20119245 SITA Sole Source Justification Final Approved for FBO.pdf

Sole Source Justification (SSJ)

Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial items for procurements exceeding the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT) pursuant to FAR Subpart 13.5

PR Number: 20119245

Pursuant to the requirements under the authority of the simplified acquisition procedures for commercial items at 41 U.S.C. 1901 and consistent with the content requirements of FAR 6.303- 2.

1. Agency and Contracting Activity.

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Procurement Directorate (PD), proposes to award a sole source contract pursuant to FAR 13.501.

2. Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

CBP contemplates a sole source award to SITA Information Networking Computing USA Inc. (SITA) for services to electronically transmit airline data to

CBP.

The contract will be a Firm Fixed Price contract covering the period of 9/30/2021 to 9/29/2026, which includes a base period of 12 months and four 12-month option periods exercisable at the Government’s discretion.

3. Description of Supplies/Services. Describe the supplies or services to be acquired. Provide the estimated total value (including options, if any).

The CBP Office of Information and Technology (OIT) Enterprise Data Management and Engineering Directorate (EDMED) has a continuing requirement to electronically obtain Passenger Name Records (PNR), air cargo manifests, advance passenger information (API), passenger manifests, and other airline-related data and messaging in support of CBP’s mission, and statutory and regulatory requirements, to screen people and cargo entering and exiting the United States.

The services to be provided under this contract will be in direct support of the following CBP mission critical systems, including but not limited to:

Targeting & Analysis Systems Program Directorate (TASPD) Automated Targeting

System-Passenger (ATS-P) program Passenger Systems Program Directorate (PSPD) Advance Passenger Information System

(APIS) Pre-Departure and Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) Transportation Security Agency (TSA) Secure Flight Cargo Systems Program Directorate (CSPD) Automated Manifest System (AMS)

The total estimated value of this contract is .

Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial items for procurements exceeding the Simplified Acquisition

4. Identification of the authority. This action is being taken under the authority of the Simplified Acquisition Procedures, 41 U.S.C. 1901.

5. Demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited.

CBP has approved and provides four secure network options to support the establishment of network connectivity between the carrier industry partners and DHS: (1) CBP Multi-protocol Label Switching (MPLS) Network; (2) ARINC; (3) SITA; and (4) Internet Virtual Private Network (VPN).

A large number of air carriers currently interface with DHS to provide the required information and many of these DHS carrier partners have commercial agreements with SITA to utilize SITA’s network to provide information to DHS. SITA’s services include an extensive multi-national carrier industry network and communications solutions which enable both our carrier industry partners and DHS to securely transmit data and support DHS’s anti-terrorism mission as required.

SITA’s network serves a large community of air carriers. SITA offers services to the industry ensuring that CBP is capable of receiving APIS messages from its contracted carriers. In addition, its system has the ability to translate air carrier data into the proper format for CBP use. The SITA system uses proprietary technology which provides 100% interoperability and compatibility between air carriers and CBP.

Air carriers have commercial agreements with SITA to securely transmit passenger and cargo information and provide DHS with two-way communication, as required, via SITA’s approved interface and the usage of SITA’s proprietary software (Runway). Failure to continue the current SITA support services would disavow those carriers currently serviced by SITA preventing them from being able to comply with US government mandates.

Hence, this would interrupt services and cause hardship to those carriers by forcing them to seek alternative solutions to provide the required information to the United States. This would either impact both domestic and international supply chains of air travel and air cargo transportation services or it would impact the ability of DHS, CBP and TSA to perform their missions and would impact national security.

There are no other firms that have the same airline relationships that SITA has, and therefore other firms cannot offer the required passenger/cargo information that SITA provides.

Based on the above, CBP must subscribe to SITA (and separately to ARINC) to have access to the entire commercial air carrier community that is required to support our anti-terrorism mission.

Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial items for procurements exceeding the Simplified Acquisition

6. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable.

A notice of a Request for Information (RFI) for CBP’s continuing requirement for electronic transmission of airline passenger and cargo data was released on beta.SAM.gov on April 5, 2021. Results are provided in Section 8.

A notice of this requirement will be publicized in accordance with FAR 5.2, and CBP intends to make this justification publicly available pursuant to FAR 6.305 on beta.SAM.gov.

7. Determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

The contracting officer will use a comparison of proposed prices to the pricing on the existing contract HSBP1016C00089, which is for similar services, to determine whether the proposed prices are fair and reasonable.

8. Description of market research. (Market Research is required by FAR Part 10 and HSAM 3010, and the DHS Market Research Guide. Describe the results of your market research or provide a statement of the reason why market research was not conducted).

Research findings concluded that there aren’t available sources in the commercial marketplace that can provide the full support services required for this procurement action as OIT/EDME currently has with the incumbent, SITA. Market research focused on an Internet Search, and a Government-wide search to include: Acquisition Gateway; GSA Advantage; Government-wide Acquisition contracts (GWACs); Government-wide Strategic Sourcing Vehicles and independent contractor websites. Additionally, an RFI was released April 5, 2021 and responses were received from two (2) vendors before the close of the RFI date of April 19, 2021. After reviewing both vendors’ RFI responses, it was determined that neither vendor could satisfy the full requirements of this request.

Additionally, market research determined that carriers have been using SITA for over a dozen years as their Value-Added-Network services provider and CBP then maintains the relationship and connection with SITA for the transmission of critical data necessary to facilitate passenger and commercial airline flights. The services provided by SITA meet the stringent security standards which are dictated by and have been approved by CBP.

9. Any other facts supporting the justification.

Breaking the connection with SITA would cause numerous issues for a large number of carriers who use or may use SITA as a failsafe or COOP option.

This procurement will allow DHS to continue to provide uninterrupted services to the carriers in compliance with governmental mandates/regulations.

Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial items for procurements exceeding the Simplified Acquisition

Threshold (SAT) pursuant to FAR Subpart 13.5

10. A listing of the sources, if any that expressed, in writing, an interest in the acquisition.

Sources that expressed an interest in the acquisition in writing are following:

During the market research process, AltexSoft and SourceAmerica/AbilityOne expressed interest in this acquisition; however, during communications with SourceAmerica they advised that they were unable to consider this requirement for their program.

RFI responses were received from Accenture Federal Services (AFS) LLC and Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) Travel Intelligence Program. In the future, these vendors may be able to be developed to provide at least a subset of the services that SITA currently provides; however, at this time they cannot satisfy the full requirements of this request.

11. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before any subsequent acquisition for supplies or services required. (Include a statement of actions taken or will be taken to increase competition for future acquisitions of the same item/service).

CBP has and intends to continue to take steps to locate other sources for future procurements of this type. EDMED will ensure that continuous market research is performed in the future to help identify if there are sources capable of transmitting airline PNR data using a method other than the four methods that are currently approved. This would require certification and approval of a new communication method with established connectivity with air carriers to provide PNR suitable to DHS, CBP and TSA.

12. DHS intends to post the requirement pursuant to FAR 13.501(a)(1)(iii) and 6.305(a).

13. Technical/Requirements Personnel Certification. I certify this requirement meets the Government’s minimum need and that the supporting data, which forms a basis for this justification, is complete and accurate.

Technical Representative/COR Date

14. Contracting Officer Certification

Contracting Officer Date

5/25/2021

Simplified Procedures for Certain Commercial items for procurements exceeding the Simplified Acquisition

15. Approval:

Procuring Activity Advocate for Competition Date $700K to not exceeding $13.5 mil