Automated Field Data Collection Activities CSOP Draft Solicitation 70T04024CSOP7573N001.pdf

Automated Field Data Collection Activities Commercial Solutions Opening Pilot Program (CSOP) Solicitation

70T04024CSOP7573N001

AUTOMATED FIELD DATA COLLECTION ACTIVITIES

REQUIREMENTS & CAPABILITIES ANALYSIS (RCA)

COMMERCIAL SOLUTIONS OPENING PILOT PROGRAM (CSOP)

GENERAL SOLICITATION: 70T04024CSOP7573N001

April 15, 2024

TABLE OF CONTENTS

1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION

1.1 BACKGROUND

1.2 PROJECT DESCRIPTION

2.0 SOLUTION BRIEF SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

2.1 SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

2.2 WRITTEN SOLUTION BRIEF REQUIREMENTS

2.2.1 CONTENT OF SOLUTION BRIEF

2.2.2 PROPRIETARY MARKINGS

3.0 EVALUATION OF SOLUTION BRIEFS

3.1 GENERAL

3.2 EVALUATION TIMELINE AND PHASES

3.2.1 PHASE I EVALUATION

3.3 PEER REVIEW TEAM EVALUATION

3.4 SOLUTION BRIEF EVALUATION AND NOTIFICATION TO VENDORS

3.5 TECHNICAL DEMONSTRATIONS

4.0 FULL PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS (PHASE II)

4.1 GENERAL

4.2 TECHNICAL INFORMATION

4.3 PROPOSED PROTOTYPE

4.4 PRICE INFORMATION

4.5 PHASE II EVALUATION

4.6 NOTIFICATION TO VENDOR DURING PHASE II

5.0 RESULTING AWARD

5.1 NEGOTIATION AND AWARD

6.0 PROTESTS TO THE AGENCY

7.0 INVOICES AND PAYMENTS

7.1 ASSIGNMENT

7.2 SUBMISSION OF INVOICES

7.2.1 TSA-INSTR: SUBMISSION OF INVOICES (MAY 2022)

7.3 PAYMENTS

7.3.1 ADVANCE PAYMENTS

8.0 TERMS AND CONDITIONS

8.1 DEFINITIONS

8.2 ORDER OF PRECEDENCE

8.3 CONTRACT TYPE

8.4 TERM OF THE CONTRACT

8.5 MODIFCATIONS

8.6 OPTIONS

8.7 SHIPPING – F.O.B. DESTINATION

8.8 INCORPORATION BY REFERENCE

8.9 SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT AND UNIVERSAL IDENTIFIER

REQUIREMENTS

8.10 RETENTION AND ACCESS TO RECORDS

8.11 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

8.11.1 DESIRED LEVEL OF ALGORITHM RIGHTS

8.12 RISK OF LOSS

8.13 LIMITATION ON LIABILITY

8.14 TAXES

8.15 TITLE

8.16 WARRANTY

8.17 COMMERCIAL SUPPLIER AGREEMENTS – UNENFORCEABLE CLAUSES

8.18 SUSPENSION AND TERMINATION PROCEDURES

8.19 DISPUTES

8.21 PRESS/NEWS RELEASE

8.22 OTHER COMPLIANCES

8.22.1 CONTRACTING OFFICER

8.22.2 CONTRACTING OFFICER’S REPRESENTATIVE

8.22.3 PRIVACY TRAINING (JAN 2017)

8.22.4 CONTRACTOR PERSONNEL ACCESS TO TSA FACILITIES, INFORMATION

AND/OR SYSTEMS (SEP 2020)

8.22.5 NON-FEDERAL ACCESS TO TSA NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION FACILITIES

(SEP 2020)

8.22.6 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SECURITY AWARENESS TRAINING (JULY

2023) 38

8.22.7 HSAR 3052.204-71, CONTRACTOR EMPLOYEE ACCESS - ALTERNATE I (JULY

2023) 39

8.22.8 HSAR 3052.204-71, SAFEGUARDING OF CONTROLLED UNCLASSIFIFED

INFORMATION (JULY 2023)

8.22.9 FAR 52.203-17 CONTRACTOR EMPLOYEE WHISTLEBLOWER RIGHTS (NOV

2023) 51

8.22.10. FAR 52.222-50 COMBATING TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS

1.0 GENERAL INFORMATION

1.1 BACKGROUND

This is a procurement action using the commercial solutions opening pilot (CSOP) program procedures in accordance with Section 880 of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA

880) for Fiscal Year (FY) 2017, Title VIII, §880 (Public Law 114-328), which was extended in December 2022 through 2027, and is subject to the limitations outlined in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) CSOP Guide. This procurement is part of the DHS/Transportation Security Administration (TSA) CSOP and is being used to competitively procure innovative commercial items, technologies, and services.

TSA has developed this program to be implemented outside the normal Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) requirements to engage traditional and non-traditional Government Contractors, including start-up companies and academia. This program is intended to promote competition with a streamlined approach to address specific needs for innovative commercial items. This program offers a range of advantages to open the field of competition so that the Government and taxpayers benefit from a large pool of solutions at a better cost and performance, including:

• General solicitation requiring only minimal corporate and technical information;

• Fast track submitter selection timelines;

• Preference for the submitter retaining core intellectual property.

TSA created the Innovation Task Force (ITF) in 2016, and it was codified through enactment of the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Reauthorization Act of 2018. As part of TSA’s Requirements and Capabilities Analysis (RCA) office, ITF fosters innovation by integrating key stakeholders to identify critical problem statements and capability gaps, source and demonstrate emerging technologies, gather performance data and conduct quarterly collaboration meetings with industry. ITF demonstrations are short-term deployments designed to assess emerging technologies, collect data, and generate knowledge that will ultimately inform TSA’s strategic initiatives and decision making for future acquisitions or procurements.

In FY22, ITF revisited its Problem Statement Intake (PSI) strategy to provide a crowdsourcing forum for TSA Directorates, Offices, and Field Components to submit their most critical problems for consideration. This forum begins ITF’s Innovation Lifecycle by soliciting problem statements and areas for improvement across TSA, while also accounting for leadership buy-in and tracking alignment to Administrator priorities. After its FY22 launch and further refinement, ITF officially launched the updated PSI process in April 2023 by soliciting problem statements within the Operations Support (OS) program offices, ITF Innovation Airports, Information Technology, Inspections, and Law Enforcement and Federal Air Marshal Service. Upon receipt and evaluation, each problem statement submitted to ITF will either be demonstrated as an ITF demonstration; transitioned to a different TSA office for testing and evaluation, or deferred for future consideration.

1.2 PROJECT DESCRIPTION

The below Automated Field Data Collection Activities problem statement was submitted to ITF in April 2023 by RCA’s Analysis and Engineering Directorate, Rates & Standards Branch.

Automated Field Data Collection Problem Statement: The proliferation of screening technologies has increased the number of field data collection events necessary to characterize system performance. TSA lacks a solution to collect various operational data in-lieu of deploying expensive data collection teams.

The intended objective of this effort is to increase the level of automation to reduce the manual effort required to collect these data element standards in the field, across the various screening configurations. A prototype solution to this problem statement should produce a set of automated data collection tools to provide cycle time, throughput, and processing time data for the checkpoint and checked baggage areas.

Modeling and Simulation, Rates and Standards (MSRS) is responsible for establishing planning standards for the agency used to allocate Transportation Security Officers (TSO) and Transportation Security Equipment (TSE) to the field. In addition, MSRS conducts field data collection activities to support the Capability Managers (CM) in deploying and maturing capabilities and sustaining operational modeling tools to include Enhanced Screening Model (ESM) and Networked Security Checkpoint Optimizer (NetSCO). MSRS leverages contracts to characterize system performance through direct observation of checkpoint and checked baggage processing times, which is a costly manual process. The proliferation of screening technologies has increased the number of field data collection events necessary to characterize system performance. MSRS has developed a data dictionary for both checkpoint and checked baggage.

While TSA continues to invest in networking checkpoint and checked baggage TSE to streamline data retrieval, the purpose of this general solicitation is to obtain an Automated Field Data Collection prototype for a field demonstration. Field Data Collection capabilities must focus on non-tangible data. For the purpose of this solicitation, non-tangible data is defined as data that cannot be retrieved through existing TSE including but not limited to: passenger time spent at the Travel Document Checker (TDC) podium, passenger divest time, secondary screening time and cause for alarm.

The purpose of this general solicitation is to seek industry information and solutions related to Automated Field Data Collection capabilities. TSA requests the submission of solution briefs of the following capabilities, which may be iteratively developed at the Contract level, if awarded:

(See the Statement of Objectives (SOO) for further information.)

• Automated Field Data Collection demonstration

• Services

• Hardware

2.0 SOLUTION BRIEF SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

2.1 SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS

All questions or requests for clarifications regarding this solicitation must be electronically submitted in writing via Attachment 2 – “Solicitation 70T04024CSOP7573N001 Questions” no later than 3:00 pm Eastern Time, April 29th, 2024 to Jessica.Seay@tsa.dhs.gov & Evan.Morcom@tsa.dhs.gov. The subject of the e-mail must be titled “Request for Clarifications re: 70T04024CSOP7573N001.” Requests, questions, or comments which are time stamped after the question due date and time will not be accepted, nor receive a response from the Government, unless the Contracting Officer (CO) determines otherwise.

Written solution briefs as described in Section 2.2 of this solicitation must be submitted electronically by 3:00 PM Eastern Time, May 20th, 2024 to the following e-mail boxes:

Jessica.Seay@tsa.dhs.gov & Evan.Morcom@tsa.dhs.gov. Solution briefs are limited to a page count of 11 letter size pages excluding the information included in Section 1. The proposed solution briefs letter sized pages (8.5” x 11”) with a font type of Times New Roman and a minimum font size of 12pt. All submissions under this solicitation must be in an Adobe PDF format. The subject of the e-mail must be titled “70T04024CSOP7573N001 Solution Brief – Submitter’s Name”.

Technical demonstrations (if applicable), or other written information may be requested by the government at the sole discretion of the CO to supplement the written solution brief and / or proposal at any time before potential award. Any technical demonstrations requested by the TSA will be coordinated with the submitter and may be conducted by videoconference, in-person, or by video submission.

2.2 WRITTEN SOLUTION BRIEF REQUIREMENTS

Instructions: Provide an answer to all of the following questions. Do not add additional information of any type that does not pertain to the specific question. An initial assessment will be made of each submission to ensure that acknowledgement and compliance are adhered to by the submitter. Failure to address all questions may result in a submitter being removed from consideration. Solution brief submissions shall be separated into two sections as indicated in Section 2.2.1 of this solicitation. All submission should be in adobe PDF format.

2.2.1 CONTENT OF SOLUTION BRIEF

• Section 1 Compliance Questions o Section 1.1- Security Acknowledgment Questions

Please indicate your understanding and acknowledgement to comply with the following requirements, indicate as “yes” or “no”:

mailto:Nicholas.Kobilansky@tsa.dhs.gov mailto:Brian.Koski@tsa.dhs.gov mailto:Nicholas.Kobilansky@tsa.dhs.gov mailto:Brian.Koski@tsa.dhs.gov

1. To participate in this solicitation, submitter must agree to Agreement Statements (Downloading & Returning Images/Derivatives): The optional Technical Demonstration of the solicitation will include access to TSA-provided data and systems, allowing industry to download files containing mock DICOS images for demonstration of their capabilities. Further information will be provided to submitters who are invited to provide an optional technical demonstration. Industry participants will be required to sign a non-disclosure data sharing agreement stating that the data and systems will not be used for other purposes beyond this solicitation and shall certify that original and derivative record sets that were created (e.g., enriched, transformed, altered, aggregate, correlated, processed, or operated on, etc.) will be provided to TSA and deleted from the submitter’s internal systems, including data labeled for training purposes at the conclusion of their participation in the solicitation. In addition, industry will be required to return copies of any derivative versions of the original TSA data and system. No submitter will be able to proceed to the optional Technical Demonstration without agreement to the above.

2. Upon contract award, please indicate your understanding and ability to meet compliance with the Security Requirements, (See SOO, Section 10.0).

o Section 1.2 - CSOP Adherence Questions Please indicate your understanding and acknowledgement/confirmation that your proposed solution complies with the following requirements:

1. Confirm and clearly describe that the technology solution proposed is a commercial item/solution.

2. Confirm and clearly describe that the technology solution proposed is innovative or how the commercial solution is offered in an innovative manner. Within the meaning of the statute, innovative is defined as: “Any new technology, process, or method, including research and development, or any new application of an existing technology, process, or method.”

• Section 2- Solution Briefing Questions

The written solution brief shall answer the following questions. Strict adherence to the page limits for each section as pages beyond the stated limit will not be considered for evaluation.

o Experience (up to 2 pages for questions 1 and 2)

1. Describe your overall corporate capabilities and experience with automated data collection for both data analysis and data analytics.

Include up to two specific examples of operational systems based on systems specifically relevant to this SOO. They may be implemented in a Federal or Commercial setting.

a. Provide customer/agency, size, scope, and complexity of the problem. Be sure to indicate where the prototype is developed (e.g.

on-site, lab environment, cloud, on-premises server, etc.).

b. Provide details about your systems’ support to data collection, data cleaning, data analysis, and data interpretation.

c. Describe data throughput, scalability, lifecycle system maintenance requirements, months of operation of the system, and other strengths and weaknesses.

2. Describe your experience working with the Federal Government and in TSA’s specific mission space. Please describe the experience most relevant to this SOO.

o Leveraging Previous Work (up to 1 page – please answer as “yes “or/ “no” for questions 3 through 5 and in accordance with the directions provided in question 6)

3. Based on the scope laid out in the SOO, do you own the rights to all the existing systems you believe could be used to support the SOO?

4. Do other systems exist within your organization that you can leverage (i.e., as an ensemble or system of systems) to enhance your approach to the SOO task?

5. For existing systems relevant to this SOO, can they be used in your proposed solution without any proprietary restrictions of their use?

6. Are your systems stand-alone and/or are they packaged within a tool/product suite? (Answer with either "stand-alone" or "packaged"). If the systems are part of a tool, are you willing to separate them from those tools for use in your proposed solution? (Answer with either "yes" or "no").

o Approach (up to 7 pages for questions 7 through 12

7. What areas within the SOO scope do you believe your system addresses?

8. Which system do you believe would work best for the scope laid out in the

SOO? Be specific about methodologies, required inputs/outputs, strengths, and risks. Please refer to specific examples of how/where you applied the approach. Quantify, if possible, how your approach will scale to meet the operational needs described in the SOO.

9. Do you have the capability to use automation to characterize data as necessary in your approach? What metadata and/or labeling is necessary for automation?

10. Describe your strategy to model testing, evaluation, validation, and verification. How will you quantify success? Are these processes automated? If so, describe the automated capabilities and required conditions.

11. How will your solution integrate with existing TSE (e.g. Transmission X-ray Computed Tomography (TXCT), Millimeter Wave (MMW), Credential Authentication Technology (CAT) 1 and 2, and Trace Detection (TD)) to identify cause of alarm(s) and classify additional screening technique(s) applied to resolve each alarm?

12. What is your approach to continued systems improvement? What resources, relationship to government, and contracts will be necessary to create a continually improving system? Are you prepared to provide ongoing support for continued improvement?

o Logistics (Up to 1 page for questions 13 through 17)

13. Will you be able to comply 100% with the Technical Compliance requirements in the SOO? If not, briefly justify any exception and the rationale to proceed.

14. Describe the system requirements and any additional hardware/software needed for your proposed solution approach.

15. What is the basic pricing structure applicable to your delivery of the system that will support the SOO (e.g., usage-based, tiered pricing, flat rate)? Does the pricing include installation services, additional development and O&M support?

16. Is your company able and willing to provide services-based support to the Government if required?

17. What skills/capabilities/understanding do end users need to operate the proposed system, including interpreting output? Describe any training, user support, and/or user documentation provided.

2.2.2 PROPRIETARY MARKINGS

Submitters must mark any pages of written solution brief that contain business plans, technical information, pricing or other business sensitive information as proprietary information, which the Government agrees to safeguard.

To ensure that sensitive data is appropriately marked by the submitter, include the following sentences on the cover page: “This solution brief includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the Government, except to non-Government personnel for evaluation purposes, and shall not be duplicated, used or disclosed – in whole or in part – for any purpose other than to evaluate this submission. If, however, an agreement is awarded to this Company as a result of – or in connection with – the submission of this data, the Government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent agreed upon by both parties in the resulting agreement. The data subject to this restriction are contained in sheets [insert numbers or other identification of sheets].”

Each restricted data sheet must be marked as follows: “Use or disclosure of all data contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this solution brief.”

3.0 EVALUATION OF SOLUTION BRIEFS

3.1 GENERAL

Pursuant to the authority of NDAA 880, TSA has been vested with procedural discretion to make one, none or some contract awards resulting from the evaluation and determination of viable technology solutions. Proposals shall be evaluated on their individual merits rather than on a comparative basis. Besides the criterion described in Section 3.2 below, all proposed solutions must clearly demonstrate how the commercial item is offered in an innovative manner. Within the meaning of the statute, innovative is defined as:

“Any new technology, process, or method, including research and development, or any new application of an existing technology, process, or method.”

The written solution brief and technical demonstrations if applicable, will be evaluated against the evaluation criteria. Each solution brief submitted will be evaluated on its own merits against the evaluation criteria and will not be evaluated against other solution briefs in order to make an award determination. It is within the Government’s discretion to accept more than one solution brief for an award resulting from this solicitation; subject to the availability of funds. The Government reserves the right to request a technical demonstration or additional written information, if applicable, from one or more submitters at any time during the solicitation period.

The TSA reserves the right to reject submissions that meet the objectives listed in the attached SOO, but do not meet current TSA mission needs as determined by the TSA or whose estimated cost exceeds current budget constraints. Submitters who submit solution briefs that have no direct application to the objectives listed in the SOO listed in this CSOP will be declined.

Solution briefs must present a coherent concept/detailed plan for accomplishing the objectives outlined in the SOO to continue to be invited to Phase II and a potential contract award.

3.2 EVALUATION TIMELINE AND PHASES

The following table shows the Government’s estimated evaluation schedule and different phases of evaluation.

Phase Submission Due Date

I

Solution Brief Due - (Phase I Proposal)

5/31/2024

Technical Demonstration (Optional) Upon Notice II Phase II Proposals Due Approximately 4 weeks following invitation to Phase II

Phase I: The evaluation of this phase is described in the paragraphs below.

Phase I (Optional): Technical demonstrations may be conducted, but by invitation only.

Invitations will only be extended to those submitters whose solution requires a further understanding from the TSA evaluators following an initial review of the submitter’s solution brief. The purpose of the optional technical demonstrations is to provide a further understanding of the proposed solution brief.

Phase II: Proposed solutions determined to be viable in Phase I will be invited to submit a full proposal to further contract discussions and the formation of a resulting contract. Section 4.0 below describes the content required for a full proposal submission.

3.2.1 PHASE I EVALUATION

The following evaluation criteria shall be used to evaluate the written solution brief and technical demonstration (if applicable). The evaluation criteria are listed below in order of importance from top to bottom.

Note: TSA will only make an award resulting from this general solicitation to a solution that provides an innovative commercial item, as defined in Section 3.1.

The evaluation of Criterion I, II, III, and optional Criterion IV, if necessary, will each be evaluated holistically with a rating scale of "high confidence," "some confidence," and "low confidence," representing the Government’s confidence that the submitter understands the requirement and will be successful in performing the work.

Confidence Level Rating Definition

High Confidence

The Government has High Confidence that the submitter understands the requirement, proposes a sound approach, and will be successful in performing a CSOP contract with little or no Government intervention.

Some Confidence

The Government has some confidence that the submitter understand the requirement, proposes a sound approach, and will be successful in performing a CSOP Contract with little or no Government intervention.

Low Confidence

The Government has low confidence that the submitter understands the requirement, proposes a sound approach, or will be successful in performing a CSOP Contract even with Government intervention.

• Criterion I: Capabilities Approach. Responsiveness and relevance to the project description. This includes the breadth of the responsiveness to desired solution the commercial item represents, including the assessed potential of the technology solution for addressing TSA’s capability gaps provided in Sections 1 and 2 of this solicitation, and solution methodology. The assessment will result in a Confidence Level Rating. The following Solution Brief Questions (in Section 2.2.1) will be assessed holistically to determine each submitter’s confidence rating for Criterion I: Questions 3-17.

• Criterion II: Transition Approach. An assessment will be made regarding how the proposed technology/solution will be leveraged in TSA operations (e.g., commercialized or used by TSA). The assessment will determine the likelihood that the submitter will be able to successfully support the deployment of an Automated Field Data Collection solution into the TSA operational environment to support the TSA end user. The assessment will result in a Confidence Level Rating. The following Solutions Brief Questions (in Section 2.2.1) will be assessed holistically to determine each submitter’s confidence rating for Criterion II: Questions 3-17.

• Criterion III: Submitter’s Related Experience. The submitter’s prior experience (both Government and non-government) in similar efforts will be assessed to determine if the submitter clearly demonstrates an ability to deliver solutions that meet the proposed technical performance. The assessment for this criterion will include evaluating any corporate viability requirements specified in the solicitation. The assessment will result in a Confidence Level Rating. The following Solutions Brief Questions (in Section 2.2.1) will be assessed holistically to determine each submitter’s confidence rating for Criterion III: Questions 1 and 2.

• Optional Criterion IV (If requested): Optional Technical Demonstration. If a submitter conducts an optional technical demonstration, an assessment will be made regarding the demonstration of the proposed solution. This assessment will include the submitter’s understanding of the Government’s Objectives and Outcomes and the likelihood of the submitter successfully performing the prospective contract resulting in a Confidence Level Rating.

Following the evaluation of Phase I “Initial Solution Briefs” and optional technical demonstrations, evaluators will select and invite submitters to Phase II which will require the submission of a full proposal.

3.3 PEER REVIEW TEAM EVALUATION

A Peer Review Team (PRT) will be used to evaluate the solution briefs and optional technical demonstration, if applicable, submitted in response to this solicitation. The PRT will consist of U.S. Government employees.

3.4 SOLUTION BRIEF EVALUATION AND NOTIFICATION TO SUBMITTERS

Solution briefs will be evaluated in accordance with the evaluation criteria defined in Section

3.2. After evaluating the submitter’s written solution briefs, the TSA will formally notify the vendor whether an optional technical demonstration or other information is requested to supplement the written solution brief, their solution brief was not selected for award, or if the submitter is being advanced to participate in Phase II of this solicitation. Submitter not selected for award may request, within 5 calendar days of notification of non-selection, feedback regarding the technical review findings of their submitted solution brief.

3.5 TECHNICAL DEMONSTRATIONS

The Government reserves the right to request technical demonstrations, or additional written information, if applicable, from one or more submitters. The Government is likely to conduct optional technical demonstrations to gain a better understanding of the solution briefs but is not required to in order to advance a submitter on to the next solicitation Phase or to make an award.

If submitters are requested to conduct a technical demonstration, the submitter shall provide and be responsible for all costs related to the labor, supervision, tools, materials, equipment, transportation, and management necessary for a technical demonstration to be conducted under this General Solicitation. This is a preliminary notice to industry for what the contractor shall be responsible for in the event a submitter is requested to conduct a technical demonstration. This is not an exhaustive list of costs the submitters may be responsible for related to conducting technical demonstrations.

4.0 FULL PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS (PHASE II)

4.1 GENERAL

When invited to proceed to Phase II by the Government after an evaluation of the submitter’s solution brief (and optional technical demonstration, if applicable) in accordance with Section 3, the Government will invite submitters to develop and submit a full proposal. The full proposal must include a price proposal to support a prototype demonstration (proof of concept) as outlined in section 5, a Statement of Work (SOW) to include key milestone and project schedule, and a concept of operations (CONOPS). Upon invitation to Phase II, each proposal submitted shall consist of three sections responding to the Government’s SOO:

• Section 1: Technical Information (SOW)

• Section 2: Proposed Prototype (CONOPS)

• Section 3: Price Information (Price Proposal) The cost of preparing proposals in response to this request is not considered a direct charge to any resulting CSOP contract award or any other contract. Proposal preparation costs are not recoverable.

Proposals shall be limited to a page count of 25 letter size pages (8.5” x 11”), with a font type of Times New Roman and a minimum font size of 12pt. Submitters will be given further submittal instructions at the time of invitation to Phase II.

4.2 TECHNICAL INFORMATION

The submitter must submit a SOW as part of their full proposal submission that identifies the work to be performed and the deliverables. Provide a detailed project schedule that outlines the various phases of work, starting with a prototype demonstration (proof of concept), to be accomplished within the proposed period of performance. Proposed prototypes must include long-term operations and maintenance costs as well as any additional development costs.

4.3 PROPOSED PROTOTYPE

Describe the background and objectives of the proposed work. Include the nature and extent of the anticipated results. Discuss any risks and proposed mitigation strategy to address the risks.

Include ancillary and operational issues such as certifications, algorithms, and any engineering/software development methodologies to be used. Identify the type of support, if any, the Company requests of the Government in general such as facilities, equipment, data, and information or materials.

4.4 PRICE INFORMATION

The submitter must submit the total price to complete the project and shall provide any other data or supporting information that the parties agree is necessary for the determination of a fair and reasonable price. A milestone schedule shall be included which clearly indicates the completion of the priced tasks and/or priced deliverables that are required to meet each of the milestones.

For Firm-Fixed-Price (FFP) awards, the milestone schedule will serve as a payment schedule for any subsequent award.

4.5 PHASE II EVALUATION

The Phase II proposal submitted in response to this solicitation shall be evaluated on the following:

• Submitter’s demonstrated understanding of the work to be performed and ability to meet the Government’s requirements as stated in the solicitation, including the SOO; and

• Price reasonableness, as determined by the Government to ensure that proposal is made at a fair and reasonable price. The Government may request supporting information to support a fair and reasonable determination of the submitter’s price.

A contract may be awarded to a submitter whose proposal provides an acceptable technical/cost solution for the Government’s requirements based on the following:

a) The submitter must respond to all the requirements of the solicitation and must include in its proposal all information specifically required in all sections of the solicitation. TSA reserves the right to reject a proposal if it doesn’t meet all solicitation requirements.

b) Award of a contract cannot be made to any submitter unless an agreement can be secured for all stated terms, conditions, representations, certifications, and all other information required by the solicitation.

c) Award of a contract can only be made to a submitter:

1) Whose proposal represents a sound approach and represents the best value;

2) Whose proposed price is determined reasonable; and

3) Who is considered to be responsible within the meaning of FAR 9.104?

4) Who is currently registered in System for Award Management (SAM) and not currently suspended, debarred, or ineligible for a federal contract award?

4.6 NOTIFICATION TO SUBMITTER DURING PHASE II

After evaluating the submitter’s full proposal submission, TSA will formally notify the submitter whether their submission has been accepted for award, further negotiation is requested, or if the submission is not accepted for award. As the government may elect to issue multiple resultant awards, certain submitters may receive award notifications prior to others. While initial award(s) may be placed, other submitters may receive future awards as funding and government needs warrant. However, the Government is not required to make an award, and favorably rated submitters are not entitled to receive an award.

5.0 RESULTING AWARD

5.1 NEGOTIATION AND AWARD

Based on the Phase I and II evaluations, the government may enter directly into negotiations with each submitter to make a resultant award.

6.0 PROTESTS TO THE AGENCY

Protests under CSOP awards shall be adjudicated as prescribed under TSA Agency-Level protest procedures only.

Protest submissions shall be sent via e-mail to Contracting Officer, Jessica Seay at Jessica.Seay@tsa.dhs.gov.

Submitters may seek assistance from the agency Advocate for Competition. The Department Advocate for Competition and Procuring Activity Advocates for Competition are shown on the Doing Business with DHS page, and is accessible at:

https://www.dhs.gov/competition-advocates-and-task-order-and-delivery-order-ombudsman.

7.0 INVOICES AND PAYMENTS

7.1 ASSIGNMENT

The Contractor or its assignee may assign its rights to receive payment due as a result of performance of this contract to a bank, trust company, or other financing institution, including any Federal lending agency in accordance with the Assignment of Claims Act (31 U.S.C. 3727).

7.2 SUBMISSION OF INVOICES

7.2.1 TSA-INSTR: SUBMISSION OF INVOICES (MAY 2022)

mailto:Jessica.Seay@tsa.dhs.gov

Background: The Transportation Security Administration (TSA) partners with the United States Coast Guard Finance Center for financial services in support of TSA operations, including the payment of contractor invoices. Therefore, all contractor invoices must be submitted to, and will be paid by, the U.S. Coast Guard Finance Center (FinCen)

Invoice Submission Method: Invoices may be submitted via U.S. Mail, or email. Contractors shall utilize ONLY ONE method per invoice submission. The submission information for each of the methods is as follows in order of preference:

It is the responsibility of the contractor to verify that invoices are received, regardless of the method of submission used. Contractors may inquire regarding the receipt of invoices by contacting the U.S. Coast Guard Finance Center via the methods listed under Payment Status below.

1. Address to mail invoices:

United States Coast Guard Finance Center TSA Commercial Invoices

P.O. Box 4111

Chesapeake, VA 23327-4111

2. Email Address: FIN-SMB-TSAInvoices@uscg.mil or www.fincen.uscg.mil

Invoice Process: Upon receipt of contractor invoices, FinCen will electronically route invoices to the appropriate TSA Contracting Officer’s Representative and/or Contracting Officer for review and approval. Upon approval, the TSA will electronically route the invoices back to FinCen. Upon receipt of certified invoices from an Authorized Certifying Official, FinCen will initiate payment of the invoices.

Discounts on invoices. If desired, the Contractor should offer discounts directly upon the invoice submitted, clearly specifying the terms of the discount. Contractors can structure discounted amounts for payment for any time period less than the usual thirty-day payment period specified under Prompt Payment requirements; however, the Contractor should not structure terms for payment of net amounts invoiced any sooner than the standard period required under FAR Subpart 32.9 regarding prompt payments for the specified deliverables under contract.

Discounts offered after invoice submission. If the Contractor should wish to offer a discount on a specific invoice after its submission for payment, the Contractor should submit a letter to the Finance Center identifying the specific invoice for which a discount is offered and specify the exact terms of the discount offered and what time period the Government should make payment by in order to receive the discount. The Contractor should clearly indicate the contract number, invoice number and date, and the specific terms of the discount offered. Contractors should not mailto:FIN-SMB-TSAInvoices@uscg.mil http://www.fincen.uscg.mil/ structure terms for net amount payments any sooner than the standard period required under FAR Subpart 32.9 regarding prompt payments for the specified deliverables under contract.

Payment Status: Contractors may inquire on the payment status of an invoice by any of the following means:

1. Via the internet: https://www.fincen.uscg.mil

Contacting the FinCen Customer Service Section via telephone at 1-800-564-5504 or (757) 523- 6940 (Voice Option #1). The hours of operation for the Customer Service line are 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Eastern Time, Monday through Friday. However, the Customer Service line has a voice-mail feature that is available 24 hours per day, 7 days per week.

2. Via the Payment Inquiry Form: https://www.fincen.uscg.mil/secure/pa yment.htm

Invoice Elements: Invoices will automatically be rejected if the information required in subparagraph (a) (2) of the Prompt Payment Clause, contained in this Section of the Contract, including EFT banking information, Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN), and SAM-issued Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) are not included in the invoice. All invoices must clearly correlate invoiced amounts to the corresponding contract line item number and funding citation. The Contractor shall work with the Government to mutually refine the format, content and method of delivery for all invoice submissions during the performance of the Contract.

Supplemental Invoice Documentation: Contractors shall submit all supplemental invoice documentation (e.g. copies of subcontractor invoices, travel vouchers, etc.) necessary to approve an invoice along with the original invoice. The Contractor invoice must contain the information stated in the Prompt Payment Clause in order to be received and processed by FinCen.

Supplemental invoice documentation required for review and approval of invoices may, at the written direction of the Contracting Officer, be submitted directly to either the Contracting Officer, or the Contracting Officer’s Representative. Note for “time-and-material” type contracts:

The Contractor must submit the following statement with each invoice for labor hours invoiced under a “time-and-materials” type contract, order, or contract line item: “The Contractor hereby certifies in accordance with paragraph

(c) of FAR 52.232-7, that each labor hour has been performed by an employee (prime or subcontractor) who meets the contract’s specified requirements for the labor category invoiced.

Additional Invoice Preparation Instructions for Software Development and/or Hardware.

The Contractor shall clearly include a separate breakdown (by CLIN) for any software development activities (labor costs, subcontractor costs, etc.) in accordance with Federal Accounting Standards Advisory Board Statement of Federal Financial Accounting Standards Number 10 (Preliminary design costs, Development costs and post implementation costs) and http://www.fincen.uscg.mil/ http://www.fincen.uscg.mil/secure/pa cite payment terms. The contractor shall provide make and model descriptions as well as serial numbers for purchases of hardware and software (where applicable.)

Frequency of Invoice Submission: Invoices will be submitted in accordance with the milestones and schedule outlined in the resultant contract.

Timely Submission of Invoices: In order to ensure reimbursement under this contract, invoices shall be timely submitted for payment. Contractors must submit an invoice to the payment office as indicated for all allowable and allocable internal expenditures made during the specified invoice period pursuant to the Contract. Also be advised that under 31 U.S.C. §§ 1552 and 1553, funds that were obligated to the contract, but that have expired, remain available for adjustments for five (5) fiscal years following expiration of the period for which the relevant appropriation was made. After the respective timeframe, the expired account closes and the funds are not available for any purpose.

Invoices for Transportation Security Equipment, related peripheral equipment, and/or associated services (e.g. site surveys, site preparation, upgrades, shipping, temporary storage, travel, testing, rigging, installation, integration, and networking) shall:

1. Be submitted with TSA Form 251/251-1, Vendor Shipping and Receiving Report for all equipment (base unit and peripheral equipment) signed by the COR with a cost of at least $5,000 including any equipment with data storage billed on the invoice.

2. Cite the site code, site name, location, serial number(s) and full TSA barcode number(s) of the equipment or peripheral equipment. For associated service(s), cite the serial number(s) and TSA barcode number(s) of the equipment or peripheral equipment for which the service(s) were provided.

If the serial number(s) and TSA barcode number(s) are cited on supporting documentation rather than the invoice, the invoice must state, “See attached (title of supporting documentation) for detail.”

7.3 PAYMENTS

7.3.1 ADVANCE PAYMENTS

Advance payments are prohibited unless a statute specifically authorizes the advance payment.

8.0 TERMS AND CONDITIONS

The terms and conditions defined throughout this section are applicable only to a resulting contract award as described in the preceding sections of this general solicitation.

8.1 DEFINITIONS

1. Administrative Modification: Changes that do not affect the substantive rights of the parties, such as changes in the paying office, appropriations errors and typographical errors.

2. Head of the Contracting Activity (HCA) means the official delegated by the Chief Procurement Officer and the Senior Procurement Executive who is responsible for managing a Component’s procurement.

3. Government refers to the United States Government, including the DHS.

4. Parties, as used herein, shall refer to [CONTRACTOR NAME] and the United States of America, hereinafter called the Government, represented by DHS.

5. Contracting Officer (CO): Individual who can bind the Government to a contract within the scope of the authority delegated to the CO by the HCA.

8.2 ORDER OF PRECEDENCE

In the event of a conflict between the terms of this contract and other governing documents, the conflict shall be resolved by giving precedence in descending order as follows:

1. The clauses of this contract.

2. Any attachments to this contract.

8.3 CONTRACT TYPE

It is intended that any resulting contract from this solicitation shall be Firm Fixed Price.

8.4 TERM OF THE CONTRACT

The term of this contract is twelve (12) months from date of contract award, plus any options established through proposal discussions.

Nothing in this contract is intended to conflict with current law or regulation or the directives of the DHS. If a term of this contract is inconsistent with such authority, then that term shall be invalid, but the remaining terms and conditions of this contract shall remain in full force and effect.

8.5 MODIFCATIONS

A. Modifications to the contract may be proposed by either party. Only a CO has the authority to modify this contract on behalf of the Government.

B. The CO may unilaterally issue administrative modifications to the contract.

Modifications may be of two types:

• Bilateral. A bilateral modification is a contract modification that is signed by the contractor and the CO. Bilateral modifications are used to – o Make negotiated equitable adjustments resulting from the issuance of a change order;

o Reflect other agreements of the parties modifying the terms of contracts.

• Unilateral. A unilateral modification is a contract modification that is signed only by the CO. Unilateral modifications are used, for example, to – o Make administrative changes;

o Make changes authorized by other clauses o Issue termination notices.

Any changes to the contract and its attachments shall be issued in writing by the Contracting Officer utilizing a Government Standard Form 30, “Amendment of Solicitation/Modification of Contract” (SF 30). For purposes of this section, “Administrative change” means a unilateral contract change, made in writing by the Government, that does not affect the substantive rights of the parties (e.g., a change in the paying office or the appropriation data).

8.6 VERSION UPGRADING/ENGINEERING CHANGES

The Government reserves the right to modify this contract—

a. When a release of the software or a change to the existing hardware containing new features, functionality and/or performance improvements that would enable the existing software and/or hardware configuration to perform to the level of the next version of the software and/or hardware configuration and is designed to replace the older software and/or hardware version of the same product and/or extend the useful life of that product;

b. When product engineering changes need to be made as determined by mutual agreement of the parties to either comply with Agency requirements or enhance mission requirements.

In both circumstances, both parties shall negotiate these changes and any resulting contract price adjustments shall be made to the contract.

8.7 OPTIONS

TSA may establish options for the further development of the submitter’s proposed prototype.

Options shall be executed in accordance with terms established in the resulting CSOP contract.

8.7.1 OPTION TO EXTEND THE TERM OF THE CONTRACT

The Government may unilaterally extend the term of this contract for the Option Year by written notice to the Contractor within 30 days of base period expiration; provided that the Government gives the Contractor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 60 days before the contract base period expires.

The preliminary notice does not commit the Government to an extension. If the Government exercises this option, the extended contract shall be considered to include this option clause.

The total duration of this contract, including the exercise of any options under this clause, shall not exceed 60 months from date of award.

8.7.2 OPTION FOR INCREASE IN QUANTITY

During the Base Year, the Government may increase the quantity of items in the CLIN Schedule at the unit price specified therein.

In any Option Year, the Government may increase the quantity of items at a unit price equal to the prevailing commercial price, or the lowest price paid by the Government under contracts, whichever is lower.

The Contracting Officer may exercise the option for an increase in quantity by written notice to the Contractor at any time period within the contract period of performance. Delivery terms of the added items shall continue at the same rate as the like items called for under the contract, unless the parties otherwise agree.

8.8 UNAUTHORIZED OBLIGATIONS

Except as stated in Section 9.12.2, when any supply or service acquired under this contract is subject to any commercial supplier agreement that includes any language, provision, or clause requiring the Government to pay any future fees, penalties, interest, legal costs or to indemnify the Contractor or any person or entity for damages, costs, fees, or any other loss or liability that would create an Anti-Deficiency Act violation (31 U.S.C. 1341), the following shall govern:

• Any such language, provision, or clause is unenforceable against the Government.

• Neither the Government nor any Government authorized end user shall be deemed to have agreed to such clause by virtue of it appearing in the commercial supplier agreement. If the commercial supplier agreement is invoked through an “I agree” click box or other comparable mechanism (e.g., “click-wrap” or “browse-wrap” agreements), execution does not bind the Government or any Government authorized end user to such clause.

• Any such language, provision, or clause is deemed to be stricken from the commercial supplier agreement.

Section 9.12.1 does not apply to indemnification or any other payment by the Government that is expressly authorized by statute and specifically authorized under applicable agency regulations and procedures.

8.9 TSA-RQMTS; REQUIRED CONTRACTOR PROPERTY DELIVERY

REPORTING (SEP 2020)

For other than Transportation Security Equipment and/or related maintenance, all property purchased as a requirement of or authorized by this contract is government property, and the Contractor shall provide a completed TSA Form 251 “Vendor Shipping and Receiving Report” and the TSA Form 251-1 “Vendor Shipping and Receiving Report Extension” for each delivery of equipment under discrete Contract Line Item Numbers when applicable, to the Product Contracting Officer’s Representative and to the Property Management Division using this email address at TSA-Property@tsa.dhs.gov. Expendable and/or consumable items delivered by the Contractor (items consumed in use or which are an integral part of another system, office supplies, paper, printer cartridges, etc.,) should not be submitted via these forms. All items including but not limited to all electronics or Information Technology equipment having a data storage capability (i.e., computers, servers, routers, switches, BlackBerrys, Personal Digital Assistants) and all firearms must be submitted by the Contractor via these forms within 24 hours of the equipment being shipped to TSA or other designated site.

8.10 TEST EQUIPMENT – TSA APPROVAL OF PROSPOSED EQUIPMENT

Any new technology not currently approved for use on the TSA network must be tested and approved prior to purchase. Award will be contingent upon review and approval of the TSA Chief Technology Officer (CTO). Products proposed in support of this requirement must either be currently authorized products on the CTO Technical Reference Model (TRM) or must undergo testing for approval on the TRM.