36C10D24Q0090.pdf

Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice

*= Required Field Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice

SUBJECT* ASL Interpreters Denver RO

GENERAL INFORMATION

CONTRACTING OFFICE’S ZIP CODE* 20006

SOLICITATION NUMBER* 36C10D24Q0090

RESPONSE DATE/TIME/ZONE 03-06-2024 12:00 pm CENTRAL TIME, CHICAGO, USA

ARCHIVE 15 DAYS AFTER THE RESPONSE DATE

RECOVERY ACT FUNDS N

SET-ASIDE SDVOSBC

PRODUCT SERVICE CODE* R608

NAICS CODE* 541930

CONTRACTING OFFICE ADDRESS Department of Veterans Affairs

Veterans Benefits Administration Acquisition Directorate 1800 G Street NW Washington DC 20006

POINT OF CONTACT*

Edward Bradford Edward.Bradford@va.gov

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

ADDRESS Department of Veterans Affairs Veterans Benefits Administration Denver Regional Office 155 Van Gordon Street Lakewood CO

POSTAL CODE 80228

COUNTRY US

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

AGENCY’S URL Edward.Bradford@va.gov

URL DESCRIPTION

AGENCY CONTACT’S EMAIL ADDRESS

EMAIL DESCRIPTION

DESCRIPTION

COMBINED SYNOPSIS SOLICITATION NOTICE

i. This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in

Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. The government anticipates a single (all or none), firm-fixed-price award. A quotation is not an offer and, consequently, cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Therefore, issuance by the Government of an order in response to a supplier’s quotation does not establish a contract. The order is an offer by the Government to the supplier to buy certain supplies or services upon specified terms and conditions. A contract is established when the supplier accepts the offer.

ii. 36C10E24Q0090 the Combined Synopsis Solicitation is issued as a request for quotation (RFQ).

iii. The solicitation incorporates provisions and clauses in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2024-02.

iv. The combined synopsis/solicitation is set aside 100% for SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN OWN SMALL BUSINESS

(SDVOSB) only. Only quotes submitted by Service-Disabled Veteran Own Small Businesses will be accepted by the Government. Any quote that is submitted by a contractor that is not a Service-Disabled Veteran Own Small Businesses will not be considered for award. Note that only VA verified Service-Disabled Veteran Own Small Businesses in the SBA VetCert database at the time of contract award will be considered for award and non- SBA VetCert verified firms will be considered non-responsive and ineligible for award. The applicable NAIC Code for this solicitation is 541930 Translation and Interpretation Services and the Small Business Size limitation is $22.5 Million.

v. The contractor shall provide three (3) full time Interpreters to provide onsite (Denver VBA Regional Office and

Out-based Offices) and remote ASL interpreting services, IAW the SOW. These services will be for hearing impaired employees at the Denver RO. Services required for routine daily work, meetings, trainings, and other events to interpret spoken English into signed English and American Sign Language (ASL) or signed English back into spoken English.

CLIN 0001: Provide ASL interpreting services per the attached Statement of Work. Base Year.

Unit Price___________; Quantity: 6500; Unit of Issue: Hour; Extended Price ____________

CLIN 1001: Provide ASL interpreting services per the attached Statement of Work. Option Year 1.

Unit Price___________; Quantity: 6500; Unit of Issue: Hour; Extended Price ____________

CLIN 2001: Provide ASL interpreting services per the attached Statement of Work. Option Year 2.

Unit Price___________; Quantity: 6500; Unit of Issue: Hour; Extended Price ____________

CLIN 3001: Provide ASL interpreting services per the attached Statement of Work. Option Year 3.

Unit Price___________; Quantity: 6500; Unit of Issue: Hour; Extended Price ____________

CLIN 4001: Provide ASL interpreting services per the attached Statement of Work. Option Year 4.

Unit Price___________; Quantity: 6500; Unit of Issue: Hour; Extended Price ____________

Total Price _________________________

vi. Description of Requirement

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Veterans Benefits Administration (VBA) Denver Regional Office has a requirement for three (3) full time Interpreters to provide onsite ASL interpreting services on an as-needed basis for routine daily work, meetings, trainings, and other events to interpret spoken English into signed English and American Sign Language (ASL) or signed English back into spoken English. There are currently three hearing impaired Denver RO employees with sign language interpretation needs. Any new Denver RO employees that require sign language interpretation services shall require services under this same contract. The estimated number of hours is 6,500 per year for ASL interpreting services. The intent is to award a bulk-funded contract for ASL interpreting services for a not to exceed amount. The amount obligated shall be based on estimated hours and established hourly rates. Any changes (increase or decrease) to the estimated amounts shall be issued as a bilateral modification based on actual usage and established hourly rate. Any mileage and parking charges must be included in hourly rate. The VA intends to make a single (all or none) firm-fixed price award. SEE ATTACHED

STATEMENT OF WORK.

vii. Period of Performance: The period of performance is from April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025, with four one-year options.

FOB Destination Point: The physical address where services are to be performed at, the Denver RO is: Department of Veterans Affairs, Veterans Benefit Administration, Denver Regional Office, 155 Van Gordon Street, Lakewood, CO 80228. Denver’s Out-Based locations, 1365 Garden of Gods Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80907. Services will also be provided virtually(remote).

viii. FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Vendors – Commercial Items, applies to this solicitation. The following provisions and clauses are added as addenda:

52.252-1 Solicitation Provisions Incorporated By Reference (FEB 1998) http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html (FAR) and http://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/index.asp (VAAR)

52.204-7 System for Award Management (OCT 2018) 52.204-16 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (JUL 2016) 52.212-2 Evaluation—Commercial Items (OCT 2014) 52.233-2 Service of Protest: (a) Protests, as defined in section 33.101 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, that are filed directly with an agency, and copies of any protests that are filed with the Government Accountability Office (GAO), shall be served on the Contracting Officer (addressed as follows) by obtaining written and dated acknowledgment of receipt from VBA, Office of Acquisition 1800 G Street, NW Room 540-D1 Washington, DC 20420. (b) The copy of any protest shall be received in the office designated above within one day of filing a protest with the GAO. (End of Provision)

852.233-70 Protest Content/Alternative Dispute Resolution (OCT 2018) 852.233-71 Alternate Protest Procedure (OCT 2018)

Previous contract number awarded for this requirement is 36C10E23P0001. The total awarded amount is $339,761.80. The award date was 10-01-2022. The contract is for a base and 4 option years. The first option year was not exercised because the requirement has significantly changed. A 52.217-8, 6-month extension was used to extend to 3/31/24. No other details shall be provided on the previous contract.

Questions: Questions to this RFQ shall be submitted via electronic mail to the Contract Specialist (Edward.Bradford@va.gov). Questions will be accepted until February 26, 2024, 12:00 p.m. (CST). The Government is not obligated to respond to any questions received after that date and time. All questions received within the designated timeframe that the Government considers relevant, will be answered. Responses to questions will be http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html http://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/index.asp provided as amendment to the RFQ that will be made available to all potential Vendors on FBO. Telephonic inquires will not be responded to.

SAM Registration: Vendors must be registered in the Systems for Award Management (SAM), and have an active registration at the time quotes are submitted. No contract will be entered into with an unregistered contractor.

Internet access allows you to register by completing an electronic on-line registration application at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/. On-line Representations and Certifications (ORCA) may also be filled out at this website.

Quote Preparation Instructions:

Specific Instructions:

Quotes shall be submitted electronically to Edward.Bradford@va.gov. The email subject line must contain the following: “Quote in Response to 36C10E24Q0090, ASL Interpreting Services”. Responses are due no later than March 6, 2024 @ 12:00 p.m. (CST). The maximum size of each email cannot exceed 5 MB. Note that emails that contain compressed files such as Zip files will be rejected by the government server. Only written quotes shall be acceptable and must be received and identified by solicitation #36C10E24Q0090. Vendors bear the burden of ensuring that quotes are emailed on time. The Quotes must include company name, address, SAM UEI Number, DUNS Number, tax identification number (TIN), and point of contact with phone number, and e-mail address.

All Quotes shall be legible and prepared in the format referenced below.

Part I - Executed Request for Quote and Price: The Vendor is required to quote a fully burdened fixed price for the CLIN structure as shown in the above section v. Insert the quoted unit and extended prices in Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) 0001 through 4001. All unit prices shall be represented in two decimal positions only. Example:

$0.27, not $0.27458. Vendors shall acknowledge all amendments issued.

Part II - Technical Capability: The Vendor’s quote shall be evaluated for its detailed discussion and Vendor’s approach to proposed solution(s) and demonstrated ability to perform the type of work described by the SOW.

Part III- Experience: The Vendor’s quote shall be evaluated by reviewing aspects of the Vendor’s recent and relevant experience.

Part IV – Past Performance Factor: The past performance evaluation will be accomplished by reviewing aspects of a Vendor’s recent and relevant past performance.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

Any quote submitted to the Contracting Officer after the due date and time shall be considered nonresponsive to the Solicitation and rejected.

It is the Vendor’s responsibility to ensure that their quote is submitted in its entirety. Partial quotes shall be considered non-responsive to the Solicitation and shall be rejected.

The Vendor shall clearly separate each Evaluation Factor submitted with their offer.

Vendors shall address each evaluation factor in detail. The Vendor shall include all supporting details necessary for the Government to determine the Vendor’s technical qualifications and ability to perform the required services, as well as the adequacy and advantages of the Quote.

The Vendor shall not submit the company’s general marketing literature or brochures. Such materials are not considered responsive to the specific evaluation criteria and shall not be evaluated.

The Vendor’s technical and experience section shall not exceed ten (10) total pages in length.

https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/ mailto:Edward.Bradford@va.gov

The Vendor’s past performance shall not exceed five (5) total pages in length.

The Quotes shall be evaluated strictly in accordance with their written content. The Government reserves the right to award without discussions based upon the initial evaluation of Quotes.

Quotes which merely restate the requirement or state that the requirement shall be met, without providing supporting rationale, are not sufficient to meet minimum requirements.

Failure to provide any of the above information or providing inadequate or unclear information will result in the quote being rated unsatisfactory and ineligible for award.

(End of Addendum to 52.212-1)

ix. Quotes shall be evaluated as follows:

BASIS FOR AWARD: This requirement will be competed and awarded under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 13, Simplified Acquisition Procedures. The contracting techniques associated with FAR Part 15 do not apply. Following receipt of quotes, the government will perform an evaluation using a comparative analysis of the quotes, in an impartial manner. The government intends to compare what has been quoted to one another to select the quote(s) that is best suited to fulfill the requirement. The evaluation factors outlined in this request for quote will determine suitability. Technical, Experience and past performance when combined are more important than price.

The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsive, responsible Vendor in accordance with FAR 9.104-1 and whose quote conforms to the solicitation, and provides the best value to the Government, price and other non-price factors considered. Since award may be made to the Vendor with other than the lowest price, price is not necessarily the determining factor.

The following factors shall be used to evaluate quotes:

EVALUATION FACTOR 1: TECHNICAL CAPABILITY - The technical capability rating reflects the degree to which the proposed approach has demonstrated the ability to perform ASL interpreting services as required by the solicitation.

The technical evaluation rating will be determined by evaluating the following:

Vendors shall submit documentation illustrating a clear description of the management methodology that will be used for executing the effort described in the SOW. THIS DESCRIPTION SHALL INCLUDE: (1) IDENTIFYING KEY PERSONNEL AND THEIR EXPERIENCE, EDUCATION AND ABILITIES; (2) ABILITY TO MEET RESPONSE TIMES;

(3) DETAILS OF HOW THE PROPOSED EFFORT WILL BE ASSIGNED WITHIN THE CORPORATE ENTITY AND AMONG ANY PROPOSED SUBCONTRACTORS. Vendors must provide a written statement with adequate assurance that per 13 CFR 125.6 they can meet the limitations of subcontracting. Per 13 CFR 125.6 (1), in the case of a contract for services (except construction), the [prime contractor] will not pay more than 50% of the amount paid by the government to it to firms that are not similarly situated. Any work that a similarly situated subcontractor further subcontracts will count towards the 50% subcontract amount that cannot be exceeded.

Since an independent contractor such as a “1099 employee” is considered a subcontractor then, each independent subcontractor needs to be registered in VBA VetCert as an SDVOSB to be considered as a similarly situated SDVOSB entity that does not count towards the limitations of subcontracting.

EVALUATION FACTOR 2: EXPERIENCE: The basis of evaluation under this factor will be focused on the firm’s experience in performing contracts and /or task orders of similar size, scope and complexity to the work being solicited within the SOW. The quote shall contain information from a minimum of one contract where similar ASL interpreting services were successfully provided. Only quotes that demonstrate relevant experience with providing similar ASL interpreting services shall be eligible for award. Government and commercial sources will be accepted. The Contractor must regularly offer and engage in providing ASL interpreting services.

EVALUATION FACTOR 3: PAST PERFORMANCE- The past performance evaluation will be accomplished by reviewing aspects of a Vendors recent and relevant past performance.

The Vendor shall submit past performance information that is both recent (within the past three (3) years) and relevant (similar in size, scope, and complexity to the requirement being procured), if applicable. Recent and relevant past performance shall be discussed for the prime contractor and/or any major ‘team members” or “teaming partners” proposed to support this contract. The Vendor is provided an opportunity to submit a list of no more than three (3) of the Vendor’s most recent and relevant past performance information on projects:

similar in size, scope, and complexity to the requirement being procured under this solicitation, performed for Government agencies and/or commercial customers within the last three (3) years from the solicitation release date.

The past performance submittals shall include (when applicable): Contract Number, Contracting Officers (CO):

Name, Phone number and Email address, Contracting Officers Representatives (COR): Name, Phone number and Email address, Non-Government Points of Contact (if applicable), Total Contract Value at time of award and final price after any/all modifications, Initial Period of performance (POP) and final POP after any/all modifications, Narrative describing the requirement and reason for any modifications which effected price or performance period.

The Government reserves the right to obtain past performance data from other sources than those identified by the Vendor in evaluating past performance. In the case of a Vendor without a record of relevant past performance or for whom information on past performance is not available or so sparse that no meaningful past performance rating can be reasonably assigned, the Vendor may not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably on past performance. Therefore, the Vendor shall be determined to have unknown past performance. In the context of confidence, the Vendor will be evaluated as “Unknown Confidence” and shall be considered “neutral.”

EVALUATION FACTOR 4: PRICE- The Vendor is required to quote a fully burdened fixed price for the CLIN structure as shown in Section v. Insert the quoted unit and extended prices in Contract Line Item Number (CLIN) 0001 through 4001. All unit prices shall be represented in two decimal positions only. Example: $0.27, not $0.27458.

The Government shall evaluate price to determine whether or not it is considered fair and reasonable in accordance with FAR Part 13.106-3.

Once the government determines the contractor that is the best suited (i.e., the apparent successful contractor), the government reserves the right to communicate with only that contractor to address any remaining issues, if necessary, and finalize a purchase order with that contractor. These issues include technical and price.

x. FAR 52.212-3, Vendor Representations and Certifications – Commercial Items applies to this solicitation. The

Vendor must have completed the annual representations and certifications electronically via the SAM website access through http://www.acquisition.gov. After reviewing the SAM database information, the Vendor verifies by submission of this quote that the representations and certifications currently posted electronically at FAR 52.212-3, Vendor Representations and Certifications—Commercial Items, have been entered or updated in the last 12 months, are current, accurate, complete, and applicable to this solicitation (including the business size standard applicable to the NAICS code referenced for this solicitation), as of the date of this offer and are incorporated in this offer by reference (see FAR 4.1201), except for paragraphs ____________.

xi. FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions – Commercial Items applies to this solicitation. The following

FAR and VAAR provisions and clauses are added as addenda:

52.203-17 Contractor Employee Whistleblower Rights and Requirement to Inform Employees of Whistleblower Rights (NOV 2023)

52.204-4 Printed or Copied Double-Sided on Postconsumer Fiber Content Paper (MAY 2011) 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance (OCT 2018) 52.204-18 Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance (AUG 2020)

52.217-8 Option to Extend Services (NOV 1999) The Government may require continued performance of any services within the limits and at the rates specified in the contract. These rates may be adjusted only as a result of revisions to prevailing labor rates provided by the Secretary of Labor. The option provision may be exercised more than once, but the total extension of performance hereunder shall not exceed 6 months. The Contracting Officer may exercise the option by written notice to the Contractor within 30 days. (End of Clause)

52.217-9 Option to Extend the Term of the Contract (MAR 2000)

(a) The Government may extend the term of this contract by written notice to the Contractor within 10 days;

provided that the Government gives the Contractor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 10 days before the contract expires. The preliminary notice does not commit the Government to an extension. (b) If the Government exercises this option, the extended contract shall be considered to include this option clause. (c) The total duration of this contract, including the exercise of any options under this clause, shall not exceed Five (5) years and six months. (End of Clause)

52.228-5 Insurance-Work on a Government Installation (JAN 1997)

CL-120 Supplemental Insurance Requirements: In accordance with FAR 28.307-2 and FAR 52.228-5, the following minimum coverage shall apply to this contract: (a) Workers' compensation and employer’s liability: Contractors are required to comply with applicable Federal and State workers' compensation and occupational disease statutes. If occupational diseases are not compensable under those statutes, they shall be covered under the employer's liability section of the insurance policy, except when contract operations are so commingled with a Contractor's commercial operations that it would not be practical to require this coverage. Employer's liability coverage of at least $100,000 shall be required, except in States with exclusive or monopolistic funds that do not permit workers' compensation to be written by private carriers. (b) General Liability: $500,000.00 per occurrences. (c) Automobile liability: $200,000.00 per person; $500,000.00 per occurrence and $20,000.00 property damage. (d) The successful bidder must present to the Contracting Officer, prior to award, evidence of general liability insurance without any exclusionary clauses for asbestos that would void the general liability coverage.

52.232-40 Providing Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors (MAR 2023) 52.233-1 Disputes (MAY 2014) 52.252-2 Clauses Incorporated by Reference (FEB 1998) (FAR) http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html (VAAR) http://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/index.asp 52.252-6 Authorized Deviations in Clauses. (NOV 2020)

VAAR 852.203-70 Commercial Advertising (MAY 2018) VAAR 852.219-10 VA Notice of Total Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business Set-Aside (JUL 2016)

(DEVIATION)

VAAR 852.219-73 VA Notice of Total Set-Aside for Verified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small

Businesses (NOV 2022) VAAR 852.219-73 VA Notice of Total Set-Aside for Verified Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small

Businesses (NOV 2022) VAAR 852.219-74 Limitations on Subcontracting – Monitoring and Compliance (NOV 2022) VAAR 852.219-75 VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting – Certificate of Compliance for Services and

Construction (NOV 2022) (MUST BE COMPLETED, SIGNED AND TURNED IN WITH YOUR

QUOTE SUBMITTAL, OR YOUR QUOTE WILL BE DEEMED NON-RESPONSIVE AND WILL

BE CONSIDERED INELIGIBLE FOR AWARD.)

VAAR 852.232-72 Electronic Submission of Payment Requests (Nov 2018) VAAR 852.237-70 Indemnification and Medical Liability Insurance (OCT 2019) http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html http://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/index.asp

xii. 52.212-5, Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Executive Orders – Commercial Items, applies to this solicitation. The following provisions and clauses are selected as appropriate to this solicitation:

Paragraph “b” applicable clauses:

(1) 52.203-6 Restrictions on Subcontractor Sales to the Government (JUN 2020)

(5) 52.204-10 Reporting Executive Compensation & First-Tier Subcontract Awards (JUN 2020)

(12) 52.209-6 Protecting the Government’s Interest When Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment (NOV 2021)

(20) 52.219-8 Utilization of Small Business Concerns (SEP 2023)

(26) 52.219-28 Post-Award Small Business Program Representation (SEP 2023)

(31) 52.222-3 Convict Labor (JUN 2003)

(33) 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (APR 2015)

(34) 52.222-26 Equal Opportunity (SEP 2016)

(35) 52.222-35 Equal Opportunity for Veterans (JUN 2020)

(36) 52.222-36 Equal Opportunity for Workers with Disabilities (JUN 2020)

(37) 52.222-37 Employment Reports on Veterans (JUN 2020)

(38) 52.222-40 Notification of Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act (DEC 2010)

(39) 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons (NOV 2021)

(48) 52.223-18 Encouraging Contractor Policies to Ban Text Messaging While Driving (JUN 2020)

(55) 52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases (FEB 2021)

(62) 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer—System for Award Management (JUL 2013)

Paragraph “c” applicable clauses:

(1) 52.222-41 Service Contract Labor Standards (AUG 2018)

(2) 52.222-42 Statement of Equivalent Rates for Federal Hires (MAY 2014) In compliance with the Service Contract Labor Standards statute and the regulations of the Secretary of Labor (29 CFR part 4), this clause identifies the classes of service employees expected to be employed under the contract and states the wages and fringe benefits payable to each if they were employed by the contracting agency subject to the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 5341 or 5332. This Statement is for Information Only: It is not a Wage Determination.

Employee Class: 30130, Interpreter (Sign Language); Monetary Wage—Fringe Benefits: GS-9.

(3) 52.222-43 Fair Labor Standards Act and Service Contract Labor Standards--Price Adjustment (Multiple Year and Option Contracts) (AUG 2018)

(7) 52.222-55 Minimum Wages Under Executive Order 13658 (JAN 2022)

(8) 52.222-62 Paid Sick Leave Under Executive Order 13706 (JAN 2022)

Wage Determination 2015-5419 (Rev.25), dated 12/26/2013, is hereby incorporated by reference and made part of this solicitation. This wage determination is for services performed at the Denver, CO Regional Office. The applicable wage determination can be found here: https://sam.gov/wage-determination/2015-5419/25

xiii. N/A

xiv. N/A

xv. Quotes are due no later than March 6, 2024 @ 12:00 p.m. (CST).

xvi. For additional information, please contact the Contracting Officer, Edward Bradford by e-mail at

Edward.Bradford@va.gov

See attached document: Statement of Work.

See attached document: VA 6500.6 Appendix C.

https://sam.gov/wage-determination/2015-5419/25 mailto:Edward.Bradford@va.gov