B08_Attachment_2_Instructions_To_Offerors.doc

Addendum to FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors

Submission of Offers: Offers shall be submitted by the due date and time provided on the SF1449 block 8 to Kimberly Schneider at krschneider@usgs.gov.

The Government intends to award a single-award indefinite-delivery indefinite-quantity (IDIQ) contract to the responsive and responsible offeror whose offer conforms to the solicitation and has been determined to be the most advantageous and best value to the Government.

All evaluation factors other than cost or price, when combined, are significantly more important than cost or price. It should be noted that price does not have a definite adjectival rating but will be evaluated based on reasonableness.

The Contracting Officer will screen responses to identify and eliminate any that are so incomplete as to preclude a meaningful evaluation of technical/past performance/non-price factors.

One (1) electronic copy submission:

Tab A: Offer Form (Standard Form 1449) - original signature and date; Contract Administration Data; SAM UEI (Unique Entity Identifier) replaces the request for a DUNS; Acknowledgement of Solicitation Amendments if applicable.

Tab B: Pricing

· Price will be evaluated based on reasonableness.

· IDIQ Pricing shall be noted in Section B, Schedule of Items

· Task Order No. 1 Pricing shall be noted in Attachment 1 Tab C: Technical Capability

· The Contractor shall demonstrate that they have the technical capabilities to perform the entire scope of work. The technical capability section of their technical response shall be in as much detail as the offeror considers necessary to fully explain and demonstrate their technical capabilities for this requirement. Your capabilities should reflect a clear understanding of the nature of the work being performed and deliverables and how the offeror anticipates meeting all the requirements within the Statement of Work (SOW).

· Simply repeating or paraphrasing the specifications or statement of work does not constitute an acceptable technical quotation. The technical quotation shall demonstrate how you propose to meet stated minimum requirements or goals, and that they have the necessary understanding, expertise, personnel, and experience to successfully provide the facilitation services described.

· Must describe experience in the synergy between social science and coastal vulnerability in Puerto Rico; knowledge of local stakeholders related to coastal hazards in Puerto Rico; knowledge of the development of conservation and management plans for coastal and marine protected areas in Puerto Rico (such as Culebra, Tres Palmas-Rincón, Desecheo Island-West Coast); expertise in the socioeconomic assessment of fishery dependent communities in Puerto Rico and St. Croix (U.S. Virgin Islands); fluency in both English and Spanish; expertise in coordination and facilitation of stakeholder meetings in English and Spanish from different sectors (e.g. federal, community leaders, state, private and academia); and knowledge in design and coordination of LEK (Local Ecological Knowledge) interviews and focus groups (fishers and recreational divers) on fisheries, coral reefs, and associated habitats as well as expertise using the MAXQD software to perform detailed data analysis of the focus groups.

Tab D: Key Personnel Qualifications

· Resumes and qualifications of the proposed Key Personnel that will be performing work shall be supplied. Resumes shall demonstrate that the proposed Key Personnel hold the qualifications necessary to successfully perform the duties as required per the SOW. The Contractor shall provide the key personnel name(s), titles/labor categories, qualifications, resumes, and commitment letters.

Tab E: If SAM registration is not updated, complete the provisions in Section E (FAR 52.204-24, 52.209-5 -7 -11 and 52.212-3).

Questions and Answers (Q&A): Questions relating to this Solicitation shall be presented by e-mail to krschneider@usgs.gov no later than 3 calendar days prior to the closing date of the solicitation. The Government will evaluate the questions, and if needed, an Amendment will be issued with the questions received and their associated answers. If further questions arise following the outcome of answers provided to initial questions, the Contracting Officer has sole discretion to determine if a new question closing date will be required. If a new question closing date is approved, an amendment will be posted.

Instructions for Obtaining Relevant Department of Labor (DOL) Service Contract Act Wage Determinations:

The contract resulting from this solicitation will be performed at the contractor’s facility. For this reason, as of the issuing of this solicitation, there is no reasonable way for the Government to know the locality in which the contract will be performed, making obtaining a proper wage determination impracticable. The services described in this solicitation do fall within the scope of the Service Contract Labor Standards Act (SCA) so it is incumbent upon each offeror to obtain the proper wage determination in order to ensure the appropriate wages are incorporated into its quotation. To obtain a proper wage determination, offerors should perform the following steps:

1.

Go to the SAM.gov website to search Wage Determinations: https://sam.gov/content/home

2.

Click ‘Wage Determinations’

3.

Choose ONE of the following:

a.

For Wage Determination type select: ‘Public Building or Works’ for construction services or ‘Service Contracts’ for all other services.

4.

Select the state and county/independent city the work will be performed in.

5.

If the services were previously performed under an SCA-covered contract select the appropriate ‘Yes’ radio button, otherwise select ‘No’.

6.

If the services are non-standard select the ‘Yes’ radio button and select the services from the drop-down menu, otherwise, select ‘No’.

7.

The appropriate wage determination should now be displayed.

Offerors are advised that the relevant wage will be incorporated into the purchase order resulting from this solicitation. A vendor that is awarded this purchase order WILL NOT be entitled to equitable adjustment for failing to incorporate the relevant wage determination into its price.

Please note that an active registration at https://sam.gov/SAM/ is mandatory in order to receive an award.