Sole_Source_Justification_and_Approval_-_Q00000364.pdf

OPOAM 3013.106-1(b)(1)

Sole Source Justification (SSJ) For Simplified Acquisitions (over the micro-purchase threshold and up to the Simplified Acquisition

Threshold (SAT) pursuant to FAR 13.106, including Brand Name

Sole Source Justification for Simplified Acquisitions (over the micro-purchase threshold and up to the SAT)

Template Rev. 1/30/2018

1-1

SSJ No.: FY18-0341

Date: 25 June 2018 PR Number:

1. Nature and/or description of the item/service being procured and anticipated cost:

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), on behalf of the Office of Chief Counsel (OCC) and the Central Law Division (CLD) has prepared this sole source justification for the purchase of Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook, 16 th edition (978-1-

57370-425-0), owned and published by American Immigration Lawyers Association (AILA).

The estimated value of this requirement is $93,698.25

This publication provides information on the following:

History of US immigration law

Unlawful Presence Waiver

Extreme hardships

Court case rulings, includind Jennings v. Rodriquez, Maslenjak v. US, US v. Juarez

T-Visa regulations

USCIS policy manual updates

Penalty amounts for employer sanctions

Electronic Visa Update System

EB-5 policy manual

Citations to statues and regulations on all aspects of immigration law

2. Sole Source Justification Rationale in accordance with FAR 13.106-1(b)(1)(i) and (ii).

Only one source reasonably available.

The content in this publication is proprietary to AILA. It is published as a stand-alone book that is updated annually. The author of the publication is a leading immigration law specialist who tracks and assesses legal developments in courts, legislatures, regulatory bodies, and relevant Bar associations to glean, synthesize, comprehensively discuss, and clarify actionable information regarding immigration law issues. The updated edition of this publication is necessary to stay current on immigration law developments and issues.

This publication is currently in use by USCIS legal counsel, and has been in use since 1990. USCIS has purchased these books in the past on the following contracts:

70SBUR18XXXXXX

HSSCCG-17-XXXXX

HSSCCG-17-XXXXX

HSSCCG-16-XXXXX

HSSCCG-14-XXXXX

HSSCCG-13-XXXXX

Sole Source Justification for Simplified Acquisitions (over the micro-purchase threshold and up to the SAT)

HSSCCG-12-XXXXX

HSSCCG-10-XXXXX

HSSCCG-08-XXXXX

USCIS posted a request for information (RFI) to Fedbizopps.gov on June 8, 2018, which sought the following:

Are there any equivalent items to Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook that provide information on the following topics?

o Federal Immigration Law & Regulations (USC Title 8) o USCIS Policy Manual Updates o New Regulations on EB-1 to EB-3 Immigrant Workers and High-Skilled Non-Immigrant

Workers o Mental and Physical Disabilities as Grounds for Asylum o New T-Visa Regulations o Regulations for Unfair Immigration-Related Employment Practices o Various USCIS Immigration Forms

Are there any equivalent items to Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook that are updated regularly?

No affirmative responses were received as a result of this RFI.

Additional market research was also conducted via Internet searches and by contacting the owner / publisher of Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook (AILA) to determine if there are any equivalent items in the market, and whether there are authorized resellers of this item. The conclusion of this market research is that there are no equivalent items that are updated yearly. AILA stated there are no authorized resellers of the required item. As they are the manufacturer of their own product, the Government has no choice but to rely on their word that there are no authorized resellers of their products.

Failure to procure this exact item will result in USCIS OCC not having the latest information on immigration law. In turn, this may result in inaccurate information being provided to program offices or other end users. Courtroom or other judicial matters may be decided unfavorably against USCIS due to a lack of recent and relevant information on immigration related topics. Litigation strategies, tactics, and procedures would not be as successful without the updated information provided in the required publication. This impacts not only the USCIS mission, but also the lives of potential immigrants.

3. The anticipated price will be determined fair and reasonable based on one or more of the price analysis techniques described below in accordance with FAR Part 13.106-3(a)(2).

Sole Source Justification for Simplified Acquisitions (over the micro-purchase threshold and up to the SAT)

Comparison of the proposed price with prices found reasonable on previous purchases.

Comparison with similar items in a related industry.

USCIS has purchased the publication in the past on the contracts identified in paragraph 2 of this document. Those contracts will be reviewed to determine if the current pricing is consistent, and whether any escalation in price is fair and reasonable.

Although there are no direct comparisons to this publication, similar types of publications that deal with other areas of law (e.g. government procurement law, tax law, etc) exist. These publications are similar enough to Kurzban’s Immigration Law Sourcebook that a valid comparison of pricing between the two can be made to support a decision as to whether the proposed prices are fair and reasonable.

4. Approval:

25 June 2018

Contracting Officer Date