15PGCD19N00000001_RFI.pdf

FedBizOpps Sources Sought Notice

CLASSIFICATION CODE

SUBJECT

CONTRACTING OFFICE'S

ZIP-CODE

SOLICITATION NUMBER

RESPONSE DATE (MM-DD-YYYY)

ARCHIVE DAYS AFTER THE RESPONSE DATE

RECOVERY ACT FUNDS

SET-ASIDE

NAICS CODE

CONTRACTING OFFICE

ADDRESS

POINT OF CONTACT

(POC Information Automatically Filled from User Profile Unless Entered)

DESCRIPTION See Attachment

AGENCY'S URL

URL DESCRIPTION

AGENCY CONTACT'S EMAIL

ADDRESS

EMAIL DESCRIPTION

ADDRESS

POSTAL CODE

COUNTRY

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

GENERAL INFORMATION

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

* = Required Field FedBizOpps Sources Sought Notice Rev. March 2010

R

FOIA Legal Services Support

20531

15PGCD19N00000001

04-08-2019

N

541199

Acquisition Management Division DOJ, Office of Justice Programs

810 7th Street, N.W.

Washington DC 20531

Larrieka Knox Contract Specialist

810 7th St NW Washington, DC

20531

United States https://ojp.gov/

Office of Justice Programs Home Page

Larrieka.Knox@ojp.usdoj.gov

Work Email

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

OFFICE OF JUSTICE PROGRAMS (OJP)

OFFICE OF GENERAL COUNSEL (OGC)

FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA) SUPPORT SERVICES

This Request for Information (RFI) is the initiation of market research under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 10. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, or quotations. This announcement does not constitute an Invitation for Bids (IFB), Request for Quote (RFQ), or a Request for Proposal (RFP), and it should not be construed as a commitment of any kind by the Government to issue a formal solicitation or ultimately award a contract. Responses to this notice cannot be accepted as offers.

The Government anticipates the applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code assigned to these services to be 541199 – All Other Legal Services. Contractors must be properly registered in the Government System for Award Management at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/.

Background:

The Office of Justice Programs is the primary grant-making component within the Department of Justice. The office provides innovative leadership to federal, state, local, and tribal justice systems, by disseminating state-of-the-art knowledge and practice across America, and providing grants for the implementation of these crime-fighting strategies. OJP works in partnership with the law enforcement and justice communities to identify the most pressing crime-related challenges confronting the justice system and to provide information, training, coordination, and innovative strategies and approaches for addressing these challenges.

OJP’s FOIA office is housed in the Office of the General Counsel. Most FOIA requests are submitted by criminal justice agencies, researchers, organizations, law firms, media, inmates, and state agencies. Most requests for information and documents pertain to grant funding, training, programs, statistics, and research on technology to fight crime.

In 2017, OJP upgraded its request tracking system and implemented FOIAXpress to enhance the operation of its FOIA program. The system became fully operational October 1, 2017, for fiscal year 2018. This system supplements the pre-existing electronic “FOIAOJP” e-mailbox, through which most requests are received.

FOIA inquiries are also received through the FOIA portal on the FOIA.gov website, as well as through regular mail.

The FOIA office monitors all incoming mail through its intake process, ensuring perfected FOIA requests receive acknowledgement within two days and are assigned a FOIA tracking number. On average, the office averages five to six requests weekly. If the request is too vague, the FOIA Officer, FOIA Specialist, or Contract Paralegal contacts the requester by e-mail or telephone and requests additional information before assigning a FOIA tracking number.

In Fiscal Year 2018, OJP received 383 requests and completed the processing and closing of 291 requests.

Since FY 2017, FOIA staff has devoted significant time to eliminating a backlog of over 300 voluminous and complex requests. Over the last year, the number of OJP staff with significant FOIA responsibilities decreased, while incoming requests and the backlog have increased.

The Department of Justice (DOJ), Office of Justice Programs (OJP), Acquisition Management Division (AMD) is issuing this notice to identify qualified and responsible businesses within SBA’s 8(a) Business Development Program that can assist with the OGC requirement for Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) support services.

https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/

The goal of the contract is to obtain qualified contractor support to assist OGC with the processing and administration of the FOIA and Privacy (PA) for all of OJP’s bureaus and offices.

The following areas describe the broad range of functions and tasks that the Government envisions for the contractor:

1) FOIA Intake. The contractor shall identify and review all incoming FOIA requests from electronic mail systems and regular mail. The contractor shall analyze requests to determine whether requests are perfected and identify the appropriate OJP office to direct the request for documents. Contractor shall have a strong attention to detail, communicate effectively in writing and orally with other FOIA staff and attorneys regarding issues related to FOIA requests. Contractor shall be responsible for promptly completing simple requests and managing all incoming FOIA requests and organizing records and responses from OJP offices.

2) FOIA Data Collection. The contractor shall review and evaluate FOIA requests in a proactive and timely manner, independently research relevant legislation, regulations, and precedents, and be able to articulate the FOIA regulations/legislation to internal/external stakeholders and shareholders.

3) FOIA Processing. The contractor shall conduct in-processing of requests and provide an independent analysis and determination of privacy, disclosures, and applicable exemptions. The Contractor shall have a strong attention to detail, be adept at using technology to assist with processing tasks, such as using document search tools, performing research related to FOIA requests, and using e-mail to streamline the consultation process. Contractor ensures requests are distributed in a timely manner to the appropriate offices and that requests are closed under short deadlines and/or within an allotted period of time. Contractor shall also process aged requests to support the FOIA office’s commitment to reducing and/or eliminating its FOIA backlog.

4) Administrative Support. The contractor shall assist the OGC with miscellaneous administrative tasks.

Contractor shall manage and maintain information utilizing FOIAXpress, be proficient with the use of computers and other office equipment, have a strong attention to detail, and skills with managing and organizing digital files, and have experience with using Microsoft Office programs to prepare both formal and informal general correspondence. Administrative support staff should have strong office skills and experience working in a professional legal environment. The contractor shall answer phones, receive and route requests, messages, and legal documents to the appropriate staff, and assist the office administrator with daily administrative tasks.

It is anticipated that support for this requirement will be met by qualified personnel.

Respondents to this RFI shall provide the following information:

The response to this notice is limited to ten (10) single sided pages (including all attachments, charts, etc.). The response should include the following information clearly marked:

• Vendor’s name, address, points of contact information, website, DUNS, and cage code.

• Vendor’s current business designation and size status.

• Vendor’s tailored capability statements addressing the general areas of this requirement, with appropriate documentation supporting claims of organizational and staff capability. If subcontracting or teaming is anticipated in order to deliver technical capability, organizations should address the administrative and management structure of such arrangements.

• Vendor’s narrative on relevant experience in FOIA support services.

• Vendor’s Past Performance – Provide a list of previous contracts where similar services were provided.

Provide customer/Government Agency contact information where these services were provided including: contact name and organization, telephone number, and e-mail address.

All responses to this RFI must be submitted electronically (via e-mail) to Ms. Larrieka Knox, Contracts Specialist, at Larrieka.Knox@ojp.usdoj.gov. Facsimile responses will not be accepted. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted or acknowledged, and no feedback or evaluations will be provided to companies regarding their submissions. Interested vendors should monitor the government point of entry site for further information. Your firm’s response to this RFI is appreciated.

SUBMISSION TIME AND DATE:

Responses to the information provided above are due no later than April 08, 2019 at 3:00 PM Eastern Time.

Responses received after this date and time may not be considered.

DISCLAIMER AND IMPORTANT NOTES:

This RFI is for information and planning purposes only and shall NOT be construed as a solicitation or as an obligation on the part of the Government. This notice does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in the response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any response to this notice should be complete and sufficiently detailed to allow the Government to determine the respondent’s qualifications to perform the work.

Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. After a review of the responses received, a pre-solicitation synopsis and solicitation MAY be published. However, responses to this notice will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.

The Government will NOT accept requests for meetings or briefings, and may not answer any questions posed.

No phone solicitations or e-mail with regards to the status of a potential Request for Proposal (RFP) will be accepted prior to its release. Information and materials submitted in response to this notice WILL NOT be returned.

The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of responses received nor otherwise pay for the preparation of any information submitted.

mailto:Larrieka.Knox@ojp.usdoj.gov

As a result of this notice, the Government MAY issue a Request for Proposal (RFP). There is no solicitation available at this time. However, should such a requirement materialize, no basis for claims against the Government shall arise as a result of a response to this RFI or the Government’s use of such information as either part of our evaluation process or in developing specifications for any subsequent requirement.

CONFIDENTIALITY: No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).