DTMO TAC Bridge_Redacted JA.pdf

CUI

SOURCE SELECTION INFORMATION SEE FAR 2.101 AND 3.104

Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition

I. Agency/Contracting Activity.

Agency: DTMO, 4800 Mark Center Dr, Alexandria, VA 22350

Contracting Activity: DHRA, 4800 Mark Center Dr, Alexandria, VA 22350

II. Nature and/or description of the action being processed.

DHRA requires an interim contract for continuation of critical services by CACI Enterprise Solutions (CACI). The interim contract will consist of firm-fixed price line items to provide continued travel assistance services for a three-month period. The interim contract is necessary to enable award and transition of the follow-on contract. The estimated value of the interim contract is

. The interim contract will include FAR Clause 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services which will permit extension of the effort by up to six months should a need arise to continue services. The estimated value of FAR Clause 52.217-8 is The interim contract will not exceed nine months of performance and the total estimated value, if all potential options are exercised, is interruption in service. However, the effort was delayed due to the Government shutdown from 1 October and 12 November 2025. Once the continuing resolution was passed, DHRA prioritized and expedited the effort in an attempt to still make a timely award; however, funding was not yet available, and award could not be made by 26 November 2025 to enable uninterrupted service. As the contract was not awarded by 26 November 2025, the period of performance for the follow-on contract was impacted and could not start transition on 27 November 2025, as outlined in the solicitation.

The current contract ends on 26 February 2026 and the follow-on contract contains a three-month transition period which is planned to start on 1 March 2026. The interim contract will provide the uninterrupted services from 27 February 2026 through 31 May 2026 enabling award and the necessary transition to be completed.

III. Description of supplies/services required to meet agency needs (including the estimated value).

DTMO requires continued Travel Assistance Center (TAC) support services to customers across the Department of Defense (DoD). The TAC assists approximately 2.9 million DoD travelers and 40,000 Defense Travel Administrators (DTAs) through enhanced customer service across the spectrum of DoD travel. This support, to the Defense Travel System (DTS), commercial travel programs (GSA City Pair Program, US Government Rental Car/Truck Program, DoD Government Travel Charge Card (GTCC) Program, DoD Integrated Lodging Program, DoD Dining Program), and travel policy and regulation, includes, DTS users, travelers, authorizing/routing officials, DTAs, Travel Management Company (TMC) Representatives, Military Recruits, and others seeking DoD travel assistance. Travelers, authorizing officials, and DTAs shall be able to contact the TAC from any location worldwide, 24 hours a day and 365 days a year, via telephone, instant messaging / chat, electronic mail, and automated web-based tools (such as a ticket management system) to request assistance before, during, and after travel. Chat is primarily supported during normal (Eastern Standard Time) business hours.

Departments to include the U.S. Coast Guard. The Recruit Assistance Program (RAP) is a mission critical support service designed to assist military recruits who encounter travel disruptions while in route to their assigned basic training locations. The contractor shall provide real-time telephonic support and logistical coordination to ensure recruits receive timely assistance in accordance with DTMO's standard operating procedures.

DTMO requires continuation of the services while the follow-on effort is awarded and transitioned. The estimated value of this continuation of services contract is for three-months of continued support, if all options are exercised.

This amount represents the minimum support required until the follow-on contract is awarded.

Maintenance (O&M) funds in the amount of are anticipated to fund the three-month period of performance.

IV. Statutory authority permitting Other than Full and Open Competition.

The current contract award was solicited via a competitive, Request for Proposal utilizing the National Institutes of Health Information Technology Acquisition and Assessment Center (NITAAC) Chief Information Officer (CIO) Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC). .

10 U.S.C. § 3204(a)(1), as implemented by FAR 6.302-1 Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements, and 10 U.S.C. § 3204(a)(2), as implemented by FAR 6.302-2 Unusual and Compelling Urgency, permit other than full and open competition for this interim contract.

CACI is the only source that can perform the necessary services for the continuation of service contract. CACI has all of the personnel, including key personnel with the required experience and training, as well as facilities and current licenses for the Ticket Management System and telephone service to perform the short duration requirement. CACI is a responsible source that currently understands the requirements of the Performance Work Statement and can fulfill the requirements on this interim basis, without interruption. Moreover, in order for other potential sources to fulfill this immediate need through a competitive solicitation, an acquisition lead-time of 250+ days, to include the three-month transition period, would be required. Accordingly, the most efficacious course of action is to issue a continuation contract. Doing so will ensure continuation of the services to DoD travelers while allowing adequate time for DHRA AMD to finalize the competitive award.

The Government was poised to award the follow-on contract and complete transition before the end of the current contract;

however, the Government shutdown delayed the contract award, creating an unusual and compelling urgency for a continuation of services contract. The follow-on contract award was delayed by several months due to the shutdown which created a gap in service. This continuation of service contract will continue performance of TAC services enabling transition to be performed for the follow-on contract. The transition period is critical to TAC performance as the following activities must be performed: hiring personnel, completing new hire contractual training, completing the requisite background checks for personnel, procuring the telephone and ticket management systems, training new personnel on the systems and processes, obtaining all Common Access Cards, and logging outstanding, unresolved tickets. These transition tasks are necessary to deliver timely customer service and travel support to 2.9 million Department of Defense travelers, including new military recruits. The TAC provides assistance and troubleshooting of the Defense Travel System (DTS), which is necessary for travelers to schedule and update itineraries. The TAC also assists travelers with voucher submission, payment issues, provides travel card reviews, and assesses policy requirements.

If there were a lapse in TAC support, it would impact Department of Defense and new military recruit travel, which would cause serious harm to the Government by limiting or preventing essential travel and potentially stranding travelers in remote locations.

Any lapse of TAC support would also cause financial harm, as travelers and their Government credit cards may not receive reimbursement for completed travel because voucher and payment processing are also supported by TAC. Lacking TAC voucher submission and payment support, the Government credit card delinquency rate would increase, resulting in incurrence of fees and the cancellation of Government travel cards. This could result in no travel significantly impacting Government missions.

V. Demonstration that the contractor's unique qualifications or nature of the acquisition requires the use of the authority cited above (applicability of authority).

CACI is the only source capable of realistically performing this requirement without a break in services and without a transition period. Numerous actions are required during the transition period including hiring the significant amount of personnel ( ); ensuring key personnel meet minimum PWS experience requirements, processing background checks to obtain system access; obtaining the Ticket Management System and telephone systems; and transferring the current TAC telephone number. Training of hired personnel also occurs during transition and includes training on travel regulations, internal policies and procedures, escalation of calls, how to operate the telephone and ticket management systems, and transferring all information from the current contract to the follow-on contract.

This proposed action is for professional services whereby CACI already possesses personnel with the necessary qualifications, accesses, knowledge of policies and procedures, knowledge of escalation of calls, access to prior call information, as well as possessing licenses to the ticket management and telephone systems. As CACI has the current contract, it would be seamless for CACI to maintain the TAC telephone number which has been utilized since inception of the call center and is required to be maintained for the follow-on contract. In addition, the PWS requires Key Personnel positions to have specific years of experience in various aspects, all of which existing contractor staff have and can continue to apply. CACI personnel providing assistance to travel related policies and regulations have the requisite knowledge and experience to continue providing that support to callers. All other help desk personnel can continue to apply their knowledge of travel and voucher processes, escalation, and can provide call response time in an efficient manner. Contractor personnel perform the PWS requirements and have provided satisfactory performance metrics which indicates continued, satisfactory performance. In addition, having these qualified personnel continue to perform TAC services will save the Government the time and costs of transition including the need to hire, train, and apply for background checks (to obtain Common Access Cards). Transition costs vary but can be up to the cost of full performance. The savings with not having a transition are estimated up to the value of the three-month contract at . This also ensures there is continuity of the services. As stated previously, to fulfill this immediate need through a competitive solicitation, an acquisition lead-time of 250+ days, to include a three-month transition period, would be required.

CACI has been performing the current effort and has the necessary management and expertise to continue to perform the services and provide continuity until the follow-on contract can be awarded and transitioned.

VI. Description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable.

The follow-on contract is currently being competed under solicitation H9821025RE014 which was issued as a full and open competition on SAM.gov. Award is anticipated in the upcoming month(s). The solicitation has received competition. This action will support the award and transition of the follow-on contract.

VII. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

The Contracting Officer will determine a fair and reasonable price for the three-month continuation contract, and FAR Clause 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services, utilizing proposal analysis techniques found at FAR 15.404-1, including comparison with historical prices, comparison to the Independent Government Cost Estimate, and/or comparison with published price lists.

VIII. Description of the market research conducted and the results, or a statement of the reasons market research was not conducted.

A Sources Sought was issued on 13 November 2023 to the General Services Administration (GSA) Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) as well as to SAM.gov. The Government received eight responses to the Sources Sought. Of the eight responses, six were determined capable. Of the capable firms, five were small businesses. Based upon the responses received and the capability determination as well as additional market research, Request for Quotation (RFQ) 1799239 was issued to the GSA MAS on 26 November 2024.

The Government performed additional market research and contacted small businesses that expressed interest and responded to the Sources Sought to obtain feedback on why they did not respond to the RFQ. Various reasons were identified including the need for teaming, the time required to propose, and the significant amount of personnel that would need hired to support the effort. The Government made some adjustments to the PWS, including extending transition from two-months to three-months, and it revised the acquisition strategy. Market research indicated that two-months was not enough time to hire the significant amount of personnel required ( ), complete necessary background checks to obtain system accesses, set up new licenses and systems, and transfer system information from the incumbent contractor the follow-on contractor. Since the prior acquisition through NITAAC and GSA MAS also , the Government revised its acquisition strategy and Solicitation H9821025RE014 was posted to the Government Point of Entry, www.sam.gov as an unrestricted procurement to solicit maximum competition. Seven offers were received in response to the solicitation. Award is pending.

While other firm(s) may be capable of performing the effort, they would require a three-month transition period to ensure the necessary transfer of legacy information, hire necessary personnel, and perform all training requirements.

IX. Any other facts supporting the use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

Not applicable.

X. List of sources, if any, that expressed interest in the acquisition.

Not applicable. Seven firms have expressed interest in the follow-on procurement; however, they would not be able to support this effort in the timeframe required as outlined in Section V above.

XI. A statement of the actions, if any, the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition before making subsequent acquisitions for the supplies or services required.

This procurement action is for a three-month continuation contract to ensure uninterrupted service once the current contract, HHSN316201200009W / H9821020F0240, ends on 26 February 2026. Actions to increase future competition are already underway via the follow-on procurement which was solicited as full and open competition on SAM.gov under solicitation number H9821025RE014. The solicitation has received competition.

XII. Certification by the Contracting Officer.

As evidenced by my signature above, I have determined this document to be both accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

XIII. Certification by the technical/requirements personnel.

As evidenced by my signature above, I certify that any supporting data contained herein, which is my responsibility, is both accurate and complete.