RFP_Attachment_1_FS_WC_OSOH_SOO-31Jul13-POSTED.docx

Albuquerque Service Center-Human Capital Management

Solicitation: AG-7604-s-13-0033

STATEMENT OF OBJECTIVES (SOO)

Forest Service (FS)

For Providing Software as a Service (SaaS) for Reporting Incidents of Work Related Accidents, Injuries, Illnesses and Safety Stories and for Performing Workers’ Compensation (WC) Case Management Albuquerque Service Center

Solicitation: AG-7604-s-13-0033 RFP ATTACHMENT 1 March 7, 2013

Table of Contents

List of Tables

1. Statement of Objectives It is the intention of the Government to provide interested vendors with the Government’s high-level objectives and requirements in this document. Offerors should respond with a proposed Performance Work Statement (PWS) that details their approach and contractual requirements in meeting the Government’s objectives. This PWS will form the basis of a future contract with the successful offeror.

2. Project Background In July 2010, President Obama established a four-year “Protecting Our Workers and Ensuring Reemployment” (POWER) Initiative, covering fiscal years 2011 through 2014. The POWER Initiative will extend prior workplace safety and health efforts of the Federal Government by: setting more aggressive performance targets; encouraging the collection and analysis of data on the causes and consequences of frequent or severe injury and illness; and prioritizing safety and health management programs that have proven effective in the past. Under the POWER Initiative, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is expected to improve its performance in eight areas:

Reducing total injury and illness case rates Reducing lost time injury and illness case rates Analyzing lost time injury and illness data Increasing the timely filing of WC claims Increasing the timely filing of wage-loss claims Reducing lost production day rates Speeding Employees' return to work in cases of serious injury or illness Measuring compliance with regulatory requirement to establish a method for electronic submission of Forms Compensation Act (CA)-1, CA-2 and CA-7 Since 2004, the FS has utilized the IHS Global, Inc., Safety and Health Information Portal System (SHIPS) to report and record injury and illness data. SHIPS is a Web-based injury, illness and accident reporting and analyses system that provides the capability for an Employee to report and record incidents. In addition, USDA Forest Service successfully piloted an Electronic Data Interface (EDI) with the Department of Labor for electronic filing of WC claims in 2012. This EDI is hosted by GDC Integration, Inc. (GDCII) and it is anticipated that the successful vendor will integrate their solution with this established EDI to transimit future WC claims and utilize the GDCII hosting environment which includes the USDA Single Sign-On authentication engine. However, USDA WC Case Managers and Office of Safety and Occupational Health (OSOH) Managers do not have an integrated case management, reporting and recording solution to record and track incidents, the status of claims and of claimants. The current process is a labor-intensive, manually-driven process that lacks all-encompassing case management capabilities and timely submission of information. The POWER Initiative aims to improve total injury and illness case rates and the timely filing of WC claims and claims management data by requiring all Departments and Agencies to comply with EDI. EDI will allow Departments and Agencies to electronically submit WC claims and claim management data to the DOL.

When an Employee has been injured or made ill at work, a claim is filed with the DOL Office of Workers’ Compensation Program (OWCP). This claim is completed by the Employee and his/her Supervisor/Case Manager. The means by which this claim is submitted and tracked is handled differently across the USDA Agencies. Some have limited tools to assist with this process; some use manual processes and other Agencies have outsourced. The Employee’s direct compensation is handled by OWCP once the claim is received. OWCP and the USDA Supervisor/Case Manager will work together on returning that injured worker to suitable employment, if possible. OWCP will then send chargeback reports to the Safety and Health Management Division (SHMD) of USDA. Chargeback reports are the list of ongoing WC claims that OWCP has paid out, being billed back to USDA. The SHMD’s responsibility is to then take these chargeback reports, separate them by Agency/Unit and tie them back to the original injury incident and disseminate it back to the Agency/Unit. Currently, there is no system that allows this process to be done in an efficient manner.

A primary challenge is that Agencies/Units are receiving limited or no data about their existing WC cases and many are still filing injury and illness incidents manually. The Department and Agencies have very limited reporting capabilities for injuries/illnesses and compensation cases. Most of the Agencies have not received detailed reports on the number and amount of WC cases they have on file. With limited to no case data, the Agencies are having difficulty returning Employees back to work and lowering the overall cost spent on WC. Additionally, the DOL will only approve one portal for electronic data transmission; therefore, each Agency cannot develop its own system.

The contractor’s solution would address the environment and challenges noted above. This system would be used for reporting, tracking, invoicing and recordkeeping from the point of incident to the closure of any claim associated with the incident. The system must be capable of handling the current FS case load, as well as be scalable for potential future caseload transitions from USDA and its other Agencies.

In 2011, USDA spent over $73 million in medical and compensation payments for Employees that were injured or made ill at work. There were over 13,000 incidents and almost 11,000 active WC claims reported, with 5,800 of those as new cases in 2011. Of the 11,000 active WC claims reported, the FS accounts for 54 percent of the USDA total or 5,900. The system must be capable of handling the current FS case load, as well as scalable for potential future implementations to accommodate the full USDA caseload. In addition, FS maintains a database of incidents/claims spanning over the last seven years in excess of 50,000 records which will need to be migrated to any new solution to allow for tracking and reporting across all data.

USDA is embarking on a process to procure an integrated OSOH/WC solution and achieve improved performance as detailed in the POWER Initiative guidelines. In addition, USDA’s OSOH/WC Enterprise Solution Project seeks to deliver a common OSOH/WC footprint to be utilized by all USDA entities: Department, Mission Areas, Offices and Agencies (henceforth referred to as “Agencies”). The business requirements will:

Govern USDA OSOH/WC operational standards and processes Ensure compliance with current Service Level Agreements (SLAs) Dictate the best Information Technology (IT) solution

3. Guiding Principles In selection of a vendor solution, the Government will be guided by the following principles:

USDA and Agency access to safety, occupational health and WC data improves its ability to reduce the risk of illness and injury and return Employees back to work and lower overall costs.

The efficiency, effectiveness and compliance of USDA and Agency efforts are improved through the common framework (e.g., a single, unified system) for managing safety, occupational health and WC cases.

USDA meets the requirements of the POWER initiative through improved Leadership actions as a result of the data and reporting capabilities of the tool.

A widely-used and positively-viewed solution as a result of user-friendly and actionable solution.

Manual filing of claims will be eliminated and replaced by the solution, and the speed for filing claims will increase for Agencies currently using manual processes.

A seamless transition from existing systems/processes to the contractor’s system.

4. Objectives and Goals FS seeks to contract with a SaaS solution provider for meeting its OSOH incident tracking and reporting, and WC case management needs. The selected solution, however, must provide for contract expansion to include other USDA entities as they move toward a unified platform. Specifically, the Government’s objectives are to contract for a solution that:

1. Supports the goal of the Department to identify the causes and reduce the risk of injuries and/or illnesses on USDA properties and to closely monitor the WC benefit program to reduce/eliminate erroneous and/or fraudulent payments and to return individuals to productive work status resulting in significant cost savings to the Government;

2. Is a mature product based on a Commercial Off-The-Shelf (COTS) software that will require minimal customization to meet all/most of the needs of the Government’s standard platform of mandatory and critical requirements as defined in Attachment C (functionality or innovations that exceed the specified requirements should be highlighted in the vendor’s proposal of services);

3. Is scalable to accommodate all Mission Areas and Offices of the USDA;

4. Includes a robust user experience to simplify input and use by a wide range of users, including help features to assist users in completing forms, etc., (e.g., mouse-over context, sensitive help aides), robust system performance to a geographically-dispersed user community and limitation on the need to enter redundant information (i.e., enter once, use many);

5. Is able to accommodate access to users for self-reporting incidents who are USDA Employees, including new Employees that may not have records in the system of record yet, as well as Temporary, Administratively Determined (AD) or Casual Hire Employees, volunteers and employees of other Government Agencies and Departments;

6. Has robust reporting and dashboard capabilities, including user initiated ad-hoc and standard reporting tools (e.g., drag-and-drop field level reports), saved reporting templates, trending, analytics and executive/management dashboard reporting;

7. Has robust records management capabilities for search and retrieval of active, as well as archived/restored records, to meet records requirements (e.g., Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests, audits, litigation support);

8. Accommodates the need to migrate existing data into the solution for comprehensive reporting, trending analyses and research continuity;

9. Provides bi-directional transmission of claims data to include filing claims for such forms as the CA-1 and CA-2 as integrated with the Government’s operational EDI with the DOL, hosted by GDCII. The solution must add new forms and delete obsolete forms per OWCP: (www.dol.gov/owcp/dfec/regs/compliance/forms.htm);

10. Is compliant with, and maintains compliancy with all Government regulatory authorities, including DOL’s Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) and OWCP requirements. The solution should evolve in line with other software improvements in the marketplace, as well as changing DOL and Federal Employees Compensation Act (FECA) requirements;

11. Provides OSOH and WC Program Users with system alerts (e.g., dashboard notifications, customized end user portal pages, email notifications) for such things as new claims filed, updates to claims, Continuation of Pay (COP) notifications, required medical follow-up, case status changes for WC claims, or investigations processes alerts, facility inspections, safety program evaluations, OSHA 300 tracking updates for safety incident reporting;

12. Includes robust training tools, such as Computer Based Training (CBT) for various levels of system users, to be updated as needed to maintain currency;

13. Can be integrated with the Department’s SSO authentication solution, currently hosted by GDCII, the Department’s EDI with the DOL, also currently hosted by GDCII and other specified integration points;

In addition, the Government’s objectives are to contract with an offeror that:

1. Provides ongoing Tier Three application help desk support, timely bug fixes/patches and a sound methodology for system enhancements (e.g., customer feedback analysis, customer requested product enhancements);

2. Provides the required compliance with Government security, privacy and accessibility requirements, including support throughout the certification processes and continued re-certification, as required;

3. Provides robust Disaster Recovery/Continuity of Operations capabilities;

4. Maintains ownership of all data and related material solely by the Government;

5. Provides a robust program management approach and resources to support program activities and reporting requirements; and

6. Proposes a strategy that is advantageous to the Government for both transition in and transition out of contract activities, including provision of all Government data periodically and at the end of the contract period in a commercially acceptable format as agreed to by the Government.

5. Period of Performance It is anticipated that a resulting contract will be for a base year, inclusive of transition period,with four one-year option periods, to be exercised at the discretion of the Government.

6. Place of Performance The place of performance is the contractor’s normal place of business. The contractor will be expected to occasionally attend meetings, generally in the Greater Washington, D.C. area or Albuquerque, New Mexico.

7. Travel If travel is required, the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) shall approve all travel in advance of the contractor incurring any costs. The COR reserves the right to approve the number of contractor staff traveling. If required, travel will be reimbursed in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR).

8. Continuity of Services The contractor recognizes that the services under this task order or contract are considered vital to the Government and must be continued without interruption and that, upon contract expiration, a successor, either the Government or another contractor, may continue them. The contractor agrees to:

Furnish phase-in training Exercise its best efforts and cooperation to effect an orderly and efficient transition to a successor Provide all Government data in an agreed to format within 30 calendar days prior to completion of performance.

9. Government Furnished Information (GFI) In order to maintain a complete record of data for purposes of reporting, tracking and management, it is essential for the solution provider to successfully migrate existing data from the Government’s current solution into the successor solution. Attachment E (“Current Database Field Descriptions”) details the data fields contained in the current database that will require migration. This attachment provides examples of the current data structure and is not an inclusive list. The Government has approximately seven years of data with an excess of 50,000 records from the existing OSOH Incident Reporting system.

In addition, the Government will provide the contractor with other material supporting compliance activities around IT Security Accreditation, Privacy Act compliance and Section 508 compliance, as needed.

All Government Furnished Information (GFI) will remain the sole property of the Government and will be returned to the Government in its entirety within 30 days of the close of the contract period or extension thereto.

10. Transition Strategy The contractor should propose their approach to ensure a successful transition to their solution to include, but not be limited to, a proposed timeline, staffing, material or support required of the Government or vendors reporting to the Government, system integrations and data migration approach.

The Transition Strategy should include detailed information, to:

1. Coordinate with the FS and current contractor to define transition activities

2. Finalize a Transition Plan within five business days of the kick-off meeting. At a minimum, the Transition Plan should include details for:

a) Schedule and milestones

b) Roles and responsibilities

c) Approach and processes for transitioning data from the current solution to the contractor’s solution

d) A list of all Government dependencies and assumptions for Government services to be used during the transition

e) Transition risks and risk mitigation strategies

3. Coordinate and collaborate with the current contractor to transition efforts

4. Participate in ongoing transition planning calls, as determined by the contractor. If schedules and milestones slip, the Government may require more frequent meetings/calls.

5. Participate in weekly progress review meetings

6. Migrate existing data into the contractor’s solution. In order to maintain a complete record of data for purposes of reporting, tracking and management, the contractor shall migrate existing data from the Government’s current solution into the contractor’s solution. Attachment E (“Current Database Field Descriptions”) details the data fields contained in the current database that will require migration. This attachment provides examples of the current data structure and is not an inclusive list. The Government has approximately seven years of data from the existing OSOH incident reporting system.

7. Complete the transition and assume control and management of the work described in the PWS within 120 days of contract award.

In addition, at the end of the contract, the contractor should propose a strategy to collaborate with the new contractor to successfully complete a seamless transition within the Government’s desired timeframe. This includes making data from the contractor’s solution available in standard formats, such as Comma Separated Values (CSV), Extensible Markup Language (XML), etc., as approved by the Government.

11. Continuity of Operations (COOP)/Disaster Recovery The contractor should propose their approach to maintaining access to the solution once in the production environment including, but not limited to, system performance standards, data backup/restore, COOP and disaster recovery capabilities and strategy. The proposed strategy should include that, in the event of a COOP or disaster recovery event, the contractor will facilitate and manage a coordinated effort with the Government to track the event and its impact, and bring services back online as soon as feasible. An assessment of the impact and proposed mitigation strategies should be provided to the Government.

12. System Integrations The selected solution will need to establish several interfaces, which are detailed in this SOO and in Attachment C (“Integrated Requirements with Response Matrix”). The offeror’s capability to meet mandatory and critical interfaces will be required as part of the evaluation process. In integrating with other systems, the contractor shall develop an Integration Plan that includes a detailed baseline budget and schedule. The contractor shall include and perform all customary tasks for integration to include planning, testing and other quality assurance tasks. The contractor shall provide verbal and written updates on integration progress, as requested for each integration project, as well as updates to the Integration Plan as requested by the Government. The following information is provided to support a common understanding of mandatory and critical interface requirements.

Referencing Requirement Integrated Project Solution (IPS)-147, the ConnectHR system is an SSO Internet Web portal that implements a common user interface (i.e., Dashboard) to Human Resource (HR) applications and data for FS Employees. ConnectHR has been designed to FS specifications and is hosted by GDC Integration, Inc. (GDCII) from their corporate data center in St. Louis, Missouri. Access is provided by GDCII to USDA Employees on an annual subscription basis, through the USDA e-Authentication process. While the GDCII Dashboard provides a secure SSO and user authentication capability for FS Employees, it will redirect requests for information or services to other appropriate commercial or Government service providers for execution. When a user request is passed through the Dashboard, it may be populated with additional information from the Employee’s personnel record, which is stored in the Dashboard database.

The selected solution must establish an Application Program Interface (API) with the GDCII Dashboard, which can provide user authentication with different levels of access to support application security requirements. All data transactions between the selected solution and GDCII will be performed using the proprietary GDCII standard Single Sign-on Server (SSS) API. Implementation of the API is described in the attached document, GDCI Integration, Inc., HRLINK$ Technical Document Application Integration Using SSS API (Attachment D, “Single Sign On (SSO) API Specifications”).

Referencing requirement IPS-144 and IPS-144.1, the EDI port with the DOL has already been established and tested as part of the ConnectHR system. Pre-defined standard data fields will be transferred between the selected solution and the DOL Data Repository (DDR) API using industry standard Web Services Description Language (WSDL) and XML to communicate.

Referencing requirement IPS-144.2-7, the selected solution will also establish an EDI feed for receiving standard HR data and fields (e.g., from National Finance Center (NFC) EmpowHR), including Employee first name, last name, Social Security Number, date of birth, etc. The selected solution will also establish an EDI feed for receiving Time and Attendance information. This data will be utilized to validate against claims for compensation, leave buyback, etc. Both of these EDI feeds will be uploaded biweekly via flat file, File Transfer Protocol (FTP), API or other Web services. The selected solution will also establish an inbound EDI feed with GovTrip in order to validate information used in motor vehicle accident investigations. Real time Web services will trigger the need for data upload, which will occur nightly via flat file, FTP, API or other Web services.

Referencing requirement IPS 145 and IPS-146, the selected solution will also provide bi-directional EDI capabilities with the Customer Relations Management (CRM), a standard Oracle application, which will allow OSOH/WC incident and claim information to be tied to customer records. Information will be transferred via a nightly feed.

13. Deliverables The contractor shall submit all deliverables to the COR via email. Electronic copies shall be delivered using Microsoft (MS) Office® Suite tools (i.e., Word, Excel®, PowerPoint®, Access®, Project), unless otherwise specified by the COR/Designee.

The COR/Designee will have ten workdays to review draft deliverables and make comments. The contractor will have five workdays to make corrections. Upon receipt of the final deliverables, the COR/Designee will have five workdays for final review prior to acceptance or providing documented reasons for non-acceptance. Should the Government fail to complete the review within the review period, the deliverable will become acceptable by default.

The COR/Designee will have the right to reject or require correction of any deficiencies found in the deliverables that are contrary to the information contained in the contractor’s accepted proposal. In the event of a rejected deliverable, the contractor will be notified in writing by the COR/Designee of the specific reasons for rejection. The contractor shall have five workdays to correct the rejected deliverable and return it per delivery instructions.

Table 1. Deliverables and Due Date

14. Performance Standards The offeror should propose performance standards to be monitored throughout the period of performance. The following are mandatory standards that must be addressed in the proposal, but the offeror should consider proposing additional performance standards as necessary to ensure acceptable performance:

Table 2. Performance Standards and Descriptions

(AQL)

Monitoring Method

15. Management Approach The contractor should describe their approach to software development and/or system life cycle standards and methodologies and ongoing management and financial reporting to the Government. In addition, the contractor should identify a proposed Staffing Plan for successful transition, as well as ongoing operations and maintenance of the solution, to include identification of any Government resources required by the contractor.

16. Points of Contact FS Contracting Officer (CO):

Brendell Gallegos Contracting Officer

USDA FS

Washington Office (WO) Acquisition Management (AQM) IT Support Branch Pan American, Building, Suite 200 101 B Sun Ave NE Albuquerque, NM 87109 Phone: 505-563-7241 Fax: 505-563-7788 E-mail: bgallegos@fs.fed.us

FS COR:

Lawrence Herbert

USDA FS

Enterprise HR IT Solutions and Services 1601 North Kent St., Room 600 Arlington, VA 22209 Phone: 703-605-4587 E-mail: lherbert@fs.fed.us

17. Contracting Officer Representative The COR monitors all technical aspects of the contract and assists in contract administration. The COR is authorized to perform the following functions:

Assure that the contractor performs the technical requirements of the contract Perform inspections necessary in connection with contract performance Maintain written and oral communications with the contractor concerning technical aspects of the contract Issue written interpretations of technical requirements to the CO, including Government drawings, designs, specifications Monitor contractor’s performance and notifies both the CO and contractor of any deficiencies Coordinate availability of Government-furnished property, and provide site entry of contractor personnel.

A letter of designation issued to the COR, a copy of which is sent to the contractor, states the responsibilities and limitations of the COR, especially with regard to changes in cost or price, estimates or changes in delivery dates. The COR is not authorized to change any of the terms and conditions of the resulting contract or order.

18. Invoicing The contractor shall render original invoices for work performed as specified to the COR. Invoices shall be submitted electronically to: FS_CIO_Invoices@fs.fed.us.

The following standard subject format shall be used when submitting invoices via email to ensure the assigned COR can readily identify invoices and expedite the processing for each vendor under contract: “Subject: Contract Number (AG-xxxx-x-xx-xxxx), Vendor Name, COR Name, Invoice Number.”

The contractor shall submit a draft invoice of the previous month to the COR by the fifth (5th) business day of each month for review, so the Government may determine if deliverables have been received.

The contractor shall submit the final invoice for the previous month’s services to the COR on the fifteenth (15th) day of each month. Deliverables not received may be cause for non-payment of invoices submitted. In such cases, the contractor will be notified by e-mail or telephone. If notification is not received within seven days, the invoice is considered accepted by the Government.

The contractor shall follow all other invoicing instructions contained in contract clauses not addressed in this SOO.

19. Security Clearances Security clearances are not required; however, information held by the offeror’s servers will contain individual privacy data that must be protected in accordance with the Privacy Act. Contractor personnel who will have access to FS data are required to sign a non-disclosure statement to acknowledge their responsibilities under this act. The FS COR acts as the Security Officer in this regard.

20. Additional Requirements The following are additional requirements that apply to this solicitation.

20.1 Privacy Act

Work on his project may require that personnel have access to Privacy Information. Personnel shall adhere to the Privacy Act, Title 5 of the U.S. Code, Section 552a and applicable Agency rules and regulations. This includes, but is not limited to, participation in the preparation of a Privacy Impact Assessment.

20.2 Security

Work under this contract is Unclassified. All documentation (e.g., Department of Defense (DD)-254) required for security certification will be the responsibility of the contractor and the client organization.

20.3 Records/Data

The Government has unlimited rights to all documents/material produced under this contract. All documents and materials produced under this contract shall be Government owned and are the property of the Government with all rights and privileges of ownership/copyright belonging exclusively to the Government. These documents and materials may not be used or sold by the contractor without written permission from the CO. All materials supplied to the Government shall be the sole property of the Government and may not be used for any other purpose. This right does not abrogate any other Government rights. Any data, documents or material produced under this contract that the contractor wishes to assert as proprietary must be clearly identified and agreed to, in advance, by the CO.

Data generated in the performance of this contract includes reports of incidents of work related accidents and illnesses and Government forms CA-1 and CA-2 which may be generated by the system from incident reports. Although these reports are maintained within the integrated case management solution, they are exclusively the property of the USDA FS and/or the DOL in the case of forms CA-1 and CA-2. At the completion of this contract, or at any other time at the discretion of the COR, any or all reports maintained within the integrated case management solution will be exported in a digital format to a Government database of a compatible format. In any event, all data produced under this contract or delivered to the contractor as GFI must be returned to the Government within 30 calendar days of the end of the contract or extension thereto.

20.4 Section 508 - Accessibility of Electronic and Information Technology The contractor will be expected to be in full compliance with Section 508 provisions, and the successful offeror will be provided with material to self-evaluate compliance. In addition, it is expected that the solution be tested for compliance in the USDA Target Center prior to “Go-Live” and undertake all required actions as determined by the Target Center to maintain compliance.

1. This contract is subject to Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d) as amended by the workforce Investment Act of 1998 (P.L. 105-220). Specifically, subsection 508(a)(1) requires that when the Federal Government procures Electronic and Information Technology (EIT), the EIT must allow Federal employees and individuals of the public with disabilities comparable access to and use of information and data that is provided to Federal employees and individuals of the public without disabilities.

2. The EIT accessibility standards at 36 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 1194 were developed by the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (“Access Board”) and apply to contracts and task/delivery orders, awarded under indefinite quantity contracts on or after June 25, 2001.

3. Each EIT product or service furnished under this contract shall comply with the Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility Standards (36 CFR 1194), as specified in the contract, as a minimum. If the CO determines any furnished product or service is not in compliance with the contract, the CO will promptly inform the contractor in writing. The contractor shall, without charge to the Government, repair or replace the non-compliant products or services within the period of time to be specified by the Government in writing. If such repair or replacement is not completed within the time specified, the Government shall have the following recourses:

a) Cancellation of the contract, delivery or task order, purchase or line item without termination liabilities; or

b) In the case of custom EIT being developed by a contractor for the Government, the Government shall have the right to have any necessary changes made or repairs performed by itself or by another firm for the noncompliant EIT, with the contractor liable for reimbursement to the Government for any expenses incurred thereby.

4. The contractor must ensure that all EIT products that are less than fully compliant with the accessibility standards are provided pursuant to extensive market research and are the most current compliant products or services available to satisfy the contract requirements.

5. For every EIT product or service accepted under this contact by the Government that does not comply with 36 CFR 1194, the contractor shall, at the discretion of the Government, make every effort to replace or upgrade it with a compliant equivalent product or service, if commercially-available and cost-neutral, on either a contract-specified refresh cycle for the product or service, or on a contract-effective option/renewal date, whichever shall occur first.

20.4.1 Section 508 Compliance for Communications

The offeror shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below. In the event of conflicts between the referenced documents and this RFP, the RFP shall take precedence.

Rehabilitation Act, Section 508 Accessibility Standards 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act as amended) 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508) http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/standards.htm (Section 508) FAR 39.2 (Section 508) USDA standards, policies and procedures (Section 508) In addition, all contract deliverables are subject to these Section 508 Standards, as applicable. Regardless of format, all Web content or communications materials produced, including text, audio or video must conform to applicable Section 508 Standards to allow Federal employees and members of the public with disabilities to access information that is comparable to information provided to persons without disabilities. All contractors (including subcontractors) or consultants responsible for preparing or posting content must comply with applicable Section 508 Standards, and where applicable, those set forth in the referenced policy or standards documents above. Remediation of any materials that do not comply with the applicable provisions of 36 CFR Part 1194, as set forth in the RFP shall be the responsibility of the contractor or consultant.

The following Section 508 provisions apply to the content or communications material identified in this RFI:

36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l) 36 CFR Part 1194.22 (a - p) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c) The contractor shall provide a completed Section 508 Product Assessment Template, and the contractor shall state exactly how proposed EIT deliverable(s) meet or does not meet the applicable standards. The following Section 508 provisions apply for software development material identified in this RFP. For software development, software applications and operating systems, the contractor/developer/vendor shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below:

1. Rehabilitation Act, Section 508, Accessibility Standards

2. 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act, as amended)

3. 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508)

a) 36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l)

b) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f)

c) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c)

4. www.access-board.gov/sec508/standards.htm (Section 508)

5. FAR 39.2 (Section 508)

6. USDA standards, policies and procedures (Section 508), Information Technology - General Information, www.ocio.usda.gov/508/index.html#resources For Web-based applications (i.e., Intranet, Internet information and applications, 16 rules), the contractor shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below:

1. Rehabilitation Act, Section 508, Accessibility Standards

2. 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act, as amended)

3. 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508)

a) 36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l)

b) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f)

c) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c)

4. www.access-board.gov/sec508/standards.htm (Section 508)

5. FAR 39.2 (Section 508)

6. USDA standards, policies and procedures (Section 508), Information Technology - General Information, www.ocio.usda.gov/508/index.html#resources For Telecommunication products, the contractor shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below:

1. Rehabilitation Act, Section 508, Accessibility Standards

2. 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act, as amended)

3. 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508)

a) 36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l)

b) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f)

c) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c)

4. http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/standards.htm (Section 508)

5. FAR 39.2 (Section 508)

6. USDA standards, policies and procedures (Section 508), Information Technology - General Information, www.ocio.usda.gov/508/index.html#resources For video and multimedia applications (including training), the contractor shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below:

1. Rehabilitation Act, Section 508, Accessibility Standards

2. 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act, as amended)

3. 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508)

a) 36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l)

b) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f)

c) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c)

4. http://www.access-board.gov/sec508/standards.htm (Section 508)

5. FAR 39.2 (Section 508)

6. USDA standards, policies and procedures (Section 508), Information Technology - General Information, www.ocio.usda.gov/508/index.html#resources For self-contained, closed products, the contractor shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below:

1. Rehabilitation Act, Section 508, Accessibility Standards

2. 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act, as amended)

3. 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508)

a) 36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l)

b) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f)

c) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c)

4. www.access-board.gov/sec508/508standards.htm (Section 508)

5. FAR 39.2 (Section 508)

6. USDA standards, policies and procedures (Section 508), Information Technology - General Information, www.ocio.usda.gov/508/index.html#resources For desktop and portable computers, the contractor shall comply with the standards, policies and procedures below:

1. Rehabilitation Act, Section 508, Accessibility Standards

2. 29 U.S.C. 794d (Rehabilitation Act, as amended)

3. 36 CFR 1194 (Section 508)

a) 36 CFR Part 1194.21 (a - l)

b) 36 CFR Part 1194.31 (a - f)

c) 36 CFR Part 1194.41 (a - c)

4. www.access-board.gov/sec508/508standards.htm (Section 508)

5. FAR 39.2 (Section 508)

6. USDA Standards, policies and procedures (Section 508), Information Technology - General Information, www.ocio.usda.gov/508/index.html#resources All EIT that is subject to the 36 CFR 1194 standards will have a Section 508 acceptance test, and Section 508 will be validated upon acceptance.

All maintenance for EIT that requires upgrades, modifications, installations and purchases will adhere to the Section 508 Standards and 36 CFR 1194.

21. Security Language for all Contracts/Agreements It is the responsibility of both the Agency and the Procurement Official to verify that this is in all contracts and agreements including the exercise of any contract options. Examples of tasks that require security provisions include acquisitions of hardware, software, application and systems, IT services, transmission or analysis of data owned by FS with significant replacement cost should the contractors and other external organization’s copy be corrupted.

By accepting this contract/agreement, the contractor/cooperator and other external organizations (hereafter called contractor) providing IT services to the FS agrees to comply with the applicable IT security policy, as outlined in this document. The contractor and other external organizations will be responsible for IT security for all systems connected to the FS network or operated by the contractor and other external organizations for the FS, regardless of location. This clause is applicable to all or any part of the contract that includes IT resources or services in which the contractor and other external organizations must have physical or electronic access to FS sensitive information that directly support the mission of the FS. The term “information technology,” as used in this clause, means any equipment or interconnected system or subsystem of equipment, that is used in the automatic acquisition, storage, manipulation, management, movement, control, display switching, interchange, transmission, or reception of data or information. This includes both major applications and general support systems, as defined by Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Circular A-130.

The contractor shall be responsible for properly protecting all information used, gathered or developed as a result of work under this task. The contractor shall also protect all unclassified government data, equipment, etc., by treating information as sensitive business, confidential information, controlling and limiting access to the information and ensuring the data and equipment are secured within their facility.

The contractor or other external organization will not publish or disclose in any manner, without the FS CO’s written consent, the details of any programs, documentation, data or safeguards either designed or developed by the contractor or other external organization under this contract or otherwise provided by the Government. The contractor may be required to sign non-disclosure or other appropriate security agreements. A written agreement between the FS and any contractors and other external organizations will be entered into before FS data and information otherwise exempt from public disclosure may be disclosed to the contractors and other external organizations. The contractor and other external organizations will agree to establish and follow security precautions considered by the FS to be necessary to ensure proper handling of data and information. As may be identified elsewhere in this contract, the contractor agrees that:

The draft and final deliverables and all associated working papers and other materials deemed relevant by the COR that have been generated by the contractor in the performance of this contract are the property of the Government and must be submitted to the COR at the conclusion of the tasks.

All documents produced for this project are the property of the U.S. Government and cannot be reproduced or retained by the contractor.

To the extent required to carry out a program of inspection to safeguard against threats and hazards to the security, integrity and confidentiality of Government data, the contractor will afford the Government access to the contractor's or other external organization's facilities, installations, technical capabilities, operations, documentation, records and databases. The contractor will cooperate with Federal Agencies and their officially credentialed representatives during official inspections or investigations concerning the protection of FS information. Cooperation may include providing relevant documentation showing proof of compliance with Federal and Agency requirements and rendering other assistance, as deemed necessary.

If new or unanticipated threats or hazards are discovered by either the Government or the contractor or other external organization, or if existing safeguards have ceased to function, the discoverer will immediately bring the situation to the attention of the other party. The contractor will report real or suspected incidents or violations to the FS Computer Incident Response Team (CIRT), by email, at CIRT@fs.fed.us.

The contractor shall insert these clauses in all subcontracts when the subcontractor is required to have routine physical access to a federally-controlled facility and/or routine access to a Federally-controlled information system. Failure to comply with said requirements will constitute cause for termination.

The contractor agrees to:

1. Comply with the Privacy Act of 1974 (the Act) and the Agency rules and regulations issued under the Act in the design, development or operation of any system of records on individuals to accomplish an Agency function when the contract specifically identifies:

a) the systems of records

b) the design, development or operation work that the contractor is to perform

2. Include the Act notification contained in this contract in every solicitation and resulting subcontract and in every subcontract awarded without a solicitation, when the work statement in the proposed subcontract requires the redesign, development or operation of a system of records on individuals that is subject to the Act; and

3. Include this clause, including this paragraph (3), in all subcontracts awarded under this contract which requires the design, development or operation of such a system of records.

In the event of violations of the Act, a civil action may be brought against the Agency involved when the violation concerns the design, development or operation of a system of records on individuals to accomplish an Agency function, and criminal penalties may be imposed upon the officers or employees of the Agency when the violation concerns the operation of a system of records on individuals to accomplish an Agency function. For purposes of the Act, when the contract is for the operation of a system of records on individuals to accomplish an Agency function, the contractor is considered to be an employee of the Agency.

Definitions of the clause:

1. “Operation of a system of records,” as used in this clause, means performance of any of the activities associated with maintaining the system of records, including the collection, use and dissemination of records.

2. “Record,” as used in this clause, means any item, collection or grouping of information about an individual that is maintained by an Agency, including, but not limited to, educational, financial transactions, medical history and criminal or employment history and that contains the person's name or the identifying number, symbol or other identifying particular assigned to the individual, such as a fingerprint, voiceprint or a photograph.

3. “System of records on individuals,” as used in this clause, means a group of any records under the control of any Agency from which information is retrieved by the name of the individual or by some identifying number, symbol or other identifying particular assigned to the individual.

The contractors and other external organizations will ensure that the following banner is displayed on all FS systems that contain Privacy Act information operated by the contractors and other external organizations prior to allowing anyone access to the system:

“This system contains information protected under the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974 (public law 93 579). Any privacy information displayed on the screen or printed must be protected from unauthorized disclosure. Employees who violate privacy safeguards may be subject to disciplinary actions, a fine of up to $5,000, or both.”

If your contract/agreement is bringing on contractors/cooperators that need building access and/or computer access: it is the responsibility of both the Agency and the Procurement Official to verify that this section is in all contracts/agreements, including the exercise of any contract options where contractors/cooperators/volunteers will be accessing FS systems.