6913G625Q300041 A00003 QUESTIONs-ANSWERs.pdf

RFQ No. 6913G625Q300041 Amendment No. 00003

Questions & Answers

QUESTION: Is the described work intended to be entirely "desktop" review of projects and recommendations for compliance needs, or is there a potential for fieldwork? The SOW suggests both, but task orders to conduct cultural resources surveys, etc. would be impossible to scope at this juncture, without knowledge of project size and location.

ANSWER: While most of the work will be desktop review, there is the potential for fieldwork, such as a Phase I survey or archaeological monitoring. Identification of field work needs will be based on the results of desktop review and consultation and would generally be confined to discreet areas of concern rather than corridor- or project-wide.

QUESTION: The pricing sheet lists Task 2 FY24 Section 106 Tasks several times, and FY25 twice.

Are all occurrences of FY24 a mistake? Should the repeated years be years starting with FY26?

ANSWER: The FYs are correct – these are based on grant funding years.

QUESTION: Should the contractor plan on having or gaining the ability to access State Historic Property databases for all 50 states and all U.S. territories? Or are there specific states or regions that DOT anticipates projects to be in?

ANSWER: While we are not anticipating needing access to all 50 states, the contractor should be able to gain access wherever is needed. We have a list of FY24 states, but I do not have FY25 lists yet.

QUESTION: Pricing Sheet CLIN 00200 vs 00300: What triggers the use of the optional Monthly Status Meeting CLIN 00300 versus the base CLIN 00200?

ANSWER: CLIN 00300 funds additional Monthly Status Meetings to go with the additional support under optional CLINs 00800, 00900, 01000.

QUESTION: Pricing Sheet CLIN 00800 and 00900 labels: Both read “FY24 Section 106 Tasks (optional)” but list different quantities; please clarify the difference between these two optional CLINs.

ANSWER: Those would be additional projects to be reviewed, which are submitted to Volpe on a rolling basis. Total FY24 projects is 57, but we may not need contractor support on all of them.

QUESTION: PWS §2 Task 1 bullet 2: What standard duration (hours), if any, should we assume for each monthly TEAMS/ZOOM status meeting?

ANSWER: 30 minutes

Questions & Answers

QUESTION: PWS §2 Task 1 bullet 3: What expected length or level of detail (e.g., approximate page count) should monthly Word progress reports contain?

ANSWER: 4-5 pages

QUESTION: PWS §2 Scope: Can the Government provide the regional distribution (e.g., by state or Census Division) of anticipated projects to support travel and wage-determination planning?

ANSWER: The Government has a list of states for FY24, but not FY25. FY24 applicants can be found at the following website: FY 2024 NGDISM Grants Report.pdf FY25 projects have not been announced.

QUESTION: PWS §2 bullet “Adjusting level of effort…”: Historically, what percentage of Section 106 reviews involve complex scenarios (adverse effect, Tribal consultation, urban settings) that drive higher documentation loads?

ANSWER: Most are within small towns and rural areas, with maybe 10% in larger urban areas.

Volpe conducts all Tribal consultation and would only need contractor support on the documentation needed for consultation. We are not anticipating adverse effects or complex scenarios, though some minor survey or monitoring may be needed in discreet areas of concern on a limited number of projects based on the outcomes of consultation and review. To date less than 5% have resulted in the potential for efforts beyond desktop survey.

QUESTION: ITO §1 Quote Format: What file format(s) (e.g., PDF, Word) are required for the completed pricing-sheet attachment?

ANSWER: No, you can use pdf or word.

QUESTION: ITO §b Technical Submission: Does the 15-page technical limit include the cover page, table of contents, and acronym list?

ANSWER: No

QUESTION: PWS §2 bullet “GIS Mapping and Data Science”: Will Volpe furnish Esri ArcGIS (or equivalent) licenses and base geodatabases, or must the contractor supply and price its own GIS environment?

ANSWER: No, Volpe will not furnish Esri ArcGIS (or equivalent) licenses. The government will provide APE maps as PDFs and GIS shapefiles when available.

QUESTION: PWS §2 bullet “Conducting cultural resources surveys…”: Is the contractor required to provide specialized field equipment such as sub-meter GNSS units or drones, or will the Government supply these when needed?

https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2024-10/FY%202024%20NGDISM%20Grants%20Report.pdf

Questions & Answers ANSWER: Most work will be desktop. The government will not be supplying equipment. No specialized equipment is anticipated to be needed, beyond what cultural resources professionals use on a regular basis.

QUESTION: PWS §4 Period of Performance: To calculate escalation accurately, please confirm the anticipated purchase-order award date (e.g., two weeks before the 15 Jul 2025 kick-off).

ANSWER: The exact award date is not known, it depends how the rest of the process goes, the dates may change.

QUESTION: PWS §2 bullet “Access to State Historic Property inventories”: Will the Government provide or reimburse database subscription credentials where access fees are required, or must the contractor budget for new licenses?

ANSWER: No

QUESTION: ITO §1 Quote Format (p. 4): Please confirm that the Government will deem a quote non-responsive if the required pricing sheet is reformatted or replaced instead of being submitted in the exact provided template.

ANSWER: No, you can format the pricing sheet how you want; however, I will need to have the pricing sheet completed also.

QUESTION: Is there an incumbent contractor? If so, what is its name and contract number?

ANSWER: No

QUESTION: If there is an incumbent contractor, has the scope or size of the contract changed in any nontrivial way between the incumbent contract and the present solicitation?

ANSWER: No

QUESTION: If there is no incumbent contractor, then are there existing contractor(s) that are doing some of the work of this PWS? If so, what are their name(s) and contract number(s)?

ANSWER: No

QUESTION: If there are no contractors doing any of the work currently, then how is the work of the PWS being done? Or is it not being done at all?

ANSWER: No

Questions & Answers QUESTION: If the work of the PWS is not being done at all right now, then is there a backlog that the incoming contractor will have to handle? If so, please explain and describe how much of a backlog there is.

ANSWER: I don’t consider there to be a backlog right now, Volpe staff is handling the work, but this could change as projects are submitted. FY25 is TBD.

QUESTION: If there is an incumbent contract, is the scope and estimated workload for the present solicitation approximately the same as for the incumbent contract?

ANSWER: No

QUESTION: What is the estimated workload for this PWS?

ANSWER: See CLINs for number of projects. Level of effort will vary depending on the project and may range from a corridor of a few hundred feet, to miles or several parcels. Generally, we are looking for a desktop review to assess archaeological sensitivity, presence of historic properties, and potential effects; and prepare materials for consultation under Section 106.

Existing templates and guidance will be provided. Some may also require limited survey or archaeological monitoring and associated deliverables.

A firm fixed price award is anticipated.