Justification Redacted_Redacted.pdf

United States Department of Agriculture Decision to Restrict Competition under the Simplified Acquisition Threshold

Identification Number: 1177112

Rev. 3/4/26

In accordance with the Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Overhaul (RFO) FAR

12.102 (a), the following documents the decision to restrict competition for this acquisition.

(1) Mission Area and Contracting Activity.

Requisition Number:

Requesting Activity Agency: United States Department of Agriculture, Office of the Chief Information Officer, Digital Infrastructure Services Center (DISC)

Contracting Activity: USDA, Departmental Management, Office of Contracting and Procurement, Procurement Operations Division (POD), Acquisition Management Branch

(2) Estimated Value

(3) Brief Description of Supplies or Services

The USDA OCIO DISC requires the renewal of software maintenance and technical support for proprietary Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) mainframe software produced solely by Software Engineering of America, Inc. (SEA). The products supported under this requirement include:

• $AVRS Program Product

• TRMS Program Product

• Archive Browse Program Product

• JCLPlus+

• Other SEA proprietary mainframe utilities

These tools provide critical functions including tape resource management, system diagnostics, JCL validation, storage management, performance monitoring, security controls, configuration compliance, and mainframe workload support. Continued maintenance is essential to ensure access to software updates, bug fixes, security patches, and technical support required to maintain USDA’s shared mainframe platform used by multiple USDA agencies.

(1) Suggested Source.

Software Engineering of America, Inc.

1325 Franklin Ave, Suite 545 Garden City, NY 11530-1631

United States Department of Agriculture Decision to Restrict Competition under the Simplified Acquisition Threshold

Identification Number: 1177112

Rev. 3/4/26

(4) Justification for Restricting Competition and the Basis for that Decision.

A. Explain the unique qualifications/characteristics of the proposed contractor or product and why no other contractor or product/service can meet the Government's need.

SEA is the sole developer, manufacturer, licensor, and maintainer of the $AVRS and TRMS Program Products. These tools are proprietary and require access to SEA’s source code for maintenance, bug corrections, updates, and license support. No other vendor is legally authorized to provide maintenance or updates. SEA has no resellers, and the Government verified only SEA may service these products.

The USDA mainframe platform relies on these specific tools and cannot function without their maintenance and support.

Without renewal:

• USDA systems would lose access to required updates and patches.

• Vulnerabilities and operational risks would increase.

• Mission-critical workloads involving multiple USDA agencies would be compromised.

The nature of the software, coupled with proprietary restrictions, makes SEA the only capable source of providing the necessary support services.

Describe market research conducted and the results or the reason why no market research was conducted.

Market research was conducted in accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 10 to determine whether multiple sources exist that can meet the Government’s supply requirement within the applicable parameters of cost, schedule, and performance. Given that the estimated value of this acquisition falls under the Simplified Acquisition Threshold (SAT), the scope of market research was scaled appropriately in accordance with FAR 10.001(a)(2)(iii).

Based on the results of this market research, it was determined that the requirement is available from only one responsible source. Therefore, limiting competition is necessary to avoid disruption of agency operations and to ensure timely fulfillment of mission-critical needs. This market research supports proceeding with a Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition (JOFOC) under the SAT. This review indicated only one source was found capable of delivering the required product with the precise specifications, compatibility, and delivery schedule necessary to meet mission needs.

• SEA does not permit third-party maintenance or licensing and has no resellers.

• No alternative commercial products can support USDA’s mainframe environment or integrate with required operational tools.

• Only SEA can maintain these products due to proprietary source code restrictions.

Market research therefore confirms that sole-source procurement is necessary to meet the Government’s minimum needs without unacceptable delays, increased cost, or technical risk.