B09_Amendment_1_Questions___Answers_0001.pdf

RFQ 140A2323Q0025

Amendment 1 Questions and Answers

Question 1: How many FTE’s is this contract?

Answer 1: There will be 14 as indicated below:

CS I – 1 FTE

CS II – 7 FTEs CS III (Construction and A&E) – 2 FTEs CS IV (Goods & Services) – 2 FTEs Acquisition Specialist – 1 FTE Acquisition Program Manager – 1 FTE

This is in line with the pricing schedule, attachment 2 to the RFQ. 1920 hours = 1 FTE.

Question 2: Can we use past performance from a sub-contractor in a teaming agreement?

Answer 2: Using past performance from a sub-contractor is allowable per the Federal Acquisition Regulations. However, note that past performance is not an evaluation factor. See section E of the solicitation for evaluation instructions and information.

Question 3: Is there a current incumbent and if so who is it?

Answer 3: Yes. This information is at the end of the RFQ and within the PWS.

Incumbent contractor

Company: Stafford Consulting Company, Inc. 1765 Greensboro Station Plan, Ste 900, McLean, VA 22102.

POC: Adam Lowery, PM, 571-234-3492, adam.lowery@staffordservices.net.

Order No: 140A1619F0274

Current staff under the contract are:

Current Labor Category

Crosswalk to New Labor Category Available

Name Email

CS1 CS I Anita Park anita.park@staffordservices.net CS1 Acquisition

Specialist Ian Bermes ianbermes@gmail.com

CS2 CS II Ashleigh Cleveland ashleigh.altizer@gmail.com

CS2 CS II Garett Hixson garett.hixson@gmail.com CS2 CS II Ken Lloyd kenlloyd08@comcast.net mailto:adam.lowery@staffordservices.net

CS2 CS II Michael

Drinkwater drinkwater1927@gmail.com

SCS1 CS II Steave Phann steave.phann@gmail.com

SCS1 CS III

(Construction) Ryan Kenniff ryan.kenniff@staffordservices.net

SCS1 CS III

(Construction)

Carolyn Sulla carolynsulla@gmail.com

SCS2 CS IV (G&S) Don Ballesteros donballesteros1@yahoo.com SCS2 CS IV (G&S) Nicole Rahmer nicoledrahmer@gmail.com

In addition to these positions, the contractor will be required to fill vacancies for the following:

- Two (2) CS IIs

- One (1) Acquisition Program Manager (APM)

The Government is providing this information at the approval and request of the incumbent contractor. Any positions not retained, the incoming contractor would be required to fill.

Question 4: Section B, Continuation – The proposal states – “There is anticipated a six (6) week transition period between the incumbent contract and new contractor to allow for transition activities.” Is the successful contractor penalized if government processes (i.e. DOI HR, background checks) delays the onboarding of new or incumbent personnel?

Answer 4: No, the contractor will not be penalized for Government delays. The contractor shall work diligently to meet the initial timeframes of identifying candidates for each position, fill vacancies and submit individuals for background clearance.

Question 5: General question, not related to specific paragraph – Please provide the current retention rate of contractor personnel?

Answer 5: Since this delves into performance of the incumbent contractor (positive or negative), the information is not available

Question 6: General question, not related to specific paragraph – Please provide the government’s acceptable percentage rate of retention of contractor personnel by the successful contractor.

Answer 6: The Government has not set a minimum retention rate; however, per section 5.4.2. of the PWS there is a daily support rate of 80% of all funded positions during the year, and 90% during yearend. Failure to provide adequate/trained staff at these levels will jeopardize mission objectives and place performance of the contract at risk for corrective action. Review PWS, Appendix 2, performance requirements summary for additional information on performance expectations. Additionally, note the allowable timeframes identified for filling positions in section

3.7 of the PWS.

Question 7: Key Personnel – Attachment 2 – Please confirm the total number of Key Personnel resumes required for submission with the proposal.

Answer 7: Per section E, 1.6. of the RFQ, factor 2 “The quoter shall submit at a minimum a resume for the Acquisition Program Manager (key personnel) that clearly demonstrates the individuals’ qualifications that meet the terms in the PWS for the position. The contractor may submit other resumes for additional key personnel but is not required to.”

The minimum requirement is to submit a resume for the APM position; however, additional resumes for key personnel may be submitted and may be viewed favorably during the evaluation of factor 2.

Question 8: Section FAR 52.209-2 Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations, Page 19 of 27. Please confirm that Offerors do NOT need to fill in and submit FAR 52.209-2 Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations-Representation (Nov 2015).

Answer 8: The RFQ has been amended to require that this representation be returned with the quote. See Section E, 1. Solicitation Response Instructions and Conditions.

Question 9: FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors, Page 20 of 27. The table in the “Solicitation Response Instructions and Conditions” section lists a requirement to identify current BIE contracts held and risk mitigation steps. If Offerors do not have any current BIE contracts, do Offerors need to provide a statement that the non-compete provision is not applicable? Or can Offerors simply not provide a response to the non-compete provision?

Answer 9: The RFQ has been amended to state: “Or, An affirmative statement that the contractor does not hold any.”

The non-compete provision applies to both current contracts held (and risk mitigation), and future contract actions over the life of the contract. If a company does not have a current contract, the provision is still applicable for future contracts.

Question 10: FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors, Page 20 of 27. The Government is only allowing 4 pages for Factor 1 Experience. Given the number of requirements Offerors need to adequately address, can the Government increase the page limit for Factor 1 Experience to 10 pages?

Answer 10: Page limit has been increased to 6. Additionally, Section E, 1.6., Factor 1 has been amended to add in the word “key” requirements of the PWS. The contractor is not expected to address all areas of the PWS but key areas to demonstrate their understanding.

Question 11: Section B – Continuation, Page 2 of 26. The Government states that, “The period of performance will be for a base period of 12 months with two (2) 12-month option periods.

Performance is anticipated to begin on/about January 5, 2023. There is anticipated a six (6) week transition period between the incumbent contract and new contractor to allow for transition activities.” Would the Government please confirm the total contract value for the incumbent contract?

Answer 11: The total obligated amount year-to-date on the incumbent contract is $4,958,950.94.

It is important to note that this should not be used as a direct comparison to the current requirement.

Staffing has fluctuated over the course of the current contract.

Question 12: I represent Midi Enterprises, LLC. Midi Enterprises is a holding company owned and operated by the Three Affiliated Tribes of the Fort Berthold Indian Reservation. Midi Enterprises operates a number of business units that are active in different sectors of the federal marketplace. Each has its own president and managerial personal, and each maintains separate bank accounts and finances. What they share is ownership and corporate back-office services, including HR, IT, payroll, and legal.

One business unit, MEC Services, specializes in supplies services for BIA/BIE and IHS. MEC Services will not be competing for this award. Another, Grose Construction, is preparing its Phase II bid for a BIA C-MAC solicitation and currently performing a construction contract with the USGS under DoI that was set aside ISBEE. Grose Construction will also not be competing for this award.

A third business unit under Midi Enterprises, MEC Energy Services, specializes in augmentation and acquisition services. Its primary clientele is the DoS and the DoD. It brings strong qualifications and substantive past performance to this opportunity. We would like to enter a bid for MEC Energy Services. However, we want to ensure that doing so would not be perceived as a conflict of interest and debar MEC Services, Grose Construction, and any other Midi Enterprises business units from pursuing contracts with BIA/BIE. Can you please provide clarity on this point?

Answer 12: In line with the non-compete provision requirements, the Government recommends you disclose all of this upfront with your quote, identify applicable firewalls between subsidiary businesses and mitigation steps to assure the Government that unfair competitive advantages will not be an issue nor will there be conflicts of interest should the quoting entity receive an award. If the Government has any concerns with the risk mitigation identified but they would otherwise be in line for an award, the Government will engage with the quoting company on clarifying questions prior to award.

A clarifying point on non-compete provision is that this applies to BIE contracts only. We are asking vendors to identify current active BIE contracts only, and restrictions on bidding on future contracts applies to BIE contracts.

Question 13: We note that paragraph 3.1.1 – 3.1.8 of the PWS establishes the requirement for FAC-C certification or equivalent. What does BIE consider an equivalent certification? If an individual was FAC-C I/II/III certified prior to becoming a contractor, would that satisfy the requirement? Does BIE consider NCMA continuation training acceptable to maintain certification?

Answer 13: An equivalent certification would be DAWIA (the DoD equivalent of the FAC-C).

The Government has identified the certification as desired because we understand that once someone leaves the federal workforce the certification may lapse. Previous active certifications would be viewed favorably.