Amendment 2 - Submitted Questions and Responses.pdf

HHS‐NIH‐NIDA‐SOL‐2021‐001

AMENDMENT 2

*The extended deadline for proposal submissions still remains as noted in Amendment 1*

The purpose of this Amendment 2 is to:

1. Provide responses to questions to the solicitation;

2. Provide an updated Section L;

3. Remove Canada from the Solicitation; the impacted sections are revised and now read as follows:

a. Article B.4.6 ‐ Primary Place of Performance

Per the Statement of Work, the primary place of performance is the Rockville‐Bethesda, Maryland area with requirements at other locations throughout the United States.

The NIH main campus is located at:

9000 Rockville Pike Bethesda, Maryland 20892

b. Attachment 3 ‐ Statement of Work

1. Section 1.3 Scope:

The Contractors shall independently provide scientific, operations, and professional administrative support services through a multiple award IDIQ contract to assist the NIH in meeting its operational objectives. Only NIH ICs will be able to use this contract.

To furnish these services to the NIH, the Contractors’ primary place of work shall only be in the United States. The United States is defined as the fifty (50) States, the District of Columbia, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and Wake Island. However, the Contractors may need to travel internationally. The Contractors will be required to obtain required visas as necessary in accordance with all applicable regulations.

This statement of work does NOT include clerical level administrative support, which is furnished by NIH’s Long‐Term Administrative Support Contract (LTASC) II contract, or other contract mechanisms. Further, this statement of work does NOT include obtaining legal advice or representation; however, the Contractors may use individuals who happen to be licensed attorneys to furnish services other than providing legal advice or representation. Additionally, this statement of work does NOT include obtaining services which are expressly listed as inherently governmental in the Office of Federal Procurement Policy (OFPP) Policy Letter 11‐01, Appendix A (Sep. 12, 2011).

2. K. PLACES OF PERFORMANCE: The primary place of work for most requirements shall be the Rockville/Bethesda, Maryland area with other principal places of work being at other locations throughout the United States. Further, the principal place of work for many requirements shall be in an NIH facility; however, some requirements may be performed elsewhere, such as at the Contractors’ facilities and remotely.

The NIH main campus is located at:

National Institutes of Health

9000 Rockville Pike

Bethesda, MD 20892

To give an offeror a better idea as to where services shall be provided, the following constitutes historical information as to where services were provided for the previous contract. Contract performance for the contract contemplated by this statement of work will not necessarily be the same as or similar to what is provided as follows:

Work State Total Work State Total Work

State Total

AZ 4 MI 3 TX 5

CA 10 MO 1 UT 2

CO 4 MT 24 VA 1

CT 2 NC 109 WA 3

FL 8 NJ 3 WI 1

GA 2 NY 4 TN 1

DE 4 OH 1 NM 1

KS 2 OR 1 MN 1

MA 10 PA 1

MD 1943 SC 1

4. Provide updated Attachments 1, 4, 15, and 16;

5. Provide PDF copies of Attachments 2, 6, 7 (same as 25) 8‐14, 19‐28, and 30 due to unavailable links;

6. Provide Excel versions of Attachments 16 and 26;

7. Provide past performance submission clarification as follows:

a. Section L.2.a.15.1 Past Performance Information has been updated.

b. As noted in several responses below, Offerors may up submit up to five (5) total contracts demonstrating their past performance.

Offerors should follow the instructions on page 83 of the Solicitation regarding past performance;

8. Confirm the Sample Task Order does not count towards page limitations;

9. Update Section M.3.2, bullet #7 as follows:

Invoicing. Offerors will be evaluated on their ability to accommodate a multi‐million‐dollar monthly payroll through their current resources or a line of credit over the term of the contract.

Please Note: The Government advises that offerors should closely review all Questions and Answers as some provisions of the solicitation were revised based on the Questions and Answers.

Question

RFP Section (if applicable)

Text Reference (if applicable) and Question

NIDA Response

1. Since the RFP is focused on the 2021 plan but the department do have a remote work policy in place to start the contracting work due to Pandemic?

The Government expects contracting work to start upon award as directed in the parent contract and individual task orders.

2. B.2 Would there be any effect in terms of rates or services in case the contractors are placed at the vendor's facility or different geographical location, other than Maryland?

In accordance with Article B.2., the hourly rates are ceiling price rates and contractors may, at their discretion, elect to propose lower hourly rates when responding to a request for a task order. Factors such as complexity of work, geographic locations, and security clearances authorize the Contracting Officer to negotiate Loaded Hourly Labor Rates suited to meet their specific task order requirements.

3. C.1 Since the contract has multi‐diciplane (sp) of the professional services, will it effect for the vendor to bid only for the partial services based on the past experience or combined efforts at once including subcontractors?

In accordance with Article C.1., Contractors are required to be able to perform the entire Statement of Work.

4. Attachment

It is part B of 3, since there is a rate sheet attached with all required skills set, will it be Ok for the vendor to fill only the rates sheet for the partial list based on prior expertise or all sheets must be filled?

In accordance with Attachment 5, the offeror shall complete the blank fields in the spreadsheet on Attachment 16, Labor Rates, Unit Prices and Other Direct Cost, and return the completed attachment as part of the offeror’s business proposal. Those fields require that the offeror provide its per hour labor rate for each labor category and skill level across all five (5) years of contract performance. The labor rates must be fully loaded, as in each per hour rate must include applicable costs for fringe benefits, overhead, General and Administrative (G&A), profit, etc. The labor rates an offeror provides in its proposal shall be incorporated into the contract as the schedule of maximum prices which an offeror could provide in response to task orders (only discounts are allowed). Consequently, the awardee will not be able to propose upward cost adjustments or profit mark‐up on top of its labor rates when it later proposes in response to each task order.

5. L.2.c.6 Small Business Subcontracti ng Plan

Is there a portion allocated for the Hubzone and/or Minority certified companies under this project?

This contract is not a set‐aside. In accordance with Section L:

HHS expects each procuring activity to establish minimum subcontracting goals for all procurements. The anticipated minimum goals for this RFP are as follows: 33% for Small Business; 5% for Small Disadvantaged Business; 5% for Women Owned Small Business; 3% for HUBZone Small Business; and 3% for Veteran Owned Small Business and Service‐Disabled Veteran‐Owned Small Business.

6. Does it effect from the contractors/employee initially selected for the project for an initial assignment but unable to join from the time of submission and the time to award due to changes on the consultants'

Contractors’ awarded the parent contract as well as task orders are expected to perform.

personal situation or the replacement of the consultant will be sufficient with the similar skills‐set.

7. M.2 Evaluation Factor M.2 states, in part:

For a price to be reasonable, it must represent a price to the government that a prudent person would pay when consideration is given to prices in the market. Normally, price reasonableness is established through adequate price competition, but may also be determined through cost and price analysis techniques as described in FAR 15.404.

There is likely to be a rigorous competition in response to this RFP, and “adequate price competition.” Will NIH accept proposals from firms that currently provide labor on a fixed hourly rate basis, but not on a cost‐reimbursable basis, and evaluate the price portion of these proposals using FAR 15.404 price analysis techniques?

Yes.

8. Attachment

If the answer Question #7 is “yes,” could an offeror elect not to complete the cost‐reimbursement style spreadsheet referred to in Attachment 1 of the RFP for labor, and only fill out the cost buildup section of this spreadsheet that pertains to Other Direct Costs?

Yes. Please see revised Attachment 1.

The narrative of the Business Proposal should be created in a PDF format that enables word searches to the maximum extent practicable. Forms and/or documents requiring signature(s) may be scanned, but must be merged into the Business Proposal PDF file. Additionally, the breakdown of proposed prices should be created in an Excel format using Attachment 16, which has been updated and provided in Excel format for ease of proposal submission.

9. The cost‐reimbursable style spreadsheet referenced in Attachment 1 states:

If your organization does not have negotiated rates, the following website contains information which will assist you in computing indirect rates: http://oamp.od.nih.gov/dfas/IdCSubmission.asp

This URL has been removed. Please see the revised Attachment 1.

The cited URL yields a 404 error. Can you please advise us on whom within NIH we can consult if we have questions about computing indirect rates?

10. Part II, Section I of the RFP (page 55) lists various types of clauses that might be included in a contract resulting from this RFP. The introductory text states “THE ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE OF THE

SUCCESSFUL OFFEROR(S) WILL DETERMINE THE SPECIFIC GENERAL

CLAUSE LISTING TO BE CONTAINED IN THE CONTRACT(S) AWARDED

FROM THIS RFP….” (all caps in original)

The balance of this section of the RFP lists different categories of clauses including, among others: (a) General Clauses for a cost‐ reimbursement services contract; and (b) General Clauses for a Time and Material or Labor Hour contract.

Consider a scenario under which an award is made to an offeror that does not currently provide labor on a cost‐reimbursable basis and only provides labor on a Time and Materials basis. In accordance with Part II, Section I, do we understand that if the offeror wins an award, the contract: (a) will not include cost‐reimbursement clauses that apply to labor and instead will include Time and Material clauses that apply to labor; and (b) the contract will include cost‐ reimbursable clauses only for Other Direct Costs?

In accordance with Section L.1.c.2 Type of Contract and Number of Awards, 2, it is anticipated that the award(s) from this solicitation will be a multiple‐year IDIQ contract with an anticipated five (5) year ordering period, and that primarily fixed price task orders with reimbursable travel costs will be used.

In accordance with FAR Part 16, task orders issued against these contracts can be Fixed Price, Cost‐Reimbursement and/or Time and Materials/Labor Hour type contracts.

Appropriate clauses will be included in resultant contract awards and/or task orders.

As noted in Article C.1., awarded Contractors are required to be able to perform the entire Statement of Work. That said, in accordance with Article G.4., Task Order Procedure, Contractors are not required to propose on all TORFPs.

11. Article B.2.c of the RFP states that the government will compete and issue task orders based on “Fully Loaded Fixed Labor Rates….” It is our understanding that when competing for task orders, contractors will not be required to provide cost build‐up information (e.g., breaking out direct labor, indirect rates, and fee) for the labor portion of the proposed task order budget. Is that correct?

Yes, that is correct. The Government anticipates primarily fixed price task orders with reimbursable travel costs will be used.

12. In invoices for services performed under task orders, our understanding is that the labor portion of the invoice will show details on hours worked by labor category and the fixed hourly rates charged for each labor category; but the labor portion of the invoice

Yes.

will not have to display any types of cost buildup data. Is that correct?

13. It is our understanding the an ATO is requested within 30 days of contract award under NIST 800‐53 rev 4 moderate. Under this contract, we would handle very minimal amounts of PII but no classified data. Will we still be required to achieve an ATO?

There is an existing ATO. The current ATO documents would require updating within three months of award.

14. If we are required to achieve an ATO, how would a boundary for such data be established as no “systems” or applications control such small amounts of data?

There is an existing ATO. The current ATO documents would require updating within three months of award.

15. If we are required to achieve an ATO, would a provisional or interim ATO be acceptable at the end of the 90 day period?

There is an existing ATO. The current ATO documents would require updating within three months of award.

16. If we are required to achieve an ATO, is reimbursement for the investment to achieve an ATO available, and at what percentage?

There is an existing ATO. The current ATO documents would require updating within three months of award. It is an offerors business decision on how to propose its prices/costs.

Note that Sample Task Order 1 states that “The Contractor shall provide support for the transition, inventory, and support of Task Orders. To support the NIH this Task Order shall require the contractor to comply with the deliverables detailed in Section C and F of the parent contract.” There are IT deliverables specified in both Section C and F.

17. If no ATO is required for our layer of data, what compliance standard and audit response should we expect to receive so we can prepare and budget appropriately?

18. Section L.2.a (Page 79), Attachment 1 (Page 115)

Can you please confirm that we submit our proposal via the eCPS website per the instructions on page 115 as follows “Proposals must be submitted via the electronic Contract Proposal Submission (eCPS) website at https://ecps.nih.gov.

If yes, should we disregard instructions on page 79 as follows “Proposals will be typewritten, paginated, reproduced on letter size paper, printed/copied double‐sided, on at least 30 percent post‐ consumer fiber paper”?

Yes, offerors are to submit via the eCPS. The language listed on page 79, “Proposals will be typewritten, paginated, reproduced on letter size paper, printed/copied double‐sided, on at least 30 percent post‐consumer fiber paper” is not applicable for electronic commerce methods (FAR 4.302).

19. Attachment 4 (Section 1) (Page 1)

As this is an electronic submission via eCPS and there is no hard copy submission, should we identify our technical proposal electronic submission as “Original”?

Yes.

20. Section L.c.2 (Page 99) and Attachment 5, Section 1 (Page 1)

As mentioned in Section 1 of Attachment 5, we will be completing a signed copy of the NIH 2043 form. We will include a scanned copy of the form. Do we also need to include all the info asked for on page 99 under “proposal cover sheet” in Section 1 of Attachment 5?

Yes.

21. Section L2.c.11 (Page

109) and Section L.2.a.15 (Page 83)

Per RFP instructions on page 83, our understanding is that past performance information which is a list of up to the last 5 contracts in the past 3 years should be submitted in the business proposal. Is our understanding correct?

On page 109 there is a section on “pertinent contracts” completed within the last three years or currently in process, how is this list different from past performance list?

Yes, as part of the business proposal.

Please see revised Section L as L.2.c.11 has been removed for clarity. Offerors should follow the instructions on page 83 of the Solicitation regarding past performance.

22. Section L2.c.11 (Page

109) and Section 4.A of Attachment 4 (Page 2)

We will be submitting the Qualifications and Corporate Experience information required in the SOW in the business proposal per the instructions on Page 109. Given this, what additional information are you looking for in Section 4.A (Corporate Experience) of Attachment 4 in the technical proposal?

Please see revised Section L as L.2.c.2.11 has been removed for clarity.

23. Section J, Attachment 2, Page 67

We have submitted Attachment 2 (Proposal Intent Response Sheet) via email. Should we also include it in the technical proposal or in the business proposal?

That is not required.

24. Section L.2.b.1.a (Page 96)

Our understanding is that we should follow the four items (Objectives, Approach, Methods, Schedule) from the statement of work section as we see fit in our technical proposal when we describe our approach to various requirements. The four items are just for guidance while we draft our approach sections. Is our understanding correct?

Please see revised Section L as L.2.b.1 has been updated for clarity. Offerors should follow the instructions in accordance with Attachment 4, Additional Technical Proposal Instructions.

25. Attachment 5 (Page 2) and Attachment 29 (Page 2)

1. Should we submit our response to Sample Task Order 1 as part of the business proposal as mentioned in Section 5 of Attachment 5?

2. On page 2 of Attachment 29, under A and B, the instructions are to provide a response to the task order 1 both in the business and technical proposals.

3. Additionally, on page 96 of the RFP, the sample task order 1 is mentioned in the technical proposal instructions.

Please clarify whether we should submit the sample task order 1 in the technical proposal or business proposal or both?

If some part of the TO response goes in the technical proposal, does it count towards the page limit?

The sample task order proposal will contain both technical and cost/price information, which is why it is mentioned under both technical and business proposal sections.

The page limitations will not apply to the sample task order.

26. Section L.1.b (Page 98) and Attachment 4 (Page 2‐3)

1. Our understanding is the information asked for in Section L.1.b (Personnel) can be submitted in Section 4.C (Key Personnel Positions/Roles) and Section 4.L of the Attachment 4 technical proposal outline. Is our understanding correct?

2. Are key personnel resumes and commitment letters to be included in the technical proposal page count?

3. Are commitment letters needed for key personnel only?

4. If key personnel resumes and their commitment letters are not included in the page count, can we submit the key personnel resumes and all the commitment letters in an attachment at the end of the technical proposal?

1. Please see revised Section L and follow the instructions in Attachment 4.

2. No.

3. Yes.

4. Yes.

27. Section L.1.b (Page 98)

In the Additional Personnel section, our understanding is that we have to submit names and roles for account management personnel in management and overall contract implementation roles and not the actual candidates per the labor categories. Is our understanding correct?

Yes. That candidates per the labor categories will be done at the Task Order level.

28. NA How many awards does the government anticipate making?

The Government anticipates approximately 3 awards;

however, the final number will be based on the results of the competition and is undetermined at this time.

29. NA Is only the prime offeror expected to integrate with the STARS system, or are the subcontractors required to develop their integration?

The Prime Contractors are responsible for this requirement.

30. Attachment

9 (HHS

Section 508 Product Assessment Template)

What product/tool should the Offeror consider while completing the attachment 9 template? Is it the system we will use to integrate with the STARS application or something else? Please specify.

It is the Offeror’s discretion. In accordance with Section M, Offerors should consider for all electronic and information technology (EIT) products and services developed, acquired, maintained, or used under this contract/order, including EIT deliverables such as electronic documents and reports. So yes, offerors should consider the system will be used to integrate with STARS application.

31. Attachment 30 (52.204‐ Representati on)

The link to Attachment 30, which is for reference, is not working.

Could you please share the updated link?

Please see the revised attachment.

32. Attachment 11 (Small Business Subcontracti ng Plan)

As this is an IDIQ contract, our understanding is the $ value planned to be subcontracted in the SB subcontracting plan can be included as TBD which we will then update for every task order on the IDIQ in compliance with HHS’ subcontracting goals. Is our understanding correct?

This is an IDIQ contract; however, NIDA will want to see proposed goals for the entire program in your submitted plan.

33. NA We noticed section numbering that is different in the body of the RFP and in the TOC. For example, in Section L, the subsection on “Certification of Filing and Payment of Taxes” is numbered as section 13 in the RFP on page 83 but it shows up as section 12 in the TOC.

Should we follow the numbering in the RFP and disregard the numbering in the TOC?

Yes.

34. Would NIH be willing to extend the deadline of the responses due to the holidays and the large amount of labor categories being requested?

Yes. Please see Amendment 1.

35. could you provide excel versions of Attachments 15 and 16 to bidders at your earliest convenience?

We will provide an excel version of Attachment 16. Please see the newly provided attachments.

36. Attachment 5: Additional Business Proposal Instructions, Section 3 and Attachment 16: Labor Rates, Unit Prices and Other Direct Costs (page 129)

Will the Government accept the spreadsheet in Attachment 16 Labor Rates to be completed and provided with the Business Proposal as a separate MS Excel file?

Please use the newly provided attachment 16.

37. Attachment 1: Packaging and Delivery of Proposals (page 116)

Will the Government allow smaller fonts in tables, figures, and graphics as long as the text is legible?

No.

38. Attachment 1: Packaging and Delivery of Proposals (page 116)

Will the Government consider allowing resumes to be provided as an appendix and excluded from the 50 page limit?

Yes.

39. Attachment 15 and Attachment 16 (pages 131 and 152)

Will the Government please provide Functional Responsibilities, Minimum/General Experience, and Minimum Education requirements associated with the Maintenance Technician labor category identified in Attachment 16?

Yes, please see the revised Attachment 15.

40. M.3.

TECHNICAL

EVALUATION

FACTORS, 2.

Management Operations

a. With the expected contract start of 4/14/2021 and many of the current task orders on the current (STOPS) contract expiring in 7/2021, can the Government please provide additional insight that would inform offerors on how to address the transition of 2,250 individuals in a multiple‐award

The incumbent has existing task orders issued through the current contract expiration date (7/13/2021).

With the expected new contract to be awarded by 4/14/2021, and in accordance with the ordering procedures in Section G

Attachment 3 Statement of Work, 2.0 General Requirement s, N.

Transition and Succession (pages 112‐ 113 and 124) scenario (i.e., for a transition of individuals to occur, how task orders will be issued or competed)?

b. What is the expected or required transition period?

c. Are incumbent and new TOs expected to be issued simultaneously during any transition of individuals?

d. Should the transition and succession plan address the IDIQ level transition, TO transitions, or both?

e. Would the Government provide more detail on the anticipated number of initial task orders during the transition period, the timing of TO release/award, and expected average FTE count per TO.

of the RFP, NIDA expects to compete these orders for services beyond 7/13/2021.

41. Attachment 29, Part II:

OFFEROR’s

RESPONSE

TO T.O.

REQUEST

FOR

PROPOSAL

(page 276)

Part II: OFFEROR’s RESPONSE TO T.O. REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL states, “The offeror may attach additional sheets to this form to present requested data.” Does Government have a preferred format for industry to present their Sample TO 1 pricing within the parameters already outlined in the solicitation or is it up to offerors?

For Sample Task Order 1, the format is up to offerors.

42. Attachment 4, Section 4:

M:

Management Requirement s (page 126)

C. Key Personnel Positions/Roles states "if consultants and/or subcontractors are proposed, include a plan to manage, coordinate, and oversee the work performed by consultants and/or subcontractor(s)."

Question: Will the Government please clarify that a subcontracting plan should be proposed in this section only if a consultant and/or subcontractor is proposed as key personnel? If no subcontractors or consultants will be proposed as key, is it acceptable to place a subcontracting plan in a separate section addressing "I.

Subcontracts"?

This portion on Attachment 4, Section 4 M (page 126) under C.

relates to Key Personnel Positions/Roles.

Offerors should note the Small Business Subcontracting Plan requirement (page 102).

43. M.3.

TECHNICAL

EVALUATION

FACTORS, 2.

Per Attachment 5, the Small Business Subcontracting Plan is required as part of the Business Proposal. However, Section M Technical Evaluation Factors, Item 3 states that the Small Business

The Small Business Subcontracting Plan is to be included as part of the business proposal.

Management Operations Attachment 5: Additional Business Proposal Instructions, Section 3 PDF pg 113 PDF pg 130

Subcontracting Plan will be evaluated as a Technical Evaluation Factor.

Will the Government please clarify if the Small Business Subcontracting Plan is to be included as part of the Technical Proposal or the Business Proposal?

The information presented in the plan as well as offerors’ intended approach to maximizing Small Business participation while ensuring a seamless customer experience at both the parent contract and individual Task Order level will be evaluated as part of the technical evaluation.

44. Page 276, Att 29 ‐ Sample Task Order 1, Part I B. para 1

Please provide additional detail associated with “the transition, inventory and support of Task Orders”. Does Transition and inventory mean that existing paper task orders require digitization and entry into the STARS Appian Application by the contractor? If yes, please quantify the number of task orders and related task order amendments to be entered.

Offerors will be responsible for awarded orders under their contract.

45. Page 276, Att 29 ‐ Sample Task Order 1, Part I B. para 2

Please clarify the timeline for “the Contractor shall successfully integrate with the NIH‐developed web services”.

Since the Period of Performance for the task order is 12 months, will the Contractor be involved in incremental system integration and updates for the entire 12 months, or will system development and integration be fully completed by May 2021?

The Contractor shall meet with the STARS Office and the ITB technical team to organize integration with the STARS automation application within the stipulated timeframe and ensure integration before the Go‐Live date in May 2021. The Contractor shall include a schedule and plan for this activity as part of the Project Kickoff Meeting as noted in the Sample Task Order.

The Period of Performance for this Sample Task Order covers reporting requirements and deliverables in Section C and F for the first 12 months.

46. Page 276, Att 29 ‐ Sample Task Order 1, T.O Title

Which Administrative and Support services are within the scope of this TO versus other future TOs?

Services required to support for the transition, inventory, and support of Task Orders. To support the NIH, this Task Order shall require the contractor to comply with the deliverables detailed in Section C and F of the parent contract for the first 12 months.

47. Section C, Article C2., D, Pg.10

Level 5: Public Trust ‐ Moderate Risk: States that Contractor/subcontractor employees will be assigned to Level 5 positions with no previous investigation and approval shall undergo a Suitability Determination and a Minimum Background Investigation (MBI), or a Limited Background Investigation (LBI).

Will all employees under this contract work with a clearance of Public Trust Level 5 or only the IT portion of the contract? Is there a possibility that there may be requirements for Secret or Top Secret clearance in the future?

There is the possibility that there may be requirements for a higher clearance, but that will be specified at the task order level.

48. Attachment 3, Pg. 6, Section K

States that the primary place of work for most requirements will be Rockville/Bethesda, Maryland with other principal places of work being at other locations throughout the United States, and a few requirements establish places of work in Canada. Additionally, the solicitation states that the principal place of work for many requirements shall be in an NIH facility; however, some requirements may be performed elsewhere, such as at the Contractors’ facilities and remotely. Are these employees occasionally traveling to other campuses, in Maryland and/or multiple states and Canada? If required to travel, how frequently would travel occur?

The contractors may be requested to travel to another NIH location, depending on the tasks and requirements outlined in their SOW. It would be difficult to estimate in advance the frequency of these requests. Please note that all Canada references have been removed from the Solicitation.

49. Section G, Article G.2

References Key Personnel but does not state which positions are consider Key Personnel. Will NIH clarify Key Personnel positions, and will resumes and Letters of Intent be required as part of the proposal submission?

Section G, Article G.2 is intentionally left blank. It will be filled in at contract award.

See Section M and Attachment 4 for additional information on Key Personnel.

50. Business Proposal‐ Page 115, Section B.2

Does the excel spreadsheet “Breakdown of Proposed Estimated Costs (plus Fee) Spreadsheet” have to be completed for both the IDIQ 5‐ year proposal/contract and for the Sample Task Order 1?

Please see the revised Attachment 1. Sample Task Order 1 price information should be included in the business proposal.

51. Section J, Links/attachments Section J page 67 do not open or if opens it says that the page was not found. Could the government send/upload these documents?

Yes. Please see the revised attachments.

52. We could not open links/attachments for the following:

Attachment 2‐ indicates page not available Attachment 6‐ does not allow access Attachment 7‐ indicates page not found Attachment 8‐ page not found Attachment 9‐ indicates page not available Attachment 10‐ indicates page not found Attachment 12‐ indicates page not found

Please see the revised attachments.

53. If this is a new requirement, is it a consolidation of other existing contracts? Are there are incumbent personnel?

This is a recompletion of an existing requirement and not a consolidation. The current contract expires July 13, 2021.

There are Task Orders for services under that contract through July 13, 2021.

54. If this is a consolidation of contracts, will there be displaced workers due to the consolidation, and if so, what positions will they be filling?

This is not a consolidation of contracts.

55. Page 101 – Requirement s for Certified Cost or Pricing Data

The section L cost instructions include the typical RFP language related to Certified Cost or Pricing Data and Other Than Certified Cost or Pricing Data from FAR 52.215‐20.

a. Please confirm the Government expects enough independent price competition such that there is no requirement for offerors to submit certified cost or pricing data at the time of proposal submission?

b. Given the number of offers that will likely bid on this contract does the Government require offerors to submit fully disclosed pricing that shows the full build‐up of direct labor, fringe benefits, overhead, and profit?

c. Please confirm that the Government only intends to award contracts based on the fully loaded rates submitted by winning prime contractors and that the Government does not plan to have approved labor rates for proposed subcontractors (we assume that prime contractors will bill the Government based on their

a. The Government anticipates adequate competition.

b. No, the Government is not requiring offerors to submit fully disclosed pricing for the labor. In accordance with Attachment 5, the offeror shall complete the blank fields in the spreadsheet on Attachment 16, Labor Rates, Unit Prices and Other Direct Cost, and return the completed attachment as part of the offeror’s business proposal. Those fields require that the offeror provide its per hour labor rate for each labor category and skill level across all five years of contract performance. The labor rates must be fully loaded, as in each per hour rate must include applicable costs for fringe benefits, overhead, General and Administrative (G&A), profit, etc. The labor rates an offeror provides in its proposal shall be incorporated into the contract as the schedule of maximum prices which an offeror could provide in individual set of approved loaded rates under the prime contract, and prices paid to subcontractors will be subject to negotiation between the Prime and its Subcontractors and the Government will not be involved in approving Subcontractor bill rates to the Prime contractor)?

d. Assuming the Government will only be awarding contracts with approved Prime contractor loaded rates, does the Government require proposed subcontractors to also submit detailed pricing (either as part of the prime’s offer or directly to the Government if the subcontractors want to maintain the confidentiality of their rate build‐ups)?

e. If yes to the question immediately above, does the Government require proposed subcontractors to submit proposed subcontract rates against all labor categories in the RFP or can they submit labor rates against a subset of labor categories as agreed with their Prime contractor partner?

response to task orders (only discounts are allowed).

Consequently, the awardee will not be able to propose upward cost adjustments or profit mark‐up on top of its labor rates when it later proposes in response to each task order.

c. Confirmed.

d. It is offerors business decision on how to present is fully burdened rates. As noted in b. above the Government expects to set ceiling rates with prime contractors.

e. It is the Offeror’s business decision.

Please also see revised Section L.

56. RFP

Attachment 5, page 2 – Profit Margins and Indirect Cost Rates for Other Direct Costs

The Business Proposal Assumptions in this section indicate there will be some other direct costs (ODCs) for activities such as travel, consultants, occupational health testing and immunizations, etc.

Please confirm the direct costs for these ODCs will be covered in individual task orders and that no direct cost pricing related to ODCs (such as plug values) is required in the RFP (other than whatever costs may need to be included in the fixed price sample task order in RFP Attachment 29)?

Yes, this will be determined at the task order level. Please also see the updated Attachment 16.

57. Attachment 16 – Labor Category Pricing

Requirement to provide a Loaded Hourly Rate for each category. Are offerors required to propose a price against all labor categories or will the Government consider offers from companies that want to focus on specific areas of support?

If the Government will consider offers from companies that don’t propose a price against all labor categories, is there a threshold number of categories the Government wants priced to be considered for award?

The Government requires contractors to be able to perform the entire Statement of Work and propose pricing for each category.

As noted earlier this is a re‐competition of an existing award where the entire Statement of Work was required.

58. Attachment 16 – Labor Category Pricing

Column requiring “Proposed Loaded On‐Call Rate; Please confirm our assumption that categories requiring On‐Call rates should simply list these rates and that the Loaded On‐Call pricing should not be included in the dollar value on the far right of Attachment 16 that appears to require only the standard Loaded Rate to be multiplied by the number of FTE and PTE hours? Please clarify what the Government wants if this assumption is not correct.

For proposal purposes, assume that this rate should only include hours worked. For column I, please only use the loaded rate multiplied by the number of FTE & PTE hours.

59. Attachment 16 – Labor Category Pricing

Column requiring “Proposed Loaded On‐Call Rate; With regard to the Loaded On‐Call Rates, does the Government intend this to be a rate charged for the hours while an employee of the contractor is not at work but is subject to being on‐call (e.g., they have remain available overnight work if needed), or is this a rate to be charged for work performed when an employee is called in to work outside their normal work schedule? Or both? Please clarify the Government’s expectations regarding the on‐call rate?

For proposal purposes, assume that this rate should only include hours worked. For column I, please only use the loaded rate multiplied by the number of FTE & PTE hours.

60. Attachment 16 – Labor Category Pricing

Does the Government have a spreadsheet version of Attachment 16 with pre‐populated formulas it will provide offerors for use on this proposal?

Please see the newly provided Attachment 16.

61. Page 7 – Article B.5 and Page 25

– Article G.5

Requirement for contractors to post their labor rates on their individual websites. Given that the Government expects to compete work under this contract through future competitively bid contracts why is the Government requiring contractors to publicly post their pricing for other competitors to view? The stated purpose for this requirement as listed in Article G.5 is to allow contractors to communicate with potential customers regarding the contractor’s ability to provide support services under the contract. We can understand the benefit to the Government of requiring the contractors to have a webpage dedicated to allowing communication with potential customers regarding services under the contract, but labor category pricing is proprietary and will be used by the companies in the competitive task order bidding process. We request the Government reconsider the requirement that contractors make

The Government requires the fully loaded rates for Government customer estimation and ordering. While rate build‐up (for example – direct salary, indirect costs, and fees) are proprietary, fully burdened price lists and rates are allowable.

See GSA Schedules or other Multiple Award Contracts for Reference (NIH NITAAC Contract Vehicle).

their prices publicly available and instead require that they make them available to Government customers upon request.

62. Page 126 ‐

RFP

Attachment 4; Section 3:

Human Resources Lifecycle Approach

Under the expiring contract it is our understanding the incumbent contract is afforded office space at NIH for management of this contract. Does the Government anticipate the prime contractors will be provided any space at NIH for project management staff involved in managing the contractor’s employees working at NIH facilities?

No.

63. P. 75, c. Type of Contract and Number of Awards

Could the government please specify the anticipated number of awards to be issued under this Multiple Award IDIQ?

While the final number will be based on the results of the competition, the Government anticipates approximately 3 awards.

64. P. 75, d. Task Orders Under Multiple Award Indefinite Delivery Contracts

Could the government please provide an estimate for the number of task orders that may be issued under this IDIQ?

In establishing an Indefinite‐Delivery, Indefinite Quantity, we do not have a set estimate.

65. P. 116, Attachment

1, II.

Formatting and Page limitations

The instructions for Formatting of Proposals mandate no more than 15 characters per inch and no more than six lines of text per vertical inch. Could the government please clarify if this format allows for single spaced text in the font Arial size 10?

This requirement has been removed. Single spacing is fine.

Please note the font size requirement remains.

66. P 124, Attachment 3, N.

Transition and Succession

Attachment 3 discusses the need for Contractors to describe their Transition Plan from the current contract to a new contract. As the government is planning on making multiple awards, Contractors may be required to transition over 2,000 individuals. The level of effort and complexity will vary greatly if the requirement is to transition a handful of individuals compared to thousands of individuals. Can the

As noted earlier, the incumbent contract expires on July 13, 2021. The Government anticipates needing the majority of these services to continue, so yes, contractors should be prepared to consider competing on all 2,000+ individuals (in accordance with ordering procedures – Section G). For government please provide a range of individuals who will be transitioned from one Contractor to another, based on the number of anticipated awards?

proposal purposes, please also see Columns C and D of the revised Attachment 16.

67. P. 37, Section B, Training

Is the Contractor to budget for the cost of the “Mandatory Training” and “Role‐Based Training” or will this training be covered by NIH?

It is an offeror’s business decision on how to budget for training. However, the Mandatory training referenced on page 37 is free.

68. P. 53, Article H.33.

Registration Fees for Conferences, Workshops and Meetings

In instances where a conference is applicable to the Task Order SOW, should the Contractor budget for the full conference estimated cost with the expectation that it would be offset later by the registration fees, or should the Contractor budget for the expected subsidized cost taking into account the anticipated registration fees up front?

Offerors should budget for the full conference estimated cost, including registration fees.

69. P. 67‐69, Part III, List of Documents, Exhibits and Other Attachments

Please provide updated links or copies of the following Attachments:

2, 6‐10, 12, 19‐28, 30. These attachments could not be found on the websites using the hyperlinks provided.

Please see the newly provided Attachments.

70. P. 82, 11.

Selection of Offerors‐ f

The solicitation states “The NIDA reserves the right to make a single award, multiple awards, or no awards..” Is there a chance NIH will make a single award or is it confirmed to be a multiple award IQC?

The Government intends for this contract to be awarded as aa multiple award contract.

71. P. 83, 15.

Past Performance Information

Should the applicant include subcontractor past performance information within one total list of 5 completed contracts and 3 current contracts for the entire consortium, or does the prime complete one list and each subcontractor completes their own list too?

It is a business decision for offerors.

Please see the revised Section L.2.a.15.1 Past Performance Information.

A list of up to the last five (5) contracts completed during the past three (3) years, and the last up to three (3) contracts awarded currently being performed that are similar in nature to the solicitation workscope. Contracts listed may include those entered into by the Federal Government, agencies of state and local governments and commercial concerns.

Offerors may also submit past performance information regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience or subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement when such information is relevant to the instant acquisition. For the purposes of this solicitation, a "major subcontract" is defined as any subcontract exceeding $700,000 in total cost.

72. P. 110, 12.

Subcontracto rs

Please confirm that all subcontractors are required to complete a full business proposal and there is not a threshold level for only major subcontractors?

Only Prime contractors are required to complete a full business proposal and Attachment 16. Please see the revised Section L as Section L.2.c.12.f has been removed.

73. P. 110, 12.

Subcontracto rs

Please confirm that the cost proposal should be a separate attachment and not incorporated as part of the letter of commitment as listed.

Please see the revised Section L as Section L.2.c.12.f has been removed.

74. P. 115, Attachment 1

Are subcontractors able to submit detailed budget information including indirect cost rates directly to NIH through the application portal to maintain certain aspects of confidentiality?

Please see the revised Attachment 1. The linked cost sheet previously within Attachment 1 has been removed and is no longer required.

75. P. 127, Attachment 4, Additional Technical Proposal Instructions

Attachment 4 requires the Contractor to have sufficient cash flow to manage a $24 million monthly payroll. This value appears to be most applicable in a situation where one contractor is implementing the entirety of the work. As this new mechanism will be a multi award IDIQ, and the level of effort is unknown, would NIH consider splitting this requirement up by Task Order, rather than at the contract level?

Please see revised Section M and Attachment 4.

76. P. 131, Will NIH please provide Attachment 16 in an Excel format?

77. P. 273, Attachment 17‐ Commitment to Set Profit Ceilings and Indirect Cost Rates for Travel Costs

Is this form to be completed by the Prime and all subcontractors, or the Prime only?

Prime only.

78. P. 276, Please confirm that a budget narrative is not required for the Sample Task Order budget.

It is the Offeror’s business decision.

79. Breakdown of Proposed Estimated Costs (plus Fee) with Excel Spreadsheet

The “Instructions” tab of the Excel budget template provided in Attachment 1 includes a contact name and email address to someone who can answer questions. Are applicants able to reach out to this person throughout the entire proposal period or is there a cut‐off date?

No longer applicable. Please see revised Attachment 1.

80. Ref. Section G.4, Section b., p.23.

Wherever possible, will the government issue Request for Task Order Request for Proposals (TORFP) that contain requirements for more than one full‐time equivalent (FTE) if the support need is for a given single NIH organization? For example, if NIH has a collected need for five (5) FTEs, will the government consider issuing one TORFP rather than five?

Yes, the Government will consider this.

81. Ref. Section

L, Section 1.c.1., p.75

It is anticipated that multiple awards will be made from this solicitation and that the award(s) will be made on/about April 14, 2021.” How many contract awards does the government anticipate making?

The Government anticipates approximately 3 awards;

however, the final number will be based on the results of the competition and is undetermined at this time.

82. Ref. Section L, Section 1.d.a.a.2., p.76

“Only one awardee is capable of providing the supplies or services required at the level of quality required because the supplies or services ordered are unique or highly specialized.” How will the government make such determination?

In accordance with FAR 16.505 Ordering.

83. Ref. Section L, Section 1.d.a.c.2., p.76

“Contractors will be provided an adequate time to prepare and submit responses based on the Contracting Officer's consideration of the estimated dollar value and complexity of proposed task order.”

Would the government consider establishing a standard response time (i.e., 10 business days after receipt of TORFP) for TORFP to facilitate Task Order proposal planning?

84. Ref. Section L, Section 1.d.a.c.2., p.76

Given that the SOAR contract is an IDIQ, Task Order‐based contract with the government evaluating proposals based on technical and management approaches as well as relevant past performance contract citations, would the government consider eliminating the requirements at the Task Order proposal level to address topics such as experience and capability, risk management, quality assurance, management, and staffing plan since the government has already evaluated these topics at the IDIQ contract level and TO proposals require the submission of resumes and commitment letters, which are reflective the staffing plan?

Yes. Please also see the revised Section L.

85. Ref. Section L, Section 1.d.a.c.2., 8th bullet, p.76.

“References to evaluate past performance….” Please confirm references are to be provided for proposed personnel rather than corporate past performance references.

Yes, although as noted in question above this may not be required at Task Order level. Offerors should follow the instructions on page 83 of the Solicitation regarding past performance. Please also see revised Section L.

86. Ref. Section L, Section 2.a.15., p.83

“For the purposes of this solicitation, a "major subcontract" is defined as any subcontract exceeding $700,000 in total cost.” Please confirm that “major subcontractors” past performance may be utilized to fulfill the Past Performing Information requirements.

NIDA will evaluate an offeror’s proposed past performance information. As part of that and per the solicitation “Offerors may also submit past performance information regarding predecessor companies, key personnel who have relevant experience or subcontractors that will perform major or critical aspects of the requirement when such information is relevant to the instant acquisition.“ Please see the revised Section L. Offerors should follow the instructions on page 83 of the Solicitation regarding past performance.

87. General Based on the number of questions and expected…