RFP 36C77624R0096.docx

36C77624R0096

1. SOLICITATION NUMBER

2. TYPE OF SOLICITATION

3. DATE ISSUED

PAGE OF PAGES

4. CONTRACT NUMBER

5. REQUISITION/PURCHASE REQUEST NUMBER

6. PROJECT NUMBER

7. ISSUED BY

CODE

8. ADDRESS OFFER TO

a. NAME

b. TELEPHONE NUMBER (Include area code) (NO COLLECT CALLS)

10. THE GOVERNMENT REQUIRES PERFORMANCE OF THE WORK DESCRIBED IN THESE

DOCUMENTS (

Title, identifying number, date) 12a. THE CONTRACTOR MUST FURNISH ANY REQUIRED PERFORMANCE AND PAYMENT BONDS (If "YES," indicate within how many calendar days after award in Item 12B.)

12b. CALENDAR DAYS

13. ADDITIONAL SOLICITATION REQUIREMENTS:

STANDARD FORM 1442 (REV. 8/2014)

STANDARD FORM 1442

Prescribed by GSA-FAR (48 CFR) 52.236-1(d)

SOLICITATION, OFFER,

AND AWARD

(Construction, Alteration, or Repair)

SOLICITATION

SOLICITATION

IMPORTANT - The "offer" section on the reverse must be fully completed by offeror.

9. FOR INFORMATION

CALL:

NOTE: In sealed bid solicitations "offer" and "offeror" mean "bid" and "bidder".

SEALED BID (IFB)

NEGOTIATED (RFP)

11. The Contractor shall begin performance within ____________ calendar days and complete it within calendar days after receiving award, notice to proceed This performance period is mandatory negotiable (See _____________________________).

YES

NO

a.

Sealed offers in original and ___________________copies to perform the work required are due at the place specified in Item 8 by _____________ (hour) local time _____________________ (date) If this is a sealed bid solicitation, offers must be publicly opened at that time Sealed envelopes containing offers shall be marked to show the offeror's name and address, the solicitation number, the date and time offers are due.

b.

An offer guarantee is, is not required.

c.

All offers are subject to the (1) work requirements, and (2) other provisions and clauses incorporated in the solicitation in full text or by reference.

d.

Offers providing less than _______________________ calendar days for Government acceptance after the date offers are due will not be considered and will be rejected.

36C77624R0096 X 06-24-2024 531-325 36C776 Kara Evert Department of Veterans Affairs Program Contracting Activity Central 6100 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 490 Independence OH 44131 Kara Evert Department of Veterans Affairs Program Contract Activity Central 6100 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 490 Independence OH 44131 Kara Evert kara.evert@va.gov

In accordance with 38 U.S.C. § 8127 (Public Law 109-461), this procurement is set aside for SDVOSBs utilizing a tiered set-aside evaluation approach, including other than small businesses, to minimize delays in the re-solicitation process.

Contractor will completely prepare site for building operations, including demolition and removal of existing structures, and furnish labor and materials and perform work for the construction of a new 22,283 square foot building on the Boise VA Medical Center Campus. The new building shall provide additional primary care and mental health care outpatient services on the BVAMC campus. This project must be completed in accordance with specifications, drawings, and supporting attachments included in the solicitation package.

Project Location:

Boise VA Medical Center 500 West Fort Street Boise, Idaho 83702

NAICS code: 236220

VAAR Magnitude of Construction: $20,000,000 to $50,000,000

Statutory Cost Limitation: The current funding available for this Minor construction procurement is $21,000,000. The Government cannot guarantee additional funds will be made available for award (reference 38 U.S.C. 8104).

Certification and Accreditation (C&A) requirements do not apply and a Security Accreditation Package is not required.

PLEASE NOTE: The Contractor agrees to attend any post awardconference convened by the contracting activity or contract administration in accordance with FAR subpart 42.5.

10 (TEN)

X X 52.211-10 X

10 (TEN)

0 (ZERO)

1:00 PM

EDT

08-06-2024 X

90 (NINETY)

14. NAME AND ADDRESS OF OFFEROR

15. TELEPHONE NUMBER

16. REMITTANCE ADDRESS

CODE

FACILITY CODE

17. The offeror agrees to perform the work required at the prices specified below in strict accordance with the terms of the solicitation, if this offer is accepted by the Government in writing within __________ calendar days after the date offers are due.

AMOUNTS

18. The offeror agrees to furnish any required performance and payment bonds.

19. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF AMENDMENTS

AMENDMENT

NUMBER

DATE.

20a. NAME AND TITLE OF PERSON AUTHORIZED TO SIGN OFFER 20b. SIGNATURE 20c. OFFER DATE

21. ITEMS ACCEPTED:

22. AMOUNT

23. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION DATA

24. SUBMIT INVOICES TO ADDRESS SHOWN IN

ITEM

25. OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION PURSUANT TO

10 U.S.C. 2304(c 41 U.S.C. 3304(a) (

26. ADMINISTERED BY

27. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE BY

PHONE:

FAX:

28. NEGOTIATED AGREEMENT

29. AWARD

Your Contractor agrees offer on this solicitation is hereby accepted as to the items listed This to furnish and deliver all items or perform all work requirements identified award consummates the contract, which consists of (a) the Government on this form and any continuation sheets for the consideration stated in solicitation and your offer, and (b) this contract award No further cont-this contract The rights and obligations of the parties to this contract ractual document is necessary.

shall be governed by (a) this contract award, (b) the solicitation, and (c) the clauses, representations, certifications, and specifications incorporated by reference in or attached to this contract.

30a. NAME AND TITLE OF CONTRACTOR OR PERSON AUTHORIZED 31a. NAME OF CONTRACTING OFFICER

TO SIGN

30b. SIGNATURE 30c. DATE 31b. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA 31c. AWARD DATE

BY

OFFER

AWARD

STANDARD FORM 1442 (REV. 8/2014) BACK

(Include ZIP Code) (Include area code) (Include only if different than Item 14.)

(Insert any number equal to or greater than the minimum requirement stated in Item 13 d.

Failure to insert any number means the offeror accepts the minimum in Item 13d.)

(The offeror acknowledges receipt of amendments to the solicitation -- give number and date of each) (Type or print) (4 copies unless otherwise specified) (Type or print) (Type or print) (Contractor is required to sign this document and return _______ copies to issuing office.)

(Contractor is not required to sign this document.)

(Must be fully completed by offeror) (To be completed by Government)

CONTRACTING OFFICER WILL COMPLETE ITEM 28 OR 29 AS APPLICABLE

36C776 Department of Veterans Affairs Program Contracting Activity Central 6100 Oak Tree Blvd, Suite 490 Independence OH 44131

VAFSC

Department of Veterans Affairs Financial Services Center Invoices to be Submitted Electronically https://www.fsc.va.gov/einvoice.asp e-Invoice Setup Info Phone 877-489-6135 877-353-9791 512-460-5429 Joseph Rossano

VA-VHA-RPOC-2024-0016

Project 531-325, Construct Primary Care/Mental Health Building Minor Construction Project at the VA Medical Center in Boise, ID Table of Contents

A.3 PRICE SCHEDULE

ITEM INFORMATION

ITEM I: General Construction: Work includes general construction, alterations, roads, walks, grading, drainage, and construction and certain other items.

ITEM II: Electrical Work: Work includes all labor, material, equipment and supervision to perform the required electrical construction work on this project depicted in the contract documents.

ITEM III: Mechanical Work: Work includes all labor, material, equipment and supervision to perform the required Mechanical construction work on this project depicted in the contract documents.

Add Alternates Three and Four: All work noted on the plans to be included in add alternates three and four is now to be included in the base work. There will be no add alternates three or four.

All work shall be completed in accordance with the specifications, drawings, and supporting attachments. The period of performance (POP) for Line Item 0001 is 487 calendar days after the contractor receives the Notice to Proceed (NTP).

Coffee Area: Reference the specifications, drawings, and supporting attachments.

This line item may be awarded in addition to the base line item. If awarded, work will be completed concurrently with base work and the POP will not be increased.

Solar Supported Electrical Power Production: Reference the specifications, drawings, and supporting attachments.

This line item may be awarded in addition to the base line item. If awarded, work will be completed concurrently with base work and the POP will not be increased.

Wall Protection: Reference the specifications, drawings, and supporting attachments.

This line item may be awarded in addition to the base line item. If awarded, work will be completed concurrently with base work and the POP will not be increased.

PRICE SCHEDULE NOTICE

1. Line Item 0001 contains the base work for this project. Each subsequent line item (additive alternate) adds specified features of the work. The additive alternates are independent and are listed in descending order of priority. For evaluation purposes, the additive alternates will be applied in accordance with section 2.8 below.

2. The intent is to award Line Item 0001 (Base Work), and the additive alternates will be reviewed and applied as funding allows. The government may award any combination of items in accordance with the solicitation.

3. Pricing must be submitted in whole dollar values. Please do not include pricing in cents.

4. The offeror is required to fill in their pricing on the above price schedule. The offeror must indicate the total price for each line item as well as the grand total for all line items. Failure to do so may render the offer unacceptable and ineligible for award.

Example:

Page 1 of Page 1 of Page 1 of

INFORMATION REGARDING BIDDING MATERIAL, BID GUARANTEE, AND BONDS

1.1 BID MATERIAL

Proposal materials consisting of drawings, specifications, and contract forms are included and/or attached as part of this Request for Proposal (RFP). The VA will not provide printed copies of drawings or specifications. It is the responsibility of the offeror to obtain the proposal materials in a time and manner sufficient to respond to this solicitation by the specified due date.

1.2 BID BOND GUARANTEE

The offeror must furnish a bid bond guarantee on Standard Form (SF) 24 in an amount that is the lesser of 20 percent of the proposal price or $3,000,000. Failure to furnish the required bid bond on the proper form and for the proper amount by the date and time specified for receipt of proposals may result in rejection of the proposal. Copies of the SF 24 may be obtained from https://www.gsa.gov/forms.

In accordance with Class Deviation from the FAR to Eliminate Hard Copy Original Documents, Signatures, Notarization, Seals on Bonds, and Other Seals for Certain Contract Requirements issued by the VA Executive Director, Office of Acquisition and Logistics and the Senior Procurement Executive on May 11, 2020, the requirement for an original bond with the original signatures, notarization, and seals has been eliminated.

1.3 PERFORMANCE & PAYMENT BONDS

The offeror to whom award is made will be required to furnish two bonds. A performance bond must be provided on SF 25, and a payment bond must be provided on SF 25A. Both bonds must be submitted in accordance with FAR 52.22815, Performance and Payment Bonds - Construction (DEVIATION). Copies of SFs 25 and 25A may be obtained from https://www.gsa.gov/forms.

INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND OTHER STATEMENTS TO OFFERORS

2.1 AVAILABILITY OF SOLICITATION DOCUMENTS

All solicitation-related documents will be published to Contract Opportunities at https://sam.gov/.

2.2 REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL

This solicitation is being issued as a Request for Proposal (RFP) in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) part 15. This will be a competitive acquisition utilizing FAR 15.101-2, Lowest price technically acceptable source selection process, and VAAR 815.101.370 (DEVIATION), Tiered set-aside evaluation.

2.3 SOLICITATION NOTICE OF TIERED SET-ASIDE EVALUATIONS

This procurement is set aside based on an order of priority as established in 38 U.S.C. 8127.

(a) Tiered evaluations including large business concerns. This solicitation is being issued as a tiered evaluation with the following tiers:

(1) Tier 1 - SDVOSB concerns. VA will first evaluate the offers, if any, submitted by SDVOSB concerns. If no technically acceptable offers were submitted by SDVOSB concerns, or if none of the offers would result in award at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the United States, the VA will withdraw the SDVOSB set-aside, document the basis for not making an award within this tier, and proceed to the set-aside for VOSB concerns.

(2) Tier 2 - VOSB concerns. VA will next evaluate the offers, if any, submitted by VOSB concerns. If no technically acceptable offers were submitted by VOSB concerns, or if none of the offers would result in award at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the United States, the VA will withdraw the VOSB setaside, document the basis for not making an award within this tier, and proceed to the set-aside for other small business concerns.

(3) Tier 3 - small business concerns. VA will next evaluate the offers, if any, submitted by other small business concerns, with Historically Underutilized Business (HUB) Zone small business concerns and 8(a) participants having priority. If no technically acceptable offers were submitted by other small business concerns, or if none of the offers would result in award at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the United States, the VA will withdraw the set-aside for other small businesses, document the basis for not making an award as a set-aside, and proceed to the large business tier.

(4) Tier 4 - other than small (large) business concerns. VA will next evaluate the offers, if any, submitted by large business concerns. If no technically acceptable offers were submitted by large business concerns, or if none of the offers would result in award at a fair and reasonable price that offers best value to the United States, the VA will cancel the solicitation, document that cancellation in a memorandum for the record, and conduct additional market research to inform a follow-on acquisition strategy.

(b) The below clauses will be included in the solicitation, and subsequently the contract award, as described in the application.

2.4 SDVOSB/VOSB REQUIREMENTS

To be considered eligible to receive award of a resulting contract, offerors submitting as SDVOSBs or VOSBs must be certified by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and listed in the SBA Veteran Small Business Certification (VetCert) database (https://veterans.certify.sba.gov/) at the time of proposal submission and at the time of award. A joint venture may be considered eligible as an SDVOSB/VOSB if the joint venture complies with the requirements in 13 CFR 128.402.

2.5 PROPOSAL PREPARATION INSTRUCTIONS

(a) Proposal preparation costs. The Government will not pay any costs incurred in the preparation and submission of proposals in response to this solicitation.

(b) Proposal submission.

(1) Proposals must be based on solicitation documents issued for RFP number 36C77624R0096. Proposals will be in the format stipulated in this document.

(2) Proposals must be submitted via email to kara.evert@va.gov. Only emailed proposals will be accepted.

(3) Proposals must be received on or before the date and time specified in block 13 of the Standard Form (SF) 1442. There will be no public opening of the proposals (virtual or otherwise).

(c) Proposal requirements.

(1) General. Price and administrative sections of an offeror’s proposal will be evaluated independently; therefore, the offeror must submit the proposal in two separate volumes: Volume I - Price and Volume II - Administrative. All information must be confined to the appropriate volume. So that the administrative section may be evaluated strictly on the merit of the material submitted, the contractor must include NO price or price-related information in Volume II.

(2) Format.

(i) The submission must be logically assembled and indexed. The proposal must be submitted as searchable PDF documents. Each volume must be clearly identified in the file name and include a title page (labeled with the offeror's organization and business address, and the VA solicitation number) and detailed table of contents. Include page numbers and the company name in the header or footer of each page.

(ii) The use of hyperlinks or embedded attachments within the proposal is prohibited. All proprietary information must be clearly and properly marked. To help ensure VA receipt of submissions, the proposal, in its entirety, must not exceed two emails (one email for each volume) of 5MB each. Proposal page limitations are not applicable to this procurement.

(iii) The proposal should be in Arial 12-point font or larger with no less than single-spaced text lines and normal proportional spacing. Page numbers, company logos, and headers and footers are not bound by the font requirements.

(iv) The proposal should use graphic presentations where such use will contribute to the compactness and clarity of the proposal. A smaller font size or fonts other than Arial are permitted in the presentation of graphic material, as long as the information is legible to the human eye.

2.6 PROPOSAL PACKAGE CONTENTS

(a) Volume I - Price. The offeror must submit the Volume I Price proposal as indicated below. Failure to comply with all requirements may result in an offeror being determined ineligible for award.

(1) Taxes. The offeror must take into account FAR 52.229-3, Federal, State, and Local Taxes and its Special Note in their pricing. The clause and note provide guidance on taxes being applied to pricing.

(2) Price schedule. The offeror must complete the price schedule on page 6 of the solicitation. Pricing will be firm fixed price and submitted in whole dollar values.

(3) Division cost breakdown. The offeror must submit a complete breakdown of the division pricing for Line Items 0001-0004 using the provided Division Cost Breakdown form.

(4) Bid bond. The offeror must furnish a bid bond guarantee as stipulated in the solicitation (see section 1.2 and FAR 52.228-1).

(b) Volume II - Administrative. The offeror must submit the Volume II Administrative proposal as indicated below. Failure to comply with all requirements may result in an offeror being determined ineligible for award.

(1) Standard Form 1442. The offeror must complete and sign the “OFFER” section of the SF 1442 and include the company’s Unique Entity Identifier associated with SAM.gov in block 14.

(2) Acknowledgement of amendments. The offeror must acknowledge and agree to all amendments by either (i) completing block 19 of the SF 1442, or (ii) returning the signed amendment form(s) with the submission.

(3) Annual Representations and Certifications. The offeror is required to complete the annual representations and certifications electronically at https://sam.gov/. A separate copy of FAR 52.2048 does not need to be completed and returned with the proposal.

(4) Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment. The offeror must provide their response to FAR 52.204-24(d) Representation, unless the requirements in the first paragraph of this provision have been met.

(5) Information Regarding Responsibility Matters. The offeror must provide their response to FAR 52.209-7(b).

(6) Violation of Arms Control Treaties or Agreements. The offeror must provide their response to FAR 52.209-13(b) Certification.

(7) Post-Award Small Business Program Rerepresentation. The offeror must provide their response to FAR 52.219-28(h), if applicable.

(8) Tax on Certain Foreign Procurements—Notice and Representation. The offeror must provide their response to FAR 52.229-11(d).

(9) VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting—Certificate of Compliance for Services and Construction. If submitting as an SDVOSB or VOSB concern, the offeror must complete and sign the certification in VAAR 852.219-75 and return it with their proposal. The completed and signed certification will become part of the official award documentation. A copy of the clause to be completed and included with the proposal is attached as a separate document (Limitations on Subcontracting - Construction).

(10) Notice to SDVOSB/VOSB Joint Venture/Mentor-Protégé. Any offeror submitting a proposal as an SDVOSB or VOSB joint venture must provide a certification from each joint partner, signed by an authorized official of each partner to the joint venture, stating that the parties to the joint venture (i) have entered into a joint venture agreement that fully complies with paragraph (c) of 13 CFR 128.402 and (ii) will perform the contract in compliance with the joint venture agreement. Failure to submit the certification with the offeror’s proposal will result in a determination that an offeror is unacceptable and therefore ineligible for award.

2.7 EVALUATION OF OFFERS

(a) Basis of award. Award will be made on the basis of the lowest evaluated price of proposals meeting or exceeding the acceptability standards for the non-price factor. Evaluations will be based on the following factors:

(1) Compliance with Solicitation Requirements

(2) Price

(b) General.

(1) All proposals will be subject to evaluation by a team of Government personnel. Proposals will be evaluated based on the factors described herein in accordance with the solicitation. The evaluation and rating of proposals will be conducted in strict confidence without knowledge of the price offered.

(2) It is the intent of the Government to award without discussions; however, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions if necessary. The evaluation will be based on the content of the proposal and any subsequent discussions.

(3) Proposals which merely restate the requirement or state that the requirement will be met are not sufficient. Offerors who fail to meet the minimum requirements of the solicitation will be determined unacceptable and thus, ineligible for award.

(4) The offeror must not include remarks that take exception to the Government’s solicitation or pricing requirements, preclude the Government from evaluating the offer, or render the offer as nonconforming or unacceptable. If the offeror communicates in its proposal any qualifications, exceptions, exclusions, or conditions to the proposed prices or terms of the solicitation, the Contracting Officer will reject the proposal and exclude the offeror from discussions.

(c) Tier selection. An offeror’s proposal will be evaluated in the first tier at which it would qualify for award, starting with SDVOSBs. Only technical proposals from the tier currently being reviewed will be evaluated and rated for acceptability.

(d) Evaluation process. The evaluation will be made as follows—

(1) The Contracting Officer will determine the lowest price offeror following the process outlined in section 2.8 below.

(2) The Contracting Officer will subsequently determine the acceptability of the offerors for the non-price factor.

(3) All offerors are advised that, in the interest of efficiency, the Government reserves the right to conduct the evaluation in the most effective manner. Specifically, the Government may first evaluate the total proposed price of all offerors, then evaluate the proposal of the lowest price offeror only.

(i) If the lowest price offeror’s proposal is determined to be Acceptable, the Government may make award to that offeror without further evaluation of the remaining offerors’ proposals, provided its price is determined to be fair and reasonable.

(ii) If the lowest price offeror’s proposal is determined to be Unacceptable, then the Government may evaluate the next lowest priced proposal, and so forth and so on, until the Government reaches the lowest priced proposal that is determined to be Acceptable with fair and reasonable pricing.

(4) However, the Government reserves the right to evaluate all offerors’ proposals should it desire to conduct discussions, or otherwise determine it to be in the Government’s best interest.

(5) If discussions are deemed necessary, the Contracting Officer will establish a competitive range and proposal revisions will be requested. Discussions will be held only with those offerors with the most highly rated proposals, unless the range is further reduced for purposes of efficiency.

(e) Methodology. Information submitted will be reviewed to determine if the offeror’s rating is Acceptable or Unacceptable. To receive consideration for award, a rating of Acceptable must be achieved for the non-price factor detailed below.

Acceptable is defined as: the offeror met the Government’s minimum requirements as identified in the solicitation.

Unacceptable is defined as: the offeror failed to meet the Government’s minimum requirements as identified in the solicitation.

(1) Factor 1, Compliance with Solicitation Requirements. The purpose of the compliance evaluation is to determine whether all items required in the solicitation were provided.

(2) Factor 2, Price. The purpose of the price evaluation is to determine the lowest price offeror and provide an assessment of the fairness and reasonableness of the total evaluated price.

2.8 NOTICE TO OFFERORS - ADDITIVE LINE ITEMS

(a) The lowest price offeror and the items to be awarded will be determined as follows—

(1) Prior to the opening of proposals, the Government will determine the amount of funds available for the project.

(2) The lowest price will be the offeror that—

(i) Is otherwise eligible for award; and

(ii) Offers the lowest aggregate amount for the first or base line item, plus (in the order of priority stated in the price schedule) those additive line items that provide the most features within the funds determined available. This amount will be the total evaluated price.

(3) All offers will be evaluated on the basis of the same additive line items.

(i) If adding another item from the price schedule list of priorities would make the award exceed the available funds for all offerors, the Contracting Officer will skip that item and go to the next item from the price schedule; and

(ii) Add that next item if an award may be made that includes that line item and is within the available funds.

(b) The Contracting Officer will use the list of priorities in the price schedule only to determine the lowest price. After determining the lowest price, an award may be made on any combination of items if—

(1) It is in the best interest of the Government;

(2) Funds are available at the time of award; and

(3) The offeror’s price for the combination to be awarded is less than the price offered by any other responsive, responsible offeror.

2.9 PRE-PROPOSAL SITE VISIT

A formal site visit has been scheduled for this project. This will be the only opportunity for potential offerors to visit the site. All potential offerors, subcontractors, and suppliers are strongly encouraged to attend this site visit. See FAR 52.236-27 in this solicitation and the attached documents (Site Visit Instructions and Site Visit Map) for further information.

2.10 TECHNICAL QUESTIONS

Questions of a technical nature must be provided in writing and must be submitted by the prospective offerors to Contract Specialist Kara Evert. Questions must be submitted only via email to: kara.evert@va.gov. The subject line must read: Boise - Construct PCMH - Technical Questions. Oral questions of a technical nature are not acceptable due to the possibility of misunderstanding or misinterpretation. The cutoff date and time for receipt of questions is July 23, 2024, at 1:00 PM ET.

2.11 AMENDMENTS

Amendments to this solicitation will be posted at https://sam.gov/. Paper copies of the amendments will NOT be individually mailed. No other notification of amendments will be provided. Potential offerors are advised that they are responsible for obtaining and acknowledging any amendments to the solicitation. Failure to acknowledge an amendment may result in the offeror’s proposal being considered unacceptable and ineligible for award.

2.12 RESPONSIBILITY DETERMINATION

In accordance with FAR subpart 9.1, Responsible Prospective Contractors, a responsibility determination will be made for the apparent awardee prior to processing the award. The Contracting Officer reserves the right to request information to assist the Government in determining the apparent successful offeror responsible, including information regarding the offeror’s previous experience (including points of contact), organization (including company officers), technical qualifications, financial resources, and other information deemed necessary. NOTE: Any information received by the Government that would be cause for a negative responsibility determination may make the offeror ineligible for award.

2.13 SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT

The FAR requires that federal contractors register with the System for Award Management (SAM) at https://sam.gov/ and enter all mandatory information into the system. In compliance with FAR 52.204-7, offerors are required to maintain their SAM registrations without lapses during the solicitation period.

2.14 VETS 4212

Title 38 U.S.C. 4212(d), codified at 41 CFR part 61-300, requires that federal contractors report, at least annually, the number and category of veterans who are within their workforce. Submission of the VETS-4212 reporting information can be done electronically at https://www.dol.gov/agencies/vets/programs/vets4212. Award cannot be made unless the awardee has filed their VETS-4212 report. Therefore, all offerors are encouraged to file every year. The Contracting Officer may request a copy of the email confirmation of receipt prior to awarding the project.

2.15 SUBCONTRACTING PLAN

(a) Small Business Subcontracting Plan. Each large business offeror must provide a Small Business Subcontracting Plan that contains all the elements required by FAR 52.219-9. If the large business does not have an approved Master Plan or approved Commercial Plan, then an Individual Subcontracting Plan must be submitted that includes an assurance that small businesses will be given the maximum practicable opportunity to participate in contract performance. The Subcontracting Plan is not a requirement for evaluation in source selection, but rather, a requirement for award to a large business, and the Plan, as negotiated, will be incorporated into any resultant contract. Upon request by the CO, the apparent successful offeror (if a large business) must submit and negotiate a subcontracting plan. Plans are NOT to be submitted with initial proposals.

(b) The subcontracting plan must address all requirements defined in FAR 19.704, Subcontracting plan requirements, including proposed subcontracting to SDVOSBs or VOSBs. The 2024 VA subcontracting goals listed below are based upon total procurement dollars expended and are the suggested minimum goals for VA administered subcontracting plans.

2.16 REVIEW OF REQUIRED REGISTRATION WITH CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT REPORTING SYSTEM

(a) As prescribed in FAR 42.1502(e), the VA evaluates contractor past performance on all construction contracts that exceed $750,000 and shares those evaluations with other Federal Government contract specialists and procurement officials. The FAR requires that the contractor be provided an opportunity to comment on past performance evaluations prior to each report closing. To fulfill this requirement, VA uses an online database, Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS), which is maintained by the Naval Seal Logistics Center in Portsmouth, Virginia. CPARS is available to all Federal agencies and is the system used to collect and retrieve performance assessment reports used in source selection determinations. CPARS also includes access to the federal awardee performance and integrity information system (FAPIIS). FAPIIS is a web-enabled application accessed via CPARS for contractor responsibility determination information.

(b) Each contractor whose contract award is estimated to exceed $750,000 is required to register with CPARS at https://www.cpars.gov/. Help in registering can be obtained by contacting the Customer Service Desk at: 684-1690 (DSN) or 207-438-1690 (Commercial). Registration should occur no later than 30 days after contract award and must be kept current should there be any change to the contractor’s registered representative.

(c) For contracts with a period of one year or less, the Contracting Officer will perform a single evaluation when the contract is complete. For contracts exceeding one year, the Contracting Officer will evaluate the contractor’s performance annually. Interim reports will be filed each year until the last year of the contract, when the final report will be completed. The report must be assigned in CPARS to the contractor’s designated representative for comment. The contractor representative will have 30 days to submit any comments and re-assign the report to the VA Contracting Officer.

(d) Failure to have a current registration in CPARS or to re-assign the report to the VA Contracting Officer within those 30 days will result in the Government’s evaluation being placed on file in the database with a statement that the contractor failed to respond.

2.17 BACKGROUND INVESTIGATIONS AND SPECIAL AGREEMENT CHECKS

All contractor employees are subject to the same level of investigation as VA employees who have access to VA sensitive information. The level of background investigation is commensurate with the level of access needed to perform all work as identified in the solicitation documents. This requirement is applicable to all subcontractor personnel requiring the same access. As per VA Directive 0710, costs of background investigations will be borne by the contractor. Please be advised that the awardee will need to coordinate with the VA Medical Center concerning badging requirements. If the site requires an investigation, the contractor must follow VA Directive 0710.

2.18 REFERENCES TO VA ENGINEER, RESIDENT ENGINEER, OR PROJECT MANAGER

Any reference contained within the solicitation/contract specifications and/or drawings to the “VA Engineer,” “Resident Engineer,” or “Project Manager,” or their abbreviations must be replaced with “Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR).”

2.19 REFERENCES TO BIDS/BIDDERS

Within the solicitation/contract specifications and/or drawings, any reference to “bid” must be replaced with “proposal” and any reference to “bidder” must be replaced with “offeror.”

2.20 52.201-1 ACQUISITION 360: VOLUNTARY SURVEY (SEP 2023)

(a) All actual and potential offerors are encouraged to provide feedback on the preaward and debriefing processes, as applicable. Feedback may be provided to agencies up to 45 days after award. The feedback is anonymous, unless the participant self-identifies in the survey. Actual and potential offerors can participate in the survey by selecting the following link: https:// www.acquisition.gov/360.

(b) The Contracting Officer will not review the information provided until after contract award and will not consider it in the award decision. The survey is voluntary and does not convey any protections, rights, or grounds for protest. It creates a way for actual and potential offerors to provide the Government constructive feedback about the preaward and debriefing processes, as applicable, used for a specific acquisition.

(End of Clause)

2.21 52.215-1 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS—COMPETITIVE ACQUISITION (NOV 2021)

(a) Definitions. As used in this provision— Discussions are negotiations that occur after establishment of the competitive range that may, at the Contracting Officer’s discretion, result in the offeror being allowed to revise its proposal.

In writing, writing, or written means any worded or numbered expression that can be read, reproduced, and later communicated, and includes electronically transmitted and stored information.

Proposal modification is a change made to a proposal before the solicitation’s closing date and time, or made in response to an amendment, or made to correct a mistake at any time before award.

Proposal revision is a change to a proposal made after the solicitation closing date, at the request of or as allowed by a Contracting Officer as the result of negotiations.

Time, if stated as a number of days, is calculated using calendar days, unless otherwise specified, and will include Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays. However, if the last day falls on a Saturday, Sunday, or legal holiday, then the period shall include the next working day.

(b) Amendments to solicitations. If this solicitation is amended, all terms and conditions that are not amended remain unchanged. Offerors shall acknowledge receipt of any amendment to this solicitation by the date and time specified in the amendment(s).

(c) Submission, modification, revision, and withdrawal of proposals.

(1) Unless other methods (e.g., electronic commerce or facsimile) are permitted in the solicitation, proposals and modifications to proposals shall be submitted in paper media in sealed envelopes or packages (i) addressed to the office specified in the solicitation, and (ii) showing the time and date specified for receipt, the solicitation number, and the name and address of the offeror. Offerors using commercial carriers should ensure that the proposal is marked on the outermost wrapper with the information in paragraphs (c)(1)(i) and (c)(1)(ii) of this provision.

(2) The first page of the proposal must show—

(i) The solicitation number;

(ii) The name, address, and telephone and facsimile numbers of the offeror (and electronic address if available);

(iii) A statement specifying the extent of agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation and agreement to furnish any or all items upon which prices are offered at the price set opposite each item;

(iv) Names, titles, and telephone and facsimile numbers (and electronic addresses if available) of persons authorized to negotiate on the offeror’s behalf with the Government in connection with this solicitation; and

(v) Name, title, and signature of person authorized to sign the proposal. Proposals signed by an agent shall be accompanied by evidence of that agent’s authority, unless that evidence has been previously furnished to the issuing office.

(3) Submission, modification, revision, and withdrawal of proposals.

(i) Offerors are responsible for submitting proposals, and any modifications or revisions, 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 proposal or revision is due.

(ii)(A) Any proposal, modification, or revision received at the Government office designated in the solicitation after the exact time specified for receipt of offers is "late" and will not be considered unless it is received before award is made, the Contracting Officer determines that accepting the late offer would not unduly delay the acquisition; and—

(1) If it was transmitted through an electronic commerce method authorized by the solicitation, it was received at the initial point of entry to the Government infrastructure not later than 5:00 p.m. one working day prior to the date specified for receipt of proposals; or

(2) There is acceptable evidence to establish that it was received at the Government installation designated for receipt of offers and was under the Government’s control prior to the time set for receipt of offers; or

(3) It is the only proposal received.

(B) However, a late modification of an otherwise successful proposal that makes its terms more favorable to the Government, will be considered at any time it is received and may be accepted.

(iii) Acceptable evidence to establish the time of receipt at the Government installation includes the time/date stamp of that installation on the proposal wrapper, other documentary evidence of receipt maintained by the installation, or oral testimony or statements of Government personnel.

(iv) If an emergency or unanticipated event interrupts normal Government processes so that proposals cannot be received at the office designated for receipt of proposals by the exact time specified in the solicitation, and urgent Government requirements preclude amendment of the solicitation, the time specified for receipt of proposals 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.

(v) Proposals may be withdrawn by written notice received at any time before award. Oral proposals in response to oral solicitations may be withdrawn orally. If the solicitation authorizes facsimile proposals, proposals may be withdrawn via facsimile received at any time before award, subject to the conditions specified in the provision at 52.215-5, Facsimile Proposals.