02.02.01 70FBR426Q00000038-1 Questions_Answers - Level II Armed Guard DR4930-MS.pdf

1. Applicability of Prior Q&A to Re-Issued RFQ Please confirm whether FEMA’s written responses to vendor questions issued under RFQ No. 70FBR426Q00000038 remain applicable to RFQ No.

70FBR426Q00000038_01 except where expressly superseded or modified by the re-issued solicitation, PWS, RFQ Cover Page, or attachments. Yes, Q&A responses remain applicable other than anything addressing local area set aside since this amendment is a small business set aside.

2. Current Incumbent Staffing Level and Transition Availability Please provide the current staffing level supporting DR-4930-MS, including the total number of personnel currently assigned, the number of Level II Armed Protective Security Officers, the number of supervisors, relief personnel, and reserve personnel, and the current staffing distribution by active site or post, if available.

Please also indicate, if known, approximately how many incumbent employees are expected to be available for transition to the successor Contractor. Previously answered on the posted Q&A, this information will be provided to the awardee.

3. Counting Transitioned Incumbent Personnel Toward Required Staffing Please confirm whether incumbent employees selected by the successor Contractor and agreeable to transition may be counted toward the successor Contractor’s required initial staffing level, including reserve and relief staffing, once the successor verifies continued compliance with applicable PWS qualification, licensing, weapons, suitability, and clearance requirements. If applicable, the awardee will be able to offer incumbent employees a position on the awarded contract; however, the offeror interested in RFQ 70FBR426Q00000038 should not posture their responses as if an incumbent employee will accept. The offeror should be able to provide the required number of guards with or without the incumbent staff.

4. Carryover of Incumbent Credentials and Suitability For incumbent personnel selected for transition, please confirm whether existing FEMA suitability/EOD status, training records, firearms qualifications, Mississippi permits/licenses, CPR/First Aid/AED certifications, and other current credentials may carry over to the successor Contractor, subject to continued validity, or whether any of these items must be reprocessed, reissued, or resubmitted before continued performance. If incumbent personnel agrees to assist the awardee, their EOD status, training records, etc remains applicable so long as they have not expired. As these individuals have already been vetted.

5. Timing of Incumbent Personnel Information The PWS provides for transfer of incumbent personnel records to the successor Contractor. Given the rapid activation requirement, please confirm when the awardee will receive incumbent personnel information and whether it will be provided immediately following award to support recruiting, interviews, credential validation, weapon assignment, and transition planning. The awardee will receive the incumbent information after technical evaluations have been completed but as staffing personnel records are PII this will be the decision of the incumbent to share to the awardee, as stated in question number 3 an offeror should not posture their response based on the current incumbent staff members.

6. Attachment 05 Weapons Quantity – 15 vs. 20 The re-issued RFQ requests a weapons roster of fifteen (15) company-owned weapons, while the PWS requires twenty (20) Level II Armed Protective Security Officers and provides for contractor-assigned weapons. FEMA previously clarified under the prior RFQ that twenty (20) weapons/personnel should be identified.

Please confirm the required number of weapons and employee assignments to be submitted under Attachment 05 for RFQ No. 70FBR426Q00000038_01. Twenty (20) Level II Armed Guards and weapons are required.

7. Guard Personnel Documentation Required with Quotation Please confirm whether the prior clarification remains applicable that weapons-qualification documentation must be submitted with the employee packets, while PWS Section 3.3 suitability documentation is not required with the quotation, and please confirm the number of employee packets expected with the re-issued quotation. Yes

8. Current Post/Site Configuration for Staffing and Pricing The solicitation identifies 24-hour armed security requirements for the Hattiesburg Branch Office and armed security at DRC locations, with requirements subject to change. Please provide the currently anticipated number of active DRC sites at contract start and, if available, the expected initial staffing schedule or post configuration for the Branch Office and DRC locations. The requested number of guards are able to support the ever-changing disaster operations as DRC sites, locations, and dates have not been established and will be provided to the awardee upon receipt of the information. The PWS identifies how quickly guards will be needed for new post, sites, or support.

9. Contractor-Furnished Vehicles and Conditional Equipment The re-issued PWS continues to identify patrol vehicles, 4x4 vehicles, ATVs, guard shacks, fencing, and related items as Contractor-furnished when deemed necessary. FEMA previously clarified that vehicles and other “when deemed necessary” equipment were not required for this requirement. Please confirm that this clarification remains applicable to RFQ No. 70FBR426Q00000038_01 and that offerors should not include vehicle, ATV, guard shack, fencing, or associated operating costs in their quoted unit rates unless subsequently directed by the Government. This requirement remains unchanged from the previous RFQ and posted questions and answers.

10. Overtime / Premium-Hour Pricing Treatment If FEMA anticipates schedules that may generate overtime or premium-hour labor costs due to 24-hour coverage, changing post hours, or short-notice site activation, please confirm whether all such labor costs must be incorporated into the single quoted unit rate in Attachment 04, or whether any separate adjustment or reimbursement mechanism applies. – This is a fixed rate contract.

11. To assist offerors in developing accurate transition plans and staffing strategies, can the Government confirm: Previously answered on the posted Q&A, this information will be provided to the awardee.

• Whether security guard services are currently being performed at the DR-4930- MS locations under an existing contract?

• If so, what is the approximate number of guards currently deployed and at how many locations?

• Will the incumbent contractor be required to cooperate with the transition process as outlined in PWS Section 4.10?"

12. To ensure offerors can develop accurate and fair pricing in accordance with FAR requirements, please provide: The requested number of guards are able to support the ever-changing disaster operations as DRC sites, locations, and dates have not been established and will be provided to the awardee upon receipt of the information. The PWS identifies how quickly guards will be needed for new post, sites, or support.

• The estimated number of active or anticipated post locations within the 8 declared counties

• The estimated daily hours of operation per post location

• Whether any post locations require 24-hour/7-day coverage

• The estimated total weekly billable hours for the base period of performance

• Whether the Government anticipates the number of posts or hours increasing significantly during the option periods Disaster are very fluid in nature and it is very possible that post, hours, locations will increase and decrease and is unknown at this time.

13. Given the technical complexity of this requirement and the need to ensure maximum small business participation, will the Government consider an extension to the quote submission deadline? A brief extension would allow offerors to submit more thorough and competitive technical approaches, particularly regarding the Transition Plan, Business Continuity Plan, and Use of Force Policy required under evaluation criteria. Unfortunately, an extension will not be granted for this requirement due to the length of time it was originally posted.

14. Regarding Service Contract Act compliance and pricing, please clarify:

• When a Level II Armed PSO is deployed across multiple counties covered by different Wage Determinations in a single shift, which Wage Determination rate applies and how should offerors account for this in their pricing? Wage determinations have been posted for each county as a reference of an hourly rate for each guard and it has been a normal practice of vendors to utilize an average of multiple wage rates to ensure their staff are paid in compliance with the department of labor standards.

• Will the Government provide a confirmed Guard II (SCA Code 27102) hourly rate for each of the 8 declared counties to ensure pricing consistency and SCA compliance across all offerors? Wage determination rates for each declared county are listed in the solicitation for the offerors’ reference.

• Several pages of the attached Wage Determination documents appear to have incomplete rate information due to document scanning quality. Can the Government provide clean, complete copies of all applicable Wage Determinations? Wage determination rates for each declared county are listed in the solicitation for the offerors’ reference. In the event there are posting errors, the vendor can pull the complete wage determinations from SAM.gov or the Department of Labor website but the team will review and repost if needed.

15. Regarding travel costs under this contract:

• How does the Government define the 'local commuting area' for each of the 8 declared counties for purposes of determining reimbursable versus non-reimbursable travel? This requirement is in support of the declared counties of DR4930-MS meaning guards should be local to these areas. (For example, a guard living in Alaska is not considered local to the area as travel expenses are necessary for their commute and FEMA are not reimbursing travel expenses as the guards should be local to the declared counties)

• When guards are required to travel between post locations across multiple counties in a single day, will those travel costs be considered part of the firm fixed price or reimbursable under the Federal Travel Regulations? Travel should be included in the fixed rate as those fees are not reimbursed as offerors interested in this requirement are essential stating they are able to support disaster operations in the State of Mississippi.

• If FEMA expands operations to additional Mississippi counties beyond the 8 declared counties as referenced in PWS Section 1.2, will a contract modification be issued to address the pricing impact of expanded geographic coverage? This requirement is only for DR4930-MS declared counties but if additional counties were to be declared under this disaster, then the proposed rates will be used in support of those additional counties as the contract will be written utilizing fixed rates.

16. Regarding mobilization and suitability requirements, the PWS contains what appears to be conflicting with timelines. PWS Section 1.2 requires armed guard services within 24 hours of contract execution, while PWS Section 4.10.1.3 references a 7-day startup period from award. Please clarify:

• Which timeline governs the initial mobilization requirement - 24 hours or 7 days? Guards should be available to report to a new post within a 24-48 hour time period. The 7 day window is applicable to the transition from the incumbent to the new awardee.

• Does the 120-day suitability waiver referenced in PWS Section 3.4.3.1 apply to all guards required at contract commencement, allowing performance to begin while Tier 2 background investigations are pending? Yes, the 120-day suitability waiver referenced in PWS Section 3.4.3.1 applies to all guards and allows them to begin performing as a PSO while the Tier 2 background investigation is being conducted.

• For guards who have previously received FEMA EOD approval on other active disaster contracts, will a full suitability package resubmission be required or will prior approval transfer to this contract? The COR will review the previously EOD approval status to determine if a new package resubmission is required but this will be determined at the time of award. If their status is still current, active, and approved in the system then only the Contractor DHS Fitness Form 11000-25 is required.

17. Are the prior published questions and answers still in effect and will they be republished with adjustments due to this modification from the original solicitation?

Yes

18. With Hattiesburg as the main, what is the maximum number of DRC(s) will you plan to have in operation at any one time? (1x main + ???x DRC), can you name the ones currently in operation? The requested number of guards are able to support the ever-changing disaster operations as DRC sites, locations, and dates have not been established and will be provided to the awardee upon receipt of the information. The PWS identifies how quickly guards will be needed for new post, sites, or support.

19. The roster is referred to a number of times but uses a variety of attachment numbers and rows totaling 15 while the number of personnel is up to 20. In this version is the proper Attachment in all cases #5 and assumed to be expanded to 20 or more rows if needed? Twenty (20) Level II Armed Guards and weapons are required.

20. Body armor / vest specification: What is the exact required ballistic protection level for the PSOs (e.g., NIJ Level II vs. IIIA), and is a specific NIJ-compliant standard or carrier type (concealed vs. external/marked) required? - a NIJ Level II Ballistic Resistant vest is required per PWS. – It depends on the vendor what carrier type is utilized. Confirm with the COR upon award.

21. Shift structure / hours: What are the expected shift lengths and coverage hours per post (e.g., 8/10/12-hour shifts, 24/7 vs. daytime-only), and are these consistent across all outpost/DRC locations? The requested number of guards are able to support the ever-changing disaster operations as DRC sites, locations, and dates have not been established and will be provided to the awardee upon receipt of the information. The PWS identifies how quickly guards will be needed for new post, sites, or support.

Guards should be available to report to a new post within a 24-48 hour time period.

Additionally, it is safe to assume that offerors should posture their guards to support hours of operation between 8 to 12 hours per shift.

22. Outpost activation & ramp-up: After award, how much lead time (mobilization period) will the contractor have before officers must be on post, and how much advance notice is given when an additional outpost is activated or deactivated? A 7 day window is applicable to the transition from the incumbent to the new awardee. Notification of post deactiviation can be provided the morning of closure and expected to end by close of business that day, but it is always the intent of the Government to provide as early of as notice as possible but some situations do not allow for this courtesy.

23. Post locations & conditions: Will the government provide the specific DRC/outpost addresses and any site-specific requirements (indoor/outdoor posts, equipment, screening duties) prior to or at award? This information will be provided to the awardee.

24. Weapon/ammunition requirements: Are there any specific requirements or restrictions on firearm type/caliber or ammunition beyond Level II certification, and is the contractor responsible for providing ammunition? Please reference the PWS for specific weapon requirements and the Contractor is responsible for ammunition.