A3.01_Combined_Synopsis_Solicitation_2Apr24_24Q0050.pdf

TO: PROSPECTIVE QUOTERS

SUBJECT: COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION 50310224Q0050, 2024 SOUTHEAST

REGIONAL SECURITIES CONFERENCE

DATE: APRIL 2, 2024

1. General Information

Document Type: Combined Synopsis/Solicitation for Commercial Services Solicitation Number: 50310224Q0050, 2024 Southeast Regional Securities Conference Posted Date: April 2, 2024 Original Response Date: April 2, 2024 Current Response Date: April 16, 2024 PSC: X1AB, Lease/Rental of Conference Space and Facilities Set Aside: Not Applicable NAICS Code: 721110, Hotels

2. Contracting Office and Contracting Officer Point of Contact

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Office of Acquisitions Attn: Ms. Christine Dye 100 F Street NE Washington, DC 20549 Office: (202) 551-3475 Mobile: (202) 279-0112 E-mail: dyec@sec.gov

3. Description

a. This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial services prepared in accordance with the format in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.

b. This solicitation is a Request for Quotation (RFQ) and is assigned solicitation number 50310224Q0050. It is the Quoter’s responsibility to monitor SAM.gov for the release of amendments (if any).

c. This solicitation and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal

Acquisition Circular (FAC) 2024-03, effective February 23, 2024.

mailto:dyec@sec.gov https://www.acquisition.gov/far/part-12#FAR_Subpart_12_6 https://sam.gov/content/home

d. This solicitation is issued on an unrestricted basis. The assigned North American Industry

Classification System (NAICS) code is 721110, Hotels, with a small business size standard of $40M. The assigned Product or Service Code (PSC) is X1AB, Lease/Rental of Conference Space and Facilities.

e. The SEC intends to procure the rental/lease of a hotel/conference facility to host the SEC’s 2024 Southeast Regional Securities Conference, as described in Attachment #1, Statement of Work (SOW). The two-day conference will take place in Atlanta, GA from August 28-29, 2024.

All interested companies must provide quotes for the following:

Attachment #2, Schedule of Services Price Worksheet Line Item Description Quantity Unit Price Total Price

00001 Conference Facilities, as described in Attachment #1, SOW. 1

00002 Food and Beverage (F&B) Service, as described in Attachment #1, SOW.

(Not to exceed $16,750.00)

00003 Audiovisual Support, as described in Attachment #1, SOW. 1

00004 Information Technology (IT) Equipment Rental, as described in Attachment #1, SOW.

00005

Hotel Room Rate/Day for Reserved Block of 30 Hotel Rooms, as described in Attachment #1, SOW.

(Not to exceed the Government per diem rate published in the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR))

Total Evaluated Price (Total Price for Line Items 00001 – 00005)

The awardee will be issued a Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) purchase order for Line Items 00001 – 00004. Line Item 00005 will be used as part of the Total Evaluated Price but will be paid by individual room occupants.

Services procured under the purchase order (Line Items 00001 – 00004) shall be tax exempt.

The Georgia Sales Tax Certificate of Exemption will be provided to the awardee at purchase order award.

f. Attachment #1, SOW, contains a full description of the requirements.

g. The period of performance will be August 28-29, 2024. The place of performance will be at the awardee’s facilities.

h. FAR Provision 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors – Commercial Products and Commercial

Services (SEP 2023), applies to this acquisition. The following is addenda to FAR 52.212-1:

Quotes submitted in response to this solicitation shall include a technical quote and a separate price quote, as described below:

i. Technical Quote: The technical quote shall consist of hotel/conference facility literature and/or technical description of the hotel/conference facility and support services being offered, in sufficient detail to evaluate the Quoter’s capability to meet the requirements of Attachment #1, SOW. At a minimum, the product literature and/or technical description shall address each task/requirement outlined in Section 2 of Attachment #1, SOW.

ii. Price Quote: The price quote shall consist of the following:

1) The Quoter’s System for Award Management (SAM) Unique Entity Identification (UEI) number.

All Quoters must have an active registration in SAM to participate in this acquisition. The SEC will not accept quote submissions from Quoters that do not have an active registration in SAM.

2) Acknowledgement of receipt of all solicitation amendment(s), if any.

3) A completed copy of FAR Provision 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications

– Commercial Products and Commercial Services (FEB 2024), or confirmation that the Quoter has completed its annual representations and certifications electronically in SAM and that the representations and certifications currently posted are current, accurate, complete, and applicable to this solicitation.

4) A completed Attachment #2, Schedule of Services Price Worksheet. Proposed pricing shall be inclusive of all fees. Do not break out the price or provide any other pricing detail, except as noted in Attachment #2, unless otherwise requested by the Contracting Officer. The SEC requests all available discounts.

5) Any Commercial Supplier Agreements (CSAs) (e.g., hotel agreement, terms of use, or similar agreement). The Government will review and may accept CSAs only to the extent terms do not conflict with Federal procurement law. The Quoter is directed to review Securities and Exchange Commission Instruction (SECI) 7001.00, Commercial Supplier Agreements – Unenforceable Clauses (OCT 2022).

No reimbursement or compensation will be provided by the SEC to Quoters for preparation of responses to this solicitation. In addition, the SEC reserves the right to make no award resulting from this solicitation.

i. FAR Provision 52.212-2, Evaluation – Commercial Products and Commercial Services (NOV

2021), applies to this acquisition.

i. The Government intends to award a purchase order resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Quoter whose quote, conforming to the solicitation, will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors will be used to evaluate quotes:

1) Technical capability of the Quoter to meeting the SEC’s requirement; and

2) Price.

Technical capability shall be evaluated on an “acceptable” or “unacceptable” basis in accordance with the tasks/requirements outlined in Section 2 of Attachment #1, SOW.

The basis of evaluation shall be Lowest Price Technically Acceptable (LPTA). Quotes shall be evaluated to determine whether the hotel/conference facility and support services offered meet all tasks/requirements outlined in Section 2 of Attachment #1, SOW. Those quotes that meet all tasks/requirements shall be rated as “acceptable.” Those quotes that do not meet all tasks/requirements shall be rated as “unacceptable” and will not be considered for award.

Award shall be made to the lowest priced, technically acceptable Quoter.

ii. A written notice of award or acceptance of a quote, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful Quoter within the time for acceptance specified in the quote, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the quote’s specified expiration time, the Government may accept a quote (or part of a quote), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award.

j. As aforementioned, the Quoter shall submit a completed copy of FAR Provision 52.212-3, Offeror Representations and Certifications – Commercial Products and Commercial Services (FEB 2024), with its quote. However, if the Quoter confirms that it has completed its annual representations and certifications electronically in SAM and that the representations and certifications currently posted are current, accurate, complete, and applicable to this solicitation, the Quoter does not need to complete and submit a copy of FAR Provision 52.212-3.

k. FAR Clause 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions – Commercial Products and Commercial

Services (NOV 2023), applies to this acquisition.

l. FAR Clause 52.212-5, Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders – Commercial Products and Commercial Services (FEB 2024), applies to this acquisition. In Section (b), the following clauses apply:

• 52.203-17, Contractor Employee Whistleblower Rights (NOV 2023).

• 52.204-10, Reporting Executive Compensation and First-Tier Subcontract Awards (JUN

2020).

• 52.204-27, Prohibition on a ByteDance Covered Application (Jun 2023).

• 52.204-30, Federal Acquisition Supply Chain Security Act Orders – Prohibition (DEC 2023).

• 52.209-6, Protecting the Government’s Interest When Subcontracting with Contractors

Debarred, Suspended, or Proposed for Debarment (NOV 2021).

• 52.219-4, Notice of Price Evaluation Preference for HUBZone Small Business Concerns

(OCT 2022).

• 52.219-28, Post Award Small Business Program Rerepresentation (FEB 2024).

• 52.222-3, Convict Labor (JUN 2003).

• 52.222-21, Prohibition of Segregated Facilities (APR 2015).

• 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity (SEP 2016).

• 52.222-35, Equal Opportunity for Veterans (JUN 2020).

• 52.222-36, Equal Opportunity for Workers with Disabilities (JUN 2020).

• 52.222-37, Employment Reports on Veterans (JUN 2020).

• 52.222-50, Combating Trafficking in Persons (NOV 2021)

• 52.223-18, Encouraging Contractor Policies to Ban Text Messaging While Driving (JUN

2020).

• 52.232-33, Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer – System for Award Management (OCT

2018).

In Section (c), the following clause applies:

• 52.226-6, Promoting Excess Food Donation to Nonprofit Organizations (JUN 2020).

m. The following additional terms and conditions are applicable to this acquisition:

FAR Clauses Incorporated By Reference:

52.203-12 Limitation on Payments to Influence Certain Federal Transactions JUN 2020 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance OCT 2018 52.204-18 Commercial and Government Entity Code Maintenance AUG 2020

52.252-2 CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998)

This contract incorporates one (1) or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es):

https://www.acquisition.gov/?q=browsefar

Applicable Securities and Exchange Commission Instructions (SECIs):

5003.05 SUBMISSION OF INVOICES - DELPHI EINVOICING SYSTEM

(JANUARY 2022)

(a) The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will only accept electronic invoices submitted through the Delphi eInvoicing system on a monthly basis.

(b) Payment system registration. All persons accessing the Delphi eInvoicing web-portal will be required to have their own unique user Delphi eInvoicing ID and password and be credentialed through login.gov.

(1) Electronic authentication. See www.login.gov for instructions. Click on the following link for instructions on establishing a login.gov account: https://login.gov/help/creating-an-account/how-do-i-create-an-account-with-logingov/.

https://www.acquisition.gov/?q=browsefar https://login.gov/help/creating-an-account/how-do-i-create-an-account-with-logingov/ https://login.gov/help/creating-an-account/how-do-i-create-an-account-with-logingov/

(2) To create a login.gov account, the user will need a valid e-mail address and a working phone number. The user will create a password and then login.gov will reply with an e-mail confirming the e-mail address.

(3) In order to set up a new user account or make changes to existing vendor Delphi eInvoice users who will submit invoices through the eInvoicing web-portal for payment and tracking purposes, notify iSupplier@sec.gov and include the contract number, the user’s full name, valid e-mail address (group mailboxes are not recommended), and current phone number of all vendor users.

Vendor users will be notified via e-mail when the account is created. The vendor user will be provided detailed instructions for logging into their Delphi eInvoicing account.

(4) Training on Delphi. To facilitate use of Delphi, comprehensive user information is available at http://einvoice.esc.gov.

(5) Account Management. Vendors are responsible to contact the Delphi Help Desk when their firm’s points of contacts will no longer be submitting invoices so they can be removed from the system. Instructions for contacting the Delphi Help Desk can be found at http://einvoice.esc.gov.

(c) Contractors are cautioned against submitting an invoice prior to goods and services being received/accepted. Invoices submitted prematurely may be rejected. Software license maintenance and subscriptions may be invoiced at the beginning of the contract period of performance.

(d) The SEC’s Delphi eInvoicing system is managed by the Enterprise Services Center (ESC). In order to receive payment and in accordance with the Prompt Payment Act, all invoices submitted as attachments in the Delphi eInvoicing web-portal shall contain the following:

(1) Company logo or letterhead

(2) Company name and payment address

(3) Company Point of Contact (POC) for the invoice with phone and e-mail

(4) Invoice number and invoice date

(5) Billing period

(6) SEC contract number

(7) Task/delivery order number (if applicable)

(8) SEC Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) name

(9) Amount billed (by Contract Line Item Number (CLIN)), current and cumulative

(10) Total amount billed this period

(11) Cumulative total billed to date

(12) Brief description of services performed - general description only

(e) If the contract includes allowances for travel, all invoices which include charges pertaining to travel expenses will catalog a breakdown of reimbursable expenses with the appropriate receipts to substantiate the travel expenses.

5004.00 APPOINTMENT OF CONTRACTING OFFICER’S REPRESENTATIVE (COR)

(JANUARY 2022)

mailto:iSupplier@sec.gov http://einvoice.esc.gov/ http://einvoice.esc.gov/

(a) A Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) COR has been designated for administration and information relating to this contract. The SEC may also assign one (1) or more Alternate CORs (ACORs) for this contract. The COR or ACOR, if assigned, may not re-delegate his or her authority; only the Contracting Officer (CO) has this authority.

(b) The COR will manage the contract in coordination with the CO, and within the terms of the contract. The COR’s responsibilities include reviewing invoices and charges by the Contractor, informing the CO of areas where exceptions are taken, and accepting or rejecting invoices in the SEC’s financial system. The COR shall be the primary Point of Contact (POC) responsible for communicating administrative guidance for on-boarding and off-boarding of Contractor Personnel, mandatory trainings, Government closures, and other events as necessary. Unless otherwise specified in this contract, inspection and acceptance of supplies and/or services to be furnished under this contract will be performed by the COR.

(c) Only the CO has the authority to change the terms and conditions of the contract. The COR may request a contract modification, but the CO will make the final determination. The COR may not agree to or issue a change to the contract terms and conditions. In the event the Contractor effects changes to the contract at the direction of any person other than the CO, the changes will be considered to have been made without any authority and no adjustments will be made to the contract.

6002.00 TYPE OF CONTRACT (JANUARY 2022)

This is a Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) type contract.

6027.00 DISCLOSURE OF INFORMATION (NOVEMBER 2023)

(a) The Contractor shall not refer to this contract in press releases, announcements, commercial advertising or similar promotions, or other publications in such a manner as to state or imply that the product or service provided is endorsed or preferred by the Federal Government or is considered by the Government to be superior to other products or services.

(b) The Contractor and those acting on behalf of the Contractor shall not release to anyone outside the

Contractor’s organization any classified or unclassified information, regardless of medium (e.g., film, tape, document), pertaining to any part of this contract or any program related to this contract, unless—

(1) The Contracting Officer has given prior written approval; or

(2) The information is otherwise in the public domain before the date of release.

(c) Requests for approval shall identify the specific information to be released, the medium to be used, and the purpose for the release. The Contractor shall submit its request to the Contracting Officer at least 30 days before the proposed date for release.

(d) The Contractor agrees to include a similar requirement in each subcontract under this contract. Subcontractors shall submit requests for authorization to release through the prime contractor to the Contracting Officer.

(e) The provisions and restrictions of this Instruction are consistent with and do not supersede, conflict with, or otherwise alter the obligations, rights, or liabilities created by existing statute or executive order relating to (1) classified information, (2) communications to Congress, (3) the reporting to an Inspector General of a violation of any law, rule, or regulation, or mismanagement, a gross waste of funds, an abuse of authority, or a substantial and specific danger to public health or safety, or (4) any other whistleblower protection. The definitions, requirements, obligations, rights, sanctions, and liabilities created by controlling executive orders and statutory provisions are incorporated into this Instruction and are controlling.

7001.00 COMMERCIAL SUPPLIER AGREEMENTS - UNENFORCEABLE CLAUSES

(OCTOBER 2022)

(a) Purpose

The purpose of this Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Instruction (SECI) is to implement the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 12.302(c) Class Waiver approved by the SEC Senior Procurement Executive that addresses conflicting and/or problematic terms in Commercial Supplier Agreements (CSAs) (e.g., license agreements, terms of service (TOS), terms of sale or purchase, End User License Agreements (EULAs), and similar agreements).

(b) Order of Precedence

When FAR 52.212-4 is present in the solicitation or contract at issue, its paragraphs are tailored to reflect:

(s)(2) (‘The Assignments, Disputes, Payments, Invoice, Other Compliances, Compliance with Laws Unique to Government Contracts, Unauthorized Obligations paragraphs of this clause, and SECI 7001.00, Commercial Supplier Agreements - Unenforceable Clauses.’); and (s)(4) (‘Addenda to this solicitation or contract, including any license agreements as amended by SECI 7001.00, Commercial Supplier Agreements - Unenforceable Clauses.’)

(c) Unenforceable Clauses

When any supply or service acquired under this contract is subject to a CSA, the following language shall be deemed incorporated into the CSA. As used herein, ‘this agreement’ means the CSA:

(1) Notwithstanding any other provision of this agreement, when the end user is the SEC, the following shall apply:

(i) Applicability. This agreement is a part of a contract between the commercial supplier and the U.S. Government for the acquisition of the supply or service that necessitates a license or other similar legal instrument (including all contracts, task orders, and delivery orders under FAR Part 12.)

(ii) End user. This agreement shall bind the SEC as the end user but shall not operate to bind a

Government employee or person acting on behalf of the Government in his or her personal capacity.

(iii)Law and disputes. This agreement is governed by Federal law.

(A) Any language purporting to subject the U.S. Government to the laws of a U.S. state, U.S.

territory, district, or municipality, or a foreign nation, except where Federal law expressly provides for the application of such laws, is hereby deleted.

(B) Any language requiring dispute resolution in a specific forum or venue that is different from that prescribed by applicable Federal law is hereby deleted.

(C) Any language prescribing a different time period for bringing an action than that prescribed by applicable Federal law in relation to a dispute is hereby deleted.

(iv)Continued performance. The supplier or licensor shall not unilaterally revoke, terminate, or suspend any rights granted to the Government except as allowed by this contract. If the supplier or licensor believes the ordering activity to be in breach of the agreement, it shall pursue its rights under the Contract Disputes Act or other applicable Federal statute while continuing performance per FAR 52.212-4(d).

(v) Arbitration; equitable or injunctive relief. In the event of a claim or dispute arising under or relating to this agreement, a binding arbitration shall not be used unless specifically authorized by agency guidance, and equitable or injunctive relief, including the award of attorney fees, costs or interest, may be awarded against the U.S. Government only when explicitly provided by statute (e.g., Prompt Payment Act or Equal Access to Justice Act).

(vi) Updating terms.

(A) After award, the Contractor may unilaterally revise terms if they are not material. A material change is defined as:

(1) Terms that change Government rights or obligations;

(2) Terms that increase Government prices;

(3) Terms that decrease overall level of service; or

(4) Terms that limit any other Government right addressed elsewhere in this contract.

(B) For revisions that will materially change the terms of the contract, the revised CSA must be incorporated into the contract using a bilateral modification.

(C) Any agreement terms or conditions unilaterally revised subsequent to award that are inconsistent with any material term or provision of this contract shall not be enforceable against the Government, and the Government shall not be deemed to have consented to them.

(vii) No automatic renewals. If any license or service tied to periodic payment is provided under this agreement (e.g., annual software maintenance or annual lease term), such license or service shall not renew automatically upon expiration of its current term without prior express consent by an authorized Government representative.

(viii) Indemnification (by licensor). Any clause of this agreement requiring the commercial supplier or licensor to defend or indemnify the end user is hereby amended to provide that the U.S. Department of Justice has the sole right to represent the United States in any such action, in accordance with 28 U.S.C. § 516.

(ix) Audits. Any clause of this agreement permitting the commercial supplier or licensor to audit the end user's compliance with this agreement is hereby amended as follows:

(A) Discrepancies found in an audit may result in a charge by the commercial supplier or licensor to the SEC. Any resulting invoice must comply with the proper invoicing requirements specified in the underlying Government contract or order.

(B) This charge, if disputed by the SEC, will be resolved in accordance with FAR 52.212-

4(d) (Disputes); no payment obligation shall arise on the part of the SEC until the conclusion of the dispute process.

(C) Any audit requested by the Contractor will be performed at the Contractor’s expense, without reimbursement by the Government.

(x) Taxes or surcharges. Any taxes or surcharges which the commercial supplier or licensor seeks to pass along to the Government as end user will be governed by the terms of the underlying Government contract or order and, in any event, must be submitted to the Contracting Officer for a determination of applicability prior to invoicing unless specifically agreed to otherwise in the Government contract.

(xi) Non-assignment. This agreement may not be assigned, nor may any rights or obligations thereunder be delegated, without the Government’s prior approval, except as expressly permitted under FAR 52.212-4(b).

(xii) Confidential information. If this agreement includes a confidentiality clause, such clause is hereby amended to state that neither the agreement nor the contract price list, as applicable, shall be deemed ‘confidential information’. Issues regarding release of ‘unit pricing’ will be resolved consistent with the Freedom of Information Act. Notwithstanding anything in this agreement to the contrary, the Government may retain any confidential information as required by law, regulation, or its internal document retention procedures for legal, regulatory or compliance purposes; provided, however, that all such retained confidential information will continue to be subject to the confidentiality obligations of this agreement.

(2) If any language, provision, or clause of this agreement conflicts or is inconsistent with the preceding paragraph (1), the language, provisions, or clause of paragraph (1) shall prevail to the extent of such inconsistency.

FAR Provisions Incorporated By Reference:

52.204-7 System for Award Management OCT 2018 52.204-16 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting AUG 2020

52.252-1 SOLICITATION PROVISIONS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

(FEB 1998)

This solicitation incorporates one (1) or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The Offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the Offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the Offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es):

https://www.acquisition.gov/?q=browsefar

n. The Defense Priorities and Allocations System (DPAS) does not apply to this acquisition.

o. Quoters shall submit quotes via e-mail to the Contracting Officer, at dyec@sec.gov, no later than 5:00 PM Eastern Time (ET) on April 16, 2024. Late quotes shall not be accepted.

p. Quoters may submit questions concerning any aspect of this solicitation. Questions must be submitted in writing and sent via e-mail to the Contracting Officer, at dyec@sec.gov, no later than 5:00 PM ET on April 9, 2024. Questions received after the due date and time may not be addressed. The SEC’s responses to questions will be posted on SAM.

q. Attachments:

• Attachment #1, SOW, dated March 21, 2024.

• Attachment #2, Schedule of Services Price Worksheet, dated April 1, 2024.

End of Document https://www.acquisition.gov/?q=browsefar mailto:dyec@sec.gov mailto:dyec@sec.gov