Attachment 1 - Statement of Work.pdf

National Cancer Institute 75N91021Q00203 1

1.0 TITLE

Statistical Analysis Services in Support of Cancer Research Using US Census Bureau Population data.

2.0 BACKGROUND

The National Cancer Institute, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences (DCCPS), Surveillance Research program (SRP) is a national leader in the science of cancer surveillance as well as analytical tools and methodological expertise in collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and disseminating reliable population-based cancer statistics. The SRP regularly uses data provided by the U.S. Census Bureau as part of its research programs.

The U.S. Census Bureau implemented a new differential private (DP) Disclosure Avoidance System (DAS) in 2020 decennial census data products to protect confidentiality. This data mixes different amounts of random noise into population tabulations at various geographic levels so that privacy breaches are more difficult. However, there are substantial local and national concerns about how DP errors would impact data utility in politics, research, and policymaking.

As Census data is the most authoritative source of denominators for calculating cancer rates, this change will inevitably affect the validity and precision in calculating cancer incidence and mortality rates and any comparisons of rates, which are essential measures to inform subpopulations for public health interventions.

The National Cancer Institute has previously procured services for technical support to develop novel statistical inference methods for age-standardized rates (ASR) and ratios of two ASRs when population data used for estimating rates involves sampling errors. These methods are utilized when population data are not available from the U.S. Decennial Census and must be estimated from national sample surveys, such as the American Community Survey. Research has shed light on similarities between sampling errors and DP errors under general settings.

The SRP now seeks to explore strategies to adjust for DP errors on estimating cancer rates. This extension in research is imperative and important. Without the proper adjustments, cancer rates calculated based on DP-modified 2020 census data will likely be biased, and the bias can mislead the allocation of health care resources and subsequently hinder achieving public health objectives.

Services provided in this order will improve the NCI’s understanding of how DP errors are introduced into the 2020 Census population data and will assist the SRP in developing strategies to address the impact of DP errors on the statistical inference of cancer rates and comparisons of cancer rates.

3.0 SCOPE

The Contractor shall furnish all necessary personnel, materials, services, facilities, (except as otherwise specified herein), and otherwise do all the things necessary for or incident to the

National Cancer Institute 75N91021Q00203 2 performance of the work as set forth in this section below. The Contractor shall write a technical report to provide a detailed overview of the Census Bureau’s 2020 DP DAS process, describe approaches to generate DP-modified populations using 2010 census, illustrate the nature of statistical challenges caused by DP errors in estimating cancer rates, and finally evaluate the feasibility of extending an existing method to overcome the bias problem in cancer rate inference.

3.1 TASK 1 – DATA ANALYSIS

The Contractor shall:

• Simulate differentially private census population tabulation data according to published 2020 Census DAS algorithms;

• Quantify magnitudes of differential privacy errors in the simulated Census population data;

• Extend the existing statistical method of the ASR and the ratio of ASRs, which are originally developed to adjust for sampling errors in the population data, to adjust for potential bias in cancer rate inference caused by differential privacy errors in the census population data; and

• Evaluate the performance of the proposed methodological extension using simulated census data and real census data.

3.2 TASK 2 – TECHNICAL REPORT

The Contractor shall write a report on the project findings with background, methods, results, and discussion sections. This report shall include:

• An overview of the Census Bureau’s 2020 DP DAS process;

• A detailed description of rationales and approaches used in simulating differentially private census tabulation data;

• Validation of simulation models by comparing with true historical census data;

• Theoretical development of an extended inference method to deal with differentially private census population errors in the statistical inference of ASRs and ratio of ASRs;

and

• Simulative and empirical evaluation results of the proposed extension method.

The report shall also discuss:

• Strengths and limitations of the extended inference method.

• The use of the extended inference method in cancer reporting.

• Possible directions for further developments, if applicable.

4.0 TYPE OF ORDER

This is a firm fixed price purchase order.

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The services procured in this order are non-severable services. Funds are only available for use for the line item to which they are obligated. Unused funds from line item may not rollover for use in other purchase order line items.

5.0 PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance shall be for 12-months from date of award.

6.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Services shall be performed at the Contractor’s facilities or facilities authorized by the Contractor. On-site services are not included in this order.

7.0 SECTION 508 COMPLIANCE

Regardless of format, all digital content or communications materials produced as a deliverable under this contract, shall conform to applicable Section 508 Standards to allow Federal employees and members of the public with disabilities to have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access to and use of information and data by Federal employees or by members of the public who are not individuals with disabilities. Remediation of any materials that do not comply with the applicable Section

508 requirements as set forth below, shall be the responsibility of the Contractor.

HHS guidance regarding accessibility of documents can be found at:

https://www.hhs.gov/web/governance/digital-strategy/it-policy-archive/hhs-policy-section-508-compliance-accessibility-information-communications-technology.html

Federal government-wide guidance regarding accessibility of documents can be found at:

https://www.section508.gov/best-practices, including the documents describing the preferred method of authoring and testing documents produced in Microsoft Word 2013 or later, Microsoft Excel, and files formatted as PDF.

8.0 DELIVERY & ACCEPTANCE

8.1 GENERAL

Pursuant to FAR clause 52.212-4, all work performed is subject to final inspection and acceptance by an authorized representative of the Government. The authorized representative of the Government is the technical point-of-contact (TPOC) identified in this Statement of Work, who is responsible for inspection and acceptance of all services, materials, or supplies to be provided by the Contractor.

https://www.hhs.gov/web/governance/digital-strategy/it-policy-archive/hhs-policy-section-508-compliance-accessibility-information-communications-technology.html https://www.hhs.gov/web/governance/digital-strategy/it-policy-archive/hhs-policy-section-508-compliance-accessibility-information-communications-technology.html https://www.section508.gov/best-practices

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8.2 REPORT(S)/DELIVERABLES AND DELIVERY SCHEDULE

All reports shall be submitted via e-mail in Microsoft compatible format, in accordance with the table below, to the NCI/ DCCPS/SRP technical point-of-contact (TPOC) for review, comment and approval.

DELIVERABLE DELIVERABLE DESCRIPTION DUE DATE

1 Draft Report 6 Months after award

Final Report 11 months after award

8.3 GENERAL ACCEPTANCE CRITERIA

General quality measures, as set forth below, will be applied to each work product received from the Contractor under this task order.

Accuracy – Work products shall be accurate in presentation, technical content, and adherence to accepted elements of style.

Clarity – Work products shall be clear and concise. Any/all deliverables shall be easy to understand for the intended audience.

Consistency to Requirements – All work products must satisfy the requirements of this Statement of Work.

9.0 PROHIBITION AGAINST PERSONAL SERVICES

The Contractor shall not perform personal services under this purchase order. Contractor personnel are employees of the Contractor or its subcontractors and are under the administrative control and supervision of the Contractor. A Contractor supervisor must give all individual Contractor employee assignments and daily work direction. The Government will not superv ise or direct Contractor employees in the performance of their assignments.

If at any time the Contractor believes that any Government action or communication has been given that would create a personal service relationship between the Government and any Contractor employee, the Contractor shall promptly notify the Contracting Officer of this communication or action.

The Contractor shall not perform any inherently governmental functions under this

National Cancer Institute 75N91021Q00203 5 order. No Contractor employee shall represent or give the appearance that he/she is a Government employee, agent or representative. No Contractor employee shall state orally or in writing at any time that he or she is acting on behalf of the Government. The Contractor is responsible for ensuring that all employees assigned to this contract understand and are committed to following these requirements.

10.0 PAYMENT

Payment shall be made upon monthly in arrears. Payment authorization requires submission and approval of invoices to the technical point of contact (TPOC) and NIH OFM, in accordance with the payment provisions listed below:

The following clause is applicable to all Purchase Orders, Task or Delivery Orders, and Blanket

Purchase Agreement (BPA) Calls: Prompt Payment (Jan 2017) FAR 52.232-25. Highlights of this clause and NIH implementation requirements follow:

I. Invoice Requirements

A. An invoice is the Contractor's bill or written request for payment under the contract for supplies delivered or services performed. A proper invoice is an "Original" which must include the items listed in subdivisions 1 through 12, below, in addition to the requirements of FAR 32.9. If the invoice does not comply with these requirements, the Contractor will be notified of the defect within 7 days after the date the designated billing office received the invoice (3 days for meat, meat food products, or fish, and 5 days for perishable agricultural commodities, dairy products, edible fats or oils) with a statement of the reasons why it is not a proper invoice. (See exceptions under II., below.) Untimely notification will be taken into account in the computation of any interest penalty owed the Contractor.

1. Vendor/Contractor: Name, Address, Point of Contact for the invoice (Name, title, telephone number, e-mail and mailing address of point of contact).

2. Remit-to address (Name and complete mailing address to send payment).

3. Remittance name must match exactly with name on original order/contract. If the Remittance name differs from the Legal Business Name, then both names must appear on the invoice.

4. Invoice date.

5. Unique invoice #s for all invoices per vendor regardless of site.

6. NBS document number formats must be included for awards created in the NBS:

Contract Number; Purchase Order Number; Task or Delivery Order Number and Source Award Number (e.g., Indefinite Delivery Contract number; General Services Administration number); or, BPA Call Number and BPA Parent Award Number.

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7. Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) or DUNS + 4 as registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR).

8. Federal Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). In those exceptional cases where a contractor does not have a DUNS number or TIN, a Vendor Identification Number (VIN) must be referenced on the invoice. The VIN is the number that appears after the contractor’s name on the face page of the award document.

9. Identify that payment is to be made using a three-way match.

10. Description of supplies/services that match the description on the award, by line billed.*

11. Freight or delivery charge must be billed as shown on the award. If it is included in the item price do not bill it separately. If identified in the award as a separate line item, it must be billed separately.

12. Quantity, Unit of Measure, Unit Price, Extended Price of supplies delivered or services performed, as applicable, and that match the line items specified in the award.*

NOTE: If your invoice must differ from the line items on the award, please contact the

Contracting Officer before submitting the invoice. A modification to the order or contract may be needed before the invoice can be submitted and paid.

B. Shipping costs will be reimbursed only if authorized by the Contract/Purchase Order. If authorized, shipping costs must be itemized. Where shipping costs exceed $100, the invoice must be supported by a bill of lading or a paid carrier's receipt.

C. The Contractor shall submit invoice to the National Institutes of Health (NIH)/Office of Financial Management (OFM) via email at invoicing@nih.gov with a copy to the approving official, as directed below. The Contractor must follow step-by-step instructions as stated in the NIH/OFM Electronic Invoicing Instructions for NIH Contractors/Vendors, which is included as an attachment on the website at https://oamp.od.nih.gov/DGS/DGS-workform-information/attachment-files. The invoice shall be transmitted as an attachment via email to the address listed above in one of the following formats: Word, or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF). The Contractor must submit only one invoice per email. Do not submit supporting documentation (e.g., receipts, time sheets, vendor invoices, etc.) with your invoice unless specified elsewhere in the contract or requested by the Contracting Officer.

The Contractor shall submit a copy of the electronic invoice to the following Contracting

Officer’s Representative/ Technical Point of Contact (TPOC):

NOTE: TPOC/COR shall be provided at time of award.

https://ofm.od.nih.gov/Pages/Home.aspx https://ofm.od.nih.gov/Pages/Home.aspx mailto:invoicing@nih.gov https://oamp.od.nih.gov/DGS/DGS-workform-information/attachment-files https://oamp.od.nih.gov/DGS/DGS-workform-information/attachment-files https://oamp.od.nih.gov/DGS/DGS-workform-information/attachment-files

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For inquiries regarding the status of invoices, contact OFM Customer Service via email at ofm_customer_service@incontactemail.com or via phone at 301-496-6088. To send your inquiries via other available communication methods refer to the OFM Customer Service website at https://ofm.od.nih.gov/Pages/Customer-Service.aspx.

Note: The OFM Customer Service is open Eastern Standard Time Monday – Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and is closed between 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.

II. Invoice Payment

A. Except as indicated in paragraph B., below, the due date for making invoice payments by the designated payment office shall be the later of the following two events:

a. The 30th day after the designated billing office has received a proper invoice.

b. The 30th day after Government acceptance of supplies delivered or services performed.

B. The due date for making invoice payments for meat and meat food products, perishable agricultural commodities, dairy products, and edible fats or oils, shall be in accordance with the Prompt Payment Act, as amended.

III. Interest Penalties

A. An interest penalty shall be paid automatically, if payment is not made by the due date and the conditions listed below are met, if applicable.

a. A proper invoice was received by the designated billing office.

b. A receiving report or other Government documentation authorizing payment was processed and there was no disagreement over quantity, quality, or contractor compliance with a term or condition.

c. In the case of a final invoice for any balance of funds due the contractor for supplies delivered or services performed, the amount was not subject to further settlement actions between the Government and the Contractor.

B. Determination of interest and penalties due will be made in accordance with the provisions of the Prompt Payment Act, as amended, the Contract Disputes Act, and regulations issued by the Office of Management and Budget.

IV. PROVIDING ACCELERATED PAYMENT TO SMALL BUSINESS

SUBCONTRACTORS, FAR 52.232-40 (December 2013)

a) Upon receipt of accelerated payments from the Government, the Contractor shall make accelerated payments to its small business subcontractors under this contract, to the maximum extent practicable and prior to when such payment is otherwise required under mailto:OFM%20Customer%20Service mailto:ofm_customer_service@incontactemail.com https://ofm.od.nih.gov/Pages/Customer-Service.aspx

National Cancer Institute 75N91021Q00203 8 the applicable contract or subcontract, after receipt of a proper invoice and all other required documentation from the small business subcontractor.

b) The acceleration of payments under this clause does not provide any new rights under the prompt Payment Act.

c) Include the substance of this clause, include this paragraph c, in all subcontracts with small business concerns, including subcontracts with small business concerns for the acquisition of commercial items.