DJJ-12-R-EOA82-0124-Grand Jury and Dep Solicitation.docx

Executive Office for United States Attorneys

May 3, 2012

Reference: Grand Jury and Deposition Court Reporting Services

Dear Offeror:

The Executive Office for United States Attorney’s (EOUSA) on behalf of the United States Attorney’s Office Vermont invites contractors under the authority of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), Part 12, Acquisition of Commercial Items, and FAR Part 15, Contracting by Negotiation, to submit a proposal for Grand Jury and Deposition Court Reporting Services described in the attached statement of work.

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.

Enclosed you will find a Statement of Work for Grand Jury and Deposition Court Reporting Services. Please provide this office with a price and technical proposal, to include proposed personnel resumes, to accomplish the work described in the attached Statement of Work. Proposals are due no later than 4:00 PM, Eastern Standard Time on May 18, 2012.

All questions as it relates to this solicitation will only be accepted if received by May 8, 2012, 2:00 PM, EST by email. Questions can be emailed to Elisa Oliver at Elisa.Oliver@usdoj.govAll questions and answers will be made known to all prospective offerors.

The selection process for this procurement will be the Best Value Trade Off Process. Source selection will be based on past performance, key personnel, experience and price. Under the Best Value Trade Off source selection process, non-price evaluation factors, when combined are significantly more important than price. However, EOUSA will not make an award on the basis of a superior capability without consideration of the amount of its price. In order to select the winning proposal, EOUSA will rank each offeror by making a series of paired comparisons between them, trading off the marginal differences in capability with the marginal difference in price.

All Proposals shall include the following information (See Section L of the solicitation):

(1) Provide resumes of prospective personnel. The prospective personnel will be the person(s) expected to perform the tasks identified in the Scope of Work. The resume(s) should reflect the personnel’s security clearance level, training and certifications, if any.

(2) Provide up to three (3) references for commensurate projects that are in progress or were completed within the last three (3) years. If a Contractor will be using a subcontractor, up to three (3) references must be provided for the subcontractor as well. References may be from commercial and federal/state Government contracts; however, similar support services performed for Federal Government customers generally will be considered more relevant than those done for commercial or state government customers. The Government reserves the right to check other references not provided by the Contractor. The following information is required for each reference:

(3) A summary of the Contractor’s experience demonstrating the contractor’s knowledge and ability to perform the duties and tasks reflected in the Scope of Work. This summary shall not exceed two (2) pages.

(4) Price quote as reflected in Section B to include total calculations (multiply estimated quantity with unit price). Do not include asterisks with exceptions or comments on these pages- only state the price for the CLIN item based on the description of work provided. Any additions to the pricing page other than the CLIN price in the space provided will not be considered.

(5) RFP Checklist (Section J.6 Attachment)

(6) SF-1449 (Fill out # 12, 17a, #30a, #30b, #30c). Include DUNS # and Tax ID in box 20.

(7) Contractor Determination of Responsibility (Only fill out the top portion labeled “To be completed by Contractor”)

This procurement is a 100% Small Business Set Aside. The NAICS code for this solicitation is 561492. In order to be considered a small business under this NAICS code, your average annual receipts must not exceed $7.0 million.

The Government will award a contract for one base year and four 12 month option years. The precise period of performance date will be determined at the time of award.

Proposals submitted in response to this RFP will be received in the following manner: via regular mail (please allow additional time for security screening), hand carried, and email. Proposals may also be forwarded by Courier or Overnight Mail Service to the attention of the undersigned at EOUSA.

Hand-Carried and Mailing Address:

Email Address: Elisa.Oliver@usdoj.gov

Proposals that are faxed will not be accepted. Proposals must be received by the closing date and time stated above.

Please refer any questions concerning this request to Elisa Oliver by email at Elisa.Oliver@usdoj.gov.

Sincerely, Elisa Oliver

SECTION B

SUPPLIES/SERVICES AND PRICES

B.1 General

(a) The contractor shall provide Grand Jury and Deposition Court Reporting Services for the United States Attorney’s Office in Vermont.

(b) The contract term includes a base year and four option years as shown in the table below.

Contract Term

Base Year : August 1, 2012 to July 31, 2013 Option Year 1: August 1, 2013 to July 31, 2014 Option Year 2: August 1, 2014 to July 31, 2015 Option Year 3: August 1, 2015 to July 31, 2016 Option Year 4: August 1, 2016 to July 31, 2017

(c) The contract will be an Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Contract with firm fixed unit prices.

(d) Multiple awards may result from this solicitation. In addition, an award may be made for grand jury services only, deposition services only or both.

(e) The Department of Labor wage rates are applicable if the contractor anticipates using more than five (5) employees to provide services under this procurement over the term of the contract.

B.2 Minimum and Maximum Amounts

(a) The “USAO’ will order a minimum amount of $ 15,000 under this contract. The specific CLINs and quantities will be identified in the work order(s) issued under this contract. The exercise of the option periods does not re-establish the contract minimum. During the life of this contract, the Department may order items in any quantity up to the maximum amount specified in paragraph (b) below.

B.2 Pricing

(a) All unit prices are fixed unit prices that include all costs (including, but not limited to: labor, fringe benefits, overhead, G&A, and profit) necessary to provide the Grand Jury and Deposition Court Reporting services required in the solicitation.

(b) For planning purposes only, the following general information is provided:

1. Historically, the average number of Grand Jury proceedings per year for the USAO has been 68.

2. Historically, the average maximum number of simultaneous proceedings in any one day for the USAO has been 2.

3. Historically, the average number of depositions per year has been 20.

4. The line items indicated below are line items that may be ordered throughout the duration of the contract on an as needed basis.

*Do not include asterisks with exceptions or comments on these pages- only state the price for the CLIN item based on the description of work provided. Any additions to the pricing page other than the CLIN price in the space provided will not be considered.

Base Year: August 1, 2012 to July 31, 2013

GRAND JURY TRANSCRIPT

DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT

TOTAL EST. BASE YEAR VALUE

Option Year One: August 1, 2013 to July 31, 2014

GRAND JURY TRANSCRIPT

DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT

TOTAL EST. VALUE FOR OY1

Option Year Two: August 1, 2014 to July 31, 2015

GRAND JURY TRANSCRIPT

DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT

TOTAL EST. VALUE FOR OY2

Option Year Three: August 1, 2015 to July 31, 2016

GRAND JURY TRANSCRIPT

DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT

TOTAL EST. VALUE FOR OY3

Option Year Four: August 1, 2016 to July 31, 2017

GRAND JURY TRANSCRIPT

DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT

TOTAL EST. VALUE FOR OY4

TOTAL ESTIMATED CONTRACT VALUE

(Base and All Options Value): $___________________

SECTION C

DESCRIPTION/SPECIFICATIONS/STATEMENT OF WORK

Work Statement

(a) The Contractor shall provide all labor (including supervision), material, equipment, facilities, and whatever else may be needed, except as otherwise provided herein, to record and transcribe Grand Jury and Deposition testimony, on an "as needed" basis for the United States Attorney’s Office, specified in Section B in accordance with the terms, conditions and Statement of Work set forth herein. The U.S. Attorney's Office will be referred to as "USAO" and the provider of recording services will be referred to as "Contractor."

(b) The location(s) of the courthouse or courthouses where Grand Jury proceedings may be required are listed below. In rare instances, services may be required at an alternative location.

Grand Jury Transcripts

(a) Scheduling of Grand Jury: The USAO will notify the Contractor of the requirements for attendance at a Grand Jury no later than one business day before the scheduled session. Each request will set forth the date, place and time of the session. The Contractor shall reply stating their intention to take the Grand Jury session by returning the signed work order form and communicate the name of the reporter who will be in attendance. Any change will be communicated by the Contractor to the USAO prior to the session. In the event a Grand Jury session is continued for more than one day, the Contractor agrees that it will assign the same court reporter for each continued segment of that given Grand Jury session. The Contractor shall ensure that the same court reporter provides the court reporting services for each continued segment of that Grand Jury session. Should the Contractor not be able to provide the same court reporter, it will notify the USAO authorized Point of Contact (POC) before the Grand Jury session that another court reporter will be providing the court reporting services.

(b) Original Transcripts. Unless otherwise stated, Grand Jury testimony shall be typed in an original and delivered within the turnaround times as set forth below. All Grand Jury transcripts shall contain (at a minimum) a title page stating the witness's name, Grand Jury date, time of the commencement of the proceeding for that particular witness, name, title and address of the attorney appearing for the Government. The title page should also include the Grand Jury number of the case, i.e., 07 GJ 999, and the name of the Federal Grand Jury that the witness I appearing before. Transcripts may be ordered by the USAO within the following timeframes. Billing rates for these turnaround times are set forth in Section B of this contract.

1. Original: All regular transcripts will be completed and delivered on or before the 10th business day after the date a witness testifies in the Grand Jury. A regular transcript shall be delivered to the USAO of each witness’s testimony, without being requested by the USAO, unless an expedited transcript is requested by the USAO in accordance with (4. Expedited) below. Colloquy will not be transcribed unless requested by the USAO, in which case the transcript shall be completed and delivered on or before the 10th business day after the Contractor receives a request from USAO.

2. Intermediate: All intermediate transcripts shall be completed and delivered on or before the 5th business day after the Contractor receives a request from the USAO. This request will sometimes be made the same day as the proceedings.

3. Daily: All daily Grand Jury transcripts shall be delivered before 9:30am of the following business day after conclusion of each day's proceedings. This may require performance after normal business hours. The Contractor may not be notified in advance of the testimony of this requirement.

4. Expedited: All expedited transcripts shall be delivered by 9:00pm on the same day as the proceedings. The Contractor may not be notified in advance of the testimony of this requirement.

5. Key Word Indexing: The keyword index gives an alphabetical listing of each word within the transcript and provides a page and line reference.

6. Additional Copies of Transcripts: Even though the Government has the right to copy and distribute transcripts acquired under this contract, the Government may order additional copies of any transcript. Additional copies of transcripts shall be provided to the USAO, as ordered, within the same turnaround times as set forth above.

7. Attendance Fee. The Contractor is entitled to an Attendance Fee as set forth in Section B of this contract. The fee is payable for each hour the Contractor's reporter appears at a scheduled proceeding. The minimum charge for any single day is three (3) hours. Attendance fees will be paid for each hour the Contractor's reporter appears for a scheduled proceeding. Proceedings are presently scheduled for 9:00am to 12:00pm and 1:00pm to 5:00pm with a one (1) hour lunch break in between. The Contractor is not paid during this lunch break. These hours are subject to change. The Contractor will generally be asked to report at 9:00am and be dismissed at 5:00pm. A shorter day may be scheduled. The Government guarantees payment of a minimum of three (3) hours. In the event that there are time periods during the day during which no testimony is taken, and the reporter is required to remain available for testimony later in the day, the Contractor will be paid the hourly attendance fee during those time periods. In the event that a reporter's presence is required for a whole day and no testimony is recorded, the Contractor will be paid one (1) cancellation fee or the number of hours attendance fee the reporter was available, whichever is higher.

8. Cancellation Fee. The Contractor may wish to charge a cancellation fee. The Government will notify the contractor by telephone of any cancellations no later than 5:00pm the day before the scheduled proceedings. If the USAO does not notify the contractor within the designated time, the contractor may request a cancellation fee.

9. Other Requirements. As follows:

(1) A transcript of all witness testimony shall be produced only when the USAO makes a specific request that a transcript be produced. Some witness testimony may never be transcribed. Colloquy will not be transcribed unless the USAO requests it.

(2) Each witness' testimony shall be in a separate transcript.

(3) If the USAO does not request that a transcript be produced, charging for estimated pages shall NOT be allowed. Only the Attendance/Minimum fee will be paid.

(4) Grand Jury transcripts may not be sold to anyone other than the Government at anytime under any circumstances.

10. Delivery. All Grand Jury Transcripts shall be delivered by contractor personnel, messenger service or overnight courier (Fed Ex). Transcripts must be double wrapped. The inner envelope must state "Grand Jury Material Enclosed. To be opened by Authorized Personnel ONLY". Unauthorized viewing of this material is a violation of the law. Grand Jury information may be mailed ONLY if it is sent certified, registered, or by Fed-Ex.

Grand Jury information shall not be transmitted via the Internet, including email, file transfer protocol, or any other means. The electronic transmission of grand jury information is only permitted within and between the USAOs and other DOJ components within the usdoj.gov email domain, and then only to those persons authorized access. If grand jury information is classified, transmissions require classified methods such as secure facsimile or email via a system authorized for classified processing.

11. Grand Jury Travel and Per Diem Reimbursement Restrictions:

The Contractor shall not be entitled to travel, mileage and per diem reimbursements to and from the location for Grand Jury Reporting and hand delivery of Grand Jury transcripts. Exceptions may be made on a case by case basis at the sole discretion of the COTR or the Contracting Officer

12. Certification. Each reporter shall attach his/her official certification to the original transcript so recorded as follows:

CERTIFICATE

(I, We) hereby certify that the foregoing is a true and accurate transcript, to the best of (my, our) skill and ability, from my stenographic notes of this proceeding.

Date Court Reporter

There shall be no charge for either this certification page or any index page if used.

Deposition Transcripts

(a) Scheduling of Depositions: The USAO will notify the Contractor of the requirements for attendance at a deposition no later than two business days before the scheduled session. Each request will set forth the date, place and time of the session. The Contractor shall reply stating their intention to take the deposition by returning the signed work order form and communicate the name of the reporter who will be in attendance. Any change will be communicated by the Contractor to the USAO prior to the session. In the event a deposition is continued for more than one day, the Contractor agrees that it will assign the same court reporter for each continued segment of that given deposition. The Contractor shall ensure that the same court reporter provides the court reporting services for each continued segment of that deposition. Should the Contractor not be able to provide the same court reporter, it will notify the USAO before the scheduled session that another court reporter will be providing the court reporting services.

(b) Original Transcripts. Unless otherwise stated, depositions shall be typed in an original and delivered within the turnaround times as set forth below. Transcripts may be ordered by the USAO within the following timeframes. Billing rates for these turnaround times are set forth in Section B of this contract.

1. Original: All regular transcripts will be completed and delivered on or before the 10th business day after the date a witness testifies in the deposition. A regular transcript shall be delivered to the USAO of each witness’s testimony, without being requested by the USAO, unless an expedited transcript is requested by the USAO in accordance with (4. Expedited) below. Colloquy will not be transcribed unless requested by the USAO, in which case the transcript shall be completed and delivered on or before the 10th business day after the Contractor receives a request from USAO.

2. Intermediate: All intermediate transcripts shall be completed and delivered on or before the 5th business day after the Contractor receives a request from the USAO. This request will sometimes be made the same day as the proceedings.

3. Daily: All daily deposition transcripts shall be delivered before 9:30am of the following business day after conclusion of each day's proceedings. This may require performance after normal business hours. The Contractor may not be notified in advance of the testimony of this requirement.

4. Expedited: All expedited transcripts shall be delivered by 9:00pm on the same day as the proceedings. The Contractor may not be notified in advance of the testimony of this requirement.

5. Key Word Indexing: The keyword index gives an alphabetical listing of each word within the transcript and provides a page and line reference.

6. Additional Copies of Transcripts: Even though the Government has the right to copy and distribute transcripts acquired under this contract, the Government may order additional copies of any transcript. Additional copies of transcripts shall be provided to the USAO, as ordered, within the same turnaround times as set forth above.

7. Attendance Fee. The Contractor is entitled to an Attendance Fee in the amount set forth in Section B of this contract. The minimum charge for any single day is three (3) hours. Attendance fees will be paid for each hour the Contractor's reporter appears for a scheduled proceeding. Proceedings are presently scheduled for 9:00am to 12:00pm and 1:00pm to 5:00pm with a one (1) hour lunch break in between. The Contractor is not paid during this lunch break. These hours are subject to change. A shorter day may be scheduled. The Government guarantees payment of a minimum of three (3) hours. In the event that there are time periods during the day during which no testimony is taken, and the reporter is required to remain available for testimony later in the day, the Contractor will be paid the hourly attendance fee during those time periods. In the event that a reporter's presence is required for a whole day and no testimony is recorded, the Contractor will be paid either one (1) cancellation fee or the number of hours attendance fee the reporter was available, whichever is higher? The Contractor shall allow the Government ten (10) working days to request proceedings transcript before assessing an attendance fee.

8. Cancellation Fee. The contractor may wish to charge a cancellation fee. The Government will notify the contractor by telephone of any cancellations no later than 5:00pm the day before the scheduled proceedings. If the Government does not notify the contractor within the designated time, the contractor may request a cancellation fee.

9. Other Requirements. As follows:

(1) A transcript of all witness testimony shall be produced in accordance with above. Colloquy outside the presence of the witness will not be transcribed unless requested by the USAO.

(2) Each witness' testimony shall be in a separate transcript.

10. Delivery. Deposition transcripts shall be delivered as instructed by the individual Assistant U.S. Attorney.

11. Travel and Per Diem Reimbursements. For depositions taken at a location outside the 50-mile radius of the U.S. Attorney's Office designated in the Schedule of Items/Prices, the Contractor is entitled to reimbursement for travel and per diem to and from the location at which the deposition is taken in accordance with the Federal Travel Regulation.

The following are the addresses of the United States Attorney’s Offices (USAO) where the 50 mile radius applies. The Contractor shall not be reimbursed for travel, mileage and per diem expenses within a 50 mile radius of any USAO address listed below. Exceptions may be made on a case by case basis at the sole discretion of the COTR or the Contracting Officer.

U.S. Attorney Office P.O. Box 570 Burlington, VT 05402

12. Certification. Each reporter shall attach his/her official certification to the original transcript so recorded as follows:

CERTIFICATE

I, (NAME OF REPORTER), a Shorthand Reporter and a Notary Public, do hereby certify that the foregoing witness, (NAME OF WITNESS), was duly sworn on the date indicated, and that the foregoing is a true and accurate transcription of my stenographic notes and is a true record of the testimony given by the foregoing witness.

I further certify that I am not employed by or related to any party to this action by blood or marriage and that I am in no way interested in the outcome of this matter.

In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this day of , 20 .

There shall be no charge for either this certification page or any index page if used.

Recording Requisites

(a) Recording hereunder shall be taken by reporters qualified in the operation of Steno-type equipment, Real Time recording, Computer Aided Transcription (CAT), Shorthand and/or monitored Multi-Microphone recording systems, and when permitted by the Presiding Official, by Steno mask. At the request of the USAO, recording shall also be taken by videotape. Regardless of the type of equipment used, it is mandatory that there be an accurate read back capability and that a back-up system be utilized. It is also mandatory that tape recording devices shall have a separate monitor head which shall allow the reporter to monitor the recorded tape.

1. Monitored Multi-microphone Recording Systems. The mandatory requirements follow:

· The Contractor's personnel shall operate and monitor the recording equipment at all times.

· The operating personnel shall provide to the USAO, prior to the commencement of each proceeding, a certification that the equipment is turned on and operating.

· The recording equipment utilized shall provide for the instant playback of testimony.

· The equipment shall be capable of recording as many as twenty-three grand jurors together in one room with the prosecutor and the witness.

· The system utilized shall have a back-up system to allow continuous recording of speakers. The Grand Jury hearings shall not be stopped for any reason such as the changing of a tape.

· The tapes shall be of such quality that there shall be no instances of inaudibility because of accents or words used by the speakers.

· The system shall be portable to allow for transportation of tapes to another location when an immediate decision is required by a Federal District Court Judge.

· The recording monitor shall be able to identify speakers.

· A back-up system shall be available so as not to delay the proceedings.

· The equipment utilized shall not pose any safety hazards due to exposed wires, cords, or for any other reason.

2. Steno mask Recording. The mandatory requirements in the event steno mask recording is permitted are as follows:

· The respective systems shall be of such quality as to ensure against error, misinterpretation, or loss of voice.

· The equipment shall contain simultaneous playback, listening, and pre-amplification.

3. Real Time Recording. The steno machine is attached to the computer. As the steno types the strikes/words are translated into English onto the screen.

4. Computer Aided Transcription (CAT). With this type of system, the steno strikes a key which is written onto a disk. The disk is inserted into an attachment to the computer and the information is brought up on the computer screen. A back-up voice tape is made also so that a re-verification can be made of the transcript.

5. Video Tape Recording. The Government must determine video formatting, DVD, CD, or VHS.

(b) The Contractor, or the duly authorized employee, agent, or representative of the Contractor, shall present himself/herself to the person in charge of the proceedings and he shall at all times be governed by the instructions of the Presiding Official in matters affecting the composition of the record, adjournment to other times or places, and matters of like character.

(c) Depositions shall be taken by a Contractor-furnished reporter who must be a duly authorized notary for the State or District in which the deposition is held. Reporters are required to comply with Rules 28 and 30 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and specifically Rule 30(e), which provides in pertinent part as follows:

"If requested by the deponent or a party before completion of the deposition, the deponent shall have 30 days after being notified by the officer that the transcript or recording is available in which to review the transcript or recording and, if there are changes in form or substance, to sign a statement reciting such changes and the reasons given by the deponent for making them. The officer shall indicate in the certificate prescribed by subdivision (f)(1) whether any review was requested and, if so, shall append any changes made by the deponent during the period allowed."

The Contractor must give the Government its copy prior to the witness being presented their testimony. The Government may choose to present the deposition to the witness. In the event further information is desired, the above referenced volume is a part of the United States Code, Title 28 and may be found at any public library.

(d) Everything spoken pertaining to the subject matter of the deposition shall be reported, unless the Presiding Official otherwise directs. No part of any proceedings, of which notes have been taken as required, shall be omitted from the record, unless the Presiding Official so directs.

(e) All notes, records, documentary exhibits, and any other material which is a part of, or relates to, any action recorded by the Contractor shall be the property of the United States and shall be delivered to the ordering office, together with furnished transcript, unless otherwise instructed.

(f) Right to Remove Individual Reporter - It shall be an absolute right of the Government to inform the Contractor through the Contracting Officer of the unacceptability of specific court reporters for Grand Jury or Deposition work. The failure of the Contractor to provide a court reporter other than one designated unacceptable by the Government shall provide a basis for the Government's decision to obtain court reporting services from another source.

Transcript Format

(a) A separate transcript shall be provided for each witness/deponent. The title page shall show the name of the witness/deponent, Grand Jury date, time of the commencement of the proceeding for that particular witness, docket number, the date of proceedings, the name, title and address of the attorney appearing for the Government, caption of matter, the authority for taking the deposition, etc. and shall be followed by a page of distinctive color indexing the exhibits where applicable.

(b) The paging of the transcripts shall be in a single series by consecutive numbers regardless of the number of days consumed in the hearings, proceeding, etc., and the paging of the transcript in a hearing shall follow consecutively the paging of the last previous hearing in the same case.

(c) Each copy of the transcript furnished the Government shall be bound with covers of good quality, white or colored 140 pound index paper, #1 sulphite paper, heavy weight transparent plastic, or similar material approved by the ordering office. Transcripts shall be punched with three holes at the left side; the upper and lower holes to be two inches from top and bottom of the page, third hole in the center of the resulting interval, and shall be secured with a suitable fastener of permanent nature.

(d) All transcripts shall be typed with black ribbon or reproduced by regular office type duplicating machines on white linen unglazed paper of good quality, #30 white bond paper or similar stock, to be approved by the ordering office. Transcripts shall be typed on paper 8 ½ inches x 11 inches in size, with a ruled margin of 1 3/4 inches at the left side and 3/8 inch at the right side. Typing shall be 10 spaces to the inch, double spaced, and shall not be less than 25 lines to the page exclusive of the line containing the witness name, date of testimony, and page number. The lines of testimony are to be numbered on each page beginning with #1. These numbers will appear just to the left of the left ruled margin. Whenever testimony is continuous, requiring more than one line, the typing shall begin one blank space after the left hand ruled margin and shall continue to the right hand ruled margin, with no blank spaces. The distance between the left hand ruled margin and the right hand ruled margin will be 6 3/8 inches. Therefore, there will be no less than 60 characters per line available. No word should wrap to the next line that would properly fit within the 60 count. Pages necessarily containing less than 25 lines shall be charged and paid for at the full-page rate. No payment will be made for lines in excess of 25 lines to the page. The first line of Q and A's will be indented 5 spaces, then followed by a period and 3 blank spaces. The second line will return to one blank space after the left hand ruled margin. The first line of colloquy will be indented 10 spaces, followed by a period and 3 blank spaces. The second line will return to one blank space after the left hand ruled margin. No extraneous words should be used on the title page or at the beginning of a witness' testimony. No statement that can properly fit on a line should be extended to an additional line. There should be no unnecessary blank lines unless absolutely necessary for readability. The USAO will be the sole judge of this format.

Reduced page transcripts (Condensed Transcripts) shall include four transcript pages in reduced format on a single 8 ½ x 11 inch page.

(e) Exhibits admitted in evidence, identified in a deposition, or in Grand Jury proceedings, when requested by the Government attorney shall be stamped, marked, numbered by the Contractor, and arranged in numerical order, as directed by the individual Assistant U.S. Attorney (AUSA) and shall be annexed to the deposition transcript. The marking shall indicate clearly whether the exhibit is offered by the complainant, protestant, intervener, defendant, respondent, applicant, the ordering office, or other party of record. The numbering of exhibits shall be in a single series of consecutive numbers, regardless of the number of days consumed in the hearing, unless otherwise directed by the Presiding Official. The number of exhibits introduced at a hearing or in a reopened case shall follow consecutively the number on the last previous exhibit introduced by such party. Exhibits shall not be copied into the record nor shall photo static copies of exhibits for inclusion in the record be made by the reporter unless the Presiding Official so directs.

Availability/Sale of Transcripts

(a) Recording of proceedings shall be transcribed by the Contractor only when directed by the USAO. In the handling of transcripts, the Contractor shall observe and comply with security requirements stipulated herein. Copies of transcripts will not be made available to the public by the Contractor.

(b) Pursuant to Public Law 92-463, the Government reserves the right to make Grand Jury transcripts available to the public at the actual cost of duplication.

Reports

The Contractor shall submit immediately, in writing, to the Contracting Officer and the U.S. Attorney’s Office the following reports:

1. Unauthorized Entry. A report on any information coming to his attention concerning unauthorized entry (actual, attempted, or threatened) at his facilities where work for the United States Attorney’s Office is performed.

2. Loss, Compromise or Suspected Compromise. A report on any loss, compromise or suspected compromise of transcripts, notes or other related material.

3. Any change of ownership, including stock transfers that affect the control of the corporation.

4. Change of operating or address of the facility.

5. A report of any change during the performance of the contract in location of closed or restricted areas as established, including the creation of any new areas requiring approval of the United States Attorney.

6. A report of any change in the storage capability which would affect the information which the Contractor is required to safeguard.

7. The Contractor shall also maintain and keep available for review by the United States Attorney’s Office a master index of the Grand Jury sessions, including the date, name of Grand Jury, name of case, name of AUSA(s), case number, name of witnesses and pages from those witnesses, and the name of the court reporter.

Ordering

(a) Services to be furnished under this contract shall be ordered by the issuance of work orders signed by Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COTR) or Authorized Individual of the United States Attorney’s Office. All work orders issued hereunder are subject to the terms and conditions of this contract which shall control in the event of conflict with any work order. The contract will not be modified or superseded by any work order issued hereunder. A sample Court Reporting Ordering Form is attached. The ordering form or another acceptable form approved by the USAO can be used to issue work orders for court reporting services under this contract.

All work orders placed under this contract must contain the following information:

· Date of Order

· Order Number

· Description of Service

· Place of Performance

· Account & Appropriation Data, if applicable

· Primary Point of Contact of the work order

(b) List of Authorized Individuals designated to place work orders under this contract will be identified at the time of award.

SECTION D

PRESERVATION, PACKAGING AND MARKING

Please see Section C, Description/Specifications/Statement of Work, for delivery instructions of Grand Jury and Deposition Transcripts.

SECTION E

INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE

E.1 Notice Listing Contract Clauses Incorporated by Reference

The following contract clauses pertinent to this section are hereby incorporated by reference (by Citation Number, Title, and Date) in accordance with the clause at FAR "52.252-2 CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE" in Section I of this contract. See FAR 52.252-2 for an internet address (if specified) for electronic access to the full text of a clause.

NUMBER TITLE DATE

FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION (48 CFR Chapter 1)

LABOR-HOUR

SECTION F

DELIVERIES OR PERFORMANCE

F.1 Period of Performance:

Base Year: August 1, 2012 to July 31, 2013 Option Year 1: August 1, 2013 to July 31, 2014 Option Year 2: August 1, 2014 to July 31, 2015 Option Year 3: August 1, 2015 to July 31, 2016 Option Year 4: August 1, 2016 to July 31, 2017 F.2 Place of Performance

U.S. Attorney Office 11 Elmwood Ave., 3rd Floor Burlington, VT 05402

The place of performance for depositions will be determined at the time work orders are issued; however, under normal circumstances, will take place:

U.S. Attorney Office P.O. Box 570 Burlington, VT 05402 F.3 Performance Standards

Evaluation of the Contractor's overall performance in accordance with the performance standards set forth in Section C, Tangible Results and Deliverables, will be conducted jointly by the COTR and the Contracting Officer, and shall form the basis of the Contractor's permanent performance record with regard to this contract.

SECTION G

CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION DATA

G.1 Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COTR)

Upon award, a Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) will be designated to coordinate the technical aspects of this contract and inspect items/services furnished hereunder. The COTR is authorized to certify (but not to reject or deny) invoices for payment in accordance with enclosed payment terms. The authority to reject or deny performance and associated invoice payment is expressly reserved for the Contracting Officer.

2852.201-70 Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR).

Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR)

(JAN 1985)

(a) Mr./Ms. Dori Chalmers of USAO P.O. Box 570, Burlington, VT 05402, 802-951-6725, is hereby designated to act as Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) under this contract.

(b) The COTR is responsible, as applicable, for: receiving all deliverables, inspecting and accepting the supplies or services provided hereunder in accordance with the terms and conditions of this contract; providing direction to the contractor which clarifies the contract effort, fills in details or otherwise serves to accomplish the contractual Scope of Work; evaluating performance; and certifying all invoices/vouchers for acceptance of the supplies or services furnished for payment.

(c) The COTR does not have the authority to alter the contractor's obligations under the contract, and/or modify any of the expressed terms, conditions, specifications, or cost of the agreement. If as a result of technical discussions it is desirable to alter/change contractual obligations or the Scope of Work, the Contracting Officer shall issue such changes.

(End of Clause)

G.2 Contracting Officer

The Contracting Officer for this contract is:

Written communications shall make reference to the contract number and shall be mailed to the above address.

G.3 Payment/Invoice Requirements

Payment for actual work and services rendered under this contract will be made on a monthly basis. To constitute a proper invoice, the invoice must be prepared in accordance with FAR 52.212-4(g) in Section I. In addition, the following information must appear on the invoice:

1. Date service was performed

2. Location service was performed

3. Attorney’s Name

4. Grand Jury Number (for Grand Jury only)

5. Name of witness

Invoices shall be submitted to the COTR at the address shown in Section G, clause 2852.201-70 Contracting Officer’s Technical Representative (COTR). The COTR will certify the invoice for payment and forward the invoice to the Finance Office for payment with a copy to the Contracting Officer.

All follow-up invoices shall be marked “Duplicate of Original.” Contractor questions regarding payment information or check identification should be directed to DOJ Vendor Assistance Hotline on (202) 616-6260.

G.4 Accounting and Appropriation Data

TAS: 15120322

Cost Center or Account Class: 0E4082

SOC: 2509

SECTION H

SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS

H.1 Personnel Security

(a) The USAO will process background security investigations for Grand Jury court reporter Contractor personnel required for performance of this contract. Employees of the Contractor shall not be assigned to Grand Jury transcription work under this contract unless and until the Contractor has been notified, in writing, by authorized USAO personnel stating the employee has been granted necessary security approval. If the Contractor is notified during the life of this contract by an official of the USAO that an employee's access to Grand Jury information has been revoked or suspended, the Contractor shall immediately notify the Contracting Officer. The Contractor's total loss of access approval for Grand Jury court reporters shall be cause for termination of this contract.

(b) The Contractor shall submit to the USAO a list of the names of all principals, staff members, and regular employees requiring access to the work performed under the contract. This includes personnel of the principal Contractor and any subcontractor and consultants. No employee may be used on Grand Jury testimony until the Contractor has, for each individual, received in writing the approval of the USAOs.

(c) Should Grand Jury proceedings require access to classified National Security Information by personnel of the Contractor; additional safeguards will be required to protect that information in accordance with the provisions of Title 28 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 17. In such instances, national security clearances for the Contractor's personnel will be required in accordance with Department of Justice policies.

(d) In the event the USAO is unable to obtain security approval for access to Grand Jury information for the Contractor by the beginning date of a proceeding, the Government reserves the right to obtain the required services from another source, which has employment security approval for Grand Jury court reporters.

(e) The Contractor agrees to ensure any subcontractor proposed for the furnishing of supplies and services which will involve access to Grand Jury information in the Contractor's custody has the appropriate employment security approval in effect prior to being afforded access to Grand Jury information.

H.2 Required Security Investigation

(a) The Contractor shall assure that all persons to be utilized in the performance of this contract submit to the Government the following Government security investigation forms prior to assignment hereunder. The intent and purpose of the investigation are to preclude the assignment of any individual who poses a threat to the Government or successful contract completion due to past unlawful or inappropriate behaviour. The contract employee must furnish all required data in the form and format determined by the United States Attorney (USA) or his/her duly authorized representative. The Contracting Officer will notify the Contractor in writing, with a concurrent copy to the Contracting Officer Technical Representative (COTR), of the results of the investigation.

(b) Risk Level

In general, services performed by Contractor personnel may fall within three (3) risk categories as described below:

High Risk Are those sensitive positions that have the potential for exceptionally serious impact involving duties especially critical to the DOJ or a program mission with broad scope of policy or program authority, such as:

· Policy development or implementation

· Higher-level management assignment

· Independent spokespersons or non-management positions with authority for independent action,

· Significant fiduciary and procurement authority and responsibilities, and

Moderate Risk - Are those sensitive positions that have the potential for moderate to serious impact involving duties very important to the DOJ or program mission with significant program responsibilities and delivery of client services to the public, such as:

· Assistance to policy development and implementation,

· Mid-level management assignments,

· Non-management positions with authority for independent or semi-independent action,

· Delivery of service positions that demand public confidence or trust,

· IT-computer positions of a lesser degree of risk that required for High Risk positions (Refer to Appendix III, OMB Circular A-130, “Management of Federal Information Resources”, for those computer positions that are other than High Risk).

Low Risk (Non-sensitive) - Are those non-sensitive positions that do not fall into any of the above categories and include those positions with potential for impact involving duties of limited relation to the DOJ mission.

(c) Types and Numbers of Background Investigations

Work performed under this CONTRACT will fall within one or more of the risk categories defined paragraph 3.2.2(b).