36C25623Q0756 0002.pdf

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)

1 2

Department of Veterans Affairs Overton Brooks VA Medical Center (90C) 510 East Stoner Avenue Shreveport LA 71101

Department of Veterans Affairs Overton Brooks VA Medical Center (90C) 510 East Stoner Avenue Shreveport LA 71101

To all Offerors/Bidders

36C25623Q0756

X

X X

05/08/2023 15:30 Central

See CONTINUATION Page

The purpose of this modification is to revise the Statement of Work (SOW) to include information requested by potential offerors of the RFQ. The new information can be found at the end of the revised SOW. Also, the date and time for receipt of proposals is extended to 5/8/2023 at 15:30 Central time.

The revised SOW is attached to this document.

If you wish to revise a proposal previously sent to the CO, please sign this document below and include with your new proposal.

The description in the CLIN schedule is changed to highlight that the Qty stated is an Estimate and could change.

Bennett W Smith bennett.smith2@va.gov

CONTINUATION PAGE

A.1 PRICE/COST SCHEDULE

ITEM INFORMATION

ITEM

NUMBER

DESCRIPTION OF

SUPPLIES/SERVICES QUANTITY UNIT

UNIT

PRICE AMOUNT

3,000.00

EST

BX ________ _________

Bulk shredding of sensitive items in accordance with the attached Statement of Work. It is estimated that 3000 Boxes of material will be shredded. More or fewer may be required. If it becomes apparent that more than 3000 boxes will require shredding, the contract will need a modification to increase the quantity.

Contract Period: Base POP Begin: 04-24-2023 POP End: 05-31-2023

GRAND

TOTAL

A.2 DELIVERY SCHEDULE

ITEM NUMBER QUANTITY

DELIVERY

DATE

0001 SHIP TO: Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System 4300 W 7th St Little Rock, AR 72205

USA

3,000.00

EST

NLT 5/31/2023

SEE ATTACHED STATEMENT OF WORK THAT FOLLOWS

Statement of Work (SOW)

Bulk Shredding Contract

Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System

Eugene J. Towbin Healthcare Center

2200 Fort Roots Drive, North Little Rock, AR 72114

BACKGROUND:

Central Arkansas Veteran Healthcare System (CAVHS) is seeking the services of a one-time bulk shredding contract that can dispose of approximately 3,000 boxes of confidential waste. Due to the overflow and need of relocating a file room, the CAVHS is requesting immediate service from a reputable, technically capable shredding company.

SCOPE:

The contractor shall provide all labor, tools, materials, equipment, transportation, and supervision necessary to provide full service on-site commercial document destruction services for confidential waste. This is including but not limited to all Records in all media forms including but not limited to:

papers, sensitive documents, hard bound journals, magazines, white and mixed paper, microfilm, film, micro fish, CDs, VHS Tapes, Cassettes, USB, and Hard Bound. Such documentation contains personally identifiable information (PII), personal health information (PHI), and VA sensitive information for the Central Arkansas Veterans.

Full service indicates the contractor shall retrieve all confidential waste from a specified location within Building 170, Room GJ-100 and Building 111, Room 1a with equipment provided by the contractor. After which the contractor shall transport the confidential waste to the shredding vehicle/site to conduct on site shredding.

Materials collected for destruction and disposal shall be secured until the confidential material is rendered unrecognizable. All disposals shall be in accordance with National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 800-88 Guidelines for Media Sanitization and Federal Information Processing Standards (FIPS) 199 Security Categorization of the System Confidentiality. The contractor shall protect, safeguard, control, manage and destroy VA designated confidential documents complying with VA Directive 6371, dated April 8, 2014. The contractor shall be monitored by, Central Business Office (CBO) staff, while in possession of confidential material until said material is rendered unrecognizable.

Final destruction of the record is the process of destroying temporary paper records to the degree that they are no longer readable or re-constructible to any degree. The Contractor will transport the on-site shredded materials to the destination for final destruction. At the final destruction facility, the paper shall be placed into a hydro pulper, mixed with water and blended into a pulp like consistency where the individual fibers are separated. The pulp like consistency goes through a series of operations including cleaning, washing, and color stripping where contaminants are removed. The final product is recycled pulp.

Certificate of Destruction: For interim destruction (shredding on-site) written documentation consisting of an inventory of the amount of paper records collected on the date of service will be provided by the Contactor at end of day. Additionally, written documentation (certificate of destruction) shall be provided by the contractor to attest to the completion of the destruction process after the final destruction of VA records has taken place.

If on-site mobile shredding equipment cannot shred documents in accordance with final destruction protocol, (non-readable or non-re-constructible) to any degree, and the final destruction is performed away from the VA facility it must be performed as per VA Directive 6371.

Contractor shall provide a Local Program Manager to oversee contract services.

Shredding will be conducted On Site with a CBO representative present.

At no point can the contract be altered without the notification and pre-approval of Contracting Officer

(CO).

A scheduled site visit will be required, no less than five business days of the contract being awarded.

Work must be completed and certification of the destruction provided to the COR within 30 days of contract award date.

APPLICABLE DOCUMENTS, STANDARDS, LAWS AND/OR REGULATIONS:

Contractor is solely responsible for meeting any current or future requirements approvals or certifications as may be levied by applicable legal, regulatory, accrediting body, governing body, and/or local/state/federal requirements as required by law. Due to continuous regulatory changes in both federal and state laws, the contractor shall be in compliance of new regulations within thirty (30) calendar days of the effective date of the regulatory change. A list of applicable documents, standards, laws and/or regulations will be provided below. This list is not all-inclusive; therefore, it is the responsibility of the contractor to ensure all applicable standards, policies, regulations, and/or governing bodies not listed here are adhered to. Furthermore, the contractor is responsible to adhere to all current applicable standards, policies, regulations, and/or governing bodies.

a. VA Directive 6371, dated April 8, 2014,

b. NIST Special Publication 800-88, Revision 1

c. Federal Information Processing Standard (FIPS 199), Standards for Security Categorization of Federal Information and Information Systems

d. National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) Standards

e. FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors - Commercial Items (Jan 2017)

f. VA Handbook 6300.1 dated March 24, 2010

NON-DISCLOSURE OF SENSITIVE INFORMATION:

Contractor staff involved in this contract will have access to some privileged and confidential materials of the US Government. These printed and electronic documents are for internal use only and remain the sole property of the US Government. Some of the materials are protected by Privacy Act of 1974 (Amended) and Title 38. Unauthorized disclosure of Privacy Act or Title 38 covered materials, by any contractor or subcontracted staff, is a criminal offense. The contractor is responsible for actions of all contract and subcontractor employees.

The contractor acknowledges that in the performance of this contract, the contractor will have access to sensitive information, including information provided on a proprietary basis by carriers, equipment manufacturers, and other private or public entities. The contractor agrees to safeguard these privileges and use the information exclusively in the performance of this contract. The contractor shall comply with applicable Government regulations regarding information document security to prevent disclosure of sensitive information to unauthorized individuals or organizations.

CONTRACTORS QUALIFICATIONS:

As per VA Directive 6371, Appendix A - Item 7, Contractor must be: a. A National Association for Information Destruction (NAID) certified, bonded, and insured contractor (and its subcontractors or third parties) for paper/printed media destruction who has contracted to provide sufficient reasonable safeguards to protect the temporary paper records until final destruction has been completed.

A non-NAID-certified contractor (and its subcontractors or third parties) who can satisfy the standards outlined in VA Directive 6371, Appendix A, and all the standards outlined, and links provided in the APPLICABLE DOCUMENTS, STANDARDS, LAWS AND/OR REGULATIONS section above.

CERTIFICATE OF DESTRUCTION:

The contractor shall prepare and submit to the medical facility’s COR, an original signed Certificate of Destruction (COD) for each pick up for each site upon completion. The COD may be sent via an electronic copy to the COR. The contractor shall maintain proper records concerning each COD issued.

The COD shall as a minimum contain the following:

a. Pickup/Delivery Location

b. Pickup/Delivery Date

c. Name of Government COR at Pickup Location

d. Amount of shredded waste (number of containers picked up and/or pounds shredded)

e. Destruction Certification Document Number

f. Destruction Certification Date

g. Any other information as determined necessary by the COR.

h. Signature of personnel viewing and confirming final destruction.

CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL, BADGES, AND PARKING:

The contractor shall provide the COR with a list of employees expected to enter Government property to pick up confidential documents. While on VA premises, all contractor personnel shall comply with the rules, regulations, and procedures governing the conduct of personnel and the operation of the facility.

All Contractor personnel are required to be aware of and observe security, safety and environmental requirements of each Government facility, including, but not limited to restricted area access, observing vehicle parking regulations and smoking restrictions.

Identification Badges: Contractor employees are to wear their access badge in such a way that the name and photo of the employee is visible to any person standing within six (6) feet in front of him/her.

The contractor personnel will check in with the VA Police Dispatch Office. The contractor employee will leave a driver’s license and will be checked in/out utilizing an electronic vendor tracking system and issued a vendor badge. Upon initial registration, the name of the contractors will be logged into the police vendor tracking system then will be provided with a non-employee vendor identification badge by VA Police, for use during the visit. All contractors and employees will wear the VA issued identification badge at all times while in the facility and visible to any person standing within six (6) feet in front of him/her.

The contractor personnel must surrender VA issued identification badges to VA Police when leaving the facility. Contractor personnel shall wear distinctive clothing bearing the name of the Contractor, closed toe footwear, wearing badges bearing the Contractor name and the employees name in English.

Furthermore, contractor personnel are prohibited from wearing shorts or sandals while providing services on Government grounds.

The contractor shall be required to comply with all security policies/requirements of each respective Government facility. All security policies/requirements for each employee must be met and issued a badge prior to the contractor performing work under this contract. Those employees unable to meet the security and clearance requirements shall not be allowed to perform work under this contract.

It is the responsibility of the contractor’s personnel to park in the appropriate designated parking areas.

Parking information shall be coordinated with each facility COR. There is sufficient parking and accessibility to all locations and buildings.

The Government does not validate or make reimbursement for parking violations of the contractor’s personnel under any circumstance.

QUALITY CONTROL:

The Contractor shall develop and maintain quality programs to ensure recycling services are performed in accordance with commonly accepted commercial practices and comply with CAVHS requirements.

The Contractor shall develop and implement procedures to identify, prevent, and ensure non-recurrence of defective services.

At a minimum, the Contractor shall develop quality control procedures addressing the areas where Acceptable Quality Level was not met and how corrective action will be taken.

SAFETY:

The Contractor shall have in place a documented and comprehensive Health and Safety program to ensure all shredding activities are provided in a safe and secure manor. As a commitment to safety, the Contractor must be working towards achieving the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s (OSHA) Voluntary Protection Program (VPP) Certification. This must be completed prior to contract award.

CONTRACTOR VEHICLES:

All contractor vehicles utilized in the performance of this contract shall maintain insurance (up to the minimum coverage required by the respective state) and shall maintain current state vehicle registration.

All contractor employees shall possess a valid state driver’s license and. The contractor or his/her employees’ while performing under this contract shall use no personal vehicles to transport containers to and from the government and contractor site.

The contractor shall ensure that all contractor vehicles utilized for this performance contract are kept in proper working condition. The contractor vehicles shall be locked and properly secured at all times while at the government site or in route to and from contractor site. Vehicles used in the performance of the contract shall not be left unattended or unlocked at any time while transporting CAVHS security waste.

Contractor shall provide within 5 days after award, a contingency plan for instances where equipment malfunctions occur during the shredding process, emergency plan of action, and remedy.

There is sufficient parking and accessibility to all locations/buildings. Freight elevators and loading docks are accessible for all trucks to retrieve containers, shred contents, and return the containers, as required.

RECORDS MANAGEMENT OBLIGATIONS:

A. Applicability This clause applies to all Contractors whose employees create, work with, or otherwise handle Federal records, as defined in Section B, regardless of the medium in which the record exists.

B. Definitions “Federal record” as defined in 44 U.S.C. § 3301, includes all recorded information, regardless of form or characteristics, made or received by a Federal agency under Federal law or in connection with the transaction of public business and preserved or appropriate for preservation by that agency or its legitimate successor as evidence of the organization, functions, policies, decisions, procedures, operations, or other activities of the United States Government or because of the informational value of data in them.

The term Federal record:

1. includes [Agency] records.

2. does not include personal materials.

3. applies to records created, received, or maintained by Contractors pursuant to their [Agency] contract.

4. may include deliverables and documentation associated with deliverables.

C. Requirements

1. Contractor shall comply with all applicable records management laws and regulations, as well as National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) records policies, including but not limited to the Federal Records Act (44 U.S.C. chapters. 21, 29, 31, 33), NARA regulations at 36 CFR Chapter XII Subchapter B, and those policies associated with the safeguarding of records covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a). These policies include the preservation of all records, regardless of form or characteristics, mode of transmission, or state of completion.

2. In accordance with 36 CFR 1222.32, all data created for Government use and delivered to, or falling under the legal control of, the Government are Federal records subject to the provisions of 44 U.S.C. chapters 21, 29, 31, and 33, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), as amended, and the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as amended and must be managed and scheduled for disposition only as permitted by statute or regulation.

3. In accordance with 36 CFR 1222.32, Contractor shall maintain all records created for Government use or created in the course of performing the contract and/or delivered to, or under the legal control of the Government and must be managed in accordance with Federal law. Electronic records and associated metadata must be accompanied by sufficient technical documentation to permit understanding and use of the records and data.

4. [Agency] and its contractors are responsible for preventing the alienation or unauthorized destruction of records, including all forms of mutilation. Records may not be removed from the legal custody of [Agency] or destroyed except for in accordance with the provisions of the agency records schedules and with the written concurrence of the Head of the Contracting Activity. Willful and unlawful destruction, damage or alienation of Federal records is subject to the fines and penalties imposed by 18 U.S.C. 2701. In the event of any unlawful or accidental removal, defacing, alteration, or destruction of records, Contractor must report to [Agency]. The agency must report promptly to NARA in accordance with 36 CFR 1230.

5. The Contractor shall immediately notify the appropriate Contracting Officer upon discovery of any inadvertent or unauthorized disclosures of information, data, documentary materials, records or equipment. Disclosure of non-public information is limited to authorized personnel with a need-to-know as described in the [contract vehicle]. The Contractor shall ensure that the appropriate personnel, administrative, technical, and physical safeguards are established to ensure the security and confidentiality of this information, data, documentary material, records and/or equipment is properly protected. The Contractor shall not remove material from Government facilities or systems, or facilities or systems operated or maintained on the Government’s behalf, without the express written permission of the Head of the Contracting Activity. When information, data, documentary material, records and/or equipment is no longer required, it shall be returned to [Agency] control or the Contractor must hold it until otherwise directed. Items returned to the Government shall be hand carried, mailed, emailed, or securely electronically transmitted to the Contracting Officer or address prescribed in the [contract vehicle]. Destruction of records is EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED unless in accordance with Paragraph (4).

6. The Contractor is required to obtain the Contracting Officer's approval prior to engaging in any contractual relationship (sub-contractor) in support of this contract requiring the disclosure of information, documentary material and/or records generated under, or relating to, contracts.

The Contractor (and any sub-contractor) is required to abide by Government and [Agency] guidance for protecting sensitive, proprietary information, classified, and controlled unclassified information.

7. The Contractor shall only use Government IT equipment for purposes specifically tied to or authorized by the contract and in accordance with [Agency] policy.

8. The Contractor shall not create or maintain any records containing any non-public [Agency] information that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract.

9. The Contractor shall not retain, use, sell, or disseminate copies of any deliverable that contains information covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 or that which is generally protected from public disclosure by an exemption to the Freedom of Information Act.

10. The [Agency] owns the rights to all data and records produced as part of this contract. All deliverables under the contract are the property of the U.S. Government for which [Agency] shall have unlimited rights to use, dispose of, or disclose such data contained therein as it determines to be in the public interest. Any Contractor rights in the data or deliverables must be identified as required by FAR 52.227-11 through FAR 52.227-20.

11. Training. All Contractor employees assigned to this contract who create, work with, or otherwise handle records are required to take [Agency]-provided records management training.

The Contractor is responsible for confirming training has been completed according to agency policies, including initial training and any annual or refresher training.

[Note: To the extent an agency requires contractors to complete records management training, the agency must provide the training to the contractor.]

D. Flowdown of requirements to subcontractors

1. The Contractor shall incorporate the substance of this clause, its terms and requirements including this paragraph, in all subcontracts under this [contract vehicle], and require written subcontractor acknowledgment of same.

2. Violation by a subcontractor of any provision set forth in this clause will be attributed to the Contractor.

HANDLING OF RECORDS:

Information or records accessed and/or created by the Contractor in the course of performing services under this contract are the property of the VA and shall not be accessed, released, transferred, or destroyed except in accordance with applicable federal law, regulations, and/or VA/VHA policy. The Contractor will not copy information contained in VA information systems, either by printing to paper or by copying to another digital format, without the explicit instruction and written approval from of the Privacy Officer, COR, and Central Business Office (CBO). The Contractor will not combine the data from VA information systems with information from other sources. Contractor shall report any unauthorized disclosure of VA information to the Contracting Officers Representative (COR).

BACKGROUND CHECK:

All Contractor employees working with sensitive VA information are subject to background checks.

The contractor must provide proof of a cleared background check (as well as type and frequency) for each employee expected to handle VA information. This requirement is applicable to all subcontractor personnel requiring the same access. If the investigation is not completed prior to the start date of the contract, the prime Contractor will be responsible for the actions of those individuals they provide to perform work for VA.

Position Sensitivity - The position sensitivity designated by the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) assigned to the contract is Low Risk although some key positions may be designated at higher levels. The risk level designations for public trust positions and the corresponding background investigation levels are defined in VA Directive 0710.

Performance - Contract performance shall not commence prior to receipt of the appropriate investigative documents.

Public Trust Risk Level Designation

Background Investigation Level

Low Risk

National Agency Check with Written Inquiries (NACI) - A NACI is conducted by OPM and covers a 5-year period. It consists of a review of records contained in the OPM Security Investigations Index (SII) and the DOD Defense Central Investigations Index (DCII), FBI name check, FBI fingerprint check, and written inquiries to previous employers and references listed on the application for employment. In VA it is used for Non-sensitive or Low Risk positions.

Contractor Responsibilities - The Contractor shall complete the required documents for each individual and provide a copy to the COR and the Contracting Officer within seven (7) days of contract award.

SECURITY INCIDENT INVESTIGATION:

The term “security incident” means an event that has, or could have, resulted in unauthorized access to, loss or damage to VA assets, or sensitive information, or an action that breaches VA security procedures.

The contractor shall immediately notify the COR and simultaneously, the designated ISSO and Privacy Officer for the contract of any known or suspected security/privacy incidents, or any unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information, including that contained in system(s) to which the contractor has access.

To the extent known by the contractor, the contractor’s notice to VA shall identify the information involved, the circumstances surrounding the incident (including to whom, how, when, and where the VA information or assets were placed at risk or compromised), and any other information that the contractor considers relevant.

With respect to unsecured Protected Health Information (PII), upon discovery, the business associate must notify the covered entity of the breach. Notifications need to be made in accordance with the executed Business Associate Agreement.

In instances of theft or break-in or other criminal activity, the contractor must concurrently report the incident immediately to the appropriate law enforcement entity (or entities) of jurisdiction, including the VA OIG and Security and Law Enforcement. The contractor, its employees, and its subcontractors and their employees shall cooperate with VA and any law enforcement authority responsible for the investigation and prosecution of any possible criminal law violation(s) associated with any incident.

The contractor shall cooperate with VA in any civil litigation to recover VA information, obtain monetary or other compensation from a third party for damages arising from any incident, or obtain injunctive relief against any third party arising from, or related to, the incident.

PHASE-OUT FOR FOLLOW-ON CONTRACTS:

Prior to termination or completion of this contract, contractor must not destroy information received from VA, or gathered/created by the contractor in the course of performing this contract without prior written approval by the VA. Any data destruction done on behalf of VA by a contractor must be done in accordance with National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements as outlined in VA Directive 6300, Records and Information Management and its Handbook 6300.1 Records Management Procedures, applicable VA Records Control Schedules, and VA Handbook 6500.1, Electronic Media Sanitization. Self-certification by the contractor that the data destruction requirements above have been met must be sent to the VA Contracting Officer within 30 days of termination of the contract.

If VA determines that the contractor has violated any of the information confidentiality, privacy, and security provisions of the contract, it shall be sufficient grounds for VA to withhold payment to the contractor or third party or terminate the contract for default or terminate for cause under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).

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. Absent an agreement to use or disclose protected health information, there is no business associate relationship

AUTHORIZED SERVICES / CHANGES:

The contractor is advised that only the CO has the authority to make changes which may affect the contract terms and conditions, quality, quantity, price, and/or delivery. It is highly encouraged and advised that the contractor contact the CO for approval in the event there are changes prior to proceeding. No other individual has the authority to make these binding changes and/or commitments.

In the event the contractor commits to such changes at the direction of anyone other than the CO, the changes shall be considered to have been made without proper authority and no adjustment shall be made in contract price to cover any increase in costs incurred as a result thereof.

QUALITY ASSURANCE and INSPECTION:

The Government will receive and investigate complaints from various customers located at the Central Arkansas VA Healthcare System. All information received will be provided in writing to the contractor for appropriate action.

Representatives of the Government shall have the right to inspect the contractor’s and/or Subcontractor’s facilities and operations provided for the performance of work under this agreement.

Prior to the award of this contract, the COR may conduct a walk-through of the contractor’s facility and perform an inspection of their vehicles to ensure they meet all the requirements indicated in the statement of work as well as VA Directive 6371.

VA PRIVACY

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.

2. ACCESS TO VA INFORMATION AND VA INFORMATION SYSTEMS

a. A contractor/subcontrator 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. Contract personnel who require access to national security programs must have a valid security clearance. National Industrial Security Program (NISP) was established by Executive Order 12829 to ensure that cleared U.S. defense industry contract personnel safeguard the classified information in their possession while performing work on contracts, programs, bids, or research and development efforts. The Department of Veterans Affairs does not have a Memorandum of Agreement with Defense Security Service (DSS). Verification of a Security Clearance must be processed through the Special Security Officer located in the Planning and National Security Service within the Office of Operations, Security, and Preparedness.

d. Custom software development and outsourced operations must be located in the U.S. to the maximum extent practical. If such services are proposed to be performed abroad and are not disallowed by other VA policy or mandates, the contractor/subcontractor must state where all non-U.S. services are provided and detail a security plan, deemed to be acceptable by VA, specifically to address mitigation of the resulting problems of communication, control, data protection, and so forth. Location within the U.S. may be an evaluation factor.

e. The contractor or subcontractor must notify the Contracting Officer immediately when an employee working on a VA system or with access to VA information is reassigned or leaves the contractor or subcontractor’s employ. The Contracting Officer must also be notified immediately by the contractor or subcontractor prior to an unfriendly termination.

3. VA INFORMATION CUSTODIAL LANGUAGE

a. Information made available to the contractor or subcontractor by VA for the performance or administration of this contract or information developed by the contractor/subcontractor in performance or administration of the contract shall be used only for those purposes and shall not be used in any other way without the prior written agreement of the VA. This clause expressly limits the contractor/subcontractor's rights to use data as described in Rights in Data- General, FAR 52.227-14(d) (1).

b. VA information should not be co-mingled, if possible, with any other data on the contractors/subcontractor’s information systems or media storage systems in order to ensure VA requirements related to data protection and media sanitization can be met. If co-mingling must be allowed to meet the requirements of the business need, the contractor must ensure that VA’s information is returned to the VA or destroyed in accordance with VA’s sanitization requirements. VA reserves the right to conduct on-site inspections of contractor and subcontractor IT resources to ensure data security controls, separation of data and job duties, and destruction/media sanitization procedures are in compliance with VA directive requirements.

c. Prior to termination or completion of this contract, contractor/subcontractor must not destroy information received from VA, or gathered/created by the contractor in the course of performing this contract without prior written approval by the VA. Any data destruction done on behalf of VA by a contractor/subcontractor must be done in accordance with National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) requirements as outlined in VA Directive 6300, Records and Information Management and its Handbook 6300.1 Records Management Procedures, applicable VA Records Control Schedules, and VA Handbook 6500.1, Electronic

Media Sanitization. Self-certification by the contractor that the data destruction requirements above have been met must be sent to the VA Contracting Officer within 30 days of termination of the contract.

d. The contractor/subcontractor must receive, gather, store, back up, maintain, use, disclose and dispose of VA information only in compliance with the terms of the contract and applicable Federal and VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies. If Federal or VA information confidentiality and security laws, regulations and policies become applicable to the VA information or information systems after execution of the contract, or if NIST issues or updates applicable FIPS or Special Publications (SP) after execution of this contract, the parties agree to negotiate in good faith to implement the information confidentiality and security laws, regulations, and policies in this contract.

e. The contractor/subcontractor shall not make copies of VA information except as authorized and necessary to perform the terms of the agreement or to preserve electronic information stored on contractor/subcontractor electronic storage media for restoration in case any electronic equipment or data used by the contractor/subcontractor needs to be restored to an operating state. If copies are made for restoration purposes, after the restoration is complete, the copies must be appropriately destroyed.

f. If VA determines that the contractor has violated any of the information confidentiality, privacy, and security provisions of the contract, it shall be sufficient grounds for VA to withhold payment to the contractor or third party or terminate the contract for default or terminate for cause under Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 12.

g. 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. Absent an agreement to use or disclose protected health information, there is no business associate relationship.

h. The contractor/subcontractor must store, transport, or transmit VA sensitive information in an encrypted form, using VA-approved encryption tools that are, at a minimum, FIPS 140-2 validated.

i. The contractor/subcontractor’s firewall and Web services security controls, if applicable, shall meet or exceed VA’s minimum requirements. VA Configuration Guidelines are available upon request.

j. Except for uses and disclosures of VA information authorized by this contract for performance of the contract, the contractor/subcontractor may use and disclose VA information only in two other situations: (i) in response to a qualifying order of a court of competent jurisdiction, or (ii) with VA’s prior written approval. The contractor/subcontractor must refer all requests for, demands for production of, or inquiries about, VA information and information systems to the VA contracting officer for response.

k. Notwithstanding the provision above, the contractor/subcontractor shall not release VA records protected by Title 38 U.S.C. 5705, confidentiality of medical quality assurance records and/or Title 38 U.S.C. 7332, confidentiality of certain health records pertaining to drug addiction, sickle cell anemia, alcoholism or alcohol abuse, or infection with human immunodeficiency virus. If the contractor/subcontractor is in receipt of a court order or other requests for the above-mentioned information, that contractor/subcontractor shall immediately refer such court orders or other requests to the VA contracting officer for response.

l. For service that involves the storage, generating, transmitting, or exchanging of VA sensitive information but does not require C&A or an MOU-ISA for system interconnection, the contractor/subcontractor must complete a Contractor Security Control Assessment (CSCA) on a yearly basis and provide it to the COTR.

4. SECURITY INCIDENT INVESTIGATION

a. The term “security incident” means an event that has, or could have, resulted in unauthorized access to, loss or damage to VA assets, or sensitive information, or an action that breaches VA security procedures. The contractor/subcontractor shall immediately notify the COTR and simultaneously, the designated ISO and Privacy Officer for the contract of any known or suspected security/privacy incidents, or any unauthorized disclosure of sensitive information, including that contained in system(s) to which the contractor/subcontractor has access.

b. To the extent known by the contractor/subcontractor, the contractor/subcontractor’s notice to VA shall identify the information involved, the circumstances surrounding the incident (including to whom, how, when, and where the VA information or assets were placed at risk or compromised), and any other information that the contractor/subcontractor considers relevant.

c. With respect to unsecured protected health information, the business associate is deemed to have discovered a data breach when the business associate knew or should have known of a breach of such information. Upon discovery, the business associate must notify the covered entity of the breach. Notifications need to be made in accordance with the executed business associate agreement.

d. In instances of theft or break-in or other criminal activity, the contractor/subcontractor must concurrently report the incident to the appropriate law enforcement entity (or entities) of jurisdiction, including the VA OIG and Security and Law Enforcement. The contractor, its employees, and its subcontractors and their employees shall cooperate with VA and any law enforcement authority responsible for the investigation and prosecution of any possible criminal law violation(s) associated with any incident. The contractor/subcontractor shall cooperate with VA in any civil litigation to recover VA information, obtain monetary or other compensation from a third party for damages arising from any incident, or obtain injunctive relief against any third party arising from, or related to, the incident.

5. LIQUIDATED DAMAGES FOR DATA BREACH

a. Consistent with the requirements of 38 U.S.C. §5725, a contract may require access to sensitive personal information. If so, the contractor is liable to VA for liquidated damages in the event of a data breach or privacy incident involving any SPI the contractor/subcontractor processes or maintains under this contract.

b. The contractor/subcontractor shall provide notice to VA of a “security incident” as set forth in the Security Incident Investigation section above. Upon such notification, VA must secure from a non-Department entity or the VA Office of Inspector General an independent risk analysis of the data breach to determine the level of risk associated with the data breach for the potential misuse of any sensitive personal information involved in the data breach. The term 'data breach' means the loss, theft, or other unauthorized access, or any access other than that incidental to the scope of employment, to data containing sensitive personal information, in electronic or printed form, that results in the potential compromise of the confidentiality or integrity of the data. Contractor shall fully cooperate with the entity performing the risk analysis. Failure to cooperate may be deemed a material breach and grounds for contract termination.

c. Each risk analysis shall address all relevant information concerning the data breach, including the following:

d. Nature of the event (loss, theft, unauthorized access)

e. Description of the event, including:

• date of occurrence.

• data elements involved, including any PII, such as full name, social security number, date of birth, home address, account number, disability code.

f. Number of individuals affected or potentially affected.

g. Names of individuals or groups affected or potentially affected.

h. Ease of logical data access to the lost, stolen or improperly accessed data in light of the degree of protection for the data, e.g., unencrypted, plain text.

i. Amount of time the data has been out of VA control.

j. The likelihood that the sensitive personal information will or has been compromised (made accessible to and usable by unauthorized persons).

k. Known misuses of data containing sensitive personal information, if any.

l. Assessment of the potential harm to the affected individuals.

m. Data breach analysis as outlined in 6500.2 Handbook, Management of Security and Privacy Incidents, as appropriate.

n. Whether credit protection services may assist record subjects in avoiding or mitigating the results of identity theft based on the sensitive personal information that may have been compromised.

6. Based on the determinations of the independent risk analysis, the contractor shall be responsible for paying to the VA liquidated damages in the amount of $37.50 per affected individual to cover the cost of providing credit protection services to affected individuals consisting of the following:

a. Notification.

b. One year of credit monitoring services consisting of automatic daily monitoring of at least 3 relevant credit bureau reports.

c. Data breach analysis.

d. Fraud resolution services, including writing dispute letters, initiating fraud alerts and credit freezes, to assist affected individuals to bring matters to resolution.

e. One year of identity theft insurance with $20,000.00 coverage at $0 deductible; and

f. Necessary legal expenses the subjects may incur to repair falsified or damaged credit records, histories, or financial affairs.

7. TRAINING

a. All contractor employees and subcontractor employees requiring access to VA information and VA information systems shall complete the following before being granted access to VA information and its systems:

(1) Sign and acknowledge (either manually or electronically) understanding of and responsibilities for compliance with the Contractor Rules of Behavior, Appendix E relating to access to VA information and information systems.

(2) Successfully complete the VA Cyber Security Awareness and Rules of Behavior training and annually complete required security training.

(3) Successfully complete the appropriate VA privacy training and annually complete required privacy training; and

(4) Successfully complete any additional cyber security or privacy training, as required for VA personnel with equivalent information system access [to be defined by the VA program official and provided to the contracting officer for inclusion in the solicitation document – e.g., any role-based information security training required in accordance with NIST Special Publication 800-16, Information Technology Security Training Requirements.]

b. The contractor shall provide to the contracting officer and/or the COTR a copy of the training certificates and certification of signing the Contractor Rules of Behavior for each applicable employee within 1 week of the initiation of the contract and annually thereafter, as required.

c. Failure to complete the mandatory annual training and sign the Rules of Behavior annually, within the timeframe required, is grounds for suspension or termination of all physical or electronic access privileges and removal from work on the contract until such time as the training and documents are complete.

HOURS OF OPERATION:

Contractor is responsible for conducting business during normal business hours (normally between 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.) to facilitate communication between the Government and the Contractor, Monday through Friday except Federal holidays or when the Government facility is closed due to local or national emergencies, administrative closings, or similar Government directed facility closings.

If a holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday will be observed as the National Holiday. When a holiday falls on a Saturday, the preceding Friday is observed as a National Holiday by U.S. Government agencies. Also included would be any day specifically declared by the President of the United States.

Contractor is not required to provide any service(s) on nationally recognized U.S. Government holidays, nor shall the contractor be paid for these holidays.

Any schedule services that land on a holiday will be required to be performed the day before or after the holiday.

OVERTIME AND HOLIDAYS:

Any overtime and/or holiday pay that may be entitled to the Contractor’s employee(s) shall be the sole responsibility of the Contractor and shall not be billed to nor reimbursed by the Government.

NATIONAL HOLIDAYS/SCHEDULE CHANGES:

Listed below are the ten (11) national holidays. If a holiday falls on a Saturday it will be observed on the preceding Friday. If a holiday falls on a Sunday, it will be observed on the following Monday.

New Year’s Day - January 1 Martin Luther King Jr Day - Third Monday in January Presidents Day - Third Monday in February Memorial Day - Last Monday in May Juneteenth - June 19th Independence Day - July 4 Labor Day - First Monday in September Columbus Day - Second Monday in October Veterans Day - November 11 Thanksgiving Day - Fourth Thursday in November Christmas Day - December 25

Prior to any changes made to the schedule, the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) will notify the Contracting Officer (CO) in writing of any changes to the scheduled dates and times for the shredding.

LOCATION:

Eugene J. Towbin Healthcare Center 2200 Fort Roots Drive North Little Rock, AR 72114-1709

Building 170, Room GJ-100

Building 111, Room 1a

IMPORTANT…