A1_RFP_Cover_Letter_s_-_Copy.pdf

DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES Public Health Service

National Institutes of Health National Institute on Drug Abuse Bethesda, Maryland 20892

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MENTAL HEALTH

REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL (RFP) NUMBER: 75N95024R00124

PROJECT TITLE: NIH NEUROBIOBANK BRAIN AND TISSUE REPOSITORY

ISSUED BY:

Robin Knightly Contract Specialist NIMH Section Contracts Management Branch, Red Office of Acquisition, NIDA

Email: robin.knightly@nih.gov Phone: (301) 827-5302

Rieka Plugge Supervisory Contracting Officer Branch Chief Contracts Management Branch, Red Office of Acquisition, NIDA

Email: rieka.plugge@nih.gov Phone: (301) 827-7515

DATE ISSUED: October 15, 2024

PROPOSAL DUE: November 14, 2024, 5:00 P.M. (Eastern Standard Time)

The National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) invites you to submit a proposal responding to the requirements of this RFP No. 75N95024R00124 titled NIH NeuroBioBank Brain and Tissue Repository.

NIMH prepared this Request for Proposal (RFP) in accordance with the Uniform Contract Format prescribed for Government Wide application by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR). The Uniform Contract Format is both a Request for Proposal and a contract award document. The resulting contract will consist of Parts I, II, and III of the Uniform Contract Format.

All offerors must be REGISTERED and have an ACTIVE System for Award Management (www.sam.gov) account at the time an offer/proposal is submitted to the Government. All offerors registered in the System for Award Management (www.sam.gov) must be in full compliance with FAR 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance to be eligible to submit a proposal. The Government will not accept proposals from offerors who do not meet the SAM requirement.

NIMH expects to award multiple cost reimbursement, term (level of effort) type contracts with a 1-year base period, 4 option years, ad option quantities. Future funding will be dependent on the previous year’s performance and the availability of funds. The initial period of performance will start on or around May 1, 2025. You should respond with technical and cost/price proposals based mailto:robin.knightly@nih.gov mailto:rieka.plugge@nih.gov http://www.sam.gov/ http://www.sam.gov/ on the assumptions provided in Sections C and L. Please include separate cost/prices for each individual option.

General Part IV of the RFP contains instructions, provisions, and evaluation factors for the submission and review of proposals. Attachment 3 is a "Proposal Intent Response Sheet." Please complete this form and return it to the below address on or before 5:00 P.M. Eastern Time, on October 24, 2024. The balance of Parts I, II, and III contain provisions, clauses, and special requirements which will be made a part of any resultant award. Please review these sections and consider their impact on performance, capability, technical, and cost factors as you develop your proposal. Do not fill in blanks or otherwise complete portions of Parts I, II, and III which appear to require additional information. The Government will complete these items prior to contract award and, if negotiations are conducted, will tailor those items through final negotiations.

Offeror Questions Requests for clarification, additional information, or correction must be made in writing to the Contracting Officer. Offeror questions must be submitted on or before 5:00 P.M., on October 24, 2024. Offeror questions may be submitted by e-mail to robin.knightly@nih.gov and rieka.plugge@nih.gov with the subject line:

“RFI – RFP 75N95024R00124”

NOTE: Site visits will not be provided.

The Technical Proposal It is important that Offerors list all professional personnel and organizations named in the proposal that have any role in the proposed work. This includes staff, subcontractors, collaborating organizations, and consultants. Show organization affiliation(s) for every person named. Offerors may use extra sheets, as needed. NIMH will use this information to ensure that no conflicts of interest exist with the selected review committee members. Technical Proposal Instructions are detailed in Section L.2.b. The Technical Proposal must not exceed 200 pages.

This page count limitation does not include/apply to appendix materials.

The Business Proposal Offerors must have an authorized organizational official sign the Business Proposal. It must contain a detailed breakdown of costs for each of the sample task orders and option quantities.

For each cost category/element, provide an explanation of the basis for all costs, and provide documentation to support these costs. NIMH directs special attention to Breakdown of Proposed Estimated Costs w/Excel Spreadsheet contained in the Business Proposal Cost Information, Attachment 10. Please submit business proposals with a spreadsheet in this format. Use of the above format will hasten review and award. A PDF copy of the spreadsheet must be included in the Business Proposal. Do not send encrypted files. The Business Proposal must not exceed 200 pages. This page count limitation does not include/apply to appendix materials.

A completed Form NIH-2043, “Proposal Summary and Data Record” (see Attachment 9) must be included with the Business Proposal. Include the e-mail addresses of both the Principal Investigator and the responsible business representative on the form. Note that in addition to mailto:robin.knightly@nih.gov telephone and fax numbers, you should include the e-mail addresses of both the Principal Investigator and the responsible business representative on the form.

The Offeror must submit its Travel Policy, Total Compensation Plan and Annual Report with the initial Business Proposal. See Section L.2.c. for additional detail.

Submitting a Proposal Proposals must be submitted via the electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) website (https://ecps.nih.gov) no later than November 14, 2024, 5:00 P.M., Eastern Time. Proposals submitted by facsimile, e-mail, or hard copy will not be accepted. An official authorized to bind your organization must sign the proposal.

Offerors are solely responsible for submitting proposals in a timely manner. Please note that creating an account to submit may take up to three (3) business days. Please plan accordingly.

Additional instructions on submitting a proposal via eCPS can be found at https://ecps.nih.gov/HowToSubmit and in Attachment 2.

All notices related to this solicitation will be posted on SAM (https://www.sam.gov). If you would like to receive e-mail notifications of updates to this solicitation, please register with

SAM.

In accordance with FAR 15.306(a)(3) and FAR 52.215-1, the Government intends to evaluate proposals and award a contract without discussions. Therefore, your initial proposal should contain the best terms from cost or price and technical standpoints. The Government does, however, reserve the right to conduct discussions if the Contracting Officer determines them to be necessary.

Disclaimers This RFP does not commit the Government to pay the costs for the preparation and submission of a proposal. The Contracting Officer is the only individual who can legally commit the Government to the expenditure of public funds in connection with this acquisition.

Any contract award for this requirement is contingent on the availability of funds (see FAR 52.232-18, Availability of Funds – April 1984).

The RFP shall take precedence if any of the content in this letter is contradictory.

The NIMH appreciates your interest in this RFP and looks forward to receipt of your proposal.

Requests for any information concerning this RFP should be directed to the undersigned or Robin Knightly at robin.knightly@nih.gov or (301) 827-5302. Discussions with any other individuals should not occur.

https://ecps.nih.gov/ https://ecps.nih.gov/HowToSubmit mailto:robin.knightly@nih.gov

Sincerely, Rieka Plugge Supervisory Contracting Officer Branch Chief Contracts Management Branch, Red Office of Acquisition, NIDA

Email: rieka.plugge@nih.gov Phone: (301) 827-7515 mailto:rieka.plugge@nih.gov