36C10X24Q0185.docx

SUBJECT*

Request for Information Veterans Board of Appeals (VBA) Proceeding Support Services

GENERAL INFORMATION

SET-ASIDE

Department of Veterans Affairs

5202 Presidents Court, Suite 103 Frederick MD 21703

POINT OF CONTACT*

Shawn Johnson Shawn.Johnson6@va.gov (574)335-9783

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

AGENCY’S URL

URL DESCRIPTION

AGENCY CONTACT’S EMAIL ADDRESS

EMAIL DESCRIPTION

Request for Information (RFI)

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is issuing this RFI in accordance with FAR 15.201(e). This RFI is issued for the purpose of conducting capabilities and market research. Accordingly, this RFI constitutes neither a Request for Proposal (RFP) nor a guarantee that one will be issued by the Government in the future; furthermore, it does not commit the Government to contract for any services described herein. Do not submit a Proposal. The VA is not at this time, seeking proposals or quotes and therefore will not accept, review, or evaluate unsolicited proposals or quotes received in response hereto. This notice is not to be construed as a commitment on the part of the Government to award a contract, nor does the Government intend to pay for any information submitted as a result of this request. The Government does not reimburse respondents for costs associated with submission of the information being requested or reimburse expenses incurred for responses to this RFI. The information provided may be used by VA in developing an acquisition strategy and Product Description (PD)/Performance Work Statement (PWS). Any information submitted by respondents to this RFI is strictly voluntary; however, any information received shall become the property of the Government and will not be returned to the respondent. Interested parties are responsible for adequately marking proprietary, restricted or sensitive information contained in their response. This is a request for information only and does not obligate the Government in any way, nor does it commit the Government to a specific course of action. The Government is seeking as much information as possible and a complete response from industry to this RFI during this market research activity may assist the Government in developing an acquisition strategy and finalizing any PD/PWS.

Background

On July 28, 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the Board of Veterans’ Appeals (Board) by Executive Order 6230, Veterans Regulation No. 2(a). The Board was delegated the authority to render the final decisions on appeal for the Administrator (now Secretary) and was directly responsible to the Administrator (Secretary). The Board was charged “to provide every possible assistance” to claimants and to take final action that would “be fair to the Veteran as well as the Government.” The Board continues to meet this charge.

The Board is comprised of a Chairman, Vice Chairman, and such number of Veterans Law Judges and Board members as necessary to meet the Board’s mission to conduct proceedings and dispose of appeals properly before the Board in a timely manner.

Objective

The Board of Veterans’ Appeals is seeking a qualified contractor(s) to provide legal proceeding support services, which include transcription, court reporting, and proofreading/editing of a provided transcript against a proceeding recording.

1. The goal of this contract is to ensure that all legal proceedings held by the Board are accurately transcribed and documented, with clear, concise, and unbiased reports, to support the Board in making well-informed, just decisions regarding Veteran's benefits disputes. The legal proceeding support services required under this PWS are:

2. Transcription Services: The contractor shall provide secure and accurate transcription services for all legal proceedings and labor dispute proceedings conducted by the Board. The contractor will be responsible for transcribing all audio and video recordings of legal proceedings and labor dispute proceedings conducted by the Board and its counsel.

3. Court Reporting Services: The contractor shall provide skilled and professional court reporters to assist with legal proceeding and labor dispute proceedings. The court reporter will be responsible for accurately recording all spoken dialogue, including questions, answers, and objections, during the proceeding/proceeding process.

4. Proofreading Services: The contractor shall provide a proofreading service to ensure that all proceeding transcripts are free from errors, omissions, or inaccuracies in spelling, grammar, and punctuation, and report on errors found. This includes any AI-generated transcripts with audio files provided by the Boards.

5. The contractor shall provide all resources required for the provision of legal proceeding support services under this contract, including personnel, equipment, software, and materials. The contractor will be responsible for meeting all service level agreements, quality standards, and timelines specified under the contract.

6. The successful contractor must have a minimum of five years of experience in providing legal proceeding support services to government agencies. They must also have a proven record of delivering timely and high-quality services, and must have all the necessary licenses, certifications, and accreditations to provide services to the Board.

7. The contract will be for a twelve-month base period of performance, with an option to extend for four additional twelve-month periods, subject to satisfactory performance evaluations.

Please see attached document - RFI DRAFT PWS - Proceedings Support Services

THERE IS NO SOLICITATION AT THIS TIME.

If your organization has the potential capacity to perform these services through a contract with VA, please provide the following information:

Cover Sheet – 1 page

Please provide the following information:

1. Organization name, address, web site, DUNS number, and CAGE code.

2. Point of contact to include e-mail address and telephone number.

3. Company’s current business size (large or small). If small, please provide type of small business.

4. North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) that best fits these task areas.

5. If applicable, GSA contract number, schedule, and SIN category.

Index – 1 page

Please provide an index to assist the Government in identifying where you have addressed each question below in your Capabilities Statement and Market Information. Please provide question number and corresponding page and section heading and/or paragraph number.

Capabilities Statement and Market Information –

Please respond to the following questions by providing a capabilities statement and market information.

The VA is seeking responses from industry regarding their respective experiences and capabilities applicable to the following key questions:

1. Please describe your organization's breadth of expertise/competency to provide legal proceedings support services (transcription, court reporting, and proofreading/editing services for all designated legal proceedings held by the Board.

2. Describe how you currently provide these services.

3. Describe common pricing structures for these services. Task 1.3 - Price for transcription work order (e.g., price per page, price per line, hourly rate), Task 2 - Price for Court Reporting Services and Transcription of live virtual or in-person Proceedings (e.g., price per page, price per line, hourly rate), Task 3 Price for Proof-reading and Editing of AI-generated transcripts (e.g., price per page, price per line, hourly rate).

4. Have you provided these services for a federal department or agency previously, or are you doing so currently? If so,

a. Provide contract and task order numbers, total award amount, agency name, procurement method and vehicle (e.g., open market single award, GSA Federal Supply Schedule, internal agency ordering contract, etc.),

b. Describe the contract type/pricing structure (e.g., firm-fixed price, cost-reimbursement, labor hour, indefinite-delivery, indefinite-quantity (IDIQ), hybrid type, etc.).

5. Is there any other information the Government should know or consider for developing a solicitation for these services?

STRUCTURE AND SUBMISSION OF RESPONSES

Contractors should respond to this RFI by Monday, May 13, 2024 by 5:00 PM EDT via e-mail to Shawn.Johnson6@va.gov and Rebecca.Ubert@va.gov. Limit all responses to 8 pages, excluding the coversheet and index.

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