Answers to Phase II Questions - IT Operational Suport Services IDIQ.xlsx
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- IT Operational Support Services IDIQ
- Solicitation number
- 2026-CIO-0044
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Library of Congress
About this file
This file is a Q&A document containing answers to Phase II questions and clarifications for the Library of Congress IT Operational Support Services IDIQ solicitation (030ADV26R0008). The document addresses 94 numbered questions from offerors seeking clarification on submission requirements, evaluation criteria, scope of work, staffing, pricing, and technical approach across multiple proposal volumes and amendments.
Key clarifications include: offerors must respond sequentially starting with Section C.3.1 (not 3.2 as stated in some amendments, which contained clerical errors); Phase I advisory recommendation letters were issued by March 9, 2026, with Phase II submissions due March 5, 2026 (later updated in Amendment 0005); organizational charts must include named key personnel and program management at the IDIQ level but not for individual task orders; resumes are not required, only qualifications descriptions; acronym lists are permitted and excluded from page limits; ground rules and assumptions must be submitted with Phase II proposals and reference specific solicitation terms; fully loaded labor rates must be provided for all listed labor categories with annual escalation across ordering periods; travel expenses must be included in the firm fixed price with no separate reimbursement; SCLS wage determination compliance applies only to specific task orders invoking the clause; and the contractor must provide a detailed labor mix matching exactly between Volume V and Attachment J5. Clarifications also address scope boundaries (Service Desk support is included but Help Desk support is not), government-furnished equipment and tools (Library-approved software and network monitoring access will be provided), transition activities (to be priced separately with incumbent participation in knowledge transfer), and historical workload data (incident volumes should be used as estimates only, with anticipated lifecycle replacements and WAP upgrades but no major planned increases).
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Questions
| Phase II Questions and Clarifications for Solicitation 030ADV26R0008 - IT Operational Support Services IDIQ | |||||
| Question # | Page # | Section Number | Reference Text | Questions or Other Observations | Library of Congress Response |
| 1 | 63 | L.2 E.1 | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of the initial order. | Please confirm that the Government would NOT like us to respond to section 3.1 - Data Network and Cabling Support from SN Ticket in our submitted Factor V responses. | Please see Amendment 0004, Section L.E.1. |
| 2 | 4 | L.2.4.1 | For Phase One, offerors shall submit their response to Factor 1 – Corporate Experience. After the Government |
completes evaluation of Phase 1, offerors will receive an advisory recommendation to proceed or not to proceed with Phase Two in which offerors submit Factors 2 - 6 in accordance with the instructions listed in Section L.2.6 below.
Offerors who are found to not be the most highly rated in Factor 1 will be advised that they are unlikely to be viable competitors, along with the general basis for the Library’s advisory recommendation. The intent of this advise is to minimize development costs for those offerors with little to no chance of receiving an award. However, notwithstanding the advice provided by the Government in response to their Phase 1 submissions, all respondents may participate in
| Step 2. | We recently noted the release of Amendment [030ADV26R0008 0003.pdf]. Given this update, we would like to confirm if we are eligible to proceed with the Phase 2 requirements as outlined in the revised documentation. If our Phase 1 evaluation is still in progress as we haven't received any update or notification from the govt yet, could you please provide an estimated timeline for when we might receive the results? | All advisory recommendation letters have been issued as of 03/09/2026. | ||||
| 3 | 62 | Section L.2.6-B.1 | In addition, Offerors shall provide an organizational chart which describes how the offeror will provide staff and manage the IDIQ contract. The organizational structure must include key personnel and program management (including names and titles), subcontractors (including business names and roles), and outline major responsibilities for personnel and subcontractors that will be provided for this contract. | In the Phase I Q&A, #41 states that offerors are not expected to provide the name of the Program Manager for the IDIQ. However, in #90, the Government notes “only for the IDIQ” in response to whether names should be included only for the IDIQ Key Personnel and program management, or if offerors shall also identify potential task order program managers by name. Please confirm whether the IDIQ Program Manager should be named in offeror's submissions. | To clarify Q&A #41 and #90, offerors are not required to provide the names of their key personnel in their organizational chart for the orders, but must provide the names of their key personnel, program management and subcontractors for the overall IDIQ. Please see Amendment 0005. | |
| 4 | NA | NA | NA | May offerors include an acronym list for ease of reference, and if so, please confirm whether the acronym list is excluded from the applicable page limits. | Yes, and it is excluded from the page limit. Please see Amendment 0005. | |
| 5 | 63; 6 | Section L.2.6 (Volume V); Attachment J4, Section 5.3 | "Offerors shall submit a narrative that describes their approach... Additionally, offerors shall provide a detailed description of the proposed labor mix..."; "The following position is considered key personnel... Network Administrator" | |||
| The instructions for Volume V request a narrative and labor mix but do not explicitly list resumes as a required attachment. Can the Government confirm whether a full resume is required for the proposed Network Administrator (Key Personnel), or if a detailed description of their qualifications within the Technical Approach narrative is sufficient for Phase Two submission? | Resumes and descriptions of key personnel qualifications are not required. | |||||
| 6 | N/A | Q&A #554; Attachment J1 | "Attachment J1 has been updated to reflect the following possible SCLS covered labor categories: Technical Writer Level I, Technical Writer Level II and Switchboard Opperator." | The Government identified Technical Writer I/II and Switchboard Operator as potentially subject to SCLS. To ensure all offerors utilize the same baseline for pricing compliance, will the Government provide the specific Wage Determination (WD) Number and Revision Number applicable to the Washington, DC metropolitan area for this contract? | Please refer to the answer to question number 98 of the original Q&A. The Library expects most of the work to be performed in the DC Metropolitan area, and would most likely utilize SCA WD # 2015-4281 with the current revision. | |
| 7 | 7; N/A | Attachment J4, Section 5.4; Q&A #553 | "Travel expenses will not be reimbursed separately."; "Travel to remote offices is expected on rare occasions." | Travel expenses are not reimbursed separately and must be included in the Firm Fixed Price. The Q&A indicates historical travel to remote locations (e.g., Wise, VA; Culpeper, VA) occurred "two times or less per year." If mission needs require travel significantly exceeding this historical baseline (e.g., for emergency physical maintenance at DC4), will the Government consider an equitable adjustment or modification to the Task Order price? | No, please refer to the answer to question number 87 and 342 of the original Q&A. | |
| 8 | N/A | Q&A #98; Q&A #554 | "The Library expects that all or nearly all of the work performed under this IDIQ contract will be exempt from the SCLS." | |||
| Clarify if the fully loaded hourly rates provided in Attachment J1 for Technical Writer I, Technical Writer II, and Switchboard Operator should currently reflect SCLS minimums + H&W, or if SCLS pricing compliance is only required when responding to specific Task Orders that invoke the SCLS clause? | Please refer to the answer to question number 6. The SCLS pricing compliance for those specific labor categories is only required when responding to specific task orders that invoke the SCLS clause. | |||||
| 9 | 4 | Amendment 3 | The tentative date for Phase II submissions is 12:00 PM ET, March 5, | |||
| 2026, and will be confirmed in the advisory recommendation letter and in a posting on SAM.gov | Can the government provide an estimated date for release of the advisory recommendation letters? Is the government's recommendation that all potential offerors proceed with proposal development pending receipt of an advisory recommendation letter? | Please refer to the answer to question number 2. | ||||
| 10 | 6 | Amendment 3, Volume III, C.1 | Offerors shall send the Past Performance Questionnaire identified in Section J (Attachment J2) to their commercial |
and/or federal clients. These can be the same clients provided in the Corporate Experience Section. Offerors shall ensure that the Government receives at least three (3) completed questionnaires. At least one questionnaire must be for the
| prime contractor. | If we did not present projects from subcontractors in our original submittal of Volume I. Technical Proposal - Corporate Experience, are we permitted to present information from subcontractors as part of our submittal for Volume III, Past Performance? | No. When subcontracting arrangements were proposed for this requirement, an additional two corporate experience projects for each subcontractor were required to be submitted in Phase 1. If you did not submit projects for proposed subcontractors, you are not permitted to submit information for those subcontractors as part of your submittal for Volume III, Past Performance. | ||||
| 11 | 6 | Amendment 3, Volume IV, D1 | Offerors that require the full street address for the DC2, DC3, and DC4 Library Data Centers shall complete Attachment J4 – Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). Offers shall provide a completed and signed NDA form to the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist via email at tluc@loc.gov and sboone@loc.gov | If we do not require the full street addresses for the DC2, DC3, and DC4 Library Data Centers, are we required to submit a completed and signed non-disclosure agreement (NDA)? If we are to submit the completed NDA, should we submit it with out final proposal, or sooner? | No, you are not required to submit a completed NDA, however, if you do need the full addresses for those locations, you must submit a completed NDA prior to submitting Phase II. We recommend it is completed if you are recommended to proceed to Phase II. | |
| 12 | 2 |
and, 8 Section C.1 of Attachment J4 and, Section C.5.3 of Attachment J4 "The Data Network Engineers will support..."
and,
| "Role: Network Administrator" | The SOW references Data Network Engineers and provides a position description for Network Administrator. These two roles typically differ in skill sets and responsibilities. Does the Government anticipate that it requires Data Network Engineers in addition to Network Administrators to perform the Task Order? | No, the Library only requires Data Network Engineers for this task. Please refer to the answer to question #74 in the original Q&A and Amendment 0005 to Attachment J4. | ||||
| 13 | 4 | Section C.3.2 of Attachment J4 | "Perform monitoring, troubleshooting, and maintenance telecommunication circuits including DWDM/WAN optical circuits." | To better understand the scope of this requirement, can the Government clarify if this work is intended to be performed by Network Administrator‑level personnel or is engineer‑level expertise required? | The work is to be performed by a Data Network Engineer. Please see Amendment 0005 to Attachment J4. | |
| 14 | 4 | Section C.3.2 of Attachment J4 | "Perform monitoring, troubleshooting, and maintenance telecommunication circuits including DWDM/WAN optical circuits." | To better understand the scope of this requirement, can the Government please provide more detail to clarify what is included within this scope? | For example, the contractor personnel will have to log on to the computer, connect to the routers and switches and check the interfaces and be able to work with ISP vendors and capture traffic and analyze throughput. | |
| 15 | 4 |
and, Q&A Section C.3.2 of Attachment J4 and
| Q&A #235 | "Perform monitoring, troubleshooting, and maintenance telecommunication circuits including DWDM/WAN optical circuits." | The Q&A (# 235) confirms that "no ODCs for equipment, materials, or software are anticipated or allowed for the Initial Task Order unless expressly authorized in a future modification." Can the Government clarify whether it will provide the equipment and materials necessary to "perform monitoring, troubleshooting, and maintenance telecommunication circuits"? | Confirmed. | |||
| 16 | 4 | Section C.3.2 of Attachment J4 | "Perform monitoring, troubleshooting, and maintenance telecommunication circuits including DWDM/WAN optical circuits." | Our understanding is that this work is currently being performed outside of incumbent scope for data network support. Will the work be fully transitioned to this Initial Task Order? | The work that is identified in the initial task order is within scope of the IDIQ, and the work to be performed in the initial task order will transition from the incumbent contractor. | |
| 17 | Q&A | Q&A #74 | "...historically the Library has had two contractor personnel working the requirements of the initial task order in a staggard shift." | The Q&A provides that the Library has had two contractor personnel. Does the Government anticipate the same level of effort is required for the new Task Order? | It is the contractor's responsibility to determine the level of effort needed to perform the services outlined in the initial task order. For reference, the Government has provided you with its historical level of effort. | |
| 18 | 5 | Amend 0003, Section L, B.1. Factor 2 – Technical Approach (IDIQ) | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation. | Can the Government Please clarify that for the Technial Approach (IDIQ), Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C starting with 3.1 (Principal Task Areas). | Yes, please see Amendment 0004, Section L.B.1. | |
| 19 | 7 | Amend 0003, Section L, Initial Order - Factor 5 | ||||
| E.1. | Technical Approach | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of the initial order. | Can the Government confirm that within Volume 5 offerors should not respond to paragrah 3.1 (Data Network and Cabling Support from SN ticket – estimated 60%) within the J4 attachment. | Please see the response to Question #1. | ||
| 20 | 5 | B.1. Factor 2 – Technical Approach (IDIQ) | Amend 0003 states "Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side | |||
| consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation." | Section C of the IDIQ does not include 3.2; can the Government please confirm that the IDIQ response should start with 3.1? | Yes, please see the response to Question #18. | ||||
| 21 | 6 | B.1. Factor 2 – Technical Approach (IDIQ) | Aemnd 003 states, "Additionally, Offerors shall submit a narrative describing their plans for recruiting (including providing an estimate turnaround time for providing a replacement staff member if the primary is unable to perform their duties) | Is there a required maximum staff replacement timeframe expectation (e.g., 30 days)? | Yes, please see H.8 of the solicitation. | |
| 22 | 7 | E.1 Volume V. Technical Proposal – Technical Approach (Initial Order) | Amend 0003 states "Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side | |||
| consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation." | Can the Government please confirm that the Initial Order response should start with C.3? | Yes, please see the response to Question #1. | ||||
| 23 | 5 | L.2.6 | L.2.6, Volume II. Technical Proposal – Technical Approach (IDIQ), B.1. Factor 2 – Technical Approach (IDIQ) | The original RFP instructions stated: |
"Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.1, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation."
However, Amendment 0002 & 0003 revised this language to:
"Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation."
Upon review, it appears there is no Section 3.2 in Section C of the RFP, and the Principal Task Areas are contained within Section 3.1, as reflected in the original instructions.
Request for Clarification:
| Will the Government please confirm that the original instruction—to respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.1 (Principal Task Areas)—is correct, and that the reference to Section 3.2 in Amendment 0002 is a clerical error? | Yes, please see the response to Question #18. | |||
| 24 | 7 | L.2.6 | L.2.6, Volume II. Technical Proposal – Technical Approach (IDIQ), Initial Order - Factor 5 |
030ADV26R0008 0002 Section L E.1. Technical Approach. The original RFP instructions stated:
"Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3., to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of the initial order."
However, Amendment 0002 & 003 revised this language to:
"Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of the initial order.n."
Upon review, it appears Section 3.2 in Section C of Attachment J4 - 0002 - Initial Task Order - Data Network Support is onlyy one of the four "Requirements" of the SOW.
Request for Clarification:
| Will the Government please confirm that the original instruction—to respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C3 - C5, starting with 3.1 —is correct, and that the reference to Section 3.2 in Amendment 0002& 0003 is a clerical error? | Yes, please see the response to Question #1. | |||
| 25 | p. 4 | |||
| 03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026 | L.2.5 | The tentative date for Phase II submissions is 12:00 PM ET, March 5, | ||
| 2026, and will be confirmed in the advisory recommendation letter and in a posting on SAM.gov. | In light of when the Phase I down-select decisions may be communicated and when responses to the offerors new questions may be provided, would the Library consider granting at least a two-week extension to the Phase II proposal deadline for selected offerors to ensure sufficient time for a complete and responsive submission? | Please see Amendment 0005 to the solicitation for the updated Phase II submission date. | ||
| 26 | p. 5 | |||
| 03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026 | L.2.6.B.1 | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation | The only Section C appears to be in the original 03ADV26R0008.PDF dated 12-8-2025. A section C.3.2 is not apparent in that file. The requirements appear to be all contained in Section 3.1. Please clarify the instructions to offerors. | Yes, please see the response to Question #18. |
| 27 | pp. 5-6 | |||
| 03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026 | L.2.6.B.1 | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation | In the Q&A issued as part of Amendment 2, the Library's response to question 85 states that "Offerors must also address Section 4 and 5." However, this clarification was not added to the Section L instructions in subsequent amendments. Please clarify the instructions to offerors. | The instructions state that the contractor must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.1 which means everything after 3.1 needs to be included (including sections 4 and 5). |
| 28 | p. 7 |
03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026
| L.2.6.E.1 | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of the initial order." | In the Q&A issued as part of Amendment 2, the Library's response to question 84 states that "This should say starting with C.2. This has been updated via Amendment 0002." However, requirements appear to actually start in Section C.3 and specifically section C.3.1. Please clarify the instructions to offerors. | Yes, offerors must respond sequentially starting with C.3.1. Please see the response to Question #1. | |
| 29 | p. 9 | |||
| (03ADV26R0008.PDF dated 12-8-2025) | C.3.1.9 | Operational Support including: |
- Service Desk support, system and configuration management, technical writing and documentation, telecommunication maintenance (data, voice, images, including wireless), network and security operations, backup and recovery management, multimedia production services, and digital content services.
| In the Q&A issued as part of Amendment 2, the Library's response to question 219 ("Does this IDIQ include Service Desk support services?") states that "This requirement does not require Service Desk Support." Please clarify whether that applies to just requirement 3.1.2 as referenced in the question, or to the whole IDIQ, and if the latter, please clarify the scope of the Service Desk support referenced under requirement 3.1.9. | The response to the original Q&A was incorrect. This IDIQ involves some Service Desk related support services (see C.3.1.9), but does not involve Help Desk support services that are currently being acquired via the Help Desk Support solicitation. The Service Desk support services outlined in this IDIQ is primarily to support the Help Desk support contract. The Service Desk services will be used to complete the service related tickets submitted by the Help Desk staff if needed. |
| 30 | p. 7 |
03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026 Phase II – Volume VI – Factor 6: Price Proposal (Order Only Attachment J5) (L.2.6 F.1, L.2.6 D.1 & J5) Note: Offerors must include any ground rules and/or assumptions in their proposal. Ground rules and/or assumptions must indicate a clear reference to the solicitation term(s) or condition(s) that is (are) excepted or modified.
Any ground rules and/or assumptions inconsistent with the solicitation terms will render the offerors proposal unacceptable.
Ground rules and/or assumptions are not accepted by the Library unless approved by the Contracting Officer in writing. Silence by the Contracting Officer does not provide acceptance.
What is the Library's definition of ground rules? Please provide an example of this.
| Are we to first submit ground rules and/or assumptions, in advance, to the Library Contract Officer before March 5, 2026 deadline and expect to hear back from the Library CO, if they are acceptable or not, so we can include/exclude them in/from our March 5 response? | Ground rules are guidelines that need to take place in order to perform the work. Offerors must submit any ground rules and/or assumptions with their Phase II proposals. | |
| 31 | p. 7 |
03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026 Phase II – Volume VI – Factor 6: Price Proposal (Order Only Attachment J5) (L.2.6 F.1, L.2.6 D.1 & J5) Note: Offerors must include any ground rules and/or assumptions in their proposal. Ground rules and/or assumptions must indicate a clear reference to the solicitation term(s) or condition(s) that is (are) excepted or modified.
Any ground rules and/or assumptions inconsistent with the solicitation terms will render the offerors proposal unacceptable.
| Ground rules and/or assumptions are not accepted by the Library unless approved by the Contracting Officer in writing. Silence by the Contracting Officer does not provide acceptance. | If we have any ground rules or assumptions to propose, do we place them in a separate Word document for Volume V Technical Proposal - Factor 5 Technical Approach, Volume VI - Factor 6: Initial Order, or in Volume IV Factor 4: Price, or somewhere in J5? | The ground rules and assumptions shall be provided in the pricing sections as outlined in the solicitation. This can be submitted as a PDF or as an additional tab to Attachment J1 and Attachment J5. | ||||
| 32 | General | N/A | N/A | What information does the Library require we include in the cover letters and on cover pages? | Cover letters and cover pages are not required. Please refer to L.2.6. | |
| 33 | General | N/A | N/A | May we include a cover page and table of contents for Volume IV? | Yes, however it is not needed. Offerors can complete tab 1 of Attachment J1 and J5. | |
| 34 | General | N/A | N/A | Would the Library allow offerors to add an acronym list in Volumes II, IV, and V with no page count impact? | Yes, please see the response to Question #4. | |
| 35 | Section 2, 6 | |||||
| Scope of Work | All materials, supplies, and network equipment will be government furnished | It seems there is a conflict between what is on page 2 and page 6 regarding Government-Furnished equipment required to perform services. Please identify which clause is authoritative and whether the contractor is expected to provide operational support equipment necessary to perform network installation and maintenance activities. |
| Please provide a definitive list of Government-Furnished equipment required to perform services. | Please see updates to 5.2 of the initial task order via Amendment 0005 of Attachment J4. | |||||
| 36 | Section 2, 6 | Government-Furnished Property | The Government will provide only… workstation, telephone, desk, and general office supplies | Please reconcile the preceding Page 2 and the referenced Page 6 "all" statements and identify the authoritative equipment responsibility. | Please see response to question above. | |
| 37 | pp. 4–5 | SLA Response Times | P1 response 15 minutes / resolution 4 hours and defined business hours 6:30am–6:00pm | Are SLA response/resolution targets measured during business hours only or continuously (24x7)? Please confirm that SLAs are measured only during business hours. | Business hours | |
| 38 | p. 5 | |||||
| 03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026 | Emergency Response | Arrive within four (4) hours of notification for emergency service calls. | Define what constitutes an emergency service call, what notification starts the clock, and whether this applies after hours and holidays. | Please see the response to question #75 and 334 in the original Q&A. | ||
| 39 | 030ADV26R0008.pdf | |||||
| p. 7 | 2. SCOPE | What are the specific IT systems and applications to be supported, their ownership/sponsorship within LOC's organizations, their technology makeup, such as from the sample products depicted in the final tab of Attachment J1 - 0002 - IT Operational IDIQ Labor Categories and Pricing.xlsx? | The IT systems and applications are provided in the final tab of Attachment J1. | |||
| 40 | 030ADV26R0008.pdf | |||||
| p. 7 | 2. SCOPE | What is the breakdown of the historical service cases for the specific IT systems and applications to be supported, including criticality, business impact, nature of service case, average time to resolution, resolution, and POAMs? | The breakdown of historical service cases will be provided in the individual task orders. | |||
| 41 | 030ADV26R0008.pdf | |||||
| p. 7 | 2. SCOPE | What are the applicable SLAs for the specific IT systems and applications to be supported, and the historical achievement of those SLAs over the elapsed lives of the IT systems and applications? | The applicable SLAs will be provided in the individual task orders. | |||
| 42 | 030ADV26R0008.pdf | |||||
| p. 7 | 2. SCOPE | What is the makeup or architectural and deployment composition of the on the premises LAN, WAN, and infrastructure? | If required, this information would be provided in the individual task orders. | |||
| 43 | 030ADV26R0008.pdf | |||||
| p. 7 | 2. SCOPE | What is the makeup or architectural and deployment composition of the (virtual) network and infrastructure configuration of applicable cloud enclaves and how do they integrate with their on the premises counterparts? | If required, this information would be provided in the individual task orders. | |||
| 44 | p. 7 |
03ADV26R0008 0003.PDF dated 01-28-2026
| Travel | Travel… may be required… travel expenses will not be reimbursed separately | What is the full set LOC facilities, and the street addresses, at which services may be required under this IDIQ? | Please see page 2 of Attachment J4 for the list of potential addresses where services may be required under this IDIQ. |
| 45 | 2 | Attachment 4 | Attachment J4 – Initial Task Order – Data Network Support |
– Historical volume tables for P2/P3/P4 incidents and task counts
| – Line stating volumes “should be used as an estimate only” | Are the historical incident and task volumes in Attachment J4 considered representative of expected workload for the base year of the Initial Order? | Yes, based on our historical records. | ||
| 46 | 2 | Attachment 4 | Attachment J4 |
– Task category volumes (Connection & Cabling = 118; Office Moves = 246)
| – No statement about future plans or fluctuations | Does the Library anticipate any planned changes or upcoming initiatives that would materially increase or decrease Connection and Cabling tasks, Office Moves, or incident volumes during the period of performance? | No, the Library currently does not have any planned changes or upcoming initiatives, however, there are anticipated annual lifecycle replacements and WAP upgrades. Please see the response to Question #73 in the initial Q&A. | ||
| 47 | 3 | Attachment 4 | Attachment J4 Sections 3.1 and 3.3 |
– Explicit tool usage requirements
| – No explicit statement that contractors receive full access | Can the Library confirm that contractor personnel will be granted full operational access to ServiceNow, DNA Center, Cisco Prime, and any other required monitoring or diagnostic tools needed to perform the tasks described in J4? | Access to required Library of Congress approved software needed to perform the services outlined in the order will be provided. Please see the response to Question #21, 53 and #375 in the initial Q&A. | ||
| 48 | 4 | Attachment 4 | Attachment J4 Section 3.3 | |
| – “Some OCIO services are contractor run, others government run.” | For areas where responsibilities are shared between government and contractor personnel, will the Library provide documentation during transition-in that clearly defines operational boundaries and escalation paths for those shared services? | Yes. | ||
| 49 | 4 | Attachment 4 | Attachment J4 Section 3.4 – Transition Services |
– Requires access to SOPs, circuit lists, “location of technical and project documentation”, and “status of ongoing technical initiatives”
| – These items come only from the incumbent or internal OCIO staff | Will the incumbent contractor participate in knowledge‑transfer activities required for the transition‑in items listed in Section 3.4 (records, circuit information, documentation locations, and status of in-progress initiatives)? | Yes | ||||
| 50 | 6 | Amend 2, Volume II. Technical Proposal, B.1. Factor 2 – Technical Approach (IDIQ) | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation. | The instructions state “Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2”. However, the IDIQ PWS includes Section 3.1 and does not contain a Section 3.2. Please confirm whether this is a typographical error. | Yes, please see the response to Question #18. | |
| 51 | 21 | H.7 LC52.209-1 Conflicts of Interest (OCT 2013) | The Contractor must identify to the contracting officer any conflicts of interest, actual or potential, that may reasonably be expected to arise in performance of this contract. The contractor must provide a detailed written description of the conflict of interest and a plan explaining any and all steps the Contractor will undertake to avoid or mitigate the conflict. Failure to disclose actual or potential conflicts of interest may subject the Contractor to corrective action including but not limited to termination of this contract, debarment of the contractor, and/or other appropriate civil or criminal actions. | Please advise which proposal volume should include the statement confirming that the contractor has no actual or potential conflicts of interest. | If no conflict of interest applies, offerors need not to include a statement within their proposal. | |
| 52 | 6 | L.2.6 B.1 | From Amendment 0002: Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of this solicitation. | Please clarify which section to begin with, as there is no Section 3.2 in Section C. | Yes, please see the response to Question #18. | |
| 53 | 8 | L.2.6 E.1 | From Amendment 0002: Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2, to permit side-by-side consideration of the proposed technical approach with the requirements of the initial order. | Please clarify whether this is the correct section to begin with in Section C. In Attachment J4, there is a "C.1 Data Network and Cabling Support from SN ticket – estimated 60%" that seems critical to include in our technical approach | Yes, please see the response to Question #1. | |
| 54 | RFP page 9 | |||||
| J.4 page 4 | J.4 Section 3.1 | |||||
| RFP Section C.3.1 | Section 3.1.2 lists M365, Zoom, Teams as tools being used in the Library environment; Section C.3.1.3 lists Confluence, Jira, Service Now, M365; and Section C.3.1.4 lists Cacti, New Relic, Elastic, Grafana, NetCool. Att J.4 Section 3.1 states "Use Cisco Prime Monitor and DNA Center to daily check for alert messages..." | Can the government clarify if the awardee for the network support TO will have access rights to any tools other than Cisco Prime or Cisco DNAC (e.g., Grafana, Cacti, New Relic, Splunk, Jira, Confluence, Netcool, etc.) for monitoring network performance on the TO issued with the IDIQ solicitation? | Please see the response to Question #47. | |||
| 55 | J.4 page 4 | J.4 Section 3.1 | Att J.4 Section 3.1 states "Use Cisco Prime Monitor and DNA Center to daily check for alert messages...Use ServiceNow Queue, daily monitor Catalog Tasks to be completed and continue to monitor system health and availability." | Has Cisco Prime and DNAC been set up so that monitoring alerts created by the Cisco consoles automatically create a ticket within ServiceNow? If they have not, is the Library opposed to doing so in order to help automate the incident identification and response process? | Yes | |
| 56 | 4 | J.4 Section3.1 | Section 3.1 Bullet 3: "Monitor environmental factors of data centers and network closets." | Is the government using any data center monitoring tools to monitor environmental factors of data centers and network closets? | Yes | |
| 57 | 4 | J.4 Section 3.2 | Section 3.2 Bullet 6: "Enable/Disable end user data monuments,..." | Can the government confirm that in this context a "data monument" is the housing (similar to a junction box) that holds the network and/or power jacks/outlets as well as the respective wires behind it? If so, is the government stating in bullet 6 that the network team connects and disconnects the connectivity to the box itself? Or is the government's intent that the connectivity to the network drops within a data monument is what is being enabled and disabled in the referenced text? | Confirmed | |
| 58 | J.4 pg 2 | J.4 Section C | SECTION C – STATEMENT OF WORK | For the purposes of our staffing plan, is the scope of work for this new contract expected to be the same or similar to its current contract? | Yes, the scope is expected to be similar to the current order. Please see the response to Question #17. | |
| 59 | NA | Phase 1 Q/A | Question 164 from the Phase 1 questions and answers asked this: "Will corporate past performance from related companies (JV, MP, subsidiaries) be accepted with proper documentation?" and the Library's answer was "Yes." | Can the Library please indicate what is considered "proper documentation"? | Proper documentation is a completed Past Performance Questionnaire which demonstrates that the related companies (JV, MP, subsidiaries) have worked together and/or shows the relationship between the companies. | |
| 60 | NA | Phase 1 Q/A | Question 203 from the Phase 1 questions and answers asked this: "Will there be incumbent contractors transitioning off work covered by this IDIQ?" The Library's response was "Yes." | Can the Library indicate whether here will be any overlap between incumbent contractors and the new contractors? | Yes. There will be a transition between contractors. | |
| 61 | NA | Attachment J1 - IDIQ Labor Categories and Rates | *These positions have been identified as possible SCLS covered labor categories. Any SCLS covered work will be identified at the task order level. | We show the System Operator Labor Category is also an SCLS covered labor category of "14041 - Computer Operator I". Will the Library please update the spreadsheet to include this as a "possible SCLS covered labor categories"? | No, the Computer Operator I labor category is different than the Library's System Operator labor category. The System Operator focuses on managing and maintaining systems while the Computer Operator focuses on running and monitoring computer operations. | |
| 62 | 1 | J4 Section B, "Contractor Travel" | Contractor personnel will be required to travel to the Library of Congress locations below during the performance of the contract to attend meetings, conferences, and training, and to address outages and maintenance of networking infrastructure equipment | Will the government provide a plug number for anticipated travel and add it to Attachment J5? | No, please refer to the answer to question number 87 and 235 of the original Q&A. | |
| 63 | NA | Attachment J5 | NA | Will the Library allow Offers to add rows and add a tab for assumptions? | Yes, please see the answer to question #30. | |
| 64 | 4 | L.2.4.1 | Overview of Down-Select Phases | If an offeror does not receive a Phase I advisory notification prior to the Phase II submission deadline, should the offeror proceed with submitting Phase II volumes by the tentative submission date or wait for the advisory recommendation letter? | Yes, please see the answer to question #2. | |
| 65 | 3 | L.2.4.1 | Overview of Down-Select Phases | Will Phase I advisory notifications be released to all offerors simultaneously, or will they be issued on a rolling basis? | Yes, please see the answer to question #2. | |
| 66 | 4 | L.2.6 | Can the Government provide the current staffing level (FTE count by labor category) supporting the existing contract? | Yes, please see the answer to question #17. | ||
| 67 | 4 | L.2.6 | What percentage of the work is expected to be performed on-site versus remote? | Yes, please see the response to question #87 of the original Q&A. | ||
| 68 | 4 | L.2.4.1 | Advisory Down-Select Process | Will the advisory notification include qualitative strengths/weaknesses feedback, or only a recommendation to proceed/not proceed? | No, the advisory recommendation letter will only include a rating and a recommendation to proceed or not proceed. | |
| 69 | 3 | L.2.5 | Phase II Submission Date | Will the final Phase II due date be the same for all offerors, or could it vary based on when advisory notifications are issued? | Yes, the final Phase II due date will be the same for all offerors. | |
| 70 | 4 | L.2.6 | Past Performance Questionnaire Submission | If a Past Performance Questionnaire is submitted after the solicitation closing date but prior to award decision, will it still be considered? | No | |
| 71 | 4 | L.2.6 | Organizational Structure Requirement | Are proposed key personnel required to be identified by name at the IDIQ level, or may positions be proposed without named individuals? | Yes, please see the answer to question #3. | |
| 72 | 4 | L.2.6 | Proposed Labor Mix | Can the Government provide the current incumbent staffing levels (labor categories and hours) supporting the existing requirement? | Yes, please see the answer to question #17. | |
| 73 | 4 | L.2.6 | Fully Loaded Rates | Should escalation be incorporated into the fully loaded labor rates across ordering periods, or are fixed rates anticipated? | Yes, all fixed rates should be fully loaded and escalated over the ordering periods if needed. | |
| 74 | 5 | M.1.5.4 | Evaluation of Price | Are the estimated labor quantities in Attachment J1 based on historical usage, and are they representative of anticipated ordering patterns? | Yes | |
| 75 | 5 | L.2.6 | Is past experience consisting exclusively of federal Government contracts acceptable for Factor 1 – Corporate Experience evaluation, provided the projects are similar in scope and complexity to the IDIQ requirements? | No, past performance can be for commercial or federal clients. Please refer to L.2.6 of the solicitation. | ||
| 76 | J1 | Attachment J1 | Are offerors required to propose rates for every labor category listed in Attachment J1, or only those anticipated to be used to fulfill Section C requirements? | Yes, please refer to the answer to question #135 in the initial Q&A. | ||
| 77 | Attachment J1 | Should escalation be incorporated into the fully loaded labor rates for each ordering period, or are fixed rates expected across all years? | All rates should be fixed price. Please see the answer to question #73. | |||
| 78 | 4 | L.2.5 | Font size for tables, graphics, and callout boxes shall be no smaller than 10-point font. | Can the Library confirm whether text embedded within organizational charts and workflow diagrams must also meet the 10-point minimum font size requirement? | Yes | |
| 79 | 5 | L.2.6 | Offerors must respond sequentially to each paragraph in Section C, starting with 3.2 | Is it sufficient for offerors to label responses by referencing the applicable Section C paragraph number (e.g., “C.3.2”) without restating the requirement text, provided the response clearly aligns with the referenced paragraph? | Yes | |
| 80 | 6 | L.2.6 – Volume II | The organizational structure must include key personnel and program management | At the IDIQ level, does the Library require proposed named individuals for all key personnel positions, or may offerors propose position titles with qualifications, with named individuals proposed at the task order level? | Yes, please see the answer to question #3. | |
| 81 | 5 | L.2.6 – Volume II | Volume II shall not exceed 20 pages | Can the Library confirm whether the organizational chart counts toward the 20-page limit for Volume II | Yes | |
| 82 | 4 | L.2.4 | Offerors who are found to not be the most highly rated | Will the advisory recommendation to proceed to Phase II be based solely on the evaluation of Factor 1, or will any additional considerations be applied? | Yes, the advisory recommendation to proceed or not will be based solely on the evaluation of Factor 1. | |
| 83 | 5–6 | L.2.6 – Volume II, B.1 | The organizational structure must include key personnel and program management | Can the Library confirm whether resumes are required to be submitted for proposed key personnel under Volume II (Technical Approach – IDIQ), or if providing names, titles, and role descriptions within the organizational structure is sufficient? | Yes, please see the answer to question #5. | |
| 84 | 7 | L.2.6 | Offerors shall provide a detailed description of the proposed labor mix | Can the Library confirm that the labor mix (labor categories and hours) described in Volume V must match exactly the labor mix proposed in Attachment J5, and that any discrepancies may render the proposal unacceptable? | The labor mix described in Volume V must match exactly to the labor mix proposed in Attachment J5. | |
| 85 | 7 | L.2.6 | Offerors shall submit a draft Transition-In Plan | If transition activities occur during the base year, should those hours be included within the base year labor mix in Attachment J5, or should transition labor be priced separately? | Transition services should be priced separately. See tab 2 of Attachment J5 for transition pricing. | |
| 86 | 6 | L.2.6 | Tab 2 of the attachment shall include a complete list of the fully loaded rates for each labor category provided… | Can the Library confirm whether offerors are required to provide rates for all labor categories listed in Attachment J1, or only for those labor categories the offeror intends to propose under the IDIQ? | Yes, please refer to the answer to question #135 in the initial Q&A. | |
| 87 | 6 | L.2.6 | Partial pricing by an Offeror shall render the proposal non-responsive | If an offeror does not intend to utilize certain labor categories listed in Attachment J1, may those categories be priced at $0.00, or must a fully loaded rate be provided for each listed labor category? | A fully loaded rate must be provided. This will be used to derive the offeror's total evaluated price. | |
| 88 | 10 | M.1.5.4 | Does the Library expect offerors to propose annual escalation in fully loaded rates across the ordering periods in Attachment J1, or is a flat rate structure acceptable for evaluation purposes? | Yes, please see the response to question #73. | ||
| 89 | 6 | L.2.6 – Volume IV | Can the Library confirm that fully loaded rates must include all overhead, G&A, fringe, profit, and any anticipated administrative costs, and that no additional cost elements will be allowable at the task order level? | Yes | ||
| 90 | If proposed personnel exceed the minimum qualifications listed for a labor category in Attachment J1, may the offeror still use that labor category, provided the minimum qualifications are met? | Yes | ||||
| 91 | Will IDIQ awardees compete at the task order level based solely on labor mix and total price, or may labor category rates themselves be revised downward during task order competitions? | IDIQ awardees will compete at the task order level and will be evaluated based on the solicitation requirements. If offerors choose to provide discounts, they may at the order level. | ||||
| 92 | 3 | L.2.4.1 | L.2.4.1 Overview of Down-Select Phases | Will the Government advise when the downselect notices will be released? | Yes, please see the answer to question #2. | |
| 93 | 5 | Section L.2.6.B.1 | Section L.2.6.B.1, Factor 2 - Technical Approach (IDIQ) of Solicitation 030ADV26R0008-003 | Section L.2.6.B.1, Factor 2 - Technical Approach (IDIQ) of Solicitation 030ADV26R0008-003 requests the names and titles of key personnel and program management staff. However, the Government’s response to Industry Question 41 instructs offerors not to provide the Program Manager’s name. | ||
| Could the Government clarify whether we should include the names and titles of Program Manager and key personnel in our response? | Yes, please see the answer to question #3. | |||||
| 94 | 8 | Attachment J4, Section 5.5 | The Initial Order states that the invoice “shall include labor categories, hours, and site that were used to derive at the firm fixed price for the month.” | As this is an FFP order, our understanding is that the labor categories, estimated hours, and rates will be used as an initial price build up, but that payment will be based on the provision of the deliverables identified in Section 4.1. As such, we assume that the invoices will not need to include labor categories, hours, and site, as payment will not be based on such factors. Can you please confirm this understanding and modify Attachment J4 accordingly. | Yes, please see Amendment 0005, Attachment J4, Section 5.5 |
&P of &N Attachment J6 - 030ADV26R0008 Questions Template 01/28/2026
File details come from the government source that posted it. Updated .