B09_Spring_25_1_Solicitation_Package_revised_033125_amendment_3_0003.docx

Bureau of Land Management —National Seed Warehouse System—

Consolidated Seed Buy 25-1 Spring Buy

SOLICITATION # 140L3725R0003

Diane Barker, Contracting Officer Brandon Brown, National Seed Coordinator Date revision 02/2025

Index

SECTION A – IMPORTANT UPDATES AND INFORMATION

PLEASE NOTE THE FOLLOWING CLARIFICATIONS, CHANGES AND REMINDERS

IT IS STILL THE CONTRACTOR’S RESPONSIBILITY TO READ THE ENTIRE SOLICITATION AND NOT RELY SOLELY ON THIS LIST.

***The Master Bidsheet (Attachment 1) Award Document is the governing document and has precedence over the line item information in the contract.*** IMPORTANT: A pre-bid meeting has been scheduled for:

Pre-Bid TEAMS meeting is scheduled for:

03/19/25 at 10:30 AM MT

To receive the TEAMS meeting invite, email both dbarker@blm.gov and wbbrown@blm.gov to be added to the meeting by COB on 3/14/25

We will be reviewing Section A, Attachment 1 Bidsheet, and required submission documents. If you are unable to participate in the Pre-Bid meeting, you need to review the entire specifications. ______________________________________________________________________________________ Bid closing date: April 2, 2025, at 1000 MT time Paperwork due at bid closing: Attachment 1 Bid Offer, filled out and signed Solicitation form and Amendments if required, and Past Performance references not associated with the current or past Consolidated Seed Buy.

Awards released by 04/28/2025 Delivery Schedule: 05/01/2025 - 05/20/2025.

Deliveries will be to the Boise, Shoshone, and Ely Warehouses Estimated quantities will not be provided due to a high level of uncertainty regarding estimated needs. BLM encourages vendors to bid the seed types and pounds they have available.

Amendment 3: The new 2025 State Noxious Weed Seed requirements was just issued. There are significant changes that will affect this requirement. The specification for the noxious weed Section C 6 will be changed to read as follow:

All seed must qualify for acceptance by meeting all combinations (prohibited and restricted) of noxious weeds for all western states listed; otherwise, the entire lot of seed will be rejected at the government’s discretion. For the 2025 spring buy, exceptions may be made, at the discretion of the government, for newly listed prohibited and restricted weeds for Arizona. BLM may choose to accept seed from lots that test with newly listed Arizona noxious weeds that are deemed to be common weeds in other listed western states, examples include cheatgrass, kochia, pigweed, and possibly others.

AMENDMENT 2: Identifies that 6 awards will be reserved for Small Business per FAR 19.503 Reserves- (a)In accordance with section 1331 of the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010 ( 15 U.S.C. 644(r)(3)) and 13 CFR 125.2(e)(4), contracting officers may, at their discretion when conducting multiple-award procurements using full and open competition, reserve one or more contract awards for any of the small business concerns identified in 19.000(a)(3), when market research indicates— (1)A total set-aside is not feasible because there is no reasonable expectation of receiving offers that are competitive in terms of fair market prices, quality, and delivery from at least two responsible small business concerns identified in 19.000(a)(3), that can perform the entire requirement; and (2)A partial set-aside is not feasible because— (i)The contracting officer is unable to divide the requirement into distinct portions; or (ii)There is no reasonable expectation that at least two responsible small business concerns identified in 19.000(a)(3) can perform any portion of the requirement competitively in terms of fair market price, quality, and delivery.

(b)A reserve will result in one of the following:

(1)One or more contract awards to any one or more types of small business concerns identified in 19.000(a)(3).

(2)In the case of a solicitation of a bundled requirement that will result in a multiple-award contract, an award to one or more small businesses with a Small Business Teaming Arrangement.

(c)The specific program eligibility requirements identified in this part apply.

(d)The limitations on subcontracting and the nonmanufacturer rule (see 19.505) do not apply to reserves at the contract level, but shall apply to orders that are set aside or issued directly to one small business concern under 19.504(c)(1)(ii).

Before submitting a bid, review the complete specifications including Section C-F, and I. The items listed below has either new information or areas of concern from previous Buys that need to be reviewed thoroughly.

1.) Clean Seed Designation in Section C 1 2.) Shipping instruction and pallet requirements found in Section D

3.) Changes to FREEZER STORED SEED REFRIGERATED SHIPPING in Section D

4.) See Section E for full specifications on Sampling and Testing

5.) SEED COLLECTION PERMITS- in Section E 8 6.) SEED PROVENANCE OF WILDLAND COLLECTED SEED- in Section E 9

7.) SEED DELIVERY REQUIREMENTS- in Section F

SECTION B - SUPPLIES OR SERVICES/PRICES

B.1 BID SCHEDULE

BID SCHEDULE IS ATTACHED SEPARATELY

File name is Attachment 1 Bid Schedule

A tab has been added to the Attachment 1 document with Instructions on how to fill out the form.

SECTION C - DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS

1.) SEED OFFERS

Offers must be submitted on the Attachment 1 “Bid Schedule”. Offerors shall ensure bid information provided on the bid schedule truthfully and adequately represents the seed being offered for seed quality, variety/species, certification, and other requirements. Seed must be offered at a Pure Live Seed percentage (PLS) that accurately represents the seed being offered and that is reasonably supported by recent PLS testing completed by the offeror. Seed will be purchased and accepted based on the seed lot meeting all seed quality requirements for PLS, weed content, noxious weeds, and truth in labelling. Allowances (tolerance points) are provided to accommodate for natural variation in testing procedures (see section E C). Seed should only be bid that meets the BLM recommended minimum PLS as identified in attachment 1 “Bid Schedule” (see exceptions below for seed outside of specifications).

The Government reserves the right to award on any item offered in any category, or a combination of the categories, per the evaluation criteria specified in Section M of this solicitation, “Basis for Award,” if it is in the best interest of the public and the best value for the Government to do so. All awards are contingent upon price reasonableness and the availability of funds at the time of award.

Sampling and Testing: Initial seed testing costs shall be paid for by the Offeror and included in the bid price offered for the item(s). The BLM will sample all seed lots after being delivered to the BLM’s delivery location. Costs of sampling seed will be the responsibility of the Government. Samples will be sent to one of the preferred vendor labs (see Section E for seed sampling and testing details). The costs of the first test will be the responsibility of the vendor and will be authorized using attachment 3. Vendor preferred seed testing laboratories will be utilized and must be identified on the Bid Schedule. Only BLM approved seed testing laboratories will be allowed and are limited to Official State Seed Laboratories in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, Wyoming, and Indiana Crop Improvement Association.

Substitutions: Do not offer alternate species for substitution within a stated variety on the attachment 1 Bid Schedule. For example, an offeror cannot offer Paloma Indian Ricegrass or any other variety or species of grass under the Item No. XYZ Indian Ricegrass Rimrock. The offeror will need to offer Paloma under its specific item number, or if the variety is not listed, then it can be offered in the Additionals section at the bottom of the bidsheet. Species substitutions will be the sole responsibility of the Government.

Seed bids will be competed on a lowest Pure Live Seed (PLS) price per pound. However, award amount will be for bulk price per pound, expressed with a maximum of two decimal places calculated from PLS price. If one offeror receives award of more than one item, simultaneous performance is required.

Minimum Bid Quantities: Offeror can choose to mark lines as minimum required pounds that need to be selected for award. The line needs to be marked as Minimum Bid (drop-down list in Program Category), the pounds need highlighted, and a note in the Additional information needs to indicate the minimum pounds required. By marking the line as a minimum required bid, the offeror’s bid line might be skipped if the Government requires a smaller quantity of pounds.

Clean Seed Designation: Certified seed or previous harvest year crops can be bid as Clean Seed in the Program Category code column. Clean Seed is a lot that has been found to have no weed contaminates or very low rates of common weed seed found. The Government can give preference and select lines at a higher PLS price that have the designation of Clean Seed over those that do not have the designation, if the price is deemed fair and reasonable. If your designated Clean Seed is found to not meet the specifications with a combined total of more than 3 seeds of contaminates found, the price reduction applied will bring your PLS price below the lowest priced line that was skipped. If no lines were skipped, then the price reduction will 5%. If multiple lots of Clean Seed fail to meet the specifications, then your company will be removed from eligibility to bid Clean Seed on future seed buys and the CPARS report will reflect the failure to meet your bid quality.

Transportation: All costs for shipping point(s) to destination shall be paid by the Contractor and included in the bid price offered for the item(s). The Contractor shall be responsible for any/all damage occurring in transit. See section D for details.

Additional Seed Offered: Vendors may offer additional seed not requested on the spreadsheet. There is no limit to the species nor quantities that are offered. The Government makes no guarantee to purchase seed offered in the Additional section.

Outside of Specifications Option: Offerors may submit seed lots in the additional seed category which would not otherwise meet the specifications on a regular bid variety. For example, if a vendor has a seed lot that would normally be bid as a regular line item, but the offeror knows the seed does not meet the specification for minimum allowable PLS, that seed may be offered in the Additionals category. For seed that does not meet specifications, the vendor will select the “Outside of Spec” option from the Program Category column, note the reason why in the comments of the bid line, and supply a test showing the issue. The Government may consider seed not meeting specifications in the Additionals but is not obligated to purchase those lines over normally bid seed lines. This is an opportunity for offerors to submit seed that is known to not meet specifications, and for the government to consider it as an option for purchase. No seed with known Western States noxious weeds will be purchased by the government. NOTE: Seed specifications may be included herein for items which are not specified in the seed price schedule.

2.) BID REVISION (used on multi-round buys only)

The bid revision process is in place for use in multi-round buys with an extended timeframe required to hold the offered price firm (refer to Section F.1). The bid revision process helps to mitigate some of the risk associated with the extended timeframe regarding the number of pounds offered, not the pricing. The pounds can be reduced due to the crop not performing as expected, quality issues found, or selling the seed outside of the Consolidated Seed Buy; or additional pounds can be added due to the crop performing better than expected. The integrity of the seed buy has to remain intact; the pricing cannot be manipulated.

All offerors will be given the opportunity, between rounds, to update their offer to show the pounds available for the next round. Instructions and examples will be provided regarding bid revisions. The pounds can be reduced, terminated (offer removed due to seed no longer available), or additional pounds added. The pounds cannot be shuffled from low priced lines to high priced lines or the opposite, as that could cause integrity issues when pounds are being shifted from different price points.

If a vendor terminates or reduces the pounds on a seed type, that vendor cannot add additional pounds to the same variety of seed at a different price point for the remainder of the Seed Buy. If a vendor terminates an awarded line, then all offered lines of the same species must be removed during the bid revision process. If a seed type required a modification for any quality issue and the same lot is being offered on a later round, the vendor shall change the price to match the modification and provide a comment on the line.

When adding additional pounds, a vendor may add the pounds to any line that was originally offered.

4.) FEDERAL SEED ACT, DESTINATION STATE LAWS, NOXIOUS WEEDS STATE LAWS

All seed offered must meet all requirements of the Federal Seed Act (7 U.S.C. §. 15511610 incl.) and the seed laws of the states of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Montana, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming, as applicable. Seed shall be correctly labeled according to Federal and State laws and must meet requirements for interstate shipment and truth in labelling laws.

All successful offerors shall comply with all Federal and State laws and licensing requirements for seed dealers, retailers, and/or wholesalers.

5.) SEED QUALITY

All seed offered must meet or exceed the following seed quality standards:

A. Visual: All seed will be inspected for cleaning requirements as stated in Section C.

B. PLS: Seed must meet offered PLS requirements as stated in the Attachment 1 Bid Sheet.

C. 0.25% or less Weed seed for all types of seed will be accepted.

D. Annual Brome limitation: Maximum amount allowed is 400 seeds per pound with 2 or more seeds found in the sample.

E. Amaranthus spp, Pigweed, waterhemp found, DNA test is required.

F. 2.00% or less Other crop for all seed except Thickspike Wheatgrass-Critana will be accepted

G. Thickspike Wheatgrass-Critana – up to 10.00% Slender Wheatgrass as other crop seed (per seed certification) will be accepted.

H. NO seed mixes will be accepted.

6.) NOXIOUS WEEDS

A. Under the Federal Seed Act, all agricultural seed will be subject for testing to comply with the standards of the USDA State Noxious – Weed Requirements (Prohibited and Restricted) and the Association of Official Seed Analysis (AOSA).

B. The Government will act in accordance with Noxious weed laws for the States of Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Montana, New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming.

C. All seed must qualify for acceptance by meeting all combinations (prohibited and restricted) of noxious weeds for all western states listed; otherwise, the entire lot of seed will be rejected at the government’s discretion. For the 2025 spring buy, exceptions may be made, at the discretion of the government, for newly listed prohibited and restricted weeds for Arizona. BLM may choose to accept seed from lots that test with newly listed Arizona noxious weeds that are deemed to be common weeds in other listed western states, examples include cheatgrass, kochia, pigweed, and possibly others.

7.) DETERMINING PURE LIVE SEED CONTENT

Offerors shall insert, in the space provided in the attachment 1 Bid Schedule, the Pure Live Seed (PLS) rate which is a calculation of the percent of purity and germination/TZ of the seed offered under each item. Failure to furnish this data for an item on which an offer is made, will result in rejection of that item. The following calculations shall be utilized to determine pure live seed percent (% PLS) and the pure live seed price ($ PLS), the following formula shall be used:

(% Purity) x (% TZ)

100 = % PLS

Offered Price $

PLS = $ PLS

The PLS rating and PLS price shall be stated to a maximum of 4 decimal places, rounding the 4th place up if the 5 decimal place is 5 and above.

8.) ORIGIN AND SOURCE REQUIREMENTS

A. CERTIFIED SEED: For a definition of the various certified classes refer to the Association of Official Seed Certifying Agency (AOSCA) website at www.aosca.org. Once you enter the site click on programs, then “seed certification”. Also, click on “Pre-Variety Germplasm” to download the publication titled “How AOSCA Tracks Wildland Sourced Seed”. This publication explains the certified pre-variety germplasm (PVG) program specified in the next section.

i. RELEASED VARIETIES: Certified Seed of released varieties (Letter designator (A) in the Bid Schedule) is field cultivated seed of native or introduced species produced according to rules established by AOSCA and official state seed certification programs. Wild collected (e.g. released varieties such as Lassen Antelope Bitterbrush or Hobble Creek Sagebrush, can be classified as certified when specific collection areas have been established). Classes of certified seed are foundation (white tag), registered (purple tag), and certified (blue tag).

ii. All blue, white and purple tag certified seed shall meet the AOSCA quality standards and/or State standards, whichever is stricter, for the State in which the seed was certified or of seed origin. Visit the website at http://aosca.org.

iii. Seed varieties which have plant variety protection (PVP) shall be tagged with official tags from the company which owns the rights to the variety showing authorization for use of the plant materials.

B. PRE-VARIETY GERMPLASM (SEED LETTER DESIGNATED PVG IN THE SEED PRICE SCHEDULE): Certified Pre-Variety Germplasm (PVG) seed is either wild collected or field cultivated seed of native or naturalized species produced according to rules established by AOSCA and official state seed certification programs. PVG seed tags include verified source information of county, state and elevation of both the site or original collection and the site of field production, if applicable. Three categories of certified PVG may be accepted:

i. Tested Class (light blue tag) is designated as germplasm for which progeny testing has proven desirable traits to be heritable.

ii. Selected Category (S) (green tag) (Letter designator (S) in the schedule), seed is designated as germplasm showing promise of desirable traits, having been selected either within an accession or plant population or as a common site comparison among accessions or populations of the same species.

iii. Source Identified (SI) Category (yellow tag) (Letter designator (SI) in the schedule), is seed designated as unevaluated germplasm identified only as to species and location of the wild growing parents. The majority of certified PVG wildland collected seed offered is tagged Source Identified.

PVG certification tags shall include the scientific and common species’ names: specific germplasm identification (information applicable); Eco-Region and Provisional Seed Transfer Zones; (latitude may be included if customer requests from certifying agency of the seed germplasm source site and whether or not it is indigenous on that site; the G0 location and generation of a seed increase field from which the seed was harvested (if applicable); and whether the tagged seed is natural –track or manipulated track in status (meaning whether or not the seed germplasm has been altered or manipulated during the original collection or during subsequent cultivated production. The G0 information- Eco-region and Seed Transfer Zone must be included on the Attachment 1 Bid Schedule and it will be utilized as the source location information to select the best material to match the project location. The seed increase field collection site shall be noted in the additional information column on the Attachment 1.

Offeror must indicate one (1) Omernik Level III Eco-Region and one (1) Provisional Seed Transfer Zone per offer on the bid sheet.

Links to Provisional Seed Transfer Zones Reference https://research.fs.usda.gov/pnw/products/dataandtools/interactivemaps/seed-zone-webmap https://usfs.maps.arcgis.com/apps/webappviewer/index.html?id=229eb45b7cc2456db6d1ad866145d397

Link to Omernik Level III Eco-Region Reference https://www.epa.gov/eco-research/level-iii-and-iv-ecoregions-continental-united-states

C. NON-CERTIFIED SEED - ONLY IN OTHER OFFERED CATEGORY (Letter designator (B) on the schedule):

i. All other seed that is not certified.

ii. Seed purchased as non-certified will be labeled with an analysis tag. Refer to Packaging and Marking for Analysis tag requirements in Section D 3.)

9.) DEBEARDING AND CLEANING REQUIREMENTS

All seed shall be cleaned so that no stems or debris longer than ¾ inch remain unless stated otherwise in these specifications. Awns removed from seeds shall be cleaned out of the seed.

A. Bottlebrush Squirreltail: Debearding – seed shall be processed and cleaned so that a minimum of 90% of the individual seeds have less than 1/8” in length of the awn remaining. The remaining 10% of the seeds shall have awns less than ½” in length.

B. Needle and Threadgrass: Debearding – Needle and Thread seed shall be processed, and awns cleaned so that a minimum of 90% of the individual seeds have less than 1/8” in length of the awn remaining. The remaining 10% of the seeds shall have awns less than ¼” in length.

C. Fourwing Saltbush: Cleaning Fourwing seed shall be dewinged and cleaned.

D. Winterfat: Cleaning: Winterfat seed shall be cleaned of all stems and other debris to pass through a 5/16-inch mesh screen.

E. Bitterbrush: Seed must be cleaned of all pericarp material (leathery or paper covering over the seed/achene) to the point that the seed coat is fully exposed.

10.) SEED INOCULATION AND SEED TREATMENT

A. All alfalfa seed shall be inoculated with an inoculant specifically manufactured for alfalfa and shall be applied as specified by the manufacturer. Shelf life of the inoculant shall be a minimum of 12 months from delivery of inoculated seed. All seed bags shall be tagged with the name of manufacturer and expiration date of inoculant.

B. A Safety Data Sheet (SDS) is required upon delivery of any seed which has been treated with an inoculant or any type of coating.

C. If seed other than alfalfa and other legume seed is inoculated or coated with treatments of other kinds, that seed can be offered, but the inoculant must be identified and a SDS or a product data sheet must be submitted with the bid. This inoculant or seed treatment must be identified in the offer and can be a factor in the selection.

11.) IMPORTED SEED

All seed imported from outside the United States shall comply with the importation laws of the Federal Seed Act and be cleared for admittance by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) prior to delivery. Imported seed shall be labeled according to the Federal Seed Act and proper USDA documentation shall be submitted to the COR prior to delivery. For seed offered under this solicitation ORIGIN (where the seed is grown in a cultivated field) shall be from a country or state of North America only.

12.) DEFINITIONS

ANNUAL BROME is any ANNUAL BROME SPECIES OF SEED which has characteristics that are non-native, invasive and weedy which include the following varieties Bromus secalinus, Bromus tectorum, Bromus rubens, and Bromus japonicas, however the list may not be all inclusive.

CULTIVATED PRODUCTION: Seed harvested from land (Public and private) that is intentionally planted or seeded for the production of crops. Does not include areas seeded for rehabilitation, stabilization or restoration.

F.O.B: (freight on board) destination GENERATION 0 (G0): Seed from the original wildland collection site or a germplasm which has gone through genetic manipulation and is now defined as a new G0 manipulated germplasm.

GENERATION 1 (G1): The first generation harvested from a seed production field planted with G0 seed or germplasm which has gone through genetic manipulation and is now defined as a new G1 manipulated germplasm.

GENERATION 2 (G2): Fields planted from G1 seed or plants.

GENERATION 3 (G3): Harvested from fields planted with G2 plants or seed.

INTRODUCED (Seed bid items designated with the letter (I)) (synonyms: non-native, exotic, naturalized or foreign): A species, subspecies, or varieties not part of the indigenous plant community on a site prior to 1800.

NATIVE (Seed bid items designated with the letter (N)): A species or subspecies with natural occurrence (indigenous) on a site of defined geographic area prior to 1800. The site may be described by floristic books and documented information from USDA-NRCS ecological site data, PLANTS database, etc. A native species may be described by the States, counties, ecoregions, and major land resource areas of natural occurrence.

OFFER: The FAR definition of offer is- An offer is a response to a Solicitation that, if accepted, would bind the offeror to perform the resultant contract. Responses from solicitations for requests for proposals are offers called proposals.

ORIGIN (Definition according to the Federal Seed Act): The State, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, or possession of the United States, or the foreign country, or designated portion thereof, where the seed was grown (Federal Seed Act).

PLANT VARIETY PROTECTION (PVP): A variety may receive Federal PVP status which means the germplasm is protected against unauthorized propagation. A variety protected under Title 5 of the PVP Act must be sold by variety name and as a class of certified seed.

REHABILITATED SITE: Public or private land which has been planted with seed of known and/or unknown seed source and origin.

SOURCE: The location or site where the seed was collected from a natural stand or naturalized area, or rehabilitation site where no selection or testing of the parent population has occurred (G0). Production location may also be identified (G1, G2, G3...). (AOSCA). For Government, the Source information is to include Eco-Region and Provisional Seed Transfer Zone of the collection location and the species name.

VARIETY/ CULTIVAR: A cultivated variety of any species or subspecies. A subdivision of a species or subspecies which is characterized and selected for by growth, plant, fruit, seed or other characteristics by which it can be differentiated from other sorts of the same species or subspecies (Federal Seed Act). For example: ‘Hycrest’ Crested Wheatgrass, ‘Luna’ Pubescent Wheatgrass, and so forth.

VARIETY NOT STATED (VNS): Seed trade term used to indicate that the seed in question maybe a variety, or mixture of varieties, but the variety identify is not officially verified by a seed certifying agency. VNS is always uncertified. The Government relies on the integrity of the offeror when providing a variety name on a non-certified named variety.

WILDLAND COLLECTED: Seed collected from Wildlands, i.e. Public or private land that is non-cultivated (areas of plant growth not intentionally planted or seeded for the production of crops).

SECTION D - PACKAGING AND MARKING

The following are the Offeror’s responsibility in advance of delivery of awarded items.

1.) SEED SAMPLING AND TESTING

A.) The vendor shall provide an Attachment 3 filled out (except sampler, sampling, and lab information) and signed prior to delivery for each seed lot, at each delivery location. The vendor shall send the Attachment 3, shipping documents, and SI collection permit(s) if applicable, to the BLM_ID_Seed_All@blm.gov group email address prior to delivery.

B.) The offeror shall designate two different approved seed labs (Refer to Section C for listing) in the BID schedule (Attachment 1), as their facilities of preference. The government will pull an official AASCO certified seed sample at the government facility upon delivery of the seed lot, and the sample will be sent to one of the two labs listed as preferred by the vendor. The offeror will be responsible for the payment of the first test. Additional samples and testing may be conducted at the discretion of the BLM, those samples/tests will be sent to the BLM lab of choice and paid for by the BLM. If a lab is not designated by the offeror on the schedule, the Government will utilize any approved seed testing facility. See Section E for seed sampling and testing procedures.

C.) Seed test analysis will include purity (inert, other crop, weed seed), TZ, Western States Noxious Weed Exam, and species check for invasive annual brome species. Additional information on the seed test result is needed for all Source Identified (SI) seed. Source Identified (SI) will need the Eco-Region and Provisional Seed Transfer Zone. "Example" (Snake River Plains 10-15 Deg. 6-12 AI).

D.) For replacement or reconditioned seed, the same procedures apply.

2.) SEED BAGS

A) All seed shall be delivered in 50 pound bags except for:

i. 40 pound bags: Sagebrush

ii. 25 pound bags: Blue Grama, Sideoats Grama, Purple Threeawn, Prairie Junegrass

iii. 25 or 50 pound bags: All forbs

iv. 20 pound bags: Winterfat, Galleta Grass

v. 10 pound bags: Spiny Hopsage

vi. Other “fluffy” seed as determined on a case-by-case basis.

B) No deviations in bag size will be accepted unless noted above, or as accepted by the COR prior to delivery.

C) All seed bags shall be sound, clean, and made from standard poly or woven sacks of similar strength and characteristics. Burlap bags will not be accepted. If the seed is treated with a chemical, then a lined paper bag is the only accepted packaging with special markings and Safety Data Sheet information. Any bags received which are not sound will be rejected and must be re-bagged or replaced by the vendor to meet contract specifications for pounds and bag material. Needle and Thread grass seed shall be double bagged.

i. The weight of the actual bags shall not be included in the stated weight of the seed delivered.

ii. The lot number for all seed shall be marked on the bag (stenciled or marked with indelible ink).

3.) SEED TAGS

A) A label (the analysis tag) must be attached to each bag of seed and clearly visible when seed is stacked on a pallet. Certified, Source Identified and Selected Class seed shall have the required certification tags also attached. Seed of private varieties shall be marked as required by the owner of the variety. Incomplete analysis tags may be cause for rejection of seed. The cost of the bags, labeling, inspections, and certifications (if required) shall be included in the bidder's price.

B) Analysis Tag is required for each seed bid item with the following information:

i. Lot Number

ii. Name and Address of Shipper

iii. Species (Common and Latin), and Variety

iv. Purity

v. Germination/TZ

vi. Crop Seed:

vii. Weed Seed:

viii. Inert:

ix. Noxious Weed Seed and States Tested for

x. Origin Location of seed source/origin: Eco-region and Seed Transfer Zone

xi. Test Date

xii. Weight of Bag

xiii. Reference Certified lot number if company assigns new lot number (on the analysis tag)

xiv. Title of Seed Buy (Spring 25-1)

xv. Government SSID #

4.) PALLETS

A) All seed, unless prior arrangements are made, must be shipped and delivered on pallets in good order and condition to the point of delivery specified in the contract. If the contractor chooses to ship seed not on pallets, the delivery personnel are required to unload the seed, stack on pallets and wrap. All supplies must be provided by contractor. Palletized seed must be delivered in a condition that can be safely unloaded with a forklift. Pallets that are not securely wrapped, tipped over, or excessively leaning or bulging may be rejected and returned to the contractor for repackaging. Seed will only be accepted on a pallet sized 48” X 40” unless prior approval has been made with the receiving warehouse. Seed bags cannot hang over the four sides of the pallet. If using a girdle of cardboard, the pallet must be shrink-wrapped prior to adding the girdle to allow for easy removal of cardboard to verify bag count. A slip-sheet (piece of cardboard the same size of the pallet) shall be placed on top of the pallet before seed bags are stacked on pallet. Seed bags damaged due to improper handling or improper protection from the elements will not be accepted or will be subject to other considerations as determined by the Contract Officer (CO). In the event the Government must restack the seed bags because it was delivered not meeting the specifications, the Government will charge the Contractor the actual cost incurred by the Government in performing these services or require the contractor to remedy the issue.

B) Each pallet of seed needs to be clearly marked as to species, vendor name, SSID #, lot number(s) and number of pounds of each lot.

C) Where multiple species or lot numbers are included on a single pallet, the distinction between lots and/or species, that have four (4) or more bags, shall be placed separately on its own single pallet that is securely wrapped and clearly marked to have distinct separation from the different lot and/or different species. Multiple pallets can be stacked and wrapped together BUT cannot exceed 54”. A slip-sheet shall be placed between lots and/or species that have less than 4 bags and clearly identify the separation on mixed pallets.

D) If a pallet exceeds 54” (inches) in height, another pallet must be inserted before additional seed is stacked for shipping. Unless prior approval has been made with the receiving warehouse. A slip-sheet will be placed on top of the pallet before additional pallets are doubled stacked.

5.) SHIPPING DOCUMENTS

E) To ensure that the correct lot number is being matched to the intended Purchase Order line-item number shipping paperwork MUST INCLUDE in an Excel spreadsheet/Table format:

1) Contract Order Number # 140L3725(P)00001 or (C)00001

2) Line Item #180

3) SSID #2059

4) Species/Variety: Stabilizer

5) Lot Number: CBA321

6) Pounds: 1,000

7) Delivery Location

F) For every shipment prior to delivery, each contractor must provide the below shown itemized list sent via email to blm_id_seed_all@blm.gov for each warehouse delivery. The itemized form is provided as Attachment 4. Contractor will be required to provide a separate itemized list that corresponds to each truck load if multiple or partial loads are being delivered.

EXAMPLE SHIPPING DOCUMENT FROM ABOVE:

Tab on Attachment 1 with this shipping document example. Attachment 4 is the usable form.

6.) FREEZER STORED SEED REFRIGERATED SHIPPING

Prior harvest sagebrush, winterfat, spiny hopsage, rabbitbrush and forage kochia are required to be shipped via refrigerated shipping at a minimum of March 1st thru October 31st. but may be required outside of that window depending on weather conditions. Consultation with the COR should occur to determine if refrigerated shipping is required beyond October 31. Refrigerated shipping shall keep the seed at 32 degrees F or below. Shipping temperature above 32 degrees F will be subject to termination by the Contracting Officer.

SECTION E - INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

1.) INSPECTION (TESTING) AND INITIAL ACCEPTANCE

All seed will be subject to visual inspection and seed testing Acceptance of delivered seed hereunder shall be made at the point of destination as indicated in Deliveries or Performance.

2.) SEED SAMPLING AND TESTING PROCEDURES

A) All awarded seed lots will be sampled and tested before acceptance. Lots that receive multiple tests will be averaged for the final PLS. Weeds found or percentages of weeds will not be averaged. Any test showing common weeds above 0.25%, annual brome above 400 seeds/lb, or any western states prohibited or restricted (found above the allowed limit) noxious weeds will be sufficient to reject the entire seed lot.

The seed delivered under the contract(s) shall be subject to such inspection and tests as may be determined by the Contracting Officer, Contracting Officer Representative or Project Inspector to be necessary to ascertain conformance with the specifications stated herein. Acceptance of, or the waiving of the inspection and tests of any seed will in no way relieve the Contractor of the responsibility for furnishing seed meeting the requirements of the contract(s).

Each lot shall be purchased on the basis of a laboratory report(s) of analysis on which the testing for purity, viability, and noxious weeds conducted in accordance with the most current version of the AOSA rules for testing seeds when such rules exist for that species

B) Government Sampling and Testing

i. All seed will be sampled and tested prior to acceptance to ensure the seed lot meets the specifications for seed quality. The BLM will sample all seed lots after being delivered to the BLM’s delivery location. The BLM will pull 2 samples from each seed lot and mail one sample to one of the vendor’s preferred seed laboratories which was identified on the bid schedule. The costs of the first test will be the responsibility of the vendor and will be authorized using attachment 3. The second sample will be held in reserve, used for a BLM spot check, or used for additional testing as necessary.

ii. All seed may receive spot checks as determined by the Government. Spot checks will be sent to the BLM lab of choice and paid for by the BLM.

iii. BLM may utilize a variety of options to pull samples of seed lots at the BLM’s location after seed delivery. Options for pulling samples may include a mix of BLM personnel, other agency personnel, contractors, or agreement holders. All personnel pulling samples will be certified samplers as prescribed by AASCO.

iv. Samples will be pulled at the earliest possible time after delivery and generally will be within 2-5 business days depending on overall delivery quantities. All samples will be mailed to the respective laboratory within 2 days of being pulled. Samples pulled from freezer stored seed will be held in cooler/freezer until mailing and will be mailed with ice packs or other means or transported in freezer/cooler conditions to ensure the seed remains chilled during transport.

v. For lots that are delivered to multiple warehouses, the sample will be pulled from one or more of the warehouses receiving the seed lot at the Government’s discretion.

vi. Seed test analysis will include purity (inert, other crop, weed seed), TZ, noxious weed exam for all western states, and annual brome species check.

vii. Seed will be subject to visual inspections. The Government may reject a seed lot based on the visual inspection of cleaning specification standards.

viii. Copies of the initial seed analysis test results must be sent directly to the BLM from the laboratory at blm_id_seed_all@blm.gov and the offeror. The BLM will NOT accept any seed test results that are not sent directly to the BLM from the issuing seed laboratory. Seed test results that are forwarded by the vendor to the BLM will not be accepted.

ix. The test results shall determine final acceptance, rejection and/or payment terms.

C) Testing of replacement or reconditioned seed lots

Seed that is required to be replaced or reconditioned will follow the same sampling process as identified for the original delivery. Seed shall be shipped to the BLM and the sampling of the replacement/reconditioned lot will be conducted by the BLM. Sample will be sent to one of the two vendors originally identified preferred seed laboratories and will be paid for by the vendor utilizing the attachment 3. Replacement/reconditioned lots are subject to additional spot testing at the BLM’s discretion.

D) Additional testing that may be conducted by the Government

All seed lots may be subject to additional testing by the government to ascertain the species or variety of the seed lot at the discretion of the government. Due to the length of time required for species and varietal testing, seed may be accepted through the regular testing process, but later rejected if the seed is found to be of a different species or variety than stated by the vendor.

3.) APPROVED SEED TESTING FACILITIES

A) Approved Facilities include Official State Seed Laboratories in Colorado, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, Wyoming, and Indiana Crop Improvement Association.

B) Additional laboratories will be considered if found to be beneficial or required. Any new labs that want to be considered as an approved seed testing facility will have to apply with the following criteria required:

C) Seed Laboratories may be removed from the approved list at any time, at the discretion of the Government.

D) Contractors with close business connections to an approved seed lab will not be allowed to use their services for seed lot testing. Offerors are cautioned that they must not include any testing laboratories that are associated with the offerors firm in any fashion such as having a financial interest, controlling interest, or associated interests. Inclusion of any associated laboratories may pose either an actual or potential conflict of interest and may prove detrimental to the evaluation of the offer and subsequent possible awards.

4.) PURE LIVE SEED (PLS)

A) DETERMINING PLS

For the purpose of determining the percentage of pure live seed for the acceptance of seed (% PLS) the following formula shall be used:

B) PLS TOLERANCE

Seed delivered under this contract will be allowed PLS tolerance (percentage) points as stated in Table 1 to allow for natural variation in sampling and testing procedures. The Government reserves the right to test any seed received in addition to the initial testing paid for by the offeror. Seed will be accepted or rejected based on the following tested PLS scenarios:

Tested PLS within Tolerance Limits and Above the BLM Recommended Minimum PLS:

If the seed from the first test is at the offered PLS or within the allowed tolerance limits in Table 1, is above the recommended BLM minimum PLS, and meets all other specifications for quality, the Government will purchase the seed at the full price offered on the Bid Sheet.

Tested PLS Below Tolerance Limits and Above the BLM Recommended Minimum PLS If the PLS from the first test is less than the offered PLS, and below the acceptable tolerance points in Table 1 - Allowable Tolerance Points, is above the BLM recommended minimum PLS, and all other quality standards have been met, the Government will purchase the seed at a calculated price reduction. Payment at a reduced unit price shall be the full compensation due and payable to the Contractor for seed accepted under this condition. Payment will be computed using the following formula:

Tested PLS within Tolerance Limits and Below the BLM Recommended Minimum PLS:

If the seed from the first test is below the offered PLS and within the allowed tolerance limits in Table 1, is below the recommended BLM minimum PLS, and meets all other specifications for quality, the Government may exercise one of the following options.

i. The Government may choose to accept the seed at a calculated price reduction using the same formula as above.

ii. The Government may choose to reject the seed. Rejected seed shall be reconditioned or replaced by the offeror. The offeror has the option to recondition or replace the rejected seed lot.

Tested PLS Below Tolerance Limits and Below the BLM Recommended Minimum PLS:

If the PLS from the first test is less than the offered PLS, outside of the allowable tolerance in Table 1,and below the BLM recommended minimum, and meets all other specifications for quality, the Government may exercise one of the following options.

i. The Government may choose to accept the seed at a calculated price reduction using the same formula as above.

ii. The Government may choose to reject the seed. Rejected seed shall be reconditioned or replaced by the offeror. The offeror has the option to recondition or replace the rejected seed lot.

iii. The Government may elect to reject the seed without replacement. If the seed does not meet contract specifications and time does not allow replacement, the seed may be rejected, and the contract terminated for convenience.

THE GOVERNMENT IS NOT OBLIGATED TO ACCEPT ANY SEED LOT THAT FALLS BELOW THE BLM MINIMUM OR THE STATED TOLERANCE POINTS IN THE TABLE 1

C) ERRONEOUS TESTS:

At the discretion of the Government, if the first two tests or the offered PLS and the 1st test vary by more than the percentage points in Table 1, an additional test may be requested by the vendor and approved by the CO. The Government will pull the sample, if the 2nd choice lab hasn’t been utilized yet, the sample will be sent there otherwise, the BLM will choose the lab and ship the sample for testing. The two tests with the closest results will be averaged for the purpose of final acceptance or rejection as well as for payment. Whomever requested the additional test (BLM or seed contractor) is the responsible party for payment of seed laboratory charges. If the seed contractor is responsible for payment a new Attachment 3 will be requested to authorize the payment.

TABLE 1. Allowable Tolerance Points of Offered PLS versus Tested PLS

ALLOWABLE TOLERANCE POINTS TABLE

Percentage points Test variance percentage points allowed to determine if test is erroneous

5.) COMMON WEEDS

Seed lots that fail to meet the specifications for weed limits in Section C as demonstrated through testing will be rejected by the Government. If tested seed has common weeds or annual invasive bromes above the allowable limits the seed will be rejected, and the government may exercise one of the following options:

A) The Government may reject the seed and require the offeror to recondition or replace the seed. Replacement seed must meet the same requirements, species/variety, and seed provenance (for SI seed) as the original offered seed lot. Proposed substitutions may only be accepted by the CO or COR in writing.

B) The Government may elect to reject the seed without replacement. If the seed does not meet contract specifications and time does not allow replacement, the seed may be rejected, and the contract terminated for convenience.

C) The Government may elect at their discretion to accept seed at a negotiated price reduction before or after reconditioning of seed that is found to have common weeds or annual brome above the allowed limits.

6.) NOXIOUS WEEDS

Seed lots that fail to meet the specifications in Section C for noxious weeds as demonstrated through testing will be rejected by the Government. The Government is not obligated to accept any seed lot that has prohibited noxious weeds or noxious weeds above the restricted noxious weed limits in any of the western states listed in Section C. If tested seed has noxious weeds that do not meet all combinations (prohibited and restricted) for all western states identified in Section C, the seed will be rejected, and the government may exercise one of the following options:

A) The Government may reject the seed and require the offeror to recondition or replace the seed. Replacement seed must meet the same requirements, species/variety, and seed provenance (for SI seed) as the original offered seed lot. Proposed substitutions may only be accepted by the CO or COR in writing.

B) The Government may elect to reject the seed without replacement. If the seed does not meet contract specifications and time does not allow replacement, the seed may be rejected and the contract terminated for convenience.

7.) SEED COLLECTION PERMITS

A) The BLM must ensure that seed purchased under this contract was legally collected with proper permission.

B) The contractor shall provide all permits or agreements that authorized the collection of wildland collected species. Permits, in their entirety, must be provided for any collections on federal or state lands. For collections on private lands, a permit or signed agreement from the private landowner must be provided. Authorization paperwork must be included in their entirety, show species and amount (pounds) authorized to collect, and must include a map or sufficient locational information (e.g., Township, Range, Section, Lat/Lon, UTM, etc.) of the collection area, and any attachments. The Government will only use this information to verify the legitimacy of the collection.

C) A seed lot may be partially accepted or rejected based on provided seed collection documentation. For seed lots that exceed the amount of seed allowed to collect on the provided seed collection permits/agreements, the government may reject the entire seed lot, or may reject the portion of seed that exceeds the permitted pounds allowed under the permit/agreement. (For example, if the vendor sells the government 3,000 pounds of a seed lot but can only provide permits/agreements documentation for 1,000 pounds of collection, the BLM may choose to accept 1,000 pounds or reject the entire seed lot.)

8.) SEED PROVENANCE OF WILDLAND COLLECTED SEED

The BLM may reject a seed lot that does not have clearly identified and trackable seed provenance. Information on seed vendor analysis tags and state issued tags must match.