WBR-1406_303-1_Template-1_JOTFOC_FAR-6_4-2021p_Redacted_1.pdf

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WBR 1406.303-1 Template 1 eFile - B02

(04/2021)

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION

In accordance with FAR 6.302 or FAR 13.501(a), the proposed contractual action is pursuant to the statutory authority identified in paragraph 4. This template is required for actions over the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (unless the procurement is acquired as a limited source IAW FAR 8.405-6 or is an Exception to Fair Opportunity IAW FAR 16.505(b)(2)).

1. Agency and Contracting Activity (FAR 6.303-2(b)(1)). U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, Interior Region 8: Lower Colorado Basin (LCB), Acquisition and Assistance Management Office.

2. Nature/Description of Action (FAR 6.303-2(b)(2)). The Bureau of Reclamation, LCB, proposes to establish a contract with the University of Arizona (U of A) to support the operation and maintenance of weather stations and the reporting of meteorological data. The U of A owns and operates the Arizona Meteorological Network (AZMET), which provides weather-related information for much of Arizona through a network of automated weather stations. U of A has been providing Reclamation with standardized reference evapotranspiration (ETo) values since 2004. Reclamation uses these standardized ETo values for estimating water use in cultivated vegetation, non-cultivated vegetation, and evaporation from open water surfaces along the Lower Colorado River and adjacent areas to which Colorado River water is diverted and used.

This will be a firm-fixed price contract four (4) one-year options, with water-and-related appropriate FY23 funds, using subsequent fiscal year funds for the option years.

3. Description of Supplies/Services (FAR 6.303-2(b)(3)). Reclamation requires daily and annual standardized reference ETo values from AZMET, as well as from the California Irrigation Management Information System (CIMIS), stations located along the lower Colorado River to support monitoring and accounting of consumptive use of water from the lower Colorado River.

Reclamation must monitor and account for the consumptive use of water from the lower Colorado River as described in the Consolidated Decree of the United States Supreme Court in Arizona v. California, 547 U.S. 150 (2006), and 43 CFR Part 417 of the Code of Federal Regulations. To assist in fulfilling these requirements, the Lower Colorado Water Accounting and Verification group calculates ETo values for crops and riparian vegetation, and evaporation from open water surfaces along the lower Colorado River and adjacent areas to which Colorado River water is diverted and consumed. These ETo and evaporation values are used to monitor water use and the efficiency of water use, water exchange programs between water users, and to facilitate consumptive use calculations. These ETo and evaporation values are dependent upon daily and annual Standardized Reference Evapotranspiration values from AZMET and CIMIS stations located along the lower Colorado River, as well as parameters collected from other sources.

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The contract will also require U of A to perform quarterly onsite maintenance on each of eleven

(11) AZMET stations, whereby each station and the nearby surroundings are cleaned, sensors are compared against appropriate standards, and vegetation conditions upwind of the station, known as the fetch, are documented. Five additional visits are performed for cleaning and inspecting.

This totals nine visits per year to each station. U of A will also perform preventative and emergency maintenance and repairs to the AZMET stations.

The U of A will provide data processing on a daily basis to include (a) running quality control checks on incoming data; (b) processing the data into useable formats; and (c) making the data available at no charge to the government via AZMET’s public access website.

U of A will compute daily standardized reference evapotranspiration values from the meteorological data sets obtained from the AZMET and CIMIS stations. U of A will provide technical support, as requested by Reclamation, with the interpretation and utilization of the standardized reference ETo values produced under this contract.

U of A will provide annual summaries of daily standardized reference ETo values for the AZMET and CIMIS weather stations, plus any additional stations designated by Reclamation provided such stations have sufficient data to support the computation of standardized reference evapotranspiration values. The annual summaries for each station will be delivered to Reclamation by the first of March of the year subsequent to the year of data collection.

Deliverable Frequency Data processing Daily Onsite maintenance Quarterly Onsite Cleaning and inspecting As needed Preventative maintenance for obsolescence As scheduled Emergency repairs As needed Annual summary Annually

Period of performance will be a base year with four one-year option periods. Base year will begin on October 1, 2023, through September 30, 2024, with the subsequent four years to follow with the same dates.

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4. Statutory Authority Permitting Other than Full and Open Competition (FAR 6.303- 2(b)(4)). (Check one)

Authority FAR Coverage Application 41 U.S.C. 1901 FAR 13.501 Only one responsible source using Simplified Acquisition

Procedures (above SAT but at or below $7.5M)

41 U.S.C. 1903 FAR 13.501 Special emergency procurement authority

41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1) FAR 6.302-1 Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements

41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1) FAR 6.302-1(c) Application for brand-name descriptions

41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(2) FAR 6.302-2 Unusual and compelling urgency

41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(3) FAR 6.302-3 Industrial mobilization; engineering, developmental or research capability; or expert services

41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(4) FAR 6.302-4 International Agreement 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(5) FAR 6.302-5 Authorized or required by statute 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(6) FAR 6.302-6 National Security 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(7) FAR 6.302-7 Public Interest

5. Demonstration of Contractor’s Unique Qualifications (FAR 6.303-2(b)(5)). U of A is the sole owner, operator, and administrator of the AZMET system. There are no other entities that own and can provide the necessary operation and maintenance of the weather stations and associated data delivery for the state of Arizona to meet Reclamation requirements. Additionally, there are no other weather station networks in the state of Arizona that could provide the equivalent information.

AZMET personnel possess the expertise, knowledge, experience, and access to data required to calculate the Standardized Reference Evapotranspiration values required by Reclamation for the Water Accounting and Verification program. The values produced by AZMET also carry the weight, confidence, and integrity of the AZMET program and the U of A. Consequently, the U of A is the unique source for this contracted effort.

6. Description of efforts made to maximize competition (FAR 6.303-2(b)(6)). A web-based search was done to verify that no other equivalent weather station networks are present in the project area. No competition is anticipated for this procurement as typically only federal and state agencies and educational institutions operate and maintain weather station networks. These are not-for-profit systems.

A Special Notice (contract folder C02) was posted to SAM.gov on 28 June 2023 through 7 July 2023 stating the Government’s intent to award on a sole-source basis and requesting any firms believing they have the technical capabilities to meet the requirement to submit capability statements. No responses were received.

7. Determination of Fair and Reasonable Cost (FAR 6.303-2(b)(7)). The contracting officer states that the anticipated cost will be considered fair and reasonable based on the price analysis techniques found at FAR 15.404-1(b)(2). These techniques may include comparison of the

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(04/2021) proposed prices to historical prices paid; comparison with competitive published price lists;

comparison of proposed prices with independent Government cost estimates; comparison of proposed prices with prices obtained through market research for the same or similar items; and verification of proposed rates with the U of A’s established rate agreement with the Government.

8. Description of Market Research Conducted (FAR 6.303-2(b)(8)). U of A has been providing Reclamation equivalent services since 2004. Because U of A operates a state wide network of weather stations and coordinates for the placement of these stations on private lands, and works with multiple stakeholders in the area other than Reclamation to maintain this network, there are no other suitable alternatives for acquiring these services and associated data.

The contract specialist searched the Internet for ETo services within the state of Arizona. U of A predominated the search results, as well as other governmental agencies and nonprofits that rely on U of A data to author data analysis and reports.

The contract specialist also searched GSA Advantage! and e-Library (see Attachment 1 for results). Advantage! search returned one available MAC contract with the Nevada System of Higher Education. The work for the GSA contract is performed by the Desert Research Institute (DRI) in Reno, NV. See Attachment 1 for information about DRI. DRI operates the Western States Water Use Program (of which Reclamation is a partner) to quantify the consumptive water use via ETo by using satellite imagery and high performance and cloud computing resources provided by NASA’s Earth Exchange and Google Earth Engine. DRI does not own any ground-based equipment in Arizona by which it gathers any land-based data.

The e-Library search returned no relevant results. See Attachment 1 in contract folder B02.

9. Any Other Supporting Facts (FAR 6.303-2(b)(9)). AZMET is the sole system for the State of Arizona, thus the University of Arizona is the only entity able to provide the services required.

If this existing weather station network did not exist and was not operated by U of A, the following are cost estimates to purchase, install and maintain an equivalent system. These estimates are derived from actual costs incurred by U of A.

1. Purchase and installation of 11 weather stations currently represented in the contract:

$217,600

2. Operation, maintenance, and data calculations (5-year period) currently represented in the contract: $326,918

The above figures do not include additional costs that would be incurred in determining station locations and securing permissions to locate stations on private lands, nor does it include the costs associated with procurement.

10. Listing of Interested Sources (FAR 6.303-2(b)(10)). NA

11. Actions Taken to Remove Barriers to Competition (FAR 6.303-2(b)(11)). There are no actions that can be taken to remove the barriers to competition on subsequent acquisitions for

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(04/2021) these services. The University of Arizona is the only entity in the State of Arizona that is responsible for the operation and maintenance of the AZMET program.

12. SIGNATURES

PREPARED BY:

CONTRACT SPECIALIST

CONTRACTING OFFICER (CO) (FAR 6.304(a)(1) or FAR 13.501(a)(2)(i)): (All Values)

CHIEF of the CONTRACTING OFFICE (CCO) (DOI-AAAP-0024): (> $250K)

Attachment:

1. Market Research Information

Date: 2023.08.08 10:16:54 -05'00'

Date: 2023.08.08 09:17:49 -07'00'

Date: 2023.08.09 14:18:24 -07'00'