Attachment B - Statement of Work - NCA CSS.pdf.pdf

Attachment B - Statement of Work for NCA Customer Satisfaction Survey

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Table of Contents

I. PURPOSE

II. GENERAL BACKGROUND

III. SURVEY BACKGROUND

IV. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

V. REQUIREMENTS OVERVIEW

V. (a) BASE AND OPTION YEARS

TASK 1: DEVELOP PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS

TASK 2: KICK-OFF MEETING WITH NCA

TASK 3: TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

TASK 4: SURVEY INSTRUMENTS

TASK 5: SPANISH TRANSLATION

TASK 6: WEB SURVEYS

TASK 7: SURVEY COORDINATION, PREPARATION, AND PRINTING

TASK 8: SAMPLES FOR SURVEYS – TWO COHORTS

TASK 9: SURVEY ADMINISTRATION AND FIELDING

TASK 10: TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND HELP LINE

TASK 11: WEEKLY FIELDING REPORT

TASK 12: SURVEY ANALYSIS

TASK 13: SEMIANNUAL REPORTS

TASK 14: STRATEGIC MEASURES REPORT

TASK 15: ANNUAL NATIONAL REPORTS

TASK 16: NC ANNUAL DISTRICT REPORTS

TASK 17: STVC ANNUAL STATE REPORTS

TASK 18: NC CEMETERY REPORTS

TASK 19: STVC CEMETERY REPORTS

TASK 20: BRIEFINGS

TASK 21: ANNUAL REPORT DATA SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

TASK 22: ANNUAL CLOSE-OUT DOCUMENT SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

NEXT SURVEY CYCLE CROSS-REFERENCE TABLE

TASK 23: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 3

TASK 24: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 4

TASK 25: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 5

TASK 26: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 6

TASK 27: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 7

TASK 28: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 8

TASK 29: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 9

VI. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

VII. SCHEDULE OF DELIVERABLES

VIII. CHANGES TO STATEMENT OF WORK

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IX. GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITIES

X. CONTRACTOR EXPERIENCE REQUIREMENTS

XI.TRAVEL

XII. SECURITY CLAUSES

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I. PURPOSE

The NCA administers four annual surveys of satisfaction which include:

National Cemeteries: Next-of-Kin/Family Member Satisfaction Survey (NC NOK

CSS)

VA Memorial Products: Next-of-Kin/Family Member Satisfaction Survey1 (MPS

NOK CSS)

State, Tribal or Territorial Veterans Cemeteries: Next-of-Kin/Family Member

Satisfaction Survey (STVC NOK CSS)

Funeral Director Satisfaction Survey (FD CSS)

Note: Each NCA survey is categorized as a customer satisfaction survey (CSS).

The first three surveys in the list comprise the Next-of-Kin/Family Member (NOK) survey series. Any reference to the NOK CSSs implies the three surveys in the series, NC NOK

CSS, MPS NOK CSS, and STVC NOK CSS, administered to a Next-of-Kin/Family member and not funeral directors.

NCA strives to provide the best service and to be the model of excellence for burial and memorials for our Nation's Veterans and their families2. The data from the administration of each of the surveys helps NCA to assess its compliance with the

Agency’s mission to honor eligible Veterans, active-duty Service Members, and eligible family members with final resting places in national shrines and with lasting tributes that commemorate their service and sacrifice to our Nation. Further, the feedback from NOK and funeral directors serves to improve NCA policy, planning, and operational efforts as it relates to the quality of the services provided to Veterans and their families.

The primary purposes of this award are to:

Administer and field the NCA’s suite of four surveys in a standardized protocol to yield valid, reliable data

1 The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is abbreviated VA throughout this document.

2 Additional information about NCA can be found at https://www.cem.va.gov/cem/about/index.asp https://www.cem.va.gov/cem/about/index.asp

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Design, prepare, administer, and capture data for NCA’s suite of paper and online surveys

Clean and prepare the sampling frame for the creation of the mailing list for the

NCA surveys

Collaborate with the Government Printing Office and provide the camera-ready versions for the print surveys in both English and Spanish and conduct the proofing for all waves of the surveys

Ensure the quality, integrity, and completeness of the information gathered to allow actionable data for continuous improvement of the services provided by

NCA

Provide analytic support to NCA for annual reporting requirements and on an ad hoc basis

Review and provide recommendations to enhance the existing surveys and administration protocol

II. GENERAL BACKGROUND

The National Cemetery Administration (NCA) provides burial and memorial benefits to

Veterans and their eligible beneficiaries. These benefits are earned through service to our Nation. Eligibility for burial and memorialization benefits is defined in 38 C.F.R.

§2402, with implementing regulations in 38 C.F.R. §3.1700 thru §3.1713. of the Code of

Federal Regulations.

As of March 2025, VA operates 156 national cemeteries and 33 soldiers' lots and monument sites in 44 states and Puerto Rico. More than 5 million Americans, including

Veterans of every war and conflict, are buried in VA's national cemeteries. VA also provides funding to establish, expand, improve and maintain 122 Veterans cemeteries in 48 states and territories including tribal trust lands, Guam, and Saipan. For Veterans not buried in a VA national cemetery, VA provides headstones, markers or medallions to commemorate their service. Since 1973, NCA has furnished more than 15 million headstones and markers to national, state, tribal, and private cemeteries.

The NCA Memorial Products Service (MPS) provides headstones, markers and medallions to mark the graves of Veterans and their family members at private

5 | P a g e cemeteries as well as Presidential Memorial Certificates. In 2024, legislation passed to introduce the Commemorative Urn and Plaque products to NCA memorial offerings3.

The private cemetery headstone and marker program has three distinct headstone products and processes to measure order and delivery of granite and marble headstones, bronze and stone markers, and medallions. As mentioned above, commemorative urn and plaque options have been added. In future survey updates, the

MPS Survey may require retrofitting to measure the satisfaction of the new urn and plaque offerings. NCA intends to issue a stand-alone survey in 2025, pending finalization and approval by OMB. If implemented, the results of the 2025 stand-alone urn/plaque survey will drive next steps. MPS provides these products through an ordering process that requires the submission of an application with proof of eligibility.

MPS also has call center personnel that answer inquiries and assist in the application process. Orders for headstones, markers and medallions are input and sent to an authorized vendor to manufacture and inscribe. The Memorial Products are sent to a private cemetery, funeral home or residence for placement on the respective gravesite or private use, as applicable.

III. SURVEY BACKGROUND

As stated in the purpose, NCA administers a family of four surveys. The 2025 surveys are provided in Attachments D-G. The current survey questionnaires and processes are mature, having been refined over many iterations. However, the surveys and processes continue to be reviewed and enhanced to ensure that the items (questions) are aligned with NCA’s priorities and goals and meet the information needs of the Administration.

Further, the surveys and their protocol are continually reviewed to identify opportunities to increase the quality of information gathered and to incorporate advances in the field of survey science.

The survey process requires close collaboration between the NCA Contracting Officer, the NCA Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), the Government Printing Office

(GPO), and the GPO’s contracted vendor.

3 Information about this program can be found at https://www.cem.va.gov/urn-plaque/index.asp https://www.cem.va.gov/urn-plaque/index.asp

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The sampling frame relies on data from the NCA Burial Operations Support System

(BOSS) database for National and State cemeteries and the Automated Monument

Application System (AMAS) for Memorial Products. The sample size employed for each

NOK CSS shall allow the estimates with enough power to detect statistically significant differences at a percentage to be determined at the national, district, state, and cemetery-level using a 95% confidence interval. The Funeral Director Survey is administered to each unique funeral home that has had contact with NCA for a burial at a VA national cemetery; VA State, Tribal or Territorial cemetery; or requested a memorial product on behalf of a Veteran or their family.

The survey administration protocol4 consists of 4 waves. The NOK CSSs are to be fielded semiannually while the Funeral Director Survey is fielded annually. It shall be assumed that, at minimum, this protocol will be employed for the paper surveys.5 An online survey shall be available for potential respondents throughout the fielding process.

First wave: Cover letter 1 and paper survey questionnaire

Second wave: Reminder post card 1

Third wave: Cover Letter 2 and second survey questionnaire

Fourth wave: Thank you and final reminder

The survey administration protocol is designed to provide estimates of the views and opinions of our customers (NOK and FDs) by employing a representative sample6 and to maximize response rates. The administration protocol is reviewed on a regular basis and is modified to increase efficiency and harness new advances in the survey and

4 The 4 waves that are stated will be used in the 2025 interment fielding and beyond.

5 NCA is continually reviewing opportunities to maximize efficiency and data quality including response rates.

6 The FD survey is administered to a census and the NOK surveys are administered to a large, representative sample down to the cemetery-level for both NC and STVC. This protocol is subject to change based on the direction of

NCA

7 | P a g e align with best practices.

An analysis plan and reporting templates are designed and must be approved by NCA before use. Further, any necessary adjustments to allow the valid, reliable estimates used for informing NCA to determine policy are incorporated in the analysis plan.

While the survey is being fielded, an analysis of the preliminary data is done on an ongoing basis. The information aids in the modification of the sample size for the following fielding to meet the required power for analysis and testing. Annual reports are created for national cemeteries; state, tribal or territorial cemeteries; and memorial products that detail the level of satisfaction with the burial products and services provided by NCA.7 The reports are used by NCA for identifying opportunities for improvements, monitoring, and policy making.8 In addition, NC and STVC cemeteries receive an individual annual report that focuses on their results and provides national aggerated values for comparison. A series of briefing documents are prepared for use by NCA for briefing administration leadership.

A brief history of the surveys administered by NCA under this SOW is provided below.

NATIONAL CEMETERIES NEXT-OF-KIN/FAMILY MEMBER SATISFACTION SURVEY

In 2001, NCA began development and testing of the national cemetery survey instrument for the annual NC NOK CSS for Veterans and their families and funeral directors. The development process included focus groups with Next-of-Kin and funeral directors, cognitive interviews, and a pilot test. The surveys were designed to be comprehensive to solicit feedback on committal service, visitation, awareness of burial and memorial benefits, outreach and communication, cemetery appearance, etc. The are routinely updated/revised to enhance the survey items and to emerging address information needs. Initially the survey included both Next-of-Kin (NOK) and funeral director questions. This practice of a combined survey for the two target populations

7 The funeral director information is contained within the NOK CSS reports and not a separate report.

8 The annual reports can be found by accessing the following link:

https://www.accesstocare.va.gov/NCA/Satisfaction

8 | P a g e ended after the 2013 administration. A separate Funeral Director Survey was implemented in 2014 that included questions on national cemeteries.

The sampling methodology for the NC NOK CSS employs stratification by cemetery.

The sample size per cemetery is proportional to the cemetery’s total number of interments with adjustment to smaller cemeteries. Sample size requirements are based on reporting requirements and are subject to change.

A multi-mode administration for the survey, web and mailed, is employed. Out of respect for the Veteran and the family, a minimum of a 90-day grieving period is used.

Currently, survey invitations are by mail only. The NC NOK CSS Survey is offered in both Spanish and English. Residents of Puerto Rico are mailed Spanish language materials. A telephone Help Line is available for assistance to address any questions about the survey. The Help Desk can also be used to request a Spanish or English

Survey. Inquiries are recorded and provided to NCA.

Historically, one annual data collection with annual reporting was employed. The administration protocol for all NOK CSSs for Veterans and their families was changed from annual surveys to quarterly surveys in CY 2018 and reflected in the 2019 CSS

Reports. The change was made to allow additional monitoring of satisfaction that an annual survey could not provide. An annual fielding was done in 2020 for the 2019 interments. The fielding for the 2020 interments was a single annual fielding. At this time, NCA requires semiannual fieldings of the 3 NoK surveys in the base and option years.

MEMORIAL PRODUCTS NEXT-OF-KIN/FAMILY MEMBER SATISFACTION SURVEY

(MPS)

The MPS NOK CSS assesses customer satisfaction with products and services provided by the Memorial Products Service and measures process performance. 9 The survey instrument includes items to determine: who assisted the Next-of-Kin with the

9 If the Veteran or family member was buried in a VA national, state, tribal or territorial cemetery then the individual is not in the sampling frame for the MPS.

9 | P a g e application; the extent to which the Next-of-Kin was aware of the inscription policy; the perceived quality level of the marker and inscription; the cycle delivery time; the level of customer service for the call center; and the level of knowledge, satisfaction with, and quality of the Presidential Memorial Certificate (PMC) Program and certificate. The MPS

NOK CSS sampling frame consists of Veterans and their family members who opted to use a private cemetery and requested a memorial product as well as funeral directors.10

The MPS NOK CSS was conducted annually starting 2009, with the exception of 2010.

The MPS NOK CSS is administered to both Next-of-Kin and funeral directors. The survey protocol limits the timeframe for the NOK contact to those who interred a loved one 90 days prior to the survey fielding timeframe at a private cemetery. The NOK MPS

CSS fielding period aligns with that of the NC NOK CSS. At this time, NCA requires semiannual fieldings of the 3 NoK surveys in the base and option years.

STATE, TRIBAL OR TERRITORIAL VETERANS CEMETERIES NEXT-OF-KIN/FAMILY

MEMBER SATISFACTION SURVEY (STVC CSS)

The STVC CSS development began in 2013 with a pilot and is modeled after the

National Cemetery CSS. The STVC CSS was implemented in 2014 originally administered annually. At this time, NCA requires semiannual fieldings of the 3 NoK surveys in the base and all option years exercised.

FUNERAL DIRECTOR SATISFACTION SURVEY (FD Survey)

Currently, the FD Survey consists of four sections: a generic or global set of questions for all funeral directors and 3 targeted surveys based on their prior-year engagement:

(1) FD National Cemetery Satisfaction Survey, (2) FD MPS Survey, and (3) FD State, Tribal or Territorial Veterans Cemeteries Satisfaction Survey. Some of the survey items from the NOK CSSs are tailored for use on the FD Surveys while other questions from the NOK CSS are excluded from the FD Surveys. A small subset of questions on the

FD Surveys are unique to the FD Survey-set.

10 An individual who contacted the VA for a PMC only would not be part of the sampling frame because the data is stored in a different database.

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It is important to note the FD Survey is fielded by census, meaning all funeral homes engaged in the population will be issued a survey. The FD Survey is not sent to each funeral director but rather each funeral home such that each individual funeral home shall have a single survey completed by one of their associated funeral directors. In other words, the unit of analysis is the business entity, the funeral home.

At present, funeral directors are requested to evaluate their experience with the national cemetery and state, tribal or territorial cemetery that they had the most contact with

(greatest number of interments) during the previous 12-month period. In addition, funeral directors are asked to assess the quality and experience related to memorial products. Some sections may not be applicable to all funeral directors and they are asked to respond to only applicable sections.

The sampling frame for funeral directors includes those who: (1) assisted with interments at VA National Cemeteries during the specified time frame; (2) assisted with interments at VA grant funded State, Tribal or Territorial cemeteries during that same period; or (3) who assisted with obtaining memorial products for interments during that period. The three sampling frames have a great degree of overlap because many of the funeral directors assisted with multiple interments and multiple funeral directors are associated with a single funeral home. Consequently, files are stacked, cleaned, and duplicates within and across the three frames are eliminated. The unduplicated, cleaned frames shall be used to administer the FD Survey.

At present, the FD survey is sent as a single annual survey segmented into the 3 delineated surveys to each funeral home and addressed to the funeral director as opposed to a named person. The FD Survey has typically been fielded during the second NOK survey fielding period and shall be for the prior year interments11.

Currently, the data collected from the FD Survey are presented separately from NOK in the NOK CSS annual reports. Common questions between the FD Survey and NOK

CSSs are combined, analyzed and presented in the 3 NOK CSS annual reports.

11 The 90-day grieving period does not apply to funeral directors.

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IV. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

This contract has a total of a 5-year period of performance consisting of a Base Year (BY) and 4 Option Years, (OY1 – OY4). The award is contingent of the availability of funds.

V. REQUIREMENTS OVERVIEW

Independently, and not as an agent of the Government, the Contractor shall furnish all the necessary services, qualified personnel, material, equipment, and facilities, not otherwise provided by the Government, as needed to perform the requirements of this

Statement of Work (SOW).

To the extent possible, the Contractor shall develop deliverables that are cost-efficient, yet maintain acceptable standards for quality. Please see Attachment C: Schedule of

Deliverables for the due dates associated with the tasks in the Base Year and in the

Option Years.

All deliverables in this SOW shall go through a rigorous internal process by the

Contractor for quality assurance such that deliverables are of the highest quality with no typos, spelling or grammatical errors and the data are of the highest integrity and validity. Deliverables that do not meet the expectations of quality shall be retuned and resubmitted in a period to be designated by the COR at no extra cost to the government. As fast turnaround will normally be required to meet deliverable timelines for the correction of errors or improvement of content quality.

All products of this contract shall be made available to NCA and/or its Designee.

This Statement of Work (SOW) and associated tasks include the following areas for the continued successful implementation of NCA’s Customer Satisfaction Surveys:

Survey item, format, and design enhancement

Updates and improvements of the surveys and sampling methodologies

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Continued development of paper and online survey versions (English and

Spanish)

Preparation of proofs and review and collaboration with GPO for printing needs

Survey administration and Help Desk services

Sampling preparation including cleaning and preparing sampling frame for sampling

Data collection (database development, testing, and validation)

Results reporting and data analysis

Secure handling and disposal of data files from NCA and collected data/responses

The Contractor shall complete the following tasks:

BASE AND OPTION YEARS

TASK 1: DEVELOP PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS

TASK 2: KICK-OFF MEETING WITH NCA

TASK 3: TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

TASK 4: SURVEY INSTRUMENTS

TASK 5: SPANISH TRANSLATION

TASK 6: WEB SURVEYS

TASK 7: SURVEY COORDINATION, PREPARATION, AND PRINTING

TASK 8: SAMPLES FOR SURVEYS – TWO COHORTS

TASK 9: SURVEY ADMINISTRATION AND FIELDING

TASK 10: TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE AND HELP LINE

TASK 11: WEEKLY FIELDING REPORT

TASK 12: SURVEY ANALYSIS

TASK 13: SEMIANNUAL REPORTS

TASK 14: STRATEGIC MEASURES REPORT

TASK 15: ANNUAL NATIONAL REPORTS

TASK 16: NC ANNUAL DISTRICT REPORTS

TASK 17: STVC ANNUAL STATE REPORTS

TASK 18: NC CEMETERY REPORTS

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TASK 19: STVC CEMETERY REPORTS

TASK 20: BRIEFINGS

TASK 21: ANNUAL REPORT DATA SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

TASK 22: ANNUAL CLOSE-OUT DOCUMENT SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

TASK 23: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 3*

TASK 24: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 4*

TASK 25: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 5*

TASK 26: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 6*

TASK 27: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 7*

TASK 28: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 8*

TASK 29: NEXT SURVEY CYCLE- START TASK 9*

* Tasks 23-29 do not apply to OY-4

V. (a) BASE AND OPTION YEARS

For clarity, a survey cycle denotes the cradle to grave activities starting with Task 1 and concluding with Task 22 yielding all associated deliverables for one annual survey. For purposes of this SOW, one annual survey cycle comprises the four distinct surveys (3 NOK in two cohorts and 1 annual FD) identified in the SURVEY BACKGROUND section. All Base and Option Year tasks apply to Base Year and Option Years 1-3. If exercised and fully funded for all 12 months, Option Year 4 (OY-4) will not require the overlapping tasks that apply to the subsequent survey cycle, prefaced with “NEXT SURVEY CYCLE” (Tasks 23 and higher). For OY-4, only Tasks 1 – 22 apply.

The Base Year of this contract covers the 2026 CSS Survey Cycle. The 2026 CSS survey cycle will use BOSS and AMAS data from Fiscal Year 2025 (FY-25) interments/MPS orders dating October 1, 2024 - September 30, 2025. This marks a shift in the timing and population of these surveys from calendar to fiscal year interments/MPS orders to both accelerate the final reporting requirements by 3 months and better align the contract periods of performance with the survey cycle tasks.

Contractor must avoid surveying the same NoK for interments from October 1, 2024 - December 31, 2024 that were used for the 2025 CSS Survey Cycle under the calendar-year construct.

Following are visual aids to show the concept of fiscal year interments, the effects on Base Year survey fielding for each Cohort, and task overlap during Base and Option Year periods of performance to execute “Next Survey Cycle” tasks.

BASE & OPTION YEARS

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Periods of Performance and Task Overlap for Survey Cycle Deliverables

Schedule of Deliverables (2025 Survey)

DNOSAJJMAMFJDNOSAJJMAMFJDNOSAJJMAMFJ

202720262025

Base Year Period of Performance (07/XX/25 to 07/YY/26)

Base Year - 2026 Survey Cycle Project &

Survey Prep Cohort

#1 Cohort

#2 Report & Analyze

Option Year 1 Period of Performance (07/XX/26 to 07/YY/27)

2027 Survey Cycle

Option Year 2, etc.

New

Contract Plan

Existing Contract

Option Year 4 Period of Performance (01/29/25-01/28/26)

Survey Prep Mailings Report Analyze / Improve

Project & Survey Prep

Cohort #1

Cohort #2 Prep + Reports

Cohort #2

Report

Analyze

Project & Survey Prep

Cohort #1

Cohort #2 Prep + Reports

Cohort #2

Report

Analyze

2028 Survey Cycle

BASE YEAR:Cohort survey fieldings are compressed in the base year.

Option Year Cohortsfieldingstart dates are separated by 6 months.

<TASK OVERLAP>

<TASK OVERLAP>This chart illustrates survey cycle overlap. It does not supersede SOW or Schedule of Deliverables requirements or timing.

FY Interment Cycle Plan – Base Year

Shift National/District reports due date from Labor Day to Independence Day

Assumption: #1 (Shorter interment period) is not supportable

Alternative: Use Fiscal Year Interments with 2 mailings for Base Year (Oct and Jan)

NoK FY25 Interments (1st) NoK FY25 Interments (2nd)

Mailing #1 Mailing #2

2026 REPORTS

National NC STVC MPS/District National Cemeteries STVC State/Cemeteries

2026 Survey Cycle Mailing #2 Reporting & Analysis

Survey Prep Mailing #1 Mini-Prep

This chart illustrates survey cycle overlap. It does not supersede SOW or Schedule of Deliverables requirements or timing.

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TASK 1: DEVELOP PROJECT MANAGEMENT TOOLS

General Reports Requirements:

All final reports shall be submitted electronically to the Contracting Officer’s

Representative (COR) in PDF format and/or MS PowerPoint, as applicable. Draft reports are requested in MS Word (or MS PP if applicable) to enable more efficient editing and document change management. The Contractor shall submit deliverables via email and/or via secure portal unless otherwise indicated or requested by the COR.

Consideration shall be given to maintaining the security and confidentiality of all deliverables. Data deliverables shall be delivered in a secure and confidential manner.

This requirement applies to all products of this contract, unless otherwise directed within the SOW or Schedule of Deliverables.

The Government will exercise its authority to approve all written materials produced under this contract. Unless otherwise directed, the Contractor shall submit both Draft and Final versions of all written or electronic materials required under the SOW.

Furthermore, the Contractor shall make changes to the Draft document as requested by the Government for the Final document.

The covers of final reports submitted shall contain:

Contractor’s Name and Address

Contract Number

Report Number and Date including Deliverable Number

Title and Period Covered

TASK 1A: DEVELOP A WORK PLAN

The Contractor shall prepare a work plan to govern the performance of work under this contract to include a detailed allocation of resources and a time schedule for accomplishing the work. The work plan shall identify the key personnel needed for each principal work task for each month of the contract. If the Contractor is subcontracting for any of the tasks, the work plan shall clearly detail the responsibilities of the Contractor and the Subcontractor(s), the method by which the Contractor shall coordinate work activities, and the methods by which the Contractor shall assure accountability of the

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Subcontractor(s). The work plan shall set start dates, completion dates, and other major milestones for each task to be shown in the form of a bar, Gantt, or PERT chart of activities over the contract period. Where there are interdependencies among the tasks, the work plan shall indicate the necessary input from one task to another.

The Contractor shall also prepare, as part of the work plan, a narrative summary of the overall expected flow of work and how each task shall be accomplished, relating this description to the allocation of staff and other resources. The work plan and the narrative summary shall be submitted to the COR in accordance with the Schedule of

Deliverables. The work plan shall be updated to reflect approved changes during the progress of the contract, and such updates shall be subject to NCA review and approval. Changes to the work plan require NCA approval.

Deliverable 1A: Work Plan The Contractor shall prepare a draft work plan for Tasks 1-29 (except OY-4 where only

Tasks 1-22 apply as per Table 2). After receiving comments regarding a draft work plan from NCA, the Contractor shall make revisions and submit the final project work plan to

NCA for review and approval.

Deliverable 1B: Monthly Progress Reports The Contractor shall provide monthly progress reports to the COR, and Contract

Specialist (CS) regarding the status of all tasks in accordance with Report Requirements of this SOW.

The detailed Monthly Progress Report shall be submitted by the 5th day (calendar day) of each month for the previous month’s effort. If the 5th day of the month occurs on a federal holiday or a weekend, the report is due the next working day. One (1) electronic version shall be submitted to the COR and CS. Each report shall include, at a minimum, the following information organized by task:

An executive summary of the prior month’s project activities

Summary-level plans for the upcoming month

Issues or concerns with budgets or schedules

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Status update on each requirement which specifically addresses progress to date, upcoming steps for task completion, and key dates. Report shall also address, as relevant, the Contractor’s ongoing technical assistance, and technical data problems

Status of the VA-required training on privacy and records management as well as any future mandated training for the Contractor’s and sub-contractor(s)’ personnel

Discussion of significant problems encountered or anticipated and their impact on work plan, project schedule, and the Contractor’s including Subcontractor’s overall ability to accomplish the project goals

• The Contractor’s plans to deal with any identified significant problem

• If appropriate, new delivery or completion date proposals

WEEKLY CONFERENCE CALLS AND AGENDAS

The Contractor shall expect to hold weekly conference calls with the COR focusing on data preparation and analysis, updates, goal setting, and other topics suggested by contractor (agreed to by COR) or requested by COR. The time and frequency of the weekly meetings are subject to change based on COR direction and contract activity.

The Contractor shall be available for additional ad hoc meetings with minimal advance notice if requested by the COR if issues arise with the completion of the tasks in terms of quality, progress, and maintaining the timeframe outlined in the SOD.

Deliverable 1C: Weekly Conference Agenda: The Contractor shall provide conference agendas and/or any appropriate materials to the COR at least two business days prior to the conference call. Although not all inclusive, the agenda(s) shall include, at a minimum, the topics to be discussed and any pertinent information or documents that each member should have for each conference call. The COR retains the right to change the agenda no later than 24 hours before the meeting.

Deliverable 1D: Weekly Conference: The Contractor shall host and conduct conference calls to update on progress of relevant deliverables.

Deliverable 1E: Minutes of Weekly Conference

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The Contractor shall provide meeting/teleconference minutes to the COR, and all meeting/teleconference attendees within 2 business days of each meeting. The minutes shall include, at a minimum, a list of all attendees, a summary of the discussion, conclusions, decisions, action items, and status of each deliverable for the relevant period of performance. The format of the minutes shall be designed in consultation with the COR and shall include both an Excel tracker and a Word document. The minutes shall be done in a format that maximizes efficiency in the review and approachability of the document. The tracker will have multiple tabs and will include project staff and contact info, deliverables with due dates and status, actions items, decision log, and a sandbox of ideas, The Word document will be a bulleted list with short, concise points.

The document shall not exceed 2 pages in length. The Contractor shall establish a mechanism to ensure that each participant has an opportunity to correct or comment on the minutes. Any requests for revisions by NCA shall be incorporated in the minutes and the Contractor shall send revised minutes within 3 days of receiving NCA comments.

TASK 2: KICK-OFF MEETING WITH NCA

The Contractor shall set-up a kick-off to meet with task leads, key personnel, and program manager(s) virtually to discuss the goals of the SOW including, but are not limited to, project objectives and tasks, timing, and due dates in the Schedule of

Deliverables since issuance of this SOW.

Deliverable 2A: Kick-Off Agenda The Contractor shall prepare an agenda for the meeting and submit it to the COR by the due date as specified in the Schedule of Deliverables (SOD) for approval. This meeting is designated for execution at the beginning of each period of performance. The final agenda shall be distributed to all potential attendees as directed by the COR.

Deliverable 2B: Kick-Off Meeting The Contractor shall host and conduct the Kick-Off with NCA and Contractor stakeholders, providing as much strategic content as possible to demonstrate the plan of action for the upcoming period of performance and any key issues or clarification necessary to succeed in delivering the first several months of deliverables as specified in the SOD document.

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Deliverable 2C: Kick-Off Meeting Minutes The Contractor shall prepare a draft summary report for the meeting for review and approval of the COR. The summary shall accurately capture the salient points discussed in the Kick of meeting.

TASK 3: TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

The Technical Specifications (Tech Specs) serve as a valuable resource to the history of the NCA surveys and documentation of all processes for the preparation, fielding, administration, and analysis of the suite of surveys.

The Contractor shall provide a well-organized, approachable document that includes an introduction and overview to the NCA CSS surveys and all processes for the administration, analysis, and reporting of the NCA surveys and associated data.

Further, this document shall include the quality assurance and validation checks used to ensure accurate and reliable data and reporting and survey results.

The document shall include, but is not limited to, the following information: basic survey methodology, survey instrument preparation and translation protocol, sampling frame preparation and cleaning, sample methodology, survey administration protocol, survey scanning and respondent data capture, cleaning and preparation of survey data for analysis, proofs and printing processes, data specification and coding, responses rate definitions, identification and data table structure, analysis of survey data, technical assistance, semiannual reports, annual reports, and cemetery reports. The document shall be detailed and well-organized. The document shall include a glossary of terms in the appendix for ease of use. Upon request after contract award, NCA will provide the latest working version of this document.

Deliverable 3A: Review of Technical Specifications The Contractor shall review the latest Technical Specifications that are available and make recommendations for changes in the processes and/or ways to enhance the document including content and layout. A report shall be issued with the recommendations and their impact on the data quality and timeline for the fielding.

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Deliverable 3B: Technical Specifications A completed document with all changes that were accepted in the recommendations shall be prepared. The Technical Specifications shall be used as a guide for the administration of the surveys. The document is considered a living document and shall be updated if changes occur with any aspect of the work that deviates from this document.

NOTE: The schedule for the administration of the surveys shall be approved by the

NCA COR before implementation.

TASK 4: SURVEY INSTRUMENTS

The Contractor shall review the survey instruments as well as all cover letters and reminder post cards, to ensure the clarity, accuracy and quality of the data generated by its use. The Contractor shall provide suggestions and opportunities to further enhance the survey instrument. The survey instrument will contain open-ended questions and opportunities for verbatim feedback. The respondent shall be able to select the category/topic pertaining to his or her comment, then provide a free-text response when applicable. This survey review process including the survey, cover letters and post cards shall be accomplished under the direction from and in conjunction with the NCA

COR.

All survey questions and guidance available to participants must comply with applicable directives from the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, including (but not exclusively)

Guidance on Agency Survey and Statistical Information Collections. Government surveys also must comply with guidance issued by the Office of Information and

Regulatory Affairs (OIRA), a division of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

Statistical Policy Directives (SPD) are issued by OMB and must be implemented using the OMB Implementation Guidance provided in accordance with the VA Data

Governance Council (DGC). The COR will provide finalized VA DGC guidance to

Contractor for implementation as soon as possible.

Deliverable 4A: Survey Review: Review and revise survey instruments (3 NOK and

FD) as well as all cover letters and reminder post cards, to ensure the clarity, accuracy

21 | P a g e and quality of the data generated by its use as required through meetings and direction of COR. The survey revisions will be accomplished in 2 phases with the first phase focusing on the NOK surveys (NC MPS and STVC) and the second phase focusing on the FD survey. For each phase, a draft and final version will be delivered. The draft shall include the recommendations, suggestions and opportunities to further enhance the survey instrument, cover letters, and postcards. The final products shall document the changes that were directed. The contractor shall make scheduled improvements

(additions, changes, removals) to 25% or less of survey instrument questions and answers for each of the four CSS survey instruments. The contractor shall also support out-of-cycle changes for legal compliance at no cost to NCA when failure to update a survey instrument or supporting document would result in reputational risk to NCA and/or the VA. All changes to non-survey instrument supporting documents (cover letters, postcards, stuffer sheets, envelopes, etc.) are at no cost to the government.

Deliverable 4A.1: Survey Review for NOK NC, STVC, and MPS

Deliverable 4A.2: Revised Surveys for NOK NC, STVC, and MPS

Deliverable 4A.3: Survey Review for FD

Deliverable 4A.4: Revised Survey for FD

Deliverable 4B: Comprehensive Cemetery Lists: The Contractor shall update the lists of NC and STVC cemeteries supplied in the mailed FD survey and displayed as a page for the web FD survey. The format and design of the list shall be directed and must be approved by the NCA COR before its use. The lists need to be current and updated each year.

Note: All necessary programming associated with revisions of the survey including templates will be made ready such that when annual data is available, the data can be quickly added to create a finished report.

TASK 5: SPANISH TRANSLATION

The Contractor shall review and update as necessary the Puerto Rican idiomatic

Spanish language versions of all surveys as well as all cover letters and reminder post cards. The Spanish version of the surveys shall directly align with the layout, format and

22 | P a g e items of the English versions for the same fielding periods. The updating of the Spanish survey shall include, but is not limited to, both forward and backwards translations for quality assurance.

Deliverable 5: Spanish Surveys: Update and provide the Spanish language versions of the survey questionnaires and all cover letters and reminder post cards for each survey.

Deliverable 5A: Spanish versions for NC, STVC, MPS

Deliverable 5B: Spanish versions for FD

TASK 6: WEB SURVEYS

The Contractor shall create and maintain online web surveys for the administration of the suite of the NCA surveys that are optimized for use with electronic devices other than a desktop such as mobile devices, e.g.- cell phones. The online surveys shall be designed using best practices and the direction of NCA. The surveys shall be created on a platform that allows changes, thus eliminating the inability to incorporate the features requested by NCA. Deadlines for the subtasks under this requirement can be found in the Schedule of Deliverables.

The Contractor shall host the individual survey web sites that involves setting up a web site, programming the survey to ensure compliance with the Section 508 Amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (508 compliance), and capability to aggregate web survey responses into a survey database. A unique web address shall be required for completion of the survey on the web and presented in all mailings. An individual survey

Master ID will be generated for multiple purposes. First and foremost, this enables required privacy and information security to be upheld by not sharing unnecessary PII with the GPO Print Vendor. Second, and applicable here to Web Surveys, the Master ID will be used to access the survey and track who has submitted it. The Master ID shall be provided in all mail materials and on each page of the hard copy survey. This option is offered to minimize respondent burden. For example, the URL length shall be minimized and simplified to the extent possible. The Contractor shall generate and

23 | P a g e include unique QR codes corresponding to the Master ID of each recipient for the cover letters and postcards. The Contractor shall have the ability and skills to incorporate shortened URLs and QR codes in the cover letter.

The online surveys shall be designed to capture responses while the respondent is completing the survey. Soft prompts shall be incorporated into the design of the survey administration protocol. The ability to return to the survey if not completed shall be part of the protocol. The ability to capture paradata shall be incorporated in the design and the ability to detect the type of device used by the respondent (smart phone, desktop, reader or tablet).

Task 6 work will be completed in 2 distinct phases, the first phase focusing on the NOK surveys (NC, MPS, and STVC) and the second phase focusing on the FD survey.

Deliverable 6A: Web Surveys: The Contractor shall propose an initial design of the web surveys for the report year that is guided by the best practices of survey design and that meets the requirements set forth by NCA during the initial discussions regarding the web survey. The initial design shall be revised as per NCA direction.

The web surveys shall be prepared and programed as per the features deemed necessary in consultation with the Contractor and NCA. The data shall be captured following government guidelines in a secure database. The survey shall be tested and revised based on the usability testing by NCA and the Contractor. Further, the data capture features of the online survey shall result in useable, high quality, real-time data, in a format that is easily downloadable and merged with the paper survey database.

The web surveys shall be developed and then demonstrated, tested, and further enhanced and refined during the usability testing phase of the web survey that will be conducted by both NCA and the Contractor on a variety of electronic devices at a minimum desktop, smartphone and tablet. The online survey must be available for the fielding period of the surveys.

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Deliverable 6A.1: Web survey designs (English and Spanish) for the NOK NC, STVC and MPS

Deliverable 6A.2: Web survey designs (English and Spanish) for the FD

TASK 7: SURVEY COORDINATION, PREPARATION, AND PRINTING

Printing of the mailing materials will be completed by the GPO contracted vendor. The

Contractor will collaborate with the COR and NCA GPO liaison to ensure that the quality and format of all end products are correct prior to administration of the survey. The

Contractor will test the scanning and data collection of test paper surveys prior to the survey administration. Evidence of the scanning and data capture of the respondent data shall be provided before the first wave mailing of Cohort 1 (Deliverable 7A).

Additionally, the Contractor will communicate the schedule, or any updates as needed on a continual basis to the COR to avoid scheduling delays.

The Contractor shall create and provide NCA with a camera-ready copy of the English and Spanish version of the National and State, Tribal or Territorial cemeteries, and

Memorial Products survey questionnaires and all associated documents including cover letters, thank to notes, postcards, and envelopes. Each of the paper questionnaires shall be scan-ready, measure 8.5 by 11 inches and include an identification number on the front and back cover. The mailed surveys shall be differentiable as a Wave 1 survey or a Wave 3 survey when returned. Each wave may have a unique color or other identifying feature for differentiation purposes. The Contractor is responsible for scanning and tabulating the survey results; however, the Government Printing Office will contract for print services. Printing and postage fees will be paid directly by the government unless otherwise noted.

Deliverable 7A: Evidence of scanning and data capture: The Contractor shall provide evidence of scanning and data capture of mock respondent data (both Web and

Paper-based) before the first wave mailing of Cohort 1.

Deliverable 7B: NCA Surveys and Documents-Electronic: The Contractor shall provide NCA with an electronic version (e-version) of all mailing materials including survey instruments and all associated documents including cover letters, thank you

25 | P a g e notes, postcards, and envelopes as well as the data set used for NoK and FD surveys

(both cohorts). The final mailing instruments shall include the layout specifications associated with administering the survey. The COR will electronically provide VA-approved letterhead and logo files and any NCA personnel signatures required for placement on mailing instruments. Survey mailings will include the Contractor’s return address.

Deliverable 7B.1: Final e-version Surveys and Documents for NC, STVC and MPS Deliverable 7B.2: Final e-version Survey and Documents for FD

Deliverable 7C: Camera-Ready Surveys and Documents: Create and provide

(through the COR) to the GPO Contractor camera-ready copy of the English and

Spanish version of each questionnaire and all the accompanying mailing materials including envelopes using the address database.

Deliverable 7C.1: Camera-Ready Surveys and Documents for NC, STVC and MPS Deliverable 7C.2: Camera-Ready Surveys and Documents for FD

TASK 8: SAMPLES FOR SURVEYS – TWO COHORTS

The three NOK surveys (National Cemeteries; State, Tribal or Territorial; and MPS) shall be administered to a representative sample of Veterans and Next-of-Kin to allow valid and reliable national, district and cemetery-level estimates.12 The Funeral Director

Survey shall use a census unless directed otherwise by the COR.13

Deliverable 8A: Sampling Plan: The Contractor shall review the Tech Specs Chapter prepared under Task 3 and propose options and receive NCA approval for the semiannual sampling plan for the three NOK surveys.14 The sampling plan options shall include any necessary adjustments in subsequent survey fieldings to allow the needed

12 It can be assumed that the approximate number of survey recipients that will be in the sample and mailed for the two Cohorts of the NOK CSSs will be approximately 70K-80K for the year (Wave 1). All surveys returned will be processed and included in the analytic set for reporting purposes.

13 It can be assumed that approximately 12,750 Funeral Director surveys will be mailed for Wave 1 (this excludes Wave 2-4 follow ups). All surveys returned will be processed and included in the analytic set for reporting purposes.

14 For the 2026 report, the interment population from October 1, 2025 - September 30, 2026 (FY26) shall be used

26 | P a g e sample size to allow estimates with enough power to detect statistically significant differences of a given percentage at the national, district or state, and cemetery-level to be determined at award using a 95% confidence interval. The Contractor shall be responsible for implementing the final approved plan and drawing a valid random sample from the NCA Burial Operations Support System (BOSS) database for National and State cemeteries and the Automated Monument Application System (AMAS) for

Memorial Products. NCA shall provide the necessary data from said systems via secure portal (or similar secure means) maintained by the Contractor.

A semiannual sampling plan shall be developed in support of two separate fieldings, hereby designated as Cohort 1 and Cohort 2. Cohort 1 will comprise all 3 NOK surveys targeting NOK for loved ones with interments/MPS orders during the first 6 months of the prior fiscal year. Cohort 2 will comprise all 3 NOK surveys for second half year (final

6 months) of interments/MPS product customers. Cohort 2 will also include the complete prior fiscal year funeral director business entities to be used for the Funeral

Director Survey. The Funeral Director Survey shall use a census unless otherwise specified by the COR.

Every three years, NCA traditionally has participated in the American Customer

Satisfaction Index (ACSI) Survey. The most recent iteration of the ACSI is 2025. This survey ranks organizations within the Federal Government by using a standardized measure of customer satisfaction and is implemented by a neutral, outside party. The

Contractor shall ensure that this survey reserves sufficient samples for the ACSI to avoid multiple surveys to the same next of kin/family member. COR shall provide the rules. For the 2022 ACSI, the dataset yield was 11,062 next of kin for a 2-month period

(Nov-Dec).

Deliverable 8B: Sampling Frame Preparation: The Contractor shall examine the sampling frame for each NCA NOK survey and prepare the frame for sampling.