36C26224Q1834.docx

52.212-2 EVALUATION—COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES

GENERAL INFORMATION

CONTRACTING OFFICE ADDRESS

Department of Veterans Affairs NCO 22 - Network Contracting 3601 S. 6th Avenue Tucson AZ 85723

POINT OF CONTACT*

Contract Specialist Katharine Robert katharine.robert@va.gov 5200016670

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

VA Greater Los Angeles Healthcare System

11301 Wilshire Blvd

Los Angeles CA

COUNTRY

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

DESCRIPTION

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial products and commercial services prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) subpart 12.6, “Streamlined Procedures for Evaluation and Solicitation for Commercial Products and Commercial Services,” as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested, and a written solicitation document will not be issued.

This solicitation is issued as an RFQ. The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2024-02, effective 12/22/2023.

This solicitation is set-aside for 100% Small Business Concerns.

The associated North American Industrial Classification System (NAICS) code for this procurement is 611710, with a small business size standard of $24.0 Million.

The FSC/PSC is U099.

This will be a Firm Fixed-Price Contract.

The award will be made to the quote most advantageous to the Government and best meets the requirement described in the statement of work.

Price and Other Factors: See Attachment 2, FAR 52.212-2 “Evaluation”

STATEMENT OF WORK (SOW)

1. Scope: The Contractor shall provide all necessary labor, materials, supplies, parts, software (needed for the general operation of the equipment), tools, equipment, travel, transportation expenses and other related costs to provide Whole Health Horticulture Therapy at The Greater Los Angeles VA Medical Center.

2. Period of Performance.

Base Year, followed by two, one-year options Estimated start date: 09/30/2024

3. BACKGROUND & SYNOPSIS.

The Office of Patient Centered Care and Cultural Transformation has been leading the Veteran’s Health Administration in transforming healthcare to a Whole Health Approach since 2010. In 2022 the Office of Food Security formed and in 2023 targeted GLA as a pilot site for innovation to support food insecure Veterans. Horticulture therapy is the process through which participants enhance their well-being through active or passive involvement in plant and plant-related activities and has been shown to provide several ways to increase mood, improve nutritional status, reduce loneliness, and reduce the physical health impacts of mental illnesses such as post-traumatic stress disorder.

The intent of this contract is to engage a community provider to provide therapeutic horticulture and beginner to intermediate level horticulture education for up to 100 Veterans living on campus in the Care Treatment and Rehabilitation Services (CTRS) program, EUL buildings and Domiciliary on the Greater Los Angeles campus or other Veterans engaged in Whole Health as part of the expansion of Whole Health services to the Veterans of GLA.

Veterans will be offered educational programming three half days per week in the Veteran’s Garden. Programming will be open to all Veterans and in CTRS, CERS and Whole Health who are physically and mentally able to participate in a group therapeutic activity with no acute medical or mental health symptoms.

Therapeutic horticulture and horticulture education will be supervised and overseen by the Whole Health Program Manager within the Office of Healthcare Transformation and Innovation (OHTI).

4. General Requirement:

The Contractor shall provide three half days weekly of therapeutic horticulture which will include all educational materials and professional facilitation with expertise in care for complex Veterans to include Veterans PTSD, cognitive impairment, and disabilities such as chronic pain. Contractor shall provide all labor, tools, equipment, parts, materials, travel, and supervision required to perform all work at no additional costs to the government.

The Contractor shall provide services for up to 30 Veterans at any one time so long as the Veteran

· Be eligible for VA healthcare as determined by the local VA medical center

· Be determined to be physically and mentally able to participate in a group therapeutic activity with no acute medical or mental health symptoms.

A VAGLAHS Whole Health Liaison will be assigned to the Contractor who shall act as the clinical liaison between the Contractor and VAGLAHS.

Contractors are urged in the strongest terms to carefully review the requirements outlined in the Statement of Work to ensure that all criteria within can be met in a timely fashion.

5. Specific Tasks/ Qualifications:

· The Contractor shall provide three half days weekly of therapeutic horticulture which will include all educational materials and professional facilitation with expertise in care for complex Veterans to include Veterans PTSD, cognitive impairment, and disabilities such as chronic pain. Contractor shall provide all labor, tools, equipment, parts, materials, travel, and supervision required to perform all work at no additional costs to the government.

· The Contractor shall provide services for up to 30 Veterans at any one time so long as the Veteran

· Be eligible for VA healthcare as determined by the local VA medical center

· Be determined to be physically and mentally able to participate in a group therapeutic activity with no acute medical or mental health symptoms.

· A VAGLAHS Whole Health Liaison will be assigned to the Contractor who shall act as the clinical liaison between the Contractor and VAGLAHS.

· Contractors are urged in the strongest terms to carefully review the requirements outlined in the Statement of Work to ensure that all criteria within can be met in a timely fashion.

· Each Veteran will have the opportunity to participate 60-to-90-minute garden education programming three times weekly facilitated by a contracted trained facilitator and supported by VA staff members.

· Group Activities: Structured group activities will occur three times weekly based on a mutually agreed upon days and times with contractor and VA staff. Open hours for garden maintenance, planting and harvesting will be offered and staffed by contracted facilitator for therapeutic benefit before and after group activities.

· VA Coordination: Collaboration and coordination with VA program staff, as needed, will include on-going coordination and collaboration on attendance, participation, and Veteran engagement. VA Whole Health staff will provide documentation of therapeutic activity in the electronic medical record for each Veteran at each session consistent with a Whole Health note to include MAP, Empowerment, and Equipping of shared goals. Enhance Veterans’ physical, mental, and social well-being, fostering a greater quality of life and prosperity for themselves, their families, and communities by providing a safe, welcoming environment where every day gardening and farm work with education, fellowship, and fun.

6. Security Requirements No access to VA computer system required.

7. Government-Furnished Equipment (GFE)/Government-Furnished Information (GFI).

· The VA shall provide a safe and adequate space and gardening tools as needed to supplement those provided by the contractor as well as parking with easy access to Vet’s Garden location.

· Points of entry/exit from the main gate at 100-138 Davis Ave north campus will be utilized. Porta potty in the Vet’s Garden will be accessible to contractors during business hours 7 AM to 4:30 PM Monday through Friday.

8. Place of Performance.

The contractor will be provided with space for services and education at the Veteran’s Garden located on the campus of the VAGLAHS medical center at 11301 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90073. The space shall be on the north campus at the site of the Veteran’s Garden. The program location is crucial because of access to garden materials, beds, and space.

9. Hours of Work

· Any service performed during other than normal work hours must have prior approval and coordinated with the PPOC or CO.

· Work at the government site shall not take place on federal holidays or weekends.

National Holiday Schedule:

***PRICE/COST SCHEDULE***

Base Year

Option Year 1

Option Year 2

**Please use the format above for pricing**

The following solicitation provisions apply to this acquisition:

1. FAR 52.212-1, “Instructions to Offerors–Commercial Products and Commercial Services”

2. FAR 52.212-3, “Offerors Representations and Certifications–Commercial Products and Commercial Services”

Offerors must complete annual representations and certifications electronically via the System for Award Management (SAM) website located at https://www.sam.gov/portal in accordance with FAR 52.212-3, “Offerors Representations and Certifications–Commercial Products and Commercial Services.” If paragraph (j) of the provision is applicable, a written submission is required.

The following contract clauses apply to this acquisition:

· FAR 52.212-4, “Contract Terms and Conditions–Commercial Products and Commercial Services” (Dec 2022) ADDENDUM to FAR 52.212-4, “Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Products and Commercial Services” applies to and is included with this acquisition.

· FAR 52.212-5, “Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders - Commercial Products and Commercial Services” (Mar 2023) The following subparagraphs of FAR 52.212-5 are applicable: (b)(4),(5),(9),(12),(18)(i),(25),(26)(i),(29), (31),(33),(34)(i),(36)(i),(39)(i),(40),(51),(55),(59),(c),(1),(2),(3),(7),(8).

· VAAR 852.203-70 “Commercial Advertising” (May 2018).

· VAAR 852.219-75 “VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting – Certification of Compliance for Services and Construction.” (JAN 2023) (DEVIATION)

· VAAR 852.232-72, “Electronic Submission of Payment Requests” (NOV 2018).

This is accomplished through the Tungsten Network located at: http://www.fsc.va.gov/einvoice.asp This is mandatory and the sole method for submitting invoices.

Service Contract Act Wage Determination #: 2015-5613 Rev. 27, Dated July 21, 2024.

All quoters shall be submitted in accordance with FAR 52.212-1, “Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Products and Commercial Services”. (SEP 2023)

All quotes shall be sent to the Network Contracting Office (NCO) 22 Contract Specialist, Katharine Robert at katharine.robert@va.gov.

Award will be based upon a comparative evaluation of quotes in accordance with the Simplified Acquisition Procedures of FAR 13. Comparative evaluation is the side by side pairwise comparison of quotes based on factors resulting in a Contracting Officer decision for the quote most favorable to the Government. Decision factors to be considered are Cost Schedule, Technical Capability, and Past Performance. This contract/purchase order will consist of an estimated base plus two option year period of performance: 09/30/2024 – 09/29/2027.

The award will be made to the quote most advantageous to the Government and best meets the requirement described in the Statement of Work.

Responses should contain your best terms, conditions.

To facilitate the award process, all quotes must include a statement regarding the terms and conditions herein as follows:

"The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document without modification, deletion, or addition."

OR

"The terms and conditions in the solicitation are acceptable to be included in the award document with the exception, deletion, or addition of the following:"

Quoters shall list exception(s) and rationale for the exception(s), if any.

Submission of your RFQ response offer shall be received not later than September 9, 2024, 1000 MST at katharine.robert@va.gov only. Subject line shall include “RESPONSE TO RFQ 36C26224Q1771” for consideration.

Late submissions shall be treated in accordance with the solicitation provision at FAR 52.212-1(f).

Any questions or concerns regarding this solicitation should be forwarded in writing via e-mail to the

Point of Contact listed below.

Point of Contact Contract Specialist Katharine Robert Katharine.robert@va.gov

Attachment One: FAR 52.212-1 ADDENDUM Instructions to Offerors Attachment Two: FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation

(End of Provision) Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice

Combined Synopsis/Solicitation Notice

ADDENDUM to FAR 52.212-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS—COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES (NOV 2021)

Provisions that are incorporated by reference (by Citation Number, Title, and Date), have the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The version of FAR 52.212-1 in the addendum is tailored for Simplified Acquisition Procedures and supersedes the current version of FAR 52.212-1 contained in the FAR.

The following provision is incorporated into 52.212-1 as an addendum to this solicitation:

FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors – Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Nov 2021)

(a) North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code and small business size standard. The NAICS code(s) and small business size standard(s) for this acquisition appear elsewhere in the Request for Quote (RFQ). However, the small business size standard for a concern that submits a quote, other than on a construction or service acquisition, but proposes to furnish an end item that it did not itself manufacture, process, or produce is 500 employees if the acquisition—

(1) Is set aside for small business and has a value above the simplified acquisition threshold; or

(2) Uses the HUBZone price evaluation preference regardless of dollar value, unless the quoter waives the price evaluation preference; or

(3) Is an 8(a), HUBZone, service-disabled veteran-owned, economically disadvantaged women-owned, or women-owned small business set-aside or sole-source award regardless of dollar value.

(b) Submission of Quotes. Submit signed and dated quotes to the office specified in this Request for Quote (RFQ) at or before the exact time specified. Quotes may be submitted on letterhead stationery, or as otherwise specified in the RFQ. As a minimum, quotes must show—

(1) The solicitation number;

(2) The time specified in the solicitation for receipt of quotations;

(3) The name, address, and telephone number of the quoter;

(4) A technical description of the items being quoted in sufficient detail to evaluate compliance with the requirements in the solicitation. This may include product literature, or other documents, if necessary;

(5) Terms of any express warranty;

(6) Price and any discount terms;

(7) "Remit to" address, if different than mailing address;

(8) A completed copy of the representations and certifications at Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.212-3 (see FAR 52.212-3(b) for those representations and certifications that the quoter shall complete electronically);

(9) Acknowledgment Request for Quotation amendments;

(10) Quote should include a statement specifying the extent of agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation. Quotes that fail to furnish required representations and certifications, information requested in (1) to (9) and accept the terms and conditions of the solicitation may be excluded from consideration.

(c) Period for acceptance of Quotes. The quoter agrees to hold the prices in its quote firm for 30 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of quotes unless another time period is specified in an addendum to the solicitation.

(d) Product samples. When required by the solicitation, product samples shall be submitted at or prior to the time specified for receipt of quotes. Unless otherwise specified in this solicitation, these samples shall be submitted at no expense to the Government, and returned at the sender’s request and expense, unless they are destroyed during testing.

(e) Multiple Quotes. Quoters are encouraged to submit multiple quotes presenting alternative line items (provided that the alternative line items are consistent with FAR subpart 4.10), or alternative commercial products or commercial services for satisfying the requirements of this solicitation. Each quote submitted will be evaluated separately.

(f) Late submissions, revisions, and withdrawals of quotes.

(1) Quoters are responsible for submitting quotes so as to reach the Government office designated in the solicitation by the time specified in the solicitation. If no time is specified in the solicitation, the time for receipt is 4:30 p.m., local time, for the designated Government office on the date that quotes are due.

(2) Any quotation received at the Government office designated in the solicitation after the exact time specified for receipt of quotes is "late" and may not be considered unless it is received before purchase order issuance and the Contracting Officer (CO) determines that accepting the late quotation would not unduly delay the acquisition.

(3) If an emergency or unanticipated event interrupts normal Government processes so that quotations cannot be received at the Government office designated for receipt of quotes by the exact time specified in the solicitation, and urgent Government requirements preclude a notice of an extension of the closing date, the time specified for receipt of quotes will be deemed to be extended to the same time of day specified in the solicitation on the first work day on which normal Government processes resume.

(g) Issuance of Purchase Order. The Government may issue a purchase order to one or more quoters as identified in the Request for Quote (RFQ). Therefore, the quoter’s initial quote should contain the best terms from a price and technical standpoint. However, the Government may reject any or all quotes if such action is in the public’s best interest. The Contracting Officer (CO) may issue a purchase order to other than the quoter with the lowest priced quotation.

(h)Multiple awards. The Government may issue a purchase order for any item or group of items of a quotation, unless the quoter qualifies the quotation by specific limitations. Unless otherwise provided in the Schedule, quotations may not be submitted for quantities less than those specified. The Government reserves the right to issue a purchase order for a quantity less than the quantity quoted, at the unit prices quoted, unless the quoter specifies otherwise in the quotation.

(1) Availability of requirements documents cited in the solicitation.

(i)The GSA Index of Federal Specifications, Standards and Commercial Item Descriptions, FPMR Part 101-29, and copies of specifications, standards, and commercial item descriptions cited in this solicitation may be obtained for a fee by submitting a request to- GSA Federal Supply Service Specifications Section Suite 8100 470 East L’Enfant Plaza, SW Washington, DC 20407 Telephone (202) 619-8925,Facsimile (202) 619-8978.

(ii)If the General Services Administration, Department of Agriculture, or Department of Veterans Affairs issued this solicitation, a single copy of specifications, standards, and commercial item descriptions cited in this solicitation may be obtained free of charge by submitting a request to the addressee in paragraph (i)(1)(i) of this provision. Additional copies will be issued for a fee.

(2) Most unclassified Defense specifications and standards may be downloaded from the following ASSIST websites:

(i)ASSIST ( https://assist.dla.mil/online/start/).

(ii)Quick Search ( http://quicksearch.dla.mil/).

(3) Documents not available from ASSIST may be ordered from the Departmentof Defense Single Stock Point (DoDSSP) by-

(i) Using the ASSIST Shopping Wizard( https://assist.dla.mil/wizard/index.cfm);

(ii) Phoning the DoDSSP Customer Service Desk (215) 697-2179, Mon-Fri,0730 to 1600 EST; or

(iii) Ordering from DoDSSP, Building 4, Section D, 700 Robbins Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19111-5094, Telephone (215) 697-2667/2179, Facsimile(215)697-1462.

(4) Nongovernment (voluntary) standards must be obtained from the organization responsible for their preparation, publication, or maintenance.

(j) Unique entity identifier (UEI). Applies to all quotes that exceed the micro-purchase threshold, and quotes at or below the micro-purchase threshold if the solicitation requires the contractor to be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM).) The quoter must enter, in the block with its name and address on the cover page of its quote, the annotation "Unique Entity Identifier" followed by the unique entity identifier that identifies the quoters name and address. The quoter also must enter its Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) indicator, if applicable. The EFT indicator is a four-character suffix to the UEI. The suffix is assigned at the discretion of the quoter to establish additional SAM records for identifying alternative EFT accounts (see FAR subpart 32.11) for the same entity. If the quoter does not have a UEI, it should contact the entity designated at www.sam.gov for UEI establishment directly to obtain one. The quoter should indicate that it is a quoter for a Government contract when contacting the entity designated at www.sam.gov for establishing the UEI.

(k)[Reserved]

(l) Requests for information. The CO will not notify unsuccessful quoters that responded to this Request for Quotation (RFQ). However, quoters may request information on purchase order(s) resulting from this solicitation with the CO.

ADDENDUM TO FAR 52.212-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS – COMMERCIAL ITEMS

1. Under the procurement authority of FAR Part 12 and Part 13, the Veterans Integrated Service Network (VISN) 22, Veteran Administration Greater Los Angeles VA Healthcare System (GLA), requires Whole Health Horticulture Therapy.

2. Offerors shall complete and return all information designated in the enclosed FAR clause 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors – Commercial Items, and the Addendum to 52.212-1 regarding proposal submission. Failure to do so may preclude the offeror from further consideration.

3. The Government will not be accepting technical inquiries or questions regarding this requirement.

4. Unique Entity ID: Provide the SAM.gov Unique Entity ID Number assigned to your firm in the space provided below: (refer to Provision 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors – Commercial Items):

5. This requirement is set aside 100% for Small Business Concerns therefore only Small Businesses verified on SAM.gov, at the time of proposal submission and at the time of award will be considered for award.

6. GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS FOR PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS:

Offeror should thoroughly review the specifications and become familiar with areas of coverage prior to submitting a proposal. Failure to understand the contract requirements shall not relieve the successful Offeror from performing in accordance with the strict meaning and intent of the specifications.

a. Submission of Offerors. Offeror must complete and return all required documents, prior to or at the time specified within solicitation (September 9, 2024, at 1000 MST.)

Please review the following items before submitting your proposal:

☐ Have you provided pricing in accordance with Price Cost Schedule table provided within the solicitation?

☐ Have you provided all the requirements listed within FAR 52.212-1(b)?

☐ Have you provided a completed copy of the representations and certifications required at FAR 52.212-3?

☐ Have you completed the fill-in data pertaining to VAAR 852.219-75 (see attachment #1)

☐ Have you acknowledged any amendment (s), if applicable?

b. Schedule of Services and Price. The Contractor shall provide pricing in accordance with the table given in the solicitation and in accordance with FAR 52.212-1(b).

c. Offerors shall submit quotes via email only to Katharine Robert at katharine.robert@va.gov by September 9, 2024, at 1000 AM MST, unless otherwise extended by an amendment to this solicitation.

FAR 52.212-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS —COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES

(End of Provision) Page 1 of ADDENDUM to 52.212-2 EVALUATION—COMMERCIAL PRODUCTS AND COMMERCIAL SERVICES

(a) Basis for Award. The Government will issue a purchase order to the responsible quoter whose quotation conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered.

(b) The following factors shall be used to evaluate quotations:

(1) Price and Other Factors

(c) Evaluation Approach. The Government will evaluate quotations using the comparative evaluation process outlined in FAR 13.106-2 (b) (3), where quotations will be compared to one another to determine which provides the best benefit to the Government. The Government reserves the right to consider a quotation other than the lowest price that provides additional benefit(s). Quotations may exceed minimum requirements of the solicitation. The Government reserves the right to select a quotation that provides benefit to the Government that exceeds the minimum requirements of the solicitation but is not required to do so. Each response must meet the minimum requirements of the solicitation. The Government is not requesting or accepting alternate quotations. The evaluation will consider the following:

(1) Technical Capability

(2) Past Performance: The past performance evaluation will assess the relative risks associated with a quoter’s likelihood of success in fulfilling the solicitation’s requirements as indicated by the quoter’s record of past performance. The past performance evaluation may be based on the contracting officer’s knowledge of and previous experience with the supply or service being acquired; Customer surveys, and past performance questionnaire replies; Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) at http://www.cpars.gov/; or any other reasonable basis.

(3) Price: The Government will evaluate the price by adding the total of all line-item prices, including all options. The Total Evaluated Price will be that sum.

(d) Options. The Government will evaluate quotations for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement.

(1). This includes options under FAR 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services, which applies to this solicitation. Evaluation of options under FAR 52.217-8 will be accomplished by adding six months of the quoter's price for the last potential period of performance under this contract to the quoter's total price. For example, if the contract includes option periods that are exercisable under FAR 52.217-9, the quoter's total price for the purpose of evaluation will include the base period, all option periods, and an additional six months of the last option period. Quoters must price only the base and option periods specified in the contract line-item numbers (CLINs) and shall not submit a price for the potential six-month extension of services under FAR 52.217-8. The Government reserves the right to exercise the option under FAR 52.217-8 before the end of any of the contractor's performance periods and will be exercised at the price and/or rates in effect at the time the clause is exercised. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).

(End of Provision) Page 1 of