36C24C26R0004 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

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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)

09-03-2026

131-26-4-2416-0059

None 36C24C Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Procurement Office, Central 1639 Medical Center Parkway Suite 204 Murfreesboro TN 37129

36C24C Department of Veterans Affairs Regional Procurement Office, Central 1639 Medical Center Parkway Suite 204 Murfreesboro TN 37129 To all Offerors/Bidders

36C24C26R0004

X

This amendment is being issued to provide responses to vendor questions received for the solicitation action stated in Section 9A.

All other terms and conditions remain unchanged. The response due date has not changed and remains September 8, 2026 at

1 PM ET.

Kymberly Morgan Contracting Officer

Vendor questions submitted for RFP #36C24C26R0004 – Salary Survey Data and Analysis

1. Request for Proposal (RFP) Section E.1: Section E.1 (Addendum to FAR 52.212-1, Volume IV – Veterans Involvement Factor) and Section E.7 (FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation, Veterans Involvement Approach) state that Offerors proposing to use SDVOSBs or VOSBs as subcontractors will receive "some consideration" under the Veterans Involvement evaluation factor, based on the dollar value of the proposed subcontract(s). Can the Government clarify how the proposed subcontract dollar value (e.g., as a percentage of total proposed price) will be weighted in determining the level of credit awarded to a Non-SDVOSB/VOSB prime offeror?

Answer: Non-SDVOSB/VOSB Offerors proposing to use SDVOSBs or VOSBs as subcontractors will receive some consideration under this evaluation factor. The credit for “some consideration” is not based on the dollar value.

2. RFP Section B.2 IT Contract Security: The Performance Work Statement on page 7, paragraph (g) states: "If a VHA contract is terminated for cause, the associated BAA must also be terminated and appropriate actions taken in accordance with VHA Handbook 1600.01, Business Associate Agreements." However, we have not located a BAA template or BAA requirements in the solicitation documents. Will the Government provide a BAA template for offerors to review? If a BAA is required as part of the proposal submission, please clarify where this template can be found or when it will be made available.

Answer: Prior to solicitation, a security risk analysis was completed, and a BAA will not be required for this contract.

3. RFP Section C.11 (VAAR 852.239-70) Section C.12 (VAAR 852.239-71), and Section E.1 Volume I - Technical Factor: VAAR Clause 852.239-70, "Security Requirements for Information Technology Resources," incorporated by reference in Section C.11 (page 48), requires contractors to develop, provide, implement, and maintain an Information System Security Plan within 90 days after contract award. Additionally, VAAR Clause 852.239-71, "Information System Security Plan and Accreditation," incorporated by reference in Section C.12 (page 51), states that "All offers submitted in response to this solicitation or request for quotation shall address the approach for completing the security plan and accreditation requirements in clause 852.239-70. However, the Technical Volume evaluation criteria outlined in Section E.1 (pages 58-59) under Subfactor 2 - Technical Capability specifies only three areas to address: (a) Survey Data Analysis, (b) Enterprise Compensation Solution, and (c) Job Architecture. Should offerors address their approach to developing and implementing the Information System Security Plan and obtaining security accreditation as part of the Technical Volume submission, or is this strictly a post-award contract requirement that should not be included in the proposal?

Answer: Offerors should not address their approach to developing and implementing the Information Security Plan as part of the Technical Volume submission. VAAR 852.239-70, (d) Submittal of plan. Within 90 days after contract award, the Contractor shall submit the Information System Security Plan to the Contracting Officer for review and approval.

4. RFP Solicitation number: The SF 1449 in the posted package carries solicitation number 36C24C26R0004, while the presolicitation description references Request for Proposals 36C24C26R0005, and no separate notice under 36C24C26R0005 appears on Contract Opportunities. Which solicitation number should offerors cite on the SF 1449, in file names, and in the email subject line at submission?

Answer: A modification to the pre-solicitation notice was posted on 08/21/2026 as document 36C24C26R0004_1 that corrected the pre-solicitation notice. The correct solicitation number is 36C24C26R0004.

5. Performance Work Statement (PWS)/Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP): Enterprise Compensation Solution ownership. The QASP (Task 4 row) describes the cloud-based Enterprise Compensation Solution as “to be ultimately owned by the Government,” while PWS Task 4 requires a “widely available service that provides commercially available information to agencies but does not collect Federal information,” and notes the incumbent commercial tool is not required. Does “ultimately owned by the Government” refer to the survey data, VHA configurations, job-architecture content, and all exports (consistent with Task 3, “The VA will be the owner of the survey data purchased”), with the underlying commercial software platform licensed for Government use, or does the Government intend to take title to the underlying commercial software itself?

Answer: VHA does not intend to take ownership of the commercial software platform. The platform will serve as a repository for licensed users to access survey data purchased by VHA.

6. PWS: Survey count and list composition. PWS Attachment 1 lists 46 surveys across 15 publishers, and the CLIN structure prices 50 units per year for Tasks 2 and 3. (a) Should offerors price the stated quantity of 50 units per year? (b) Will the Government approve list additions or substitutions within the awarded unit-price framework as the list changes from year to year?

Answer: Yes, identification/review is a collaborative effort with VHA providing final approval of the list. VHA has acquired approximately 50 reports annually from various sources/organizations, most of which have been recurring purchases from the same sources.

7. PWS: ERI geographic differential report. PWS Subtask 3.2 notes VHA presently utilizes the Economic Research Institute geographical differential report, “included in the overall data purchase.” Is the ERI differential report to be treated as one of the approximately 50 surveys on Attachment 1, or as an additional purchase under Task 3?

Answer: The Economic Research Institute (ERI) geographical differential report is not to be treated as one of the surveys on Attachment 1. Task 3 including Subtasks 3.1 and 3.2 should be included in applicable CLIN as stated in the schedule in Section B (i.e., CLIN 0006).

8. A note for context before Questions 8 and 9. In preparing to propose, our team reviewed the prior contract actions for this requirement on the public record and obtained current published rate schedules from major Attachment 1 publishers. Our compensation practice works with these publishers' products routinely as analysts; the diligence targeted the one element this contract makes unusual, the Contractor's seat as the Government's buying agent across approximately 50 surveys, so these questions come from close study rather than unfamiliarity. As the PWS structures it, survey purchasing is a pass-through: Task 3 states that “The VA will be the owner of the survey data purchased,” and the price paid for the same approximately 50 surveys turns principally on the Government's own participation posture, because publishers maintain materially different rate tiers for participant and non-participant purchasers.

PWS. Survey participation, historical structure. PWS Tasks 2 and 3 have the Contractor participating in surveys and purchasing survey data “on behalf of VHA,” and Task 3 states plainly that “The VA will be the owner of the survey data purchased.” We understand that to be the Government's ownership posture going forward, and our approach is built to it. For the historical record that informs transition planning and pricing: under the current and predecessor salary survey contracts, has VHA been the named survey participant and licensee of record with the third-party publishers, with the contractor acting as VHA's agent, or have the participation accounts and data licenses been held in the contractor's own name?

Answer: The contractor acts as VHA’s agent and that the named survey participant and licensee of record is VHA. Some surveys may require the contractor to sign an agreement to accomplish this.

9. PWS. Historical survey purchase basis. Several Attachment 1 publishers maintain participant and non-participant rate tiers that differ substantially. (a) Historically, have the approximately 50 surveys been purchased at publisher participant rates or non-participant rates? (b) So that offerors can price the 50-unit purchase CLINs on a common basis, can the Government share the most recent annual purchase cost for the Attachment 1 surveys, or a historical cost range?

Answer: a.) VHA participates so pricing should reflect participant rates. b.) This information is publicly available on the survey websites.

10. PWS. Incumbent database migration. PWS Task 4 notes “the contents of the existing database can be migrated as a starting point, if needed,” and Task 5 notes the existing Job Architecture catalog likewise. Will the Government furnish the existing database contents (including data dictionary, geographic differential tables, and job-match crosswalks) and the existing JA catalog at or before kickoff, and in what format?

Answer: Yes. Formats will range from Microsoft Word to Excel.

11. PWS. Security boundary for the commercial solution. PWS Task 4 requires a solution that “does not collect Federal information.” (a) Do the assessment and authorization requirements of VAAR 852.239-70/-71/-73 apply only to systems that host, operate, or process VA information? (b) Is a commercial solution containing only commercially available survey data, and no Federal information, therefore outside that accreditation boundary, with VA-furnished employee data handled under Task 2 remaining subject to the Section B.2 handling, FIPS 140-2 encryption, and personnel-vetting requirements?

Answer: Information Technology (IT): Any equipment or interconnected system or subsystem of equipment that is used in the automatic acquisition, storage, manipulation, management, movement, control, display, switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of data or information by the executive agency. For purposes of the preceding sentence, equipment is used by an executive agency if the equipment is used by the executive agency directly or is used by a contractor under a contract with the executive agency which: (i) requires the use of such equipment, or (ii) requires the use, to a significant extent, of such equipment in the performance of a service or the furnishing of a product. The term IT includes computers, ancillary equipment, software, firmware and similar procedures, services (including support services), and related resources. SOURCE: NIST SP 800-53

VAAR 852.239-70 is applicable to all or any part of the contract that includes information technology resources or services in which the Contractor has physical or other system access to VA information that directly supports the mission of VA. Examples of tasks that require security provisions include—

(1) Hosting of VA e-Government sites or other information technology operations;

(2) Acquisition, transmission, or analysis of data owned by VA with significant replacement cost should the contractor’s copy be corrupted; and

(3) Access to VA general support systems/ major applications at a level beyond that granted the general public, e.g., bypassing a firewall.

VAAR 852.239-70, (d) Submittal of plan. Within 90 days after contract award, the Contractor shall submit the Information System Security Plan to the Contracting Officer for review and approval.

VAAR 852.239-73 (b) Hosting, operation, maintenance, or use at non-VA facilities. For information systems that are hosted, operated, maintained, or used on behalf of VA at non-VA facilities, Contractors/subcontractors are fully responsible and accountable for ensuring compliance with the applicable Health Insurance Portability and Accountability (HIPAA) Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy and Security Rules, the Privacy Act and other required VA confidentiality statutes included in VA’s mandatory yearly training and privacy handbooks, Federal Information Security Modernization Act (FISMA), National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS), and VA security and privacy directives and handbooks.

(c) Collecting, processing, transmitting, and storing of VA sensitive information. Adequate security controls for collecting, processing, transmitting, and storing of VA sensitive information, must be in place, tested, and approved by VA prior to hosting, operation, maintenance, or use of the information system, or systems by or on behalf of VA.

12. PWS. VA data delivery timing. Subtask 2.1 states the VA provides data files annually and that files “should not contain PII.” (a) Will VA perform PII screening before transmission? (b) In which month or months should the Contractor expect the annual employee data files? Several major publishers open their submission cycles in the first full week of January, so delivery timing drives the participation calendar the Contractor must publish under Task 1.

Answer: a.) Yes, VA does not transmit PII. b.) The information is typically provided at the beginning of each calendar year, after the annual pay adjustment for federal employees takes place and prior the participation and purchasing cycle.

13. PWS. Meetings and travel. The principal place of performance is the Contractor's facilities and no travel CLIN exists. May the kickoff meeting and quarterly meetings be conducted virtually? If on-site attendance is required, at which location and with what expected frequency, so offerors can include travel in their firm-fixed prices?

Answer: No travel is expected for this requirement. Meetings shall be virtual.

14. PWS. Option-year training. Base CLIN 0008 covers the instruction guide and initial training; option CLINs x006 cover annual guide updates and “training on updates as needed.” Is full end-user training a base-year requirement, with option-year training limited to update-driven training?

Answer: Yes, if needed.

15. RFP. Desktop and browser configuration. Section B.2, paragraph 4.b requires the Contractor to certify that applications "are fully functional and operate correctly as intended on systems using the VA Federal Desktop Core Configuration (FDCC), and the common security configuration guidelines provided by NIST or the VA," and states that this "includes Internet Explorer 7 configured to operate on Windows XP and Vista (in Protected Mode on Vista) and future versions, as required." Please confirm that the operative requirement is compatibility with VA's current desktop configuration and its currently supported browsers, and that the references to Internet Explorer 7, Windows XP, and Windows Vista are retained legacy text that does not apply to this requirement.

Answer: Section B.2, paragraph 4.b includes the term “and future versions.” VA is currently using Windows 11 and the Microsoft Office 365 suite. Desktop and browser configurations do not need to be compatible with previous versions.

16. RFP. Accessibility conformance. The solicitation incorporates VAAR 852.239-75, Information and Communication Technology Accessibility Notice. For the cloud-based Enterprise Compensation Solution required under PWS Task 4: (a) which accessibility standards apply, and (b) will the Government accept a supplier's Accessibility Conformance Report, or does it require conformance validated by an independent third party?

Answer: Section 508 Standards found at Section508.gov are the official U.S. government resource for ensuring digital accessibility compliance. The Enterprise Compensation Solution would need to be compatible with the Section 508 standards found relevant to this requirement in pre-solicitation planning: E206 Hardware, E207 Software and E302 Functional Performance Criteria.

End of Document