate (specify which crew they were verified for).

Question: For existing BPA holders, do MSSPA and insurance certificates, and past performance evals of 2021 have to be turned in?

Answer: If your previously submitted certificates have expired you need to submit valid ones.

Performance evals need not be submitted.

Question: With the increased price in fuel, federal minimum wage, inflation, etc, do you see the $50 cap being increased at least 10%?

Answer: There is no cap. Current competition is the number one factor used to determine price fair and reasonableness.

Question: If bid price is deemed over the limit will there or will there not be negotiation possibilities?

Answer: The Government intends to establish BPAs without further discussions, so you are encouraged to submit the best quote up front. That being said, we intend to award as many T2C as possible this year.

Question: If key personnel have been approved under another company and have switched companies, does the new company need to resubmit their complete resume?

Answer: You need to submit sufficient documentation to represent that your key personnel meet the minimum stated requirements.

Question: Any updates on EO 14042.

Answer: At this time EO 14042 does not apply to this requirement.

Question: Under section "c" page #37 of the BPA it states that "upon receiving a dispatch call, the contractor has thirty (30) minutes to confirm their availability to accept the order." will the government be able to negotiate adding additional time to accept the order upon receiving multiple order at the same time?

Answer: No

Question: D.9 Key Personnel Resume Template under fire experience is not sufficient for all the history.

Can we create our own form to add additional information?

Answer: Yes, in addition to the D.9 template if all the relevant information is provided.

Question: You just mentioned that each company must self-certify, then mentioned that a government official must certify, please clarify for a newly certified CRWB what the procedure is.

Answer: The Government does not certify Key Personnel. The Government verifies that submitted key personnel meet the requirements as stated in the solicitation.

Question: The solicitation talks about voluminous evaluations in the past performance section. I believe it says we can submit a summarized format because the government will be able to see previous evaluations. If the previous evaluations are not on CPARS as you stated not all are uploaded, how will the government verify the past performance?

Answer: Based on the information required in section E.2.

Question: Will there be a designated wildland fire agency for review of CRWB or overhead PTBs? We had ODF who did all records review.

Answer: No.

Question: For the crew boss inspection checklist the inspector must be an agency employee which means that companies cannot conduct their own inspection?

Answer: Correct.

Question: Regarding Crew Performance Evaluation documentation. Example:If we didn't receive a Crew or Personnel Evaluation for 2021 fire year; will that be detrimental to the bid?

Answer: No

Question: After a crew is awarded and we then submit alternate key personnel resume's, how long can we expect approvals to take for the alternates?

Answer: We intend to review Key Personnel as quickly as possible.

Question: Do you have an estimate of the number of crews you hope to award?

Answer: No

Question: What is the process to make an already verified alternate crew boss from last year into a primary crew boss on a new proposed crew (since verified key personnel resumes do not need to be resubmitted)?

Answer: You would list it accordingly in your quote. Identify in your section B.5 documents that is who you want to be primary for the specified crew.

Question: I am confused on the mathematical equation on second paragraph page 37. Is there a parenthesis missing if I read it right 50 miles per hour needs to be multiplied by distance to DDP to incident ? It has been a long time since my last math class so please clarify.

It reads:

(((hourly rate X 20 person crew)(14 Hours)(8 days)) + ((hourly rate X 20 person crew)/(50 miles per hour) ( distance from DDP to incident)(2))) = cost of crew

Should it read

((hourly rate X 20 person crew)(14 Hours)(8 days)) + (((hourly rate X 20 person crew)/(50 miles per hour)) * (( distance from DDP to incident)(2))) = cost of crew

Answer: No. The mathematical equation is correct. The parenthesis implies multiplication.

Question: Our company is proposing to add two new crews to our existing BPA, but it’s not clear how we’re to provide the additional capacity information to you for these two new crews.

Do you need a detailed description (and quantities) of all the equipment, tools, etc. we have acquired to meet the requirements for the new crews? or just a statement? And would this be a separate attachment from the Technical and Business or would it go under the Technical attachment?

Answer: You would provide the additional capacity in the same manner that you quoted the original capacity. You will need to provide sufficient detail to represent you have the capability of providing the additional crews. This would be represented in both the business and technical portions of your quote.

Question: If you are going to have two DDP, do you complete section B.5.2 for each DDP or does that section pertain to all the crews that the contractor is offering? For example: if we are offering two crews in the first DDP, we list the two crew identifiers and at the bottom where it states, “Offeror limits their offer to a maximum award of no more than ____ Type 2 Crews,” we would put two. For the other DDP we would complete another B.5.2 section, but only listing one crew for that DDP.

Answer: You would complete a Section B.5.2 for each DDP and you would identify the maximum number of crews you wish to have on your BPA.

Question: If we are utilizing H2B workers do we only provide the Approval of H-2B Temporary Labor Certification that we received from the U.S. Department of Labor?

Answer: No. You will need to provide an updated E.9.

Question: If we have an existing BPA but our FLC expired, do we need to resubmit section E.9 with the updated FLC certificate of registration?

Answer: You will only submit section E.9 if any of the certifications on E.9 have changed since previously submitted.

Question: Just curious to where could I find a recording of today’s conference will it be uploaded to Sam later today or tomorrow?

Answer: A recording of the Pre-quote meeting will not be provided. However, this Q&A covers all the questions and answers provided in the meeting.

Question: We Had a Crew boss who last year was approved as key personnel for us . Mid-Season last year he had a family emergency, so we decided to remove him from our company key personnel list and had him replaced. He is planning on returning to employment this coming up season. Would we have to re-send in his Resume on the technical portion? I apologize if this may be a repetitive question .

Answer: You would need to submit documentation from last year representing that Key Person had been verified.