7571MN26Q00074.pdf

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08/20/2026 1700 ET

08/09/2026

CHRISTOPHER POULOS

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7571MN26Q00074

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1 112 ACL346699OFFEROR TO COMPLETE BLOCKS 12, 17, 23, 24, & 30

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Rockville MD 20852

5600 Fishers Lane

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Washington DC 20024

330 C Street, SW; Room 1318A

Administration for Community Living

Administration for Community Living

Rockville MD 20852

5600 Fishers Lane

OMAS Mission Support

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ITEM NO.

Delivery: 09/01/2026 Period of Performance: 09/01/2026 to 08/31/2027

1 Base National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER)

Additional information included in Continuation Pages

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HEREIN, IS ACCEPTED AS TO ITEMS:

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ITEM NO.

2 Option Period 1

National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER)

Additional information included in Continuation

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Period of Performance: 09/01/2027 to 08/31/2028

3 Option Period 2

National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER)

Additional information included in Continuation

Pages

(Option Line Item)

Period of Performance: 09/01/2028 to 08/31/2029

4 Option Period 3

National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER)

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7571MN26Q00074

Period of Performance: 09/01/2029 to 08/31/2030

5 Option Period 4

National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER)

Additional information included in Continuation

Pages

(Option Line Item)

Period of Performance: 09/01/2030 to 08/31/2031

NSN 7540-01-152-8067 OPTIONAL FORM 336 (4-86)

Sponsored by GSA

FAR (48 CFR) 53.110

7571MN26Q00074

National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER)

SECTION A - Solicitation/Contract Form

Solicitation to establish a Contract to perform the work described in Section C, entitled, “Statement of Work.”

SECTION B - Supplies or Services and Prices/Costs

B.1 BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES

The National Center on Law and Elder Rights (NCLER) is a national resource and support center required under the Older Americans Act (OAA) Section 420(a)(1). NCLER provides technical assistance, support, and training to professionals and advocates working in legal assistance, elder rights, and associated aging services networks. NCLER’s goal is to improve the delivery of legal assistance services to older adults with greatest economic or social needs and to improve the capacity of the aging services network to better meet the needs of older adults through a systems-level focus.

Per OAA Section 420(a)(1), the purpose of this solicitation is to award a contract that focuses on five objectives:

(1) Project Management;

(2) Training;

(3) Substantive Legal Advice and Assistance;

(4) Legal Assistance Delivery Systems; and

(5) Case Consultations

The Contractor shall provide the services described in Section C Description/Specification/Work Statement. These services are severable. Except as otherwise specified in the contract, the Contractor shall furnish the necessary personnel, materials, services, facilities, and otherwise do all things necessary for or incident to the performance of the work set forth herein.

B.2 TYPE OF CONTRACT

The contract type awarded is a Hybrid Type Contract (Firm Fixed Price/Labor Hour)

B.3 SEVERABLE SERVICES

The services acquired under this contract are severable services. Funds are only available for use for the contract line item (CLIN) to which they are obligated. Unused funds from one CLIN may not rollover for use in other periods.

B.4 CONSIDERATION AND PAYMENT

Objectives 1-4, including all associated tasks and required deliverables for the Base Year and any exercised Option Years, shall be performed on a Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) basis. Objective 5 (Case Consultations) shall be performed on a Labor Hour (LH) basis in accordance with the description in Task 5.0.

In consideration of satisfactory performance of the work as described throughout this contract, the Contractor shall be paid a fixed price for the listed CLIN. The base period is priced as follows:

CLIN Item Period Total Amount

CLIN 1 Objectives 1-4 Fixed Price Base CLIN 2 Objective 5 (Case Consultations) Labor Hour Base CLIN 3 Objectives 1-4 Fixed Price Option Period 1 CLIN 4 Objective 5 (Case Consultations) Labor Hour Option Period 1 CLIN 5 Objectives 1-4 Fixed Price Option Period 2 CLIN 6 Objective 5 (Case Consultations) Labor Hour Option Period 2 CLIN 7 Objectives 1-4 Fixed Price Option Period 3 CLIN 8 Objective 5 (Case Consultations) Labor Hour Option Period 3 CLIN 9 Objectives 1-4 Fixed Price Option Period 4 CLIN 10 Objective 5 (Case Consultations) Labor Hour Option Period 4

TOTAL Potential Value inclusive of all CLINS: $ ___________

SECTION C - Description/Specifications/Statement of Work

C.1 PROGRAM DESCRIPTION AND BACKGROUND

Background

The OAA identifies legal assistance as crucial to supporting older Americans in asserting their rights and removing barriers to economic independence and self-determination. “Legal assistance” is defined in OAA Section 102(33) as legal advice and representation provided by an attorney (or other provider as allowed in the OAA) to older adults with economic or social needs.

Section 420(a)(1) of the OAA requires a national legal assistance support system, established as NCLER. NCLER’s purpose is to provide national resource support for professionals and advocates working in legal assistance, elder rights, and associated aging services networks. NCLER supports the knowledge, expertise, and service delivery capacity of legal and aging service organizations through a range of activities, including case consultation, legal training, and technical assistance on OAA-prioritized legal issues and elder rights programs.

The Office of Elder Justice and Adult Protective Services (OEJAPS), within the Administration on Aging within the Administration for Community Living (ACL), manages the operation and administration of NCLER. Per OAA Section 420(c), this contract “must be fulfilled by a nonprofit organization experienced in providing support and technical assistance on a nationwide basis to States, area agencies on aging, legal assistance providers, ombudsmen, elder abuse prevention programs, and other organizations interested in the legal rights of older individuals.”

C.2 STATEMENT OF WORK - Severable Services

Contract tasks will focus on five objectives: (1) Project Management; (2) Training; (3) Substantive Legal Advice and Assistance; (4) Legal Assistance Delivery Systems; and (5) Case Consultations.

Activities and efforts should reflect ACL’s commitment to a person-centered, person-directed approaches based on individual strengths, assets, goals, expectations, and needs, and the belief that all individuals have the right to exercise choice in, and control of, the direction of the services they receive.

Objective 1 - Project Management

Project success requires extensive planning, coordination, communication, and ongoing project management. The Contractor must develop key project management materials and maintain regular contact with the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) and other ACL staff. All project deliverables shall be provided by the Contractor to the COR in an agreed format.

Task 1.0: Project Kickoff Meeting

Within five (5) business days of award, the Contractor shall meet with the Contracting Officer (CO), COR, Task Lead, Contract Specialist, and other relevant ACL personnel to review and clarify the scope of work and delivery schedule for this contract, and address outstanding contractual matters (e.g., invoice procedures). The Kickoff Meeting introduces the members of the project team and provides the opportunity to discuss the role of each team member.

The Contractor will send an agenda two (2) business days prior to the Kickoff Meeting. An after-meeting summary is due to ACL within two (2) business days of the Kickoff Meeting. Discussion topics will include, at a minimum:

• Review of project purpose, goal, objectives, and expected products.

• A discussion of the project approach.

• Discuss how stakeholders will be involved and engaged.

• Review the Project Work Plan to guide the overall direction of the project, including identification of project risk and proposing risk mitigation strategies.

• A discussion of the format and timetable for deliverables, including a proposed training schedule that includes general topics and proposed target audience(s).

• A review of the project governance strategies including requirements tracking, project scope, cost, schedule, and performance management.

• Any other questions or issues identified by the Contractor.

The Contractor must send no more than two team members to attend the Kick-Off meeting in person at the Administration for Community Living, 330 C St SW, Washington DC. Other team members may attend virtually as needed.

Task 1.1: Project Work Plan

The Project Work Plan is a formal written deliverable. Within five (5) business days after the Kickoff Meeting, the Contractor will provide an updated Project Work Plan that is a refinement of the Work Plan presented in the Contractor’s Technical Proposal and that incorporates ACL feedback from the Kickoff Meeting. The Project Work Plan shall:

• Clearly delineate the Contractor’s approach for maintaining regular contact with the COR.

• Establish plans for documenting key project decisions.

• Propose a work schedule for the project, including key project milestones, anticipated outcomes, key objectives, action steps, due dates, and deliverables.

• Specify Contractor responsibilities, including roles, corresponding personnel assignments, and if applicable, subcontractors.

The Project Work Plan is an iterative, living document that shall be revised as agreed upon by the Contractor, the COR, and the CO. The Contractor is responsible for revising the Project Work Plan as needed after consultation with the COR. The Contractor will submit the Project Work Plan in a format agreed upon by the Contractor and the COR.

Task 1.2: Quality Assurance Plan

The Contractor shall submit to ACL a quality assurance plan within ten (10) days after award that describes how the Contractor will ensure:

• Key project decisions are documented;

• Products and deliverables are of high quality, accurate, and meets ACL requirements;

• Propose an approach for ensuring adequate ACL feedback on key project deliverables;

• ACL is given at least ten (10) business days to provide feedback on key project deliverables;

• Project is within budget;

• Propose project controls that facilitate project performance measurement, quality assurance, and improvement against the work breakdown or other structure;

• Prompt corrective actions are in place to address errors, issues, or risks.

Task 1.3: Project Status Meetings and Reports

For the duration of the contract, the Contractor shall maintain regular contact with the ACL COR, Task Lead, and other program stakeholders identified by ACL. At a minimum, the Contractor will submit monthly project status reports and hold monthly check-in meetings with ACL staff.

Monthly Status Calls:

These calls will be scheduled at a mutually agreeable time. At least one business day prior to the meeting, the Contractor is responsible for preparing a brief agenda. Summaries of status meetings are due within one (1) business day after the meeting.

Monthly Status Reports Monthly project status reports are required and shall include, at a minimum, the following information:

• Description of the progress made and work performed during the monthly reporting period by task.

• Risks or problems encountered during the reporting period, and mitigation actions implemented or proposed.

• Documentation of the communications strategies, including an assessment of which strategies were deemed successful.

• Overview of data from training and technical assistance trackers.

Annual Report An Annual Report, due in month 12 of the contract base or option year, will summarize the activities of the full contract year, including: an assessment of communication strategies; an overview of TA and training provided (including Tracker data); and how the Contractor will apply lessons learned to the next contract year.

All reports must include the contract number.

Task 1.4: Assess Resource Support Needs

The Contractor is responsible for assessing resource support needs of legal assistance, elder rights, and associated aging services networks, as follows:

• During the Base/Option Year Kickoff, the Contractor will describe how they plan to consult with stakeholders nationwide (e.g., meetings, surveys), and employ its own experience and expertise in creating a legal training curriculum, technical assistance, and capacity development plan.

• In the Annual Report, the Contractor will report on feedback collected from aging network stakeholders throughout the year, and how they plan to use the feedback to try to address identified needs in the next contract year.

Task 1.5: Maintain Website and Other Information Technology Resources

The Contractor shall maintain and manage the content on https://ncler.acl.gov and other digital mediums, such as ACL’s YouTube and social media platforms. This includes:

• Updating NCLER’s website and other mediums with training materials and salient updates affecting older adults with greatest social or economic need.

• Using an ACL provided email address, maintain ACL listserv of legal assistance and aging network professionals (adding/removing members as requested by the user) and sending at least 1 monthly emails per year, highlighting new trainings, relevant legal updates, funding opportunities, and other pertinent information.

Objective 2: Training

The Contractor shall provide informed and actionable training to a range of elder rights and aging network stakeholders through a variety of approaches and methods on the most pressing range of issues impacting older adults with economic or social need that may be addressed with legal solutions as outlined below.

Task 2.0: Implement Trainings for the Aging Services Network

The Contractor will develop and execute at least six (6) trainings (e.g., in-person conference sessions, virtual webinars, podcasts, small group trainings) per contract year, designed to improve and enhance legal assistance and elder rights programming and practices. Trainings should be appropriate for a non-legal assistance provider audience, and primarily focus on legal assistance program administration, LADs, stakeholder collaborations, and any other topics identified by

ACL.

In addition to the training materials (e.g., presentation slides), the Contractor will be responsible for producing at least one supplemental material to support trainings, such as blogs, articles, podcasts, and videos, for distribution through email and website postings.

At the time of registration for each training, the Contractor will request the following information from each registrant: name; email address; state/territory; and stakeholder type (Aging/Disability Advocate/Stakeholder; Local/State/Federal Government; Legal Services Attorney; Other).

During the Base Year, at the Kickoff Meeting, ACL will provide the Contractor with the six (6) training topics, a proposed training schedule, form of supplement material, proposed training methods (e.g., virtual webinar), and training target audience. The proposed topics are subject to change if emerging legal issues necessitate the change.

During Option Years, at the Kickoff Meeting, the Contractor will present to ACL the six (6) training topics, proposed schedule, supplemental materials, proposed training methods (e.g., virtual webinar), and training target audience. The Contractor’s selections will be based on feedback and data collected from the previous contract year(s), input from ACL, and the Contractor’s expertise. The proposed topics are subject to change if emerging legal issues necessitate the change.

Task 2.1 Track Training Activities

For trainings under Task 2.0, the Contractor must maintain a tracker that will be shared with ACL.

In addition, the Contractor must include data from the previous month in the Monthly Status Report, and aggregated annual data in the Annual Report. The tracker must be created and shared with ACL within 20 days of contract award. This Tracker may be in the same file as the Tracker referenced in Task 3.1.

The tracker will include, for each training: date of the training; number of attendees; stakeholder type targeted by training; number of attendees by stakeholder group; and states represented.

Objective 3: Substantive Legal Advice and Assistance

The Contractor shall provide substantive legal training to legal assistance providers through a variety of approaches and methods on the most pressing on OAA priority legal issue areas impacting older adults with economic or social need.

Task 3.0 Implement Trainings for Legal Assistance Providers

The Contractor will develop and execute at least six (6) trainings (e.g., in-person conference sessions, virtual webinars, podcasts, small group trainings) per contract year, designed to improve and enhance legal assistance delivery and practice. Trainings should be targeted at attorneys, and focus primarily on OAA priority legal issue areas, but also include topics such as practitioner best practices and attorney skill development.

In addition to the training materials (e.g., presentation slides), the Contractor will be responsible for producing at least one supplemental material to support trainings, such as blogs, articles, podcasts, and videos, for distribution through email and website postings.

At the time of registration for each training, the Contractor will request the following information from each registrant: name; email address; state/territory; and stakeholder type (Aging/Disability Advocate/Stakeholder; Local/State/Federal Government; Legal Services Attorney; Other).

During the Base Year, at the Kickoff Meeting, ACL will provide the Contractor with the six (6) training topics, a proposed training schedule, form of supplement material, proposed training methods (e.g., virtual webinar), and training target audience. The proposed topics are subject to change if emerging legal issues necessitate the change.

During Option Years, at the Kickoff Meeting, the Contractor will present to ACL the six (6) training topics, proposed schedule, proposed supplemental materials, proposed training methods (e.g., virtual webinar), and training target audience. The Contractor’s selections will be based on feedback and data collected from the previous contract year(s), input from ACL, and the Contractor’s expertise. The proposed topics are subject to change if emerging legal issues necessitate the change.

Task 3.1: Track Legal Advice and Assistance Activities

For trainings under Task 3.0, the Contractor must maintain a tracker that will be shared with ACL.

In addition, the Contractor must include data from the previous month in the Monthly Status Report, and aggregated annual data in the Annual Report. The tracker must be created and shared with ACL within 20 days of contract award. This Tracker may be in the same file as the Tracker referenced in Task 2.1.

The tracker will include, for each training: date of the training; number of attendees; stakeholder type targeted by training; number of attendees by stakeholder group; OAA priority issue area (if applicable); and states represented.

Objective 4: Legal Assistance Delivery Systems

The Contractor will provide high-quality technical assistance to legal assistance and elder rights programs seeking to build program and service delivery capacity at the state and local level. The Contractor’s focus will be to improve the outcomes for older adults with social or economic needs facing challenges from OAA priority legal issues.

Task 4.0 Technical Assistance Plan

The Contractor shall propose and provide various forms of technical assistance to support the knowledge, expertise, and capacity of legal assistance and aging network professionals. The Contractor will create a “Technical Assistance (TA) Plan,” identifying 1-2 priority technical assistance needs for the contract year, how the Contractor proposes to effectively meet the technical assistance needs, and the best way to measure its effectiveness.

The TA Plan is due within 20 business days after award. ACL will provide comments on the TA Plan draft no more than ten (10) business days after the receipt of the draft. The final TA Plan is due within five (5) business days after receiving ACL’s final comments.

During the Base Year, at the Kickoff Meeting, ACL will provide the Contractor with the 1-2 areas of technical assistance focus for the contract year. ACL will provide the Contractor the following information: the stakeholder target(s); type of technical assistance needed; method of providing technical assistance; and how technical assistance effectiveness will be measured.

During Option Years, at the Kickoff Meeting, the Contractor will present: the 1-2 areas of technical assistance focus for the upcoming contract year (and how the focus was selected); the stakeholder target(s); type of technical assistance needed (e.g., staff training, creating educational materials);

method of providing technical assistance (e.g., webinar, training documents); and how technical assistance effectiveness will be measured. In identifying areas of technical assistance focus, the Contractor must consider feedback and data collected from the previous contract year(s), input from ACL, and the Contractor’s expertise.

Task 4.1 Improving ACL Discretionary Grantee Service Delivery

In addition to the technical assistance identified above, at least once per contract year, the Contractor will plan and execute a meeting targeted at one or more of the following ACL discretionary grant portfolios: Elder Justice Innovation Grants; Highest State Court to Improve Guardianship; Legal Assistance Enhancement Program; pension program grantees; and others as identified by ACL. These meetings will be no more than 2 hours long if held virtually or, if in person, no more than 8 hours long. The target audience will be determined by ACL at the start of the Base/Option Year based on the status of ACL grants and agency priorities.

Objective 5: Case Consultations

The Contractor will provide high-quality, expert advice or relevant referrals on specific legal matters facing older adults with economic or social needs. Case consultation requests are made by legal services and aging network members regarding a specific legal issue or case. Legal advice is not provided directly to clients or consumers.

Task 5.0 Provide Case Consultation Services

The Contractor will provide case consultation services to legal services or aging network stakeholders, not to exceed 450 request responses per contract year. The level of effort required to address a case consultation request will vary based on the request, and will include a range of responses, including but not limited to brief written responses, legal research, meeting/discussion, or referral to an appropriate other resource (as a last resort if the question is outside of the resource center’s scope). The Contractor must utilize subject matter experts in the legal issue area to respond to the request and determine the appropriate level of effort needed to fulfill the request.

The Contractor will receive case consultation requests via an ACL managed mailbox (ConsultNCLER@acl.hhs.gov). Requests must be handled on a first-come, first-served basis.

Task 5.1 Track Case Consultation Services

The Contractor will maintain a tracker, to be shared with ACL, which includes, at a minimum:

date case consultation request received; date of first response; date of request closeout;

requestor’s state; requestor type (legal assistance provider, AAA, community organization, etc.);

OAA priority area (as defined by OAA Section 307(a)(11)(E)); type of assistance provided; if referred, to where; how did they hear about Consult NCLER; and who fulfilled the request.

mailto:ConsultNCLER@acl.hhs.gov

In addition to sharing the tracker with ACL, Contractor must include data from the previous month in the Monthly Status Report, and aggregated annual data in the Annual Report. The tracker must be created and shared with ACL within 20 days of contract award.

All above objectives and tasks apply in each option year.

Organizational Capacity

Per the OAA Section 420(c), the “national legal assistance support system” (i.e., NCLER) must be operated by “non-profit organizations experienced in providing support and technical assistance on a nationwide basis to States, area agencies on aging, legal assistance providers, ombudsman, elder abuse prevention programs, and other organizations interested in the legal rights of older individuals.”

More specifically, the selected organization(s) must demonstrate:

• At least 4 examples (one example of each contract objective) over the last years 8 years of providing support and assistance to state/local governments or non-profit organizations;

• At least 4 examples over the last 8 years of delivering assistance and support on a nationwide scale, or by providing assistance to multiple states/regions as part of a cohort or other cooperative assistance program;

• At least 4 examples over the last 8 years of collaborating and coordinating with stakeholders around legal assistance for older adults or elder justice/rights activities; and

• At least 8 examples over the last 8 years experience of advocacy or training around legal issues for older adults with economic or social needs, including but not limited to income, health care, long-term care, nutrition, housing, utilities, protective services, defense of guardianship, abuse, neglect, and age discrimination.

Project Management

The Contractor shall be responsible for managing and overseeing the activities of all Contractor personnel, as well as consultant efforts used in performance of this contract. The Contractor’s management responsibilities shall be detailed in the bidder’s Statement of Work, and include all activities necessary to create and submit high-quality work products in a timely manner. At a minimum, the bidder will identify and describe the following personnel information in their proposal:

Project Director - The Contractor shall provide a Project Director to facilitate Government- Contractor communications. The Project Director shall be the primary managerial interface between the COR and Task Lead. The Project Director must have at least 5 years of project director experience in a project of similar size and scope to this contract. The Project Director must have experience in the administration or practice in a legal services or legal advocacy organization. They must demonstrate strong organizational skills and the ability successfully manage a project with multiple, simultaneous deliverables and deadlines. They will have experience developing strong working relationships with multiple stakeholder groups to manage a successful workgroup or project objective.

The Project Director and note taker shall meet with the COR and Task Lead, and others as identified, within 10 working days after award to discuss the management plan. Following the meeting, the Contractor shall submit a draft management plan and the Government shall have 10 working days to provide comments before the final Project Work Plan for the period of the performance is established. The Contractor shall request prior approval on all activities not included in the Work Plan or any adjustments to the approved Plan.

Subject Matter Experts – The Contractor shall provide subject matter experts to provide technical assistance and expertise to achieve contract objectives. In addition to characteristics specific to each role (as defined below), all subject matter experts must have at least 5 years (in the last 10 years) performing the duties as detailed in their role description below in the context of a project of similar size, and working with the stakeholders as defined in OAA Section 420(c). The Contractor must provide subject matter experts in the following areas:

• Substantive Legal Issues: The Contractor must identify no more than six (6) individuals (0.2 FTE each), who are subject matter experts in at least one OAA priority legal area. The Contractor must identify at least one subject matter expert per issue area. Identified individuals must demonstrate subject matter expertise through at least five (5) years of experience, directly practicing in that area and serving older adults with economic and social needs.

• Training/Technical Assistance: The Contractor will identify three national experts with experience in providing training and technical assistance services focused on legal assistance and elder rights activities. The identified individuals may demonstrate expertise by providing at least 10 instances of training or technical assistance to the identified stakeholder group with at least three (3) examples of each. The relative level of effort is as follows, by target audience:

o Legal assistance providers: 0.5 FTE o Aging network non-profits: 0.2 FTE o State/local governments: 0.3 FTE

Consultants/Partners - The Contractor shall provide information about anticipated formal subcontractor(s) and SME/consultant(s) arrangements with organizations/individuals selected to bring specific skills and expertise to the contract, as determined are needed by the Contractor in consultation with ACL. Given the range of necessary activities and partners required in OAA Section 420(a) and (c) respectively, Contractors are required to engage with subcontractors to meet the OAA required competencies. Bidders will be required to submit a Subcontracting Plan as part of their application.

Content Development/Administration - The Contractor shall provide two individuals (0.3 FTE each) with expertise in developing public-facing materials and resources, including videos, presentation slides, and handouts, maintaining user-facing website pages, including the website appearance, navigation and use of media (including videos and pictures), and maintaining the image of NCLER and ACL brands. The website administrator should also have experience managing logistics and technology for large webinars. Each identified individual should have at least two (2) years of experience completing these tasks in a project of similar size to the present contract.

To facilitate the delivery of high-quality and accessible trainings detailed above (Tasks 2.0 and 3.0), the Contractor will be required to purchase a license for a webinar platform. The selected platform must include evaluative tools (e.g., webinar registration to measure stakeholder attendance, post-webinar survey to measure attendee satisfaction), have sufficient capacity to accommodate an audience of at least 1,800, and have the option for dial-in/other functionality.

C.3 INFORMATION SECURITY AND/OR PHYSICAL ACCESS SECURITY

REQUIREMENTS

Important Note to Contractor: In the event of a discrepancy between the following language and included HHSAR clauses, the HHSAR clauses take precedence.

1. Baseline Security Requirements

a. Applicability. The requirements herein apply whether the entire contract or modification (hereafter "contract"), or portion thereof, includes either or both of the following:

i. Access (Physical or Logical) to Government Information: A Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) will have or will be given the ability to have, routine physical (entry) or logical (electronic) access to government information.

ii. Operate a Federal System Containing Information: A Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) will operate a federal system and information technology containing data that supports the HHS mission. In addition to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 2.1 definition of "information technology" (IT), the term as used in this section includes computers, ancillary equipment (including imaging peripherals, input, output, and storage devices necessary for security and surveillance), peripheral equipment designed to be controlled by the central processing unit of a computer, software, firmware and similar procedures, services (including support services), and related resources.

b. Safeguarding Information and Information Systems. All government information and information systems must be protected in accordance with HHS/ACL policies and level of risk. At a minimum, the Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must:

i. Protect the:

Confidentiality, which means preserving authorized restrictions on access and disclosure, based on the security terms found in this contract, including means for protecting personal privacy and proprietary information;

Integrity, which means guarding against improper information modification or destruction, and ensuring information non-repudiation and authenticity; and

Availability, which means ensuring timely and reliable access to and use of information.

ii. Categorize all information owned and/or collected/managed on behalf of HHS/ACL and information systems that store, process, and/or transmit HHS information in accordance with FIPS 199 and National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication (SP) 800-60, Volume II: Appendices to Guide for Mapping Types of Information and Information Systems to Security Categories. Based on information provided by the ISSO, CISO, OpDiv SOP, or other representative, the impact level for each Security Objective (Confidentiality, Integrity, and Availability) and the Overall Impact Level, which is the highest watermark of the three factors of the information or information system are the following:

Confidentiality: [X ] Low [ ] Moderate [ ] High Integrity: [X ] Low [ ] Moderate [ ] High Availability: [X ] Low [ ] Moderate [ ] High Overall Impact Level: [X ] Low [ ] Moderate [ ] High

iii. Based on the agreed-upon level of impact, implement the necessary safeguards to protect all information systems and information collected and/or managed on behalf of HHS/ACL regardless of location or purpose.

iv. Report any discovered or unanticipated threats or hazards by either the agency or contractor, or if existing safeguards have ceased to function immediately after discovery, within one (1) hour or less, to the government representative(s).

v. Adopt and implement all applicable policies, procedures, controls, and standards required by the HHS/ACL Information Security Program to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of government information and government information systems for which the Contractor is responsible under this contract or to which the Contractor may otherwise have access under this contract. Obtain all applicable security and privacy policies by contacting the CO/COR or HHS/ACL security and/or privacy officials.

c. Privacy Act. Comply with the Privacy Act requirements (when applicable), and tailor FAR and HHSAR clauses as needed.

d. Privacy Compliance. Comply with the E-Government Act of 2002, NIST SP 800-53, and applicable HHS/OpDiv privacy policies, and complete all the requirements below:

i. Per the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-130, Personally Identifiable Information (PII), is "information that can be used to distinguish or trace an individual's identity, either alone or when combined with other information that is linked or linkable to a specific individual." Examples of PII include, but are not limited to the following:

http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-60-rev1/SP800-60_Vol2-Rev1.pdf http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-60-rev1/SP800-60_Vol2-Rev1.pdf http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/nistpubs/800-60-rev1/SP800-60_Vol2-Rev1.pdf

Social Security number, date and place of birth, mother's maiden name, biometric records, etc.

ii. To ensure that the public's personal information is protected in a manner commensurate with the privacy risks, HHS uses a privacy analysis process to assess the risks associated with HHS's collection and maintenance of PII and to ensure information is handled in accordance with applicable legal, regulatory, and policy requirements. PTAs analyze how information is handled in IT systems and electronic information collections and determines if the IT system or electronic information collection collects, disseminates, maintains, or disposes of PII. PIAs are used to assess the privacy risks of IT systems and electronic information collections that collect, disseminate, maintain, or dispose of PII about members of the public. PIAs also provide transparency into how HHS collects, disseminates, maintains, or disposes of the public's PII.

iii. The Contractor must support the agency with conducting a Privacy Threshold Analysis (PTA) for the information system and/or information handled under this contract to determine whether or not PII is collected, disseminated, maintained, or disposed as part of the contract. The PTA will determine if a full Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) needs to be completed.

If the results of the PTA show that a full PIA is needed, the Contractor must support the agency with completing a PIA for the system or information after completion of the PTA and in accordance with HHS policy and OMB M-03-22, Guidance for Implementing the Privacy Provisions of the E-Government Act of 2002.

The Contractor must support the agency in reviewing the PIA at least every three years throughout the system development lifecycle (SDLC)/information lifecycle, or when determined by the agency that a review is required based on a major change to the system, or when new types of PII are collected that introduces new or increased privacy risks, whichever comes first.

e. Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI). Executive Order 13556 defines CUI as "information that laws, regulations, or Government-wide policies require to have safeguarding or dissemination controls, excluding classified information." The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must comply with Executive Order 13556, Controlled Unclassified Information, (implemented at 3 CFR, part 2002) when handling CUI. 32 C.F.R. 2002.4(aa) As implemented the term "handling" refers to "…any use of CUI, including but not limited to marking, safeguarding, transporting, disseminating, re-using, and disposing of the information." 81 Fed. Reg. 63323. The requirements below apply only to nonfederal systems that process, store, or transmit CUI, or that provide security protection for such components. All sensitive information that has been identified as CUI by a regulation or statute, handled by this solicitation/contract, must be:

i. Marked appropriately;

ii. Disclosed to authorized personnel on a Need-To-Know basis;

iii. Protected in accordance with NIST SP 800-53, Security and Privacy Controls for Information Systems and Organizations applicable baseline if handled by a Contractor system operated on behalf of the agency, or NIST SP 800-171, Protecting Controlled Unclassified Information in Nonfederal Information Systems and Organizations if handled by internal Contractor system; and

iv. Returned to HHS control, destroyed when no longer needed, or held until otherwise directed. Information and/or data must be disposed of in accordance with NIST SP 800-88, Guidelines for Media Sanitization.

f. Protection of Sensitive Information. For security purposes, information is or may be sensitive because it requires security to protect its confidentiality, integrity, and/or availability. The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must protect all government information that is or may be sensitive by securing it with a solution that is validated with current FIPS 140 validation certificate from the

NIST CMVP.

g. Confidentiality and Nondisclosure of Information. Any information provided to the contractor (and/or any subcontractor) by HHS or collected by the contractor on behalf of HHS must be used only for the purpose of carrying out the provisions of this contract and must not be disclosed or made known in any manner to any persons except as may be necessary in the performance of the contract. The Contractor assumes responsibility for protection of the confidentiality of Government records and must ensure that all work performed by its employees and subcontractors must be under the supervision of the Contractor. Each Contractor employee or any of its subcontractors to whom any HHS records may be made available or disclosed must be notified in writing by the Contractor that information disclosed to such employee or subcontractor can be used only for that purpose and to the extent authorized herein.

The confidentiality, integrity, and availability of such information must be protected in accordance with HHS and ACL policies. Unauthorized disclosure of information will be subject to the HHS/ACL sanction policies and/or governed by the following laws and regulations:

i. 18 U.S.C. 641 (Criminal Code: Public Money, Property or Records);

ii. 18 U.S.C. 1905 (Criminal Code: Disclosure of Confidential Information);

and

iii. 44 U.S.C. Chapter 35, Subchapter I (Paperwork Reduction Act).

h. Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6). All procurements using Internet Protocol must comply with OMB Memorandum M-21-07, Completing the Transition to Internet Protocol Version 6 (1Pv6) available at https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/M-21-07.pdf

i. Information and Communications Technology (ICT). ICT products and services from prohibited entities/sources must not be used/acquired in compliance with Public Law 115-232, Section 889 Parts A and B, FAR 4.21, FAR 52.204.23, FAR 52.204.24, and FAR 52.204.25. The contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must notify the government if they identify prohibited ICT products and/or services are used during the contract performance.

https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/M-21-07.pdf https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/M-21-07.pdf

j. Government Websites. All new and existing public-facing government websites must be securely configured with Hypertext Transfer Protocol Secure (HTTPS) using the most recent version of Transport Layer Security (TLS). In addition, HTTPS must enable HTTP Strict Transport Security (HSTS) to instruct compliant browsers to assume HTTPS at all times to reduce the number of insecure redirects and protect against attacks that attempt to downgrade connections to plain HTTP.

For internal-facing websites, HTTPS is not required, but it is highly recommended. Consult the HHS Policy for Internet and Email Security for additional information.

k. Contract Documentation. The Contractor must use provided templates, policies, forms and other agency documents to comply with contract deliverables as appropriate.

l. Standard for Encryption. The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must:

i. Comply with the HHS Standard for Encryption of Computing Devices and

Information to prevent unauthorized access to government information.

ii. Encrypt all sensitive federal data and information (i.e., PII, protected health information [PHI], proprietary information, etc.) in transit (i.e., email, network connections, etc.) and at rest (i.e., servers, storage devices, mobile devices, backup media, etc.) with encryption solution that is validated with current FIPS 140 validation certificate from the NIST

CMVP.

iii. Secure all devices (i.e.: desktops, laptops, mobile devices, etc.) that store and process government information and ensure devices meet HHS and OpDiv-specific encryption standard requirements. Maintain a complete and current inventory of all laptop computers, desktop computers, and other mobile devices and portable media that store or process sensitive government information (including PII).

iv. Verify that the encryption solutions in use have been validated under the Cryptographic Module Validation Program to confirm compliance with current FIPS 140 validation certificate from the NIST CMVP. The Contractor must provide a written copy of the validation documentation to the COR.

v. Use the Key Management system on the HHS personal identification verification (PIV) card or establish and use a key recovery mechanism to ensure the ability for authorized personnel to encrypt/decrypt information and recover encryption keys http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/. Encryption keys must be provided to the COR upon request and at the conclusion of the contract.

vi. Contractor Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA). Each Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) employee having access to non-public government information under this contract must complete the OpDiv non-disclosure agreement. Contractors (and/or subcontractors) must submit a copy of each signed and witnessed NDA to the Contracting Officer (CO) and/or CO Representative (COR) prior to performing any work under this acquisition.

http://csrc.nist.gov/publications/

2. Training Requirements

a. Mandatory Training for All Contractor Staff. All Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) employees assigned to work on this contract must complete the applicable HHS/OpDiv Contractor Information Security Awareness, Privacy, and Records Management training (provided upon contract award) before performing any work under this contract. Thereafter, the employees must complete Information Security Awareness, Privacy, and Records Management training at least annually, during the life of this contract. All provided training must be compliant with HHS training policies.

b. Role-based Training. All Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) employees with significant security responsibilities (as determined by the program manager) must complete role-based training annually commensurate with their role and responsibilities in accordance with HHS policy and the HHS Role-Based Training (RBT) of Personnel with Significant Security Responsibilities Memorandum.

c. Training Records. The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must maintain training records for all its employees working under this contract in accordance with HHS policy. A copy of the training records must be provided to the CO and/or COR within 30 days after contract award and annually thereafter or upon request.

3. Rules of Behavior

a. The Contractor (and/or any subcontractor) must ensure that all employees performing on the contract comply with the HHS Information Technology General Rules of Behavior, HHS Rules of Behavior for Privileged Users.

b. All Contractor employees performing on the contract must read and adhere to the Rules of Behavior before accessing Department data or other information, systems, and/or networks that store/process government information, initially at the beginning of the contract and at least annually thereafter, which…