36C10X20Q0109 0001.docx

5. PROJECT NUMBER (if applicable)

CODE

7. ADMINISTERED BY

2. AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION NUMBER

CODE

6. ISSUED BY

8. NAME AND ADDRESS OF CONTRACTOR

4. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQ. NUMBER

3. EFFECTIVE DATE

9A. AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION NUMBER

9B. DATED

PAGE OF PAGES

10A. MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT/ORDER NUMBER

10B. DATED

BPA NO.

1. CONTRACT ID CODE

FACILITY CODE

CODE

Offers must acknowledge receipt of this amendment prior to the hour and date specified in the solicitation or as amended, by one of the following methods:

The above numbered solicitation is amended as set forth in Item 14. The hour and date specified for receipt of Offers

E. IMPORTANT:

is extended,

(a) By completing Items 8 and 15, and returning __________ copies of the amendment; (b) By acknowledging receipt of this amendment on each copy of the offer submitted; or (c) By separate letter or electronic communication which includes a reference to the solicitation and amendment numbers. FAILURE OF YOUR ACKNOWLEDGMENT TO BE RECEIVED AT THE PLACE DESIGNATED FOR THE RECEIPT OF OFFERS PRIOR TO THE HOUR AND DATE SPECIFIED MAY is not extended.

12. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

(REV. 11/2016)

is required to sign this document and return ___________ copies to the issuing office.

is not, A. THIS CHANGE ORDER IS ISSUED PURSUANT TO: (Specify authority) THE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14 ARE MADE IN THE CONTRACT ORDER NO. IN ITEM 10A.

15C. DATE SIGNED

B. THE ABOVE NUMBERED CONTRACT/ORDER IS MODIFIED TO REFLECT THE ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGES SET FORTH IN ITEM 14, PURSUANT TO THE AUTHORITY OF FAR 43.103(b).

RESULT IN REJECTION OF YOUR OFFER. If by virtue of this amendment you desire to change an offer already submitted, such change may be made by letter or electronic communication, provided each letter or electronic communication makes reference to the solicitation and this amendment, and is received prior to the opening hour and date specified.

C. THIS SUPPLEMENTAL AGREEMENT IS ENTERED INTO PURSUANT TO AUTHORITY OF:

D. OTHER

Contractor

16C. DATE SIGNED

14. DESCRIPTION OF AMENDMENT/MODIFICATION

16B. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the document referenced in Item 9A or 10A, as heretofore changed, remains unchanged and in full force and effect.

15A. NAME AND TITLE OF SIGNER

16A. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

15B. CONTRACTOR/OFFEROR

STANDARD FORM 30

PREVIOUS EDITION NOT USABLE

Prescribed by GSA - FAR (48 CFR) 53.243 (Type or print) (Type or print) (Organized by UCF section headings, including solicitation/contract subject matter where feasible.)

(Number, street, county, State and ZIP Code) (If other than Item 6) (Specify type of modification and authority) (such as changes in paying office, appropriation date, etc.)

(If required)

(SEE ITEM 11)

(SEE ITEM 13)

(X)

CHECK

ONE

13. THIS ITEM APPLIES ONLY TO MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACTS/ORDERS,

IT MODIFIES THE CONTRACT/ORDER NO. AS DESCRIBED IN ITEM 14.

11. THIS ITEM ONLY APPLIES TO AMENDMENTS OF SOLICITATIONS

AMENDMENT OF SOLICITATION/MODIFICATION OF CONTRACT

(Signature of person authorized to sign) (Signature of Contracting Officer)

36C10X Strategic Acquisition Center - Frederick Department of Veterans Affairs

5202 Presidents Court, Suite 103 Frederick MD 21703

36C10X Strategic Acquisition Center - Frederick Department of Veterans Affairs

5202 Presidents Court, Suite 103 Frederick MD 21703 To all Offerors/Bidders

36C10X20Q0109

X

X Amendment 0001 is for the following:

1. Answer questions from the RFQ, and

2. To update Section 7.0 Type of Contract of the PWS

3. Attachments A, B,C,D,E,and F will be attached.

QUESTIONS FOR EEO SOLICITATION:

QUESTION 1: PWS page 8 para. states the Government will not be consider additional charges for off-shift, travel or mileage. However, this makes price scoping impossible as a result of the government also stating in PWS page 8 para. 4, because the government is not providing the primary or secondary service locations. The locations of the offices greatly impact the pricing. Will the government provide the locations? Additionally, will the government pay for mileage as vendors must pay all employees for travel?

ANSWER 1: No travel required as outline in section 11.0

QUESTION 2: The government states security clearances for technicians must be provided. Please advise what the security requirements are

ANSWER 2: See solicitation 14.7

QUESTION 3: The cover page for the amended RFQ lists the due date for proposals as 5/29/2020 and beta.sam indicates the due date was changed to 5/29/2020. The amended SF 1449 lists the due date as 6/5/2020. Can the VA confirm the new due date for solicitations is now 5/29/2020?

ANSWER 3: The due date for the solicitation is 6/5/2020

QUESTION 4: The SF 1449 identifies this solicitation as a SDVOSB set-aside under NAICS code 511611. Section 7.0 TYPE OF CONTRACT, page 12 reads: “This PWS is for a Multiple-Award Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) IDIQ under the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Schedule 738 X, Category 595-25. Orders issued under this agreement will be FFP. The Contractor shall provide all equipment and resources necessary to accomplish the requirements described in this PWS.” Are offerors required to hold current GSA Schedules under 738X, category 595-25 to be eligible for award under this RFQ?

ANSWER 4: No, we are putting out an amendment today to amend Section 7. This will be a Firm Fixed Price under NAICS code 511611 for SDVOSB

QUESTION 5: Section E.2, Instruction to Offerors-Commercial Items 1. VOLUME II- Past Performance , paragraph 3, Page 49, states “In the event an assessment was not completed in CPARS/PPIRS for the contract/order, offerors may request the reference point of contact (POC) to complete and submit a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) (See Attachment B of this solicitation). The offeror shall instruct the POC at the referenced entity to return a copy of the completed PPQ directly to the Contracting Officer at Todd.synder@va.gov and Contract Specialist Sandra.martz@va.gov NO LATER THAN THE CLOSING DATE OF THE SOLICITATION”. The referenced attachment B, Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ), page 43, appears to be an embedded word document which is locked cannot be opened or downloaded from the RFQ. It is not included in the list of documents provided at the end of the amended RFQ. Will the VA provide a copy of the referenced PPQ to offerors so these can be submitted to reference POCs as soon as possible?8: NOTE: The beta.sam update on May 14, 2020 provided copies of the attachments which were embedded in the RFQ. These attachments did not include the Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) which is referenced above. There was another document provided labelled Attachment B which was a different document.

ANSWER 5: Attachments were posted on the system on 5/13/2020 – we will add the attachments to the questions

QUESTION 6: Section E.2, Instruction to Offerors-Commercial Items 3. VOLUME III – PRICE, Page 49 states: “Offerors shall complete B.3 Price/Cost Schedule of the RFP and Item 2.0 Price Schedule of the Sample Task Order, which will allow for consideration of fixed-price services. If awarded an IDIQ, this pricing shall be incorporated and is the basis for all subsequent task orders under this IDIQ. Documentation supporting requested travel shall be included with the price volume. Contractors are encouraged to offer discounts to their commercial rates.” Can the VA confirm the pricing provided by the offeror in their proposal for the base and option years of the IDIQ, upon acceptance by the government, will be used for subsequent Task Orders issued? Will the offeror be required to submit separate pricing for each Task Order issued during the contract period?

ANSWER 6: Yes, that is how IDIQs work

QUESTION 7: Will cover letters and resumes for Key Personnel be counted against the 10-page limit for the Technical Volume?

ANSWER 7: No, we do not want the Resumes to take away from addressing the content on the RFP.

QUESTION 8: Please note, the most recent beta.sam update on May 14, 2020 provided copies of the attachments which were embedded in the RFQ.

These attachments did not include the Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) which is referenced in our Question # 3. There was another document provided which is labelled Attachment B, but it contained a different document, not the PPQ.

ANSWER 8: Attachments will be sent out with the answers to the questions

QUESTION 9: The cover page for the amended RFQ lists the due date for proposals as 5/29/2020 and beta.sam indicates the due date was changed to 5/29/2020. The amended SF 1449 lists the due date as 6/5/2020.

Can the VA confirm the new due date for solicitations is now 5/29/2020?

ANSWER 9: No, the date is 6/5/2020

QUESTION 10: The SF 1449 identifies this solicitation as a SDVOSB set-aside under NAICS code 511611. Section 7.0 TYPE OF CONTRACT, page 12 reads: “This PWS is for a Multiple-Award Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) IDIQ under the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Schedule 738 X, Category 595-25. Orders issued under this agreement will be FFP. The Contractor shall provide all equipment and resources necessary to accomplish the requirements described in this PWS.”

Are offerors required to hold current GSA Schedules under 738X , category 595-25 to be eligible for award under this RFQ?

ANSWER 10: yes. Same as question 4

QUESTION 11: Section E.2, Instruction to Offerors-Commercial Items 1. VOLUME II- Past Performance , paragraph 3, Page 49, states “In the event an assessment was not completed in CPARS/PPIRS for the contract/order, offerors may request the reference point of contact (POC) to complete and submit a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ) (See Attachment B of this solicitation). The offeror shall instruct the POC at the referenced entity to return a copy of the completed PPQ directly to the Contracting Officer at Todd.synder@va.gov and Contract Specialist Sandra.martz@va.gov NO LATER THAN THE CLOSING DATE OF THE SOLICITATION” The referenced attachment B, Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ), page 43, appears to be an embedded word document which is locked cannot be opened or downloaded from the RFQ. It is not included in the list of documents provided at the end of the amended RFQ. Will the VA provide a copy of the referenced PPQ to offerors so these can be submitted to reference POCs as soon as possible?

ANSWER 11: answered in previous questions.

QUESTION 12: # 4: Section E.2, Instruction to Offerors-Commercial Items 3. VOLUME III – PRICE, Page 49 states: “Offerors shall complete B.3 Price/Cost Schedule of the RFPand Item 2.0 Price Schedule of the Sample Task Order, which will allow for consideration of fixed-price services. If awarded an IDIQ, this pricing shall be incorporated and is the basis for all subsequent task orders under this IDIQ. Documentation supporting requested travel shall be included with the price volume. Contractors are encouraged to offer discounts to their commercial rates.” Can the VA confirm the pricing provided by the offeror in their proposal for the base and option years of the IDIQ, upon acceptance by the government, will be used for subsequent Task Orders issued? Will the offeror be required to submit separate pricing for each Task Order issued during the contract period?

ANSWER 12: Pricing is taken from the IDIQ as that is how IDIQs work

QUESTION 13: Is there an incumbent Contractor providing these services and, if so, who are they?

ANSWER 13: David Jones, The Ravens Group, MRM EEO services, Ross Agency, Sierra Tahoe, BT Durham, CES

QUESTION 14: Can the Government provide historical data on the number of cases processed in the past two (2) years, for each of the five (5) case types listed in the Price/Cost Schedule?

ANSWER 14:

A TWO YEAR TOTAL CLIN 1-439; CLIN 2-2278; CLIN 3-1189; CLIN 4-2; CLIN 5-2

QUESTION 15: Is this requirement on a Federal Supply Schedule? The solicitation states:

7.0 TYPE OF CONTRACT

This PWS is for a Multiple-Award Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) IDIQ under the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Schedule 738 X, Category 595 25. Orders issued under this agreement will be FFP. The Contractor shall provide all equipment and resources necessary to accomplish the requirements described in this PWS.

ANSWER See Question 4

QUESTION 16: Is the Contractor able to invoice based on the deliverable schedule or will the contractor be required to wait for the ROI on an individual case in order to invoice for that case?

ANSWER 16: Our expectation would be that they will be able to invoice when they have provided a releasable ROI. They are notified via email as soon as an ROI has been reviewed and is pending release.

QUESTION 17: As this is a recompete for existing work, will new security packets be required for all investigators, or only for newly added ones?

ANSWER 17: Yes, new packets will be required for all.

QUESTION 18: Section 8.4 states “Extension for the delivery of the ROI must be requested two weeks prior to the due date.” However, in many cases it is not known that an extension will be required until much closer to the suspense date due to unforeseeable circumstances. We request “must” be changed to “should whenever possible”.

ANSWER 18: Language can remain. With the reporting system in place the vendor should know by two weeks out if they will need an extension.

QUESTION 19: Section 8.5 states “The ROI shall not be bates numbered by the Contractor.” Please confirm this is correct.

ANSWER 19: ANSWER 19: This is correct- we do not want the ROI bates numbered by contractor on the bottom.

QUESTION 20: Section 8.12 outlines requirements for status reports. Is the government requesting individual reports for each case? As case volume increases, this creates a significant increase in project management workload as opposed to the current method of providing a weekly status update for all cases. Given the frequent changes to cases due to extensions, amendments, and unanticipated delays, how are the 30- and 45-day deadlines determined?

ANSWER 20:

Weekly responses are burdensome on the contractor and the Agency alike as the often contain general, redundant information that is cut and pasted from one week to the next. By focusing on 30 days and 45 days, the Agency believes the contractor will be able to provide more specific status information as well as an educated estimation on whether the investigation will be completed timely.

An initial report on the cases assigned is due on the 10th of the month and then a status report will be due every 30 and 45 days.

QUESTION 21: I do not see anything in the RFP that provides compensation to the contractor in the event an EEO complaint is settled or withdrawn after it is assigned, and work has been performed. What metrics will the government use to provide payment in such an event?

ANSWER 21: The current contract contains mechanisms for paying on the percentage of work completed at the point of settlement or withdrawal.

II. Settlement(s)/Withdrawal(s) – at any point during the processing of the case, the complainant may decide to settle or withdraw their case, which will cease the further processing of the case.

i. Withdrawn after to the complainant's affidavit being completed but prior to other work being completed; VA will pay 15% of the contract line item value.

ii. Withdrawn after to the complainant's affidavit being completed but prior to the complaint being completed; VA will pay 60% of the contract line item value.

iii. Withdrawn after the investigation was completed but not yet copied or delivered to VA; VA will pay 90% of the contract line item value.

QUESTION: Can you please clarify the due date? The FBO posting states that the proposal is due on May 29th, but one solicitation cover sheet states June 5th and another May 29th?

Answer: June 5, 2020

QUESTION 22: For Contract #36C10X2Q0109 is the contract an hourly rate or a fixed rate price for the contract?

ANSWER 22: Fixed rate per case.

QUESTION 23: What was the incumbent award amount for the previous Contract?

ANSWER 23: Total is $4,999,845.41

QUESTION 24: How many investigations were conducted for the previous year of this similar contract?

ANSWER 24: 654 were conducted.

QUESTION 25: Will the Investigations be conducted in the D.C. Metropolitan area?

ANSWER 25: Investigation service are required across the nation.

QUESTION26: If outside of this geographical area, will telephone investigations be permissible?

ANSWER 26: The methodology for carrying out the interview is up to the contractor. The contractor can use telephone interviews or written interrogatories. Agency will not pay an associated cost related to court reporting or transcription services.

QUESTION 27: Page 49 of the solicitation under 3. Volume III – Price states “Offers shall complete B3 Price/Cost Schedule…” Should this be B4 to match what is listed on page 23?

ANSWER 27: Yes, B4 is the Price/Cost Schedule

QUESTION 28: Page 48 of the solicitation contains a chart of Volumes required to submit. (Volume I through III). Directly under the chart details what is required in Volumes I through IV. It appears in the chart you are asking us to combine what is listed for Volumes III and IV, (a completed B4 and SF1449, amendments -SF 30s & terms and conditions and/or assumptions).

Please advise if you are wanting Volume I-III as stated in the chart or I -IV as stated in the paragraphs under the chart.

ANSWER 28: You please submit all volumes as stated in the paragraphs under the chart which is I-IV

QUESTION 29: Pages 48 and 49 under Section 2. Volume II – Past performance, refers to both Attachment A and Attachment F.

Please confirm these are referring to the same document that is provided starting on page 78 titled (F-1 Attachment A: Past Performance).

ANSWER 29: all attachments are being submitted with the answers to the questions

QUESTION 30: Page 49, in the second paragraph under Section 2. Volume II – Past Performance, it refers to a Past Performance Questionnaire (PPQ). It states... “(See Attachment B of this solicitation).

ANSWER 30: see attachments included with questions

QUESTION 31: We may need to provide a PPQ but it is not provided under Attachment B. Attachment B is a template for a Table of Contents to be used during an EEO investigation.

Can you provide us with the PPQ format you are requesting?

ANSWER 31: Yes, see previous answers.

QUESTION 32: On page 46, Instructions to Offerors, 1. Introduction, paragraph a, states:

"All quote intentions, questions and final quote submission shall be submitted to the Contracting Officer and the Contract Specialist via email to Todd.Synder@va.gov and Sandra.martz@va.gov no later than the closing date specified on the SF 1449, Block 20.” (Emphasis added by bold and italic).

However, paragraph d of the same section on the same page states:

“Quotes shall be submitted to the Contracting Officer and the Contract Specialist via email to Todd.Synder@va.gov and Sandra.martz@va.gov on or before date/time specified on the SF 1449, Block 8.”

When is the final quote submission due to be submitted to the Contracting Officer and the Contract Specialist? By the date/time specified in Block 20 or Block 8?

ANSWER 32: see previous answers.

QUESTION 33: I am not able to open the Word or pdf attachments A-F that are embedded in the Solicitation document at page 42. Can those be provided separately by your office please?

ANSWER 33: See previous answers.

QUESTION 34: Please indicate the number of incumbents performing on the current contract.

ANSWER 34: There are seven incumbents.

QUESTION 35: Please provide the historical volume (total number of EEO Complaints filed) per year for the last three years.

ANSWER 35: YEAR 1. CLIN 1-258 CLIN 2-1382 CLIN 3-716 CLIN 4-2 CLIN 5-2 ;

YEAR 2. CLIN 1-181 CLIN 2-896 CLIN 3-473 CLIN 4-0 CLIN 5-0

YEAR 3. CLIN 1-294 CLIN 2-1059 CLIN 3-528 CLIN 4-0 CLIN 5-0.

AVERAGES CLIN 1-244; CLIN 2-1112; CLIN 3-572 ; CLIN 4- .66 ; CLIN 5- .66

QUESTION 36: How many contracts/awards (multiple awards) is the Government anticipating will be made on the new contract?

ANSWER 36: unknown at this time. See solicitation as we anticipate multiple but reserve the right to award only one.

QUESTION 37: Can the Government provide the estimated number of task orders that are to be assigned to each contractor on a monthly (preferred) or, annual basis?

ANSWER 37: Annual Basis

QUESTION 38: Under RFQ page 12; 8.1 Investigation of Discrimination Complaints: “All harassment/hostile work environment complaints shall be identified as a one claim cost with several incidents and not treated as additional issues.”

a. Question: Please confirm that the Government intends for us to provide the price under CLIN 003 Individual Case - Continuing Violation as there is no other CLIN available that comports to the above definition or, will the Government revise the Cost/Price to include a separate CLIN for harassment/hostile work environment complaints?

ANSWER 38: Per the PWS: All harassment/hostile work environment complaints shall be identified as a one claim cost with several incidents and not treated as additional issues. The COR will determine the type of complaint (e.g. individual complaint, consolidated complaint) and number of issues contained in each complaint.

QUESTION 39: Are we supposed to use our GSA Pricing?

ANSWER 39: you can use whatever pricing your company prefers. The Government is not dictating that, and this is not a GSA award. See previous answers.

QUESTION 40: If we use our GSA pricing, can those prices be found to be not fair and reasonable?

ANSWER 40: unlikely.

QUESTION 41: Will VA force BPA holder to compete against each other based on price for a percentage of a task order.

ANSWER 41: Within the provisions outlined by the contract, the Agency will consider cost per unit when determining work assigned to vendors. There will be no BPA as the solicitation states this is for an IDIQ contract.

QUESTION 42: If VA has two or more SDVOSB that are capable of handling the scope of work, will they open the solicitation to other than SDVOSBs?

ANSWER 42: VA will follow the rule of two guidance for SDVOSB’S.

QUESTION 43: Does VA have a tentative time to decide the selected BPA holders so that they will have an opportunity to train the staff on the new guidelines?

ANSWER 43: this is not a BPA and the VA intends to award with time for the vendor to train their staff

QUESTION 44: Can you please clarify the due date? The FBO posting states that the proposal is due on May 29th, but one solicitation cover sheet states June 5th and another states May 29th.

ANSWER 44: June 5, 2020

ATTACHMENT A

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

OFFICE OF RESOLUTION MANAGEMENT

Testimony of (Insert Name) in the Matter of the EEO Complaint of Discrimination filed by (Insert Name)

I, (Insert Name), solemnly swear/affirm that the responses and documents I provided in response to the following questions are true and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Insert Claim or Claims

1. Insert relevant questions.

This statement is made under penalty of perjury on this ____day of ____________, 20__. (year).

Signature

ATTACHMENT B

DEPARTMENT OF VETERANS AFFAIRS

Office of Resolution Management William S. Moorhead Federal Building 1000 Liberty Avenue, Suite 1801 Pittsburgh, PA 15222

Table of Contents

1. Formal Complaint

1. EEO Counselor’s Report

1. Procedural Review Notice of Acceptance 3-1

1. Settlement Agreements 4-1 Reserved or Settlement Agreement

1. Prior Appellate Activity 5-1 Reserved or Appellate documents

1. Report of Investigation Summary 6-1 Summary

1. Exhibits, Evidence

ATTACHMENT C

NOTICE OF NON-COMPLIANCE (insert case number)

Date Witness Name Address Dear (Insert Name), On XXXXXXXXX, I sent you an e-mail message that outlined the EEO complaint filed by XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX against the Department of Veterans Affairs along with a notice for witnesses and/or management officials. You were identified as a VA employee and witness that may have knowledge of the Complainant’s claims. Your response is critical to the investigation and without your response, the Agency could be subjected to sanction as as outlined in the following Code of Federal Regulations:

29 C.F.R §1614.108(c)(1) indicates that the complainant, the agency, and any employee of a federal agency shall produce such documentary and testimonial evidence, as the EEO Investigator deems necessary.

29 C.F.R §1614.108(c)(3) indicates that when the complainant, or the agency against which a complaint is filed, or its employees fail without good cause shown to respond fully and in a timely fashion to requests for documents, records, comparative data, statistics, affidavits, or the attendance of witness(es)…the decision maker should…(i) draw an adverse inference that the requested information, or the testimony of the requested witness, would have reflected unfavorably on the party refusing to provide the requested information; (ii) consider the matters to which the requested information or testimony pertains to be established in favor of the opposing party; (iii) exclude other evidence offered by the party failing to produce the requested information or witness; (iv) issue a decision fully or partially in favor of the opposing party; or (v) take such other actions as it deems appropriate.

Due to time constraints for conducting federal EEO investigations, I will need to speak with you regarding this EEO complaint before the close of business on (Date). Please call me at (phone number), so that I can gain a better perspective of your knowledge of the claims as outlined in the Complainant’s EEO complaint.

Sincerely, Investigator’s Name

Contractor

ATTACHMENT D

NOTICE OF NON-COMPLIANCE (insert case number)

Date Complainant or Representative Address Dear (Insert Name), On (Date), you were (provided with identify document or contacted to provide testimony) for the complaint identified above. To date, your response has not been received. Your cooperation is essential to the complaint as the regulations require your full and timely cooperation in the process.

29 C.F.R §1614.108(c)(1) indicates that the complainant, the agency, and any employee of a federal agency shall produce such documentary and testimonial evidence, as the EEO Investigator deems necessary.

29 C.F.R §1614.108(c)(3) indicates that when the complainant, or the agency against which a complaint is filed, or its employees fail without good cause shown to respond fully and in a timely fashion to requests for documents, records, comparative data, statistics, affidavits, or the attendance of witness(es)…the decision maker should…(i) draw an adverse inference that the requested information, or the testimony of the requested witness, would have reflected unfavorably on the party refusing to provide the requested information; (ii) consider the matters to which the requested information or testimony pertains to be established in favor of the opposing party; (iii) exclude other evidence offered by the party failing to produce the requested information or witness; (iv) issue a decision fully or partially in favor of the opposing party; or (v) take such other actions as it deems appropriate.

Due to time constraints for conducting federal EEO investigations, I will need to speak with you regarding this EEO complaint before the close of business on (Date). Please call me at (phone number) within 10 days, so that I can gain a better perspective of your knowledge of the claims as outlined in the Complainant’s EEO complaint.

Sincerely, Investigator’s Name

Contractor

ATTACHMENT E

Date:

Vender Name Vendor Address SUBJECT: Assignment of Investigation

1. You are hereby assigned to investigate the following discrimination complaint starting ASSIGNMENT DATE:

Complainant Name – Case No. XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXX Facility Name

2. This letter will be your authorization to: (1) investigate the accepted claim(s) in this complaint; (2) require all employees of the Department of Veterans Affairs to cooperate with the investigation; and (3) require employees of the agency having any knowledge of the matter accepted for investigation to furnish testimony without a pledge of confidence. Pursuant to 29 C.F.R. §1614.108 (c) (2), the Investigator’s authority to administer the oath is automatic during the course of this investigation.

Sincerely, Daniel Spilsbury

OICT Manager

, Facility Director , EEO Manager (Phone: Email:)

ATTACHMENT F

PAST PERFORMANCE REFERENCES

No record of relevant or recent past performance

Past Performance Reference # 1

OFFEROR NAME:

COMPANY who performed this work:

Name of Contracting Organization:

Contract / Task Order Number (for subcontracts, provide the prime contract number and the subcontract number):

Contract Type:

Total Awarded Price/Cost:

Final or Projected Final Total Price/Cost:

Delivery date/Period of performance (including base and options if applicable):

Contracting Officer's Name, Email, and Telephone Number:

Program Manager's Name, Email, and

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code:

Description of the Requirement: Provide a concise explanation of the work performed, specifically related to how it is relevant to this solicitation’s requirements.

Performance: Explain any performance issues or problems that occurred, corrective actions taken, and any expected or realized results based on those corrective actions. Any issues discussed in a CPARS/PPIRS report for this reference are to be addressed.

Past Performance Reference # 2

OFFEROR NAME:

COMPANY who performed this work:

PROPOSED SUBCONTRACTOR

Name of Contracting Organization:

Contract / Task Order Number (for

Contract Type:

Total Awarded Price/Cost:

Final or Projected Final Total Price/Cost:

Delivery date/Period of performance

Contracting Officer's Name, Email, and

Program Manager's Name, Email, and

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code:

Description of the Requirement: Provide a concise explanation of the work performed, specifically related to how it is relevant to this solicitation’s requirements.

Performance: Explain any performance issues or problems that occurred, corrective actions taken, and any expected or realized results based on those corrective actions. Any issues discussed in a CPARS/PPIRS report for this reference are to be addressed.

Past Performance Reference # 3

OFFEROR NAME:

COMPANY who performed this work:

PROPOSED SUBCONTRACTOR

Name of Contracting Organization:

Contract / Task Order Number (for

Contract Type:

Total Awarded Price/Cost:

Final or Projected Final Total Price/Cost:

Delivery date/Period of performance

Contracting Officer's Name, Email, and

Program Manager's Name, Email, and

North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code:

Description of the Requirement: Provide a concise explanation of the work performed, specifically related to how it is relevant to this solicitation’s requirements.

B.3 PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

1.0 INTRODUCTION

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) Office of Resolution Management (ORM) and Diversity Inclusion (DI) has a need for support personnel to provide assistance in ensuring that discrimination complaints are processed fairly, promptly, thoroughly, and in strict compliance with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) regulations and in accordance with Public Law 105-114 (PL105-114) and Title 29 CFR Part 1614.

1.1 BACKGROUND

ORM promotes a healthy working environment through prevention, resolution, and processing of workplace disputes, including complaints of discrimination. We foster prevention by ensuring that managers and staff are educated on the elements of a healthy working environment. ORM has resolution experts who promote and deliver alternative dispute resolution techniques for all workplace disputes, including alleged equal employment opportunity (EEO) discrimination. In cases where resolution cannot be reached informally, ORM processes complaints of EEO discrimination in a timely and proficient manner.

2.0 SCOPE OF WORK

The Government requires contractor support personnel who shall provide support services to assist the VA ORM & DI to fulfill its mission of ensuring that discrimination complaints are processed fairly, promptly, thoroughly, and in strict compliance with the EEOC regulations.

Contractor shall identify a project manager for each awardee to ensure that contractor personnel are properly supervised.

The project manager is required be a fully trained EEO Investigator with current credentials as outlined in EEOC Management Directive (MD) 110. The program manager must possess computer equipment that allows the sending and receiving of encrypted emails or files. The Government personnel will provide access to secured system to transmit files to vendor and investigators.

The Contractor support services shall be conducted in accordance with the PL 105-114, 29 CFR 1614, 29 C.F.R. Part 1614; EEO Management Directive (MD)-110, Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR), Veterans Affairs Acquisition Regulations (VAAR) and all other federal acquisition policies or directives.

2.1 TIME PERIODS

All time periods set out in this PWS are stated in calendar days unless otherwise indicated. The first day counted is the day after the event from which the time period begins to run and the last day of the period shall be included unless it falls on a Saturday or Sunday or federal holiday, in which case the period shall be extended to include the next business day.

2.2 GOVERNMENT TERMS & DEFINITIONS

Additional Issue – An additional claim that is filed with the original formal complaint COR – Contracting Officer Representative Contracting Investigator Email- ORMInvestigationContractingTeam@va.gov EEO – Equal Employment Opportunity EEOC – Equal Employment Opportunity Commission GFP – Government Furnished Property IDIQ- Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quant Letter of Authorization – The letter from the COR that gives the contractor the authority to conduct the EEO investigation OPM & DSS – Office of Personnel Management & Defense Security Service ORM & DI - Office of Resolution Management and Diversity Inclusion PWS – Performance Work Statement ROI – Report of Investigation TMS- Talent Management System VA - United States Department of Veterans Affairs

3.0 CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL

3.1 Project Manager. The Contractor shall provide a Project Manager who shall be responsible for all Contractor work performed under this PWS. The Project Manager is designated as Key by the ORM. The Project Manager shall be a single point of contact for the Contracting Officer and the Contracting Officer Representative (COR).

3.2 Qualified Personnel. The Contractor shall provide qualified and currently credentialed personnel as outlined in EEOC MD-110, personnel to perform all requirements in this PWS and all task orders issued under this contract.

3.3 Employee Conduct. Contractor employees shall remain objective throughout the EEO process and express no opinion to parties or witnesses as to whether prohibited discrimination has occurred.

3.4 Removing Employees for Misconduct or Security Reasons. Contracting Officer has sole discretion, to direct the Contractor to remove any Contractor employee from VA facilities or this contract for misconduct or security reasons. Such removal does not relieve the Contractor of the responsibility to provide sufficient qualified personnel for adequate and timely service.

3.5 Conflict of Interest. Conflicts of interest shall disqualify investigators from performing services under this PWS. The Contractor shall not employ any person who is an employee of the United States Government if that employment would or appear to cause a conflict of interest. If either the Contractor or VA determines that the Contractor and/or an employee of the Contractor faces a potential, perceived, or actual conflict of interest, the individual that determined the existence of the conflict shall notify the other party (i.e. the Contractor/VA) and the Contractor and/or contractor employee shall cease all work on the assigned task. At CO discretion, the Contractor shall provide an acceptable replacement.

4.0 KEY PERSONNEL.

(a) The personnel specified below are considered essential to the work being performed under this contract and may, with the consent of the contracting parties, be changed from time to time during the course of the contract by adding or deleting personnel, as appropriate.

(b) Before removing or replacing any of the specified individuals, the Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer, in writing, no less than fourteen (14) days before the change becomes effective. The Contractor shall submit sufficient information to support the proposed action and to enable the Contracting Officer to evaluate the potential impact of the change on this contract. The Contractor shall not remove or replace personnel until the Contracting Officer approves the change. The following are designated as Key Personnel under this contract:

Project Manager

(c) The C&A requirements do not apply, and a security accreditation package is not required.

5.0 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance for ordering under this IDIQ will not exceed five (5) years from the effective date of the agreement.

6.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

The place of performance will be specified within each Order. The Government anticipates the services to be provided will be primarily performed at the contractor’s site. In the instance where the contractor is required to work at the Government site, work shall not take place on Federal holidays unless directed by the Contracting Officer.

7.0 TYPE OF CONTRACT

This PWS is for a Multiple-Award Firm-Fixed Price (FFP) IDIQ under the Federal Supply Schedule (FSS) Schedule 738 X, Category 595 25. Orders issued under this agreement will be FFP. The Contractor shall provide all equipment and resources necessary to accomplish the requirements described in this PWS.

This PWS is for a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) IDIQ under the NAICS of 561611 for a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB). Orders under this agreement will be FFP. The Contractor shall provide all equipment and resources necessary to accomplish the requirements described in this PWS.

8.0 SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS/TASKS

The following requirements apply to all Orders placed against this IDIQ/TO.

8.1 Investigation of Discrimination Complaints

This requirement includes, but is not limited to, interviews of parties and witnesses, requests for evidence and obtaining the necessary evidence and relevant statistical evidence, compilation of investigative files and preparation of the ROI. All harassment/hostile work environment complaints shall be identified as a one claim cost with several incidents and not treated as additional issues. The COR will determine the type of complaint (e.g. individual complaint, consolidated complaint) and number of issues contained in each complaint. Any disagreement between COR and the Contractor regarding the type of complaint and/or number of issues will be resolved through discussion between CO, COR and the Contractor. All investigations shall be conducted in accordance with EEOC Regulations at 29 C.F.R.§1614 et. seq. and MD-110.

8.2 Method of Investigations. Investigations can either be conducted telephonically or through written interrogatory. Regardless of method the following template shall be utilized for testimony. (ATTACHMENT A)

8.3 Amendments. The Contractor shall notify the COR immediately whenever the complainant indicates a desire to amend a complaint, and shall proceed with the investigation according to the amended complaint only upon approval from the COR.

8.4 Report of Investigation (ROI). Upon completion of the investigation, the ROI, a word version table of contents and investigative summary shall be submitted through the Agency’s exchange server in the designated folder provided. The ROI should be in accordance with EEOC MD 110 (Chapter 6) with regard to sufficiency and in the following standard format/Table of Contents in ATTACHMENT B. Each exhibit shall be bookmarked identically to its title in table of contents, be a fully searchable PDF document and is required to be legible. If the Agency’s exchange server is not operational for more than 48 hours, the contractor should submit the completed ROI on a CD-r (non-rewritable format). The ROI is due sixty (60) calendar days after the assignment date of the investigation. Exceptions and extensions due to emergent problems shall require coordination and approval by the COR. Extension for the delivery of the ROI must be requested two weeks prior to the due date.

8.5 ROI Format. The ROI shall include the applicable files referenced in the sample format outlined in Chapter 6 of MD-110 and meet the general requirements and digital bookmark requirements as outlined in MD-110. Each exhibit shall be bookmarked identically to its title in table of contents, be a fully searchable PDF document and is required to be legible. The ROI shall not exceed 50,000KB. The ROI shall not be bates numbered by the Contractor.

8.6 Corrections to the ROI. When COR determines that corrective investigative action is required after the Contractor submits the investigative file, the Contractor shall respond to the COR’s request for corrective action, within five (5) business days after notification. In the event the Contractor is unable to complete the corrective action within five (5) business days, the Contractor shall provide a written explanation and estimated timeline for completing the action.

8.7 Documents. All documents shall be legible. The documents shall not contain active hyperlinks, contain other documents imbedded that have not been downloaded, or any PDF documents in portfolio mode.

8.8 Sanitization. The ROI shall be redacted in accordance with the guidance outlined in EEOC-MD110. In addition, any reference to patient or beneficiary of the Agency should be completely redacted. In age discrimination complaints, only the year of birth and individual’s age shall be provided (e.g. 1970). If there is a question as to whether information represents PII that should be sanitized, the Contractor shall contact the COR for guidance.

8.9 Affidavits. The Agency requires signed affidavits. Acceptable formats include digital signature and wet signatures. In the event the signature is not secured the file should reflect attempts to acquire the signed affidavit. Each affidavit shall identify the questions presented to the affiant followed by the affiant’s response. Each affidavit shall be in the question and answer format.

8.10 Lack of Response. If a complainant, witness or responding management official fails to respond to the investigators attempt to obtain testimony within 5 days, the Contractor shall issue a notice of witness non-compliance (ATTACHMENT C) and complainant non-compliance (ATTACHMENT D) as attached. If after issuing a notice of non-compliance and the witness fails to comply, the Contractor shall immediately notify the COR.

8.11 Extensions to the 180-day Investigative Time Frame. All extensions to the investigative time frame, other than unilateral extensions described in EEOC Regulation 29 C.F.R. § 1614.108(e), must be a written agreement between the complainant and ORM.

8.12 Status Reports

The Project Manager shall provide responses to all status reports through the Agency’s exchange server. All reports must be completed in their entirety as directed by the Government.

· The initial report shall contain case number, complainants full name, identity of investigator and shall be submitted by the 10th of the month.

· The 30 day shall contain case number, complainants full name, identity of investigator, the identity and status of all testimony of relevant witness, the status of the document request, and projected submission date.

· The 45 day shall contain case number, complainants full name, identity of investigator, the identity and status of all testimony of relevant witness, the status of the document request, confirmation of meeting projected submission date, any authorized extension by COR.

8.13 Communication Plan

At the commencement of the investigation, the assigned contract investigator shall contact the local EEO Manager/Liaison identified on the assignment letter issued by the Agency via email. Assignment Letter (ATTACHMENT E) The email shall be titled “Official Correspondence”. The investigator shall introduce themselves and identify the Contractor to which they are employed. The signatory block of the assigned investigator shall include a reference to the Prime Contractor. They shall follow up on the status of document request already made by the agency and to obtain contact information for pertinent Agency witnesses. The contract investigator shall provide the Local EEO Manager/Liaison with the names of Responding Management Officials (RMO)s and request a local Subject Matter Expert (SME) as needed.

When the local EEO Manager/Liaison indicates requested documents have been submitted, follow up shall be made with the ORM & DI Investigations Contracting Team group email. In circumstances where additional documents are determined to be necessary or requested documents are missing from the submission, the local EEO Manager/Liaison shall be contacted by the contractor investigator to obtain the documents or an explanation as to their omission. Two attempts shall be made to obtain documents. If the two attempts are unsuccessful, the contractor investigator shall note the omission in the summary and cite exhibit containing the evidence of the attempts.

Email correspondence to all relevant witnesses should be titled “Official Correspondence” and shall not include any reference to the complainant’s name and case number. The contract investigator shall use the complainant’s last name and last six of complaint number as necessary in the body of the email. Emails containing PII shall be sent encrypted. All introductory correspondence shall include an explanation for the correspondence and a copy of the assignment letter. The signatory block of the assigned investigator shall include a reference to the Prime Contractor.

The local EEO Manager/EEO Liaison shall be contacted by email if an RMO or SME fails to provide testimony or fails to return the signed affidavit or interrogatory after expiration of notice of non-compliance as provided by the contract investigator. The COR shall be notified when either the complainant or RMO fails to provide testimony prior to the submission of the ROI after two valid attempts have been made.

Documents received after investigation is submitted, documents shall be uploaded to the government exchange server in the complainant’s file. An email shall be sent to the contract investigation email. All documents shall be in a PDF format, redacted and searchable.

9.0 DELIVERABLES TABLE

10.0 GOVERNMENT-FURNISHED PROPERTY

There will be no Government-furnished property and/or equipment.

11.0 TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS

No travel required

12.0 SKILL OR RELEVANT EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENT

Individuals serving as EEO investigators must satisfy the mandatory training requirements set forth by EEOC (EEOC MD-110). All new EEO investigators, including contract and collateral duty investigators, must have completed at least thirty-two (32) hours of investigator training before conducting investigations. The continuing eight hours of investigator training every year is intended to keep EEO investigators informed of developments in EEO practice, law, and guidance, as well as to enhance and develop investigatory skills.

13.0 ENCRYPTED E-MAIL COMMUNICATIONS WITH THE VA

Contractors have a responsibility to protect sensitive and confidential information that they possess. When communicating with VA employees via electronic mail, Public Key Infrastructure (PKI) will be used to send all sensitive information, personal health information and personally identifiable information.

14.0 VA INFORMATION AND INFORMATION SYSTEM SECURITY/PRIVACY REQUIREMENTS 14.1 GENERAL Contractors, contractor personnel, subcontractors, and subcontractor personnel shall be subject to the same Federal laws, regulations, standards, and VA Directives and Handbooks as VA and VA personnel regarding information and information system security.

14.2 ACCESS TO VA INFORMATION AND VA INFORMATION SYSTEMS

a. A contractor/subcontractor shall request logical (technical) or physical access to VA information and VA information systems for their employees, subcontractors, and affiliates only to the extent necessary to perform the services specified in the contract, agreement, or task order.

b. All contractors, subcontractors, and third-party servicers and associates working with VA information are subject to the same investigative requirements as those of VA appointees or employees who have access to the same types of information. The level and process of background security investigations for contractors must be in accordance with VA Directive and Handbook 0710, Personnel Suitability and Security Program. The Office for Operations, Security, and Preparedness is responsible for these policies and procedures.

c. The contractor or subcontractor must…