RFQ Question and Answer - 1605C5-26-Q-00040 Amendment 0002.pdf

RFQ Question and Answer - 1605C5-26-Q-00040 Amendment 0002 Sheet

Question Title RFQ Section Number/Page Number Vendor Questions Government Comments

Data rights in pre-existing commercial data Section I.14, DOL 2018-03, para. C.10, p. 23

Paragraph C.10 is prefaced "[Insert the following if no other data rights clause has been included in the contract]" and states that DOL owns the rights to all data and records produced as part of the contract, while also providing that "Any Contractor rights in the data or deliverables must be identified as required by FAR 52.227-11 through FAR 52.227-20." Consistent with the SOW requirement that the data be commercially available and not collected exclusively for BLS, will the Government confirm that where a vendor delivers a pre-existing commercial data product that it also licenses to other customers, paragraph C.10 conveys unlimited rights in the delivered deliverables only, and does not convey ownership of, or the right to redistribute, the underlying commercial dataset, the vendor's collection methodology, or the vendor's other licensed instances of that data, provided the vendor identifies its retained rights through restrictive markings in accordance with FAR 52.227-11 through FAR 52.227-20?

The Government confirms that, yes--"paragraph C.10 conveys unlimited rights in the delivered deliverables only, and does not convey ownership of, or the right to redistribute, the underlying commercial dataset, the vendor's collection methodology, or the vendor's other licensed instances of that data, provided the vendor identifies its retained rights through restrictive markings."

Collection timing: rolling versus single-day capture

Section II, Scope of Work and Table 1, p. 4

Section II requires that each observation be scraped three times a month and provided within one calendar day of the 1st, 10th, and 20th.

Table 1 specifies a per-observation variable, "Date - Date observation collected." Will the Government confirm that observations may be collected on a rolling basis across each collection cycle, with each record carrying its actual collection date, rather than requiring all observations within a cycle to be captured on a single calendar day?

The Government confirms that, yes. Observations can be collected on a rolling basis, provided that the collection date is stated, each observation is collected three times a month roughly corresponding to each third of the month, and each scrape is provided to BLS within one calendar day of the identified dates.

Addition of retailers beyond the five named Section II, Scope of Work, p.

Section II states that the data must at minimum include Macy's, Kohl's, Nordstrom, Dillard's, and JCPenney, and that "Additional stores may be requested beyond these top grossing stores." Will the Government confirm that the addition of any retailer beyond the five named would be effected by bilateral contract modification with an equitable adjustment to price, and that quoted pricing should therefore be based on the five named retailers only?

The Government confirms that, yes. The identified retailers are the minimum ask and only those will serve as the basis upon which the contract will be awarded.

Any additional retailers BLS desires will be negotiated after the contract is awarded.

Unit of observation: product versus purchasable variant

Section II, Table 1, p. 4 Table 1 requires "SKU/product ID" for every apparel product scraped. Where a product is offered in multiple sizes or colors carrying different prices, does the Government require one record per purchasable variant (SKU), or one record per product with a price range or representative price?

The Government prefers each variation of size/color when feasible. However, given the number of products for some retailers (e.g., Amazon), one representative size/color could be appropriate. In other words, the Government considers this aspect flexible, subject to cost and technical constraints.

Marketplace and third-party seller items Section II, Table 1, p. 5 Table 1 includes "Third party seller (if applicable)" as a required feature. Several of the named retailers operate marketplace platforms carrying items sold by third-party sellers. Should items offered by third-party sellers on a named retailer's website be included in the delivered data with the seller identified, or should the delivered data be limited to items sold and fulfilled by the retailer itself?

The Government requires third-party sellers to be included in the delivered scrape and that the name of the third-party seller be provided. This is particularly important for retailers such as Amazon.

Treatment of out-of-stock or unavailable items

Section II, Scope of Work, p.

Should products that remain listed on a retailer's website but are shown as out of stock, sold out, or otherwise unavailable for purchase at the time of collection be included in the delivered file with a status indicator, or excluded from that cycle's delivery?

The Government requires all items listed on the website be scraped, including those not available for purchase at the time of the scrape. A flag indicating availability is preferred but not required.

Basis of evaluation under Sub-factor B, Data Scope

Section M, Sub-factor B, p. 32 Sub-factor B states that quotes will be evaluated by "the scope of the data, or the amount of data." Will the Government clarify whether Sub-factor B will be evaluated on the absolute count of products delivered, the proportion of each named retailer's in-scope catalog that is covered, the number of retailers covered, or another basis?

The Government requires that all listed retailers be scraped and all products listed on the website be delivered, as described in the SOW. However, cost and technical constraints will be considered in terms of how many unique items it is feasible to collect on a case-by-case basis.

Attachment 1 - Question and Answer Spreadsheet

First collection and delivery following award Section III, Deliverables and Section IV, Period of Performance, p. 5

Section III states that delivery "should start as soon as contract is awarded." Given a base period beginning 09/30/2026, will the Government confirm the first collection cycle it expects to receive, for example whether the first scrape is expected on or around October 1, 2026, and by when that first delivery must be made?

Yes, the Government expects that the first scrape should occur within the first third of October 2026 and be delivered within one business day of October 10, 2026.

The scrape of the second third of the month should be delivered within one business day of October 20, and the third by November 1 at the latest. Any difficulty meeting these first deadlines should be communicated to BLS, and set-up time at the start of the contract will be considered as necessary and appropriate.

Sleeve Length - Format Section II, Table 1 (p. 4-5) Section II, Table 1 lists 'sleeve length' as a required product feature. Please confirm whether this should be reported as a categorical descriptor (e.g., short, long, sleeveless, three-quarter) or as a physical measurement in inches.

The Government prefers that the sleeve length feature be recorded however it is described by the retailer, whether categorical or continuous (e.g, in inches). If both are provided, then the continuous measure is preferred.

Retailer Access Restrictions / Excusable Delay

Section II, Scope of Work (p.

4)

If one of the specified retailers implements technical measures (e.g., bot-detection or access restrictions) that prevent data collection from that retailer despite the Contractor's good-faith efforts, would this be treated as an excusable delay, or does the Contractor bear full responsibility for continued data delivery from all specified retailers regardless of retailer-side changes?

The Government requires that each scrape be delivered within one business day of the 10th of that month, the 20th of that month, and the 1st of the following month.

The selected vendor is responsible for meeting those deadlines.

Sales Ranking Indicator - Definition Section II, Table 1 (p. 5) Table 1 requests an 'indicator of sales ranking (if possible)' as a product feature. Please clarify what this indicator should reflect - e.g., a retailer-published bestseller/trending label where one exists on the product page, or a ranking the Contractor is expected to derive independently.

The Government prefers a bestseller/trending label where it is available. It is not a requirement that the vendor derive a measure of sales ranking independently.

Third-Party Seller - Definition Section II, Table 1 (p. 4) Please confirm the definition of 'third party seller' for purposes of the required data field - specifically, whether this refers to marketplace items fulfilled by a seller other than the retailer itself.

Yes, the Government confirms that "third-party seller" refers to items sold on a retailer's website that are not fulfilled by the retailer themselvses. These are usually marked as such, and it's expected that such items are identified and the seller name provided.

Product Coverage Scope - In-Stock vs. All Listed

Section II, Scope of Work (p.

4)

Section II states BLS is seeking the largest number of scraped products possible, ideally covering all products available for purchase online. Please confirm whether this scope includes out-of-stock or backordered items that remain listed on the retailer's website, or only items currently available for purchase.

The Government requires all items listed on the website be scraped, including those not available for purchase at the time of the scrape. A flag indicating availability is preferred but not required.

Additional Retailers - Pricing Treatment Section II, Scope of Work (p.

4)

Section II notes that additional stores may be requested beyond the five named retailers. Please confirm whether the addition of new retailers during the period of performance would be priced as a contract modification with additional compensation, or is expected to be absorbed within the existing CLIN pricing.

The Government confirms that, yes. The identified retailers are the minimum ask and only those will serve as the basis upon which the contract will be awarded.

Any additional retailers BLS desires will be negotiated after the contract is awarded.

File Delivery - Consolidation Section II / III (p. 4-5) Please confirm whether each of the three monthly scrapes (1st, 10th, 20th) should be delivered as a separate data file, or consolidated into a single file per month.

The Government requires that three separate files be delivered, with the first delivered on or around the 10th of the current month, the second on or around the 20th of the current month, and the third by the 1st of the following month, with each scrape being coducted over the course of roughly a third of the month.

Scrape Date Adjustment for Weekends/Holidays

Section II, Scope of Work (p.

4)

If the 1st, 10th, or 20th of the month falls on a weekend or federal holiday, should the scrape occur on the nearest business day, or on the calendar date as specified regardless?

The Government requires that each scrape be delivered within one business day of the dates specificed in the SOW, with weekends and federal holidays not counting as business days.

Commercial Availability Requirement Section C – Statement of Work, Section II / Page 5

The Statement of Work states that “the data being purchased should be commercially available and not collected exclusively on behalf of the BLS.” Would a commercial data product or subscription service that is offered for sale to both government and non-government customers prior to contract award satisfy this requirement, even if BLS would be the first customer to purchase that offering? Or must the proposed dataset have an established history of prior commercial sales?

The Government does not require that the data have a history of prior commercial sales, only that the data delivered to BLS be publicly available for anyone to either scrape or purchase from the vendor on their own, independent of the Government's purchase.

Additional Retailers Section C – Statement of Work, Section II / Page 4

The Statement of Work identifies Macy’s, Kohl’s, Nordstrom, Dillard’s, and JCPenney as the minimum required retailers and states that additional stores may be requested. Is there a maximum number of additional retailers that may be added during the period of performance? If additional retailers are requested after award, would those additions be handled through a contract modification and corresponding price adjustment?

The Government has no maximum number in mind but would likely require no more than ten retailers in total.

The identified retailers are the minimum ask and only those will serve as the basis upon which the contract will be awarded. Any additional retailers BLS desires will be negotiated after the contract is awarded.

Product Variant Granularity Section C – Statement of

Work, Section II / Pages 4–5;

Section M / Page 32

For the requirement to provide “all or most products available for purchase online,” does BLS require each size, color, style, or other product variant to be provided as a separate observation, or may a single product/SKU record include the available variant information as product attributes?

The Government prefers each variation of size/color when feasible. However, given the number of products for some retailers (e.g., Amazon), one representative size/color could be appropriate. In other words, the Government considers this aspect flexible, subject to cost and technical constraints.

NAICS Code Clarification SF 1449, Block 10 / Page 1;

Section K.2 / Page 24

The SF 1449 identifies NAICS 541910, while Section K.2 identifies NAICS 518210. Please confirm which NAICS code and corresponding small-business size standard will govern this acquisition.

The correct NAICS code is 541910 . The small business size standard is $22.5 million.

Period of Performance Clarification Section B / Page 3; Section C, SOW Section IV / Page 5;

Amendment 0001 / Page 2

Section B and Amendment 0001 identify the base period of performance as September 25, 2026 through September 24, 2027, while Section C of the Statement of Work identifies September 30, 2026 through September 29, 2027. Please confirm the controlling base-period and option-period dates for pricing and performance purposes.

The period of performance has been revised to reflect a 12-month period of 09/25/2026 - 09/24/2027.

Offer price / regular price — variant price ranges

Section C, SOW Section II, Table 1 (Offer price; Regular price), p. 4–5

Several of the named retailers display a price range (minimum–maximum) on a product listing when different sizes or colors of the same product are priced differently. For the Offer price and Regular price variables, does BLS prefer (a) one record per product with minimum and maximum price columns, or (b) one record per UPC/variant with a single price each? If (a), should the vendor also supply the per-variant prices as a supplementary file?

The Government prefers one record per variant with a single price for each, but that may not be feasible in all cases. If it isn't minimum and maximum prices would be acceptable with no need for per-variant prices. This is a matter subject to cost and technical constraints and can be negotiated after the contract is awarded.

Out-of-Stock SKU Handling Section 3: Scope of Work / Performance Requirements

Section 3 specifies scraping all apparel products available for sale across the designated retailer websites. For longitudinal consumer price index tracking, does BLS require historical records to retain temporarily out-of-stock items with an appropriate availability/stock-status flag, or should out-of-stock items be omitted entirely from the periodic feed?

The Government requires all items listed on the website be scraped, including those not available for purchase at the time of the scrape. A flag indicating availability is preferred but not required.

Target Retailer Scope & Modifications Section 3: Statement of Work (Table 1: Target Retailers) &

FAR 52.212-4©

Table 1 explicitly identifies five national department store targets (Macy's, Kohl's, Nordstrom, Dillard's, JCPenney). If BLS requires the addition or substitution of retailer outlets during the base or option periods of performance, will these changes be executed through bilateral modifications under FAR 52.212-4(c) with equitable adjustments to the fixed monthly rate?

The Government requires only the retailers listed in the SOW and only those will be used for the purposes of awarding the contract. Any additions after the contract is awarded will be negotiated later, and yes, with an adjustment to the fixed monthly rate.

Controlling NAICS and Size Standard SF 1449, p. 1; Section K.2, p.

SF 1449 identifies NAICS 541910 with a $22.5 million size standard, while Section K.2 identifies NAICS 518210 and leaves the size standard blank. Please confirm the controlling NAICS code and size standard for offeror representations and small-business eligibility.

The correct NAICS code is 541910.The small business size standard is $22.5 million.

Period of Performance SF 1449/Section B, pp. 2-3;

SOW Section IV, p. 5

SF 1449 and Section B state a base period of September 25, 2026 through September 24, 2027, while SOW Section IV states September 30, 2026 through September 29, 2027. Please confirm the controlling base and option-period dates.

The period of performance has been revised to reflect a 12-month period of 09/25/2026 - 09/24/2027.

CLIN Quantity and Pricing Unit Section B, p. 3 Section B lists annual CLINs without quantities or units. Should offerors enter Quantity 1, Unit LOT, and one firm-fixed annual price for each base and option-period CLIN?

Yes, the Government confirms that quantity can be 1, and the unit price and total can be the expected monthy rate of the three scrapes with all expenses accounted for.

Additional Retailers SOW Section II, p. 4 The SOW states that additional stores may be requested. Please identify the anticipated or maximum number of additional retailers and confirm whether additions would be priced through a separate per-retailer rate or a bilateral modification/equitable adjustment. The Government has no maximum number in mind but would likely require no more than ten retailers in total.

The identified retailers are the minimum ask and only those will serve as the basis upon which the contract will be awarded. Any additional retailers BLS desires will be negotiated after the contract is awarded .

Invoice Frequency Section I.6, pp. 12-13 May the contractor invoice monthly after Government acceptance of that month's three data deliveries, or does the Government require another invoicing schedule? Yes, the contractor can invoice monthly after the last of the three data deliveries each month.

Use of Commercial Data Subcontractor SOW Section II, pp. 4-5;

Section L.7.1, pp. 30-31

May a small-business prime satisfy the requirement using a named first-tier subcontractor's existing commercially available dataset or platform while the prime manages the contract, quality assurance, data dictionary, SFTP delivery, and invoicing? If so, may the technical volume cite the subcontractor's experience and retailer coverage?

Yes, the Government considers any proposal valid that meets the requirements of the SOW, including those that utilize the dataset or platform of a subcontractor.

The subcontractor should be named and its experience/coverage clearly cited in the proposal.

Commercial Data and Intellectual-Property Rights

SOW Section II, p. 5; Section I.14, pp. 21-23

The SOW requires data that are commercially available and not collected exclusively for BLS. Please confirm that the Government requires rights to use the delivered datasets for agency purposes but does not require transfer of the vendor's platform, scraping code, models, tools, or other underlying intellectual property.

The Government confirms that there's no requirement that the vendor transfer their platform, scraping code, models, tools, or other underlying intellectual property.

We only seek the final dataset, which should be something that anyone could scrape themselves or purchase from the vendor, independently of BLS.

SAM.gov Registration N/A Can a vendor submit a quotation directly under RFQ 1605C5-26-Q-00040 without an active SAM registration/UEI at the time of submission?

Yes, an active SAM registration is required at time of quote submission.

Incumbent / Acquisition History N/A Is there any incumbent/recompete or this is a brand-new project? If yes, could you please provide us with their award number or even if the customer bought similar services in the past This is a new procurement. There is no incumbent.

Store-Level Sampling Methodology for Multi- Location Retailers

Section C – Statement of Work, Scope of Work (p.4);

Table 1 – MSA/Market variable (p.4)

Section C indicates the data should be “National” in scope and cover “as many products as possible that are available for sale in the United States,” and each required retailer operates many individual store locations. Product availability can vary store-to-store due to regional assortment or stock-outs. Please clarify the Government’s expected sampling methodology: (a) collect from one or a few representative stores per retailer, (b) collect from one store per state, or (c) collect from all available store locations per retailer? We note that sampling additional stores increases collection cost without a proportional increase in unique product coverage, since SKUs are largely consistent across a retailer’s locations/website.

The Government requires that products are scraped from all available store locations per retailer, though only one record should be provided per unique product.

Scope and Pricing Treatment of Additional Retailers Beyond the Baseline Five

Section B – Cost/Price Schedule, CLINs (p.3);

Section C – SOW, Scope of Work and Table 1 (p.4)

The Statement of Work identifies Macy's, Kohl's, Nordstrom, Dillard's, and JCPenney as the required outlets, and separately notes that “additional stores may be requested beyond” this baseline (“and more as requested”). Section B's CLIN structure is priced by option period, not by retailer. Could the Government please clarify: (1) whether Offerors should build the capability to support additional retailers into the base quoted price, or whether additional retailers would be handled separately through a contract modification or additional CLIN; and (2) if handled separately, whether the Government prefers a single all-inclusive flat rate/subscription fee covering future additions, or a per-retailer rate card submitted with the base quote to be applied via modification as retailers are added?

The Government does not require any additional retailers to be part of vendor proposals. Any changes to the list of retailers will occur after the contract has been awarded and a separate negotiation will take place at that time to modify the specific requests, though what that would look like exactly is beyond the scope of the present time. For now, a best estimate of the price for the retailers specificed in the SOW will suffice.

Offeror Eligibility – Entities Not Registered in the United States

SF 1449, Block 10 – Set- Aside/NAICS (p.1); Section K

– Representations and Certifications (p.24)

This RFQ is a 100% small business set-aside under NAICS 541910. Please confirm whether an entity that is not organized or registered in the United States (and therefore may not meet the SBA “business concern” place-of-business requirement at 13 CFR 121.105) is eligible to submit a quote as the prime Offeror, or whether such an entity may only participate as a subcontractor to an eligible U.S.

small business prime.

Entities must be registered in the United States and certfied under the SBA as a small business.

NAICS Code Discrepancy Between SF 1449 and Section K.2

SF 1449, Block 10 (p.1);

Section K.2 – FAR 52.204-8 (p.24)

The SF 1449 identifies NAICS 541910 (with a $22.5M size standard) for this acquisition, while Section K.2(a)(1) states the NAICS code is 518210, and the size standard at K.2(a)(2) is left blank. Could the Government please confirm which NAICS code and corresponding small business size standard govern size self-certification for this acquisition?

The correct NAICS code is 541910.The small business size standard is $22.5 million.

Estimated Product/SKU Volume Per Collection Cycle

Section C – SOW, Scope of Work (p.4)

For pricing and capacity planning purposes, could the Government provide an estimated or expected number of products/SKUs to be collected across the five specified retailers per collection cycle?

The Government cannot provide an expected number of products to be collected as it tends to be variable each month. Thus, a certain level of estimation is acceptable in making a proposal.

Definition of "All Products" Under the Data Scope Evaluation Sub-Factor

Section M – Evaluation Factors, Factor 1 Sub-factor B: Data Scope (p.32)

The evaluation criteria state that BLS is seeking the largest number of scraped products possible and ideally all products available for purchase online at the specified outlets. Could the Government clarify whether "all products" refers to all products within the categories identified in the Statement of Work (men's, women's, children's/infant's apparel, footwear, jewelry, and watches) that are available for purchase in the U.S. at the time of each collection?

The Government can confirm that we seek to a dataset covering all products in the apparel, footwear, and jewlery categories available on each retailer's website, even those sold-out or currently unavailable for purchase at the time of the scrape.

Period of Performance Date Discrepancy SF 1449 Continuation, Sec. B

– CLINs (p.3) vs. Sec. C – SOW, Part IV (p.5)

The SF 1449 continuation page and Section B state a base period of 09/25/2026 – 09/24/2027, with option periods running 09/25 to 09/24. Section C, Part IV states a base period of 09/30/2026 – 09/29/2027, with option periods running 09/30 to 09/29. Which dates govern, and which should be reflected in the Section B pricing schedule?

The period of performance has been revised to reflect a 12-month period of 09/25/2026 - 09/24/2027.

Page Limit for Volume I – Technical Capability

Section L.5.c (p.29); Section L.7 – Volume Submission (p.30)

Section L.5.c states that pages exceeding the page limitation set forth will not be read or evaluated and will be removed from the response. No page limit is stated for either volume in the Volume Table at Section L.7. Please confirm the page limit applicable to Volume I – Technical Capability (and Volume II, if applicable).

The page limitation for the Technical Volume is 25 pages. The page limitation for the Price Volume is 10 pages.

Delivery Timeframe – Calendar Day vs.

Business Day

Section C – SOW, Scope of Work (p.4) vs. Task List (p.4- 5)

Section C, Part II states that each observation must be provided within one calendar day of the 1st, 10th, and 20th of the month, with complete monthly data due by the first calendar day of the following month. The task list in the same section states that data shall be delivered no later than one business day following the scrape, with all data due by the first business day of the following month. Please confirm which standard (calendar day or business day) applies to both the per-scrape and monthly delivery deadlines.

The Government can confirm that the standard is business days, not calendar days. Business days exclude weekends and holidays.

Offeror Identification – DUNS Number vs.

Unique Entity Identifier (UEI)

Section L.5, item 8 (p.28) Section L.5, item 8 requests a UEI Code, DUNS Number, and Cage Code as part of the required offer content. Given that SAM.gov deprecated the DUNS Number in April 2022 in favor of the Unique Entity Identifier (UEI), please confirm that the UEI alone satisfies this requirement and that a DUNS Number is no longer necessary.

The UEI Code should be provided.

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