SOW_Human_TranslationServicesFY2026OneYrPlusOptionBackground.docx

Scope of Work for Contract Translation Services

BACKGROUND: The International Boundary and Water Commission, United States and Mexico, is responsible for applying the boundary and water treaties between the two countries and settling differences that arise in the application of the treaties. The Commission is a diplomatic and engineering agency that operates and maintains international storage dams, flood control projects, international sanitation projects, water infrastructure, and boundary demarcation features, among other responsibilities. The Foreign Affairs Office of the United States Section of the International Boundary and Water Commission (USIBWC) is responsible for translating documents received from the Mexican Section of the Commission from Spanish to English for use and action by USIBWC personnel. The USIBWC is seeking a contract translator to perform these services.

CONTACT: Sally Spener, 915-832-4175, sally.spener@ibwc.gov

REQUESTED SERVICES:

1. The contractor will translate documents from Spanish to English following the procedures and formatting guidelines established by the USIBWC Foreign Affairs Office. Documents requiring translation include:

· Letters received from the Mexican Section of the Commission, typically 1-3 pages in length. Most include technical descriptions of engineering projects and contracts. 15-20 letters per month.

· News articles from Mexican media sources regarding boundary and water issues, typically 1-3 pages in English, 2-4 per week.

· International agreements related to boundary and water issues, including Joint Reports of the Principal Engineers, Joint Memoranda, and Minutes, 3-20 pages in length, fewer than 12 per year.

· Technical reports, scopes of work, administrative procedures, meeting agendas, PowerPoint presentations, 1-50 pages in length, about 3-4 per month.

· Reviewing and comparing existing translations in English and Spanish to check the accuracy and to make recommendations for corrections, improvement, or clarity. 1-10 pages, about twice per month.

· Translation from English to Spanish of a presentation or report. On rare occasion, perhaps once per year.

2. The contractor will format the translations, generally using MSWord or PowerPoint, to match the format of the original document. Formatting elements could include such things as PowerPoint graphics, colors, and diagrams. Tables in MS Word, including colors, shading, alignment, and fonts. Graphics in technical reports to include graphs, tables, and illustrations.

3. The contractor will maintain records of documents translated in accordance with Foreign Affairs Office procedures and filing conventions, on a shared OneDrive folder. This includes maintaining spreadsheets of translated documents including such information as file name, letter number, date received, recipient, etc. The contractor will also track the correspondence on the agency spreadsheets by establishing links for letters referenced in the incoming correspondence and links for U.S. Section letters that are being responded to.

4. The contractor will distribute translated documents to USIBWC personnel via email. Incoming letters from the Mexican Section shall be translated and distributed as a priority, generally within one day of receipt.

5. The contractor will use MemoQ and machine translation or other machine translation service, provided by USIBWC, to assist with the translations and to ensure consistent translations of recurring words of phrases. The contractor will update these services/databases with new documents that are translated. The contractor must have the skills, training, and ability to independently be the agency subject matter expert on MemoQ and/or translation memory, and machine translation.

6. Attend webinar staff meetings to review translation assignments (generally once per week).

7. Attend webinar meetings with personnel from the U.S. and Mexican Sections of the IBWC to review documents in English and Spanish to provide expert input to assure accurate translations. About once per quarter.

8. The contractor will work offsite at a contractor facility that will include necessary office equipment, such as phone service, computer, email, internet service, dictionaries, and office furniture provided by the contractor and not billed separately to the USIBWC.

9. The contractor will be available during normal U.S. business hours.

10. Contractor will treat documents translated as confidential and will not discuss or share them with others outside of the USIBWC unless expressly authorized by the USIBWC to do so.

11. Because of limited software licenses, limited access to agency records via SharePoint, specialized and recurring agency vocabulary, special training that the agency will provide the translator on its spreadsheet tracking systems, it is not feasible for an agency to farm out the work to multiple translators. The contractor must assure that the work will be performed by no more than 2 individual translators assigned to this contract.

USIBWC Responsibilities To facilitate the work of the contract translator, USIBWC will provide the following:

· English- Spanish glossaries of water and engineering terminology commonly used by the Commission.

· Access to MemoQ and/or machine translation services at no additional cost to the contractor.

· Access to historical files of previously-translated documents via the USIBWC web page or One Drive/SharePoint.

· Access to USIBWC Foreign Affairs Office translation logs/spreadsheets, folders, and files via One Drive/SharePoint.

· Training on USIBWC translation logs/spreadsheets procedures and systems in order to perform this part of the contract satisfactorily.

Required experience and technical capabilities Translator(s) assigned to this contract must have a documented track record of performing translations from Spanish to English of complex documents, such as contracts, legal briefs, international agreements, engineering specifications, water studies, or scientific reports. Translator(s) assigned to this contract must be able to demonstrate a high level of competency in Spanish to English translation by verifying such things as: previous work for the Department of State as a Spanish to English translator, submission of technical documents the contractor has translated from Spanish to English (including both the original Spanish as well as the English translation), client references in the water, engineering, or scientific field, other accreditations or certifications as a Spanish to English translator.

Other Requirement Translator(s) must undergo a Non-Sensitive, Public Trust background Investigation. It will include being fingerprinted, submitting several documents and a security questionnaire, and having their background investigated goIng back as far as 10 years. Although these investigations can take months to be fully completed, we are typically able to provide an employment determination (and start date) within 2-3 weeks once the initial screening process is complete. The USIBWC will submit the Contractor Vetting & Position Designation Record (PDR) Request Form to the USIBWC security office.

Performance Period January 1, 2026 – December 31, 2026, with one option year thereafter, through December 31, 2027 as indicated in the table below.

CLIN Structure

TOTAL

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