SOW_for_ASL_10_5_16.docx

Statement of Work Region VI / DR-4277 (Louisiana)

Statement of Work Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) Severe Storms and Flooding DR-4277 (Louisiana) American Sign Language (ASL) Interpreter Services and Communication Access Real-Time Translation (CART)

1.0 REFERENCES

· Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (Public Law 93-288, as amended, 42 U.S.C. 5121-5207).

· Post-Katrina Emergency Management Reform Act of 2006 (Public Law 109-295) Oct.4 2006.

2.0 BACKGROUND

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has a need for qualified American Sign Language (ASL) Translators/Interpreters and Communication Access Real-time Translation (CART) services for the deaf or hard of hearing to comply with the Americans with Disabilities (ADA) Act for ensuring accessible communication during events, meetings, trainings or other events where FEMA is participating in support of DR-4277-LA recovery efforts. The Project Officer for these services is Rachel Cooper rachel.cooper@fema.dhs.gov. The Contracting Officer is Lisa G. Thibodeaux, lisa.thibodeaux@fema.dhs.gov.

3.0 SCOPE

The assignments shall be located within FEMA’s DR-4277-LA disaster Joint Field Office (JFO), three (3) Branch Offices, and JFO Annex. Services may be requested in the following Louisiana disaster declared Parishes: Tangipahoa, St. Helena, East Baton Rouge, West Baton Rouge, ascension, St. Martin, Iberia, East Feliciana, St. Landry, Iberville, Vermillion, Livingston, Lafayette, Acadia, Evangeline, and St. James.

The contractor shall provide five (5) qualified ASL translators to work on-site daily, and three (3) on-call translators for various ad-hoc meetings, training events, one-on-one appointments, business gatherings, or other disaster-related events as required during the regular business day. CART services shall be provided on an on-call basis up to, and not to exceed, 200 hours.

NAICS: 541930, Translation and Interpretation Services.

The period of performance is one (1) month, with the option to extend services as needed. The requirement will be for a fixed hourly rate, Monday through Saturday, from 8am up to 6:00pm with a ½ hour lunch. Lunch time will not be invoiced. Contractor personnel will be paid for actual time worked each day. On-Call interpreters shall arrive no later than thirty (30) minutes prior to a scheduled assignment regardless of where the assignment is located. Attire is business casual. Work related mileage will be reimbursed if necessary within the disaster area if required by the individual event. Only mileage to and from the event/authorized location(s) will be reimbursed. Vehicles will not be provided by the Government; Contractor personnel must furnish their own transportation. Authorization for travel must be pre-approved by the Project Officer prior to the travel and will be reimbursed in accordance with the Government’s Federal Travel Regulations, current GSA rate. http://www.gsa.gov. If travel is approved by the Project Officer, the cost will be expensed against the travel contract line item (CLIN).

Reimbursement for Services – Ad Hoc Interpreter Requests:

The Project Officer will be responsible for coordinating and scheduling all ASL/CART ad hoc service requests and provide pertinent information related to the assignment with details including time, location, projected length of assignment, and point of contact at the event.

Requests for ad-hoc services shall be made by the Project Officer at a minimum of 24 hours prior to the assignment. Occasions may occur where the Project Officer is unable to provide the required 24 hour notice. The contractor shall have the right to refuse an assignment when less than 24 hour notice is given. The contractor’s refusal must be given within two (2) hours of the time the request was placed during the business day. No special rates shall be used for requests placed less than 24 hour notice. The ad hoc contractor personnel shall comply with, and shall be held to, all terms and conditions set out in the statement of work and contract.

Ad Hoc service requests that are cancelled by the Project Officer with less than four (4) hours of notice prior to the event, shall be reimbursed for two (2) hours. Ad hoc service requests cancelled with more than twenty-four (24) hours of notice prior to the event shall not be reimbursed. If an ad hoc interpreter service is cancelled less than twenty-four (24) hours prior to the event, the Project Officer and the contractor can mutually agree to reassign the ad hoc interpreter to another requested service covered by this Statement of Work (SOW) without incurring cancellation charges.

4.0 QUALIFICATIONS

The primary mode of sign language interpreting shall be translation between English-like signing and spoken English and/or interpreting between American Sign Language and spoken English, or translate Pidgin Signed English (PSE), Signed Exact English (SEE) or tactile sign language. If requested, the contractor must provide a sign language interpreter with strong voicing skills. Sign language interpreters are to conduct themselves in a professional manner. Minimum professional/personal qualifications:

· ASL/CART: Be a U.S. citizen or a foreign national who has been lawfully admitted for permanent residence.

· ASL: Fluency in American Sign Language or requested system depending on the effective communication access needed by the task orders.

· ASL: Certified/qualified in interpreting from English to ASL.

· ASL: Be registered with the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) and hold a certification of NIC (National Interpreter Certification) or Master or (RID) Comprehensive Skills Certification (CSC or equivalent state level certification).

· ASL: Comply with the Professional Code of Ethics established by RID Code of Professional Ethics.

· CART: Qualified/certified members in good standing of National Court Reporters Association (NCRA) or equivalent.

· CART: Have one (1) of the following certifications from NCRA or equivalent:

· CRR - Certified Real-Time Reporter

· CCP – Certified CART Reporter

· CBC – Certified Broadcast Captioner

SECURITY / BADGING:

Contractor personnel and language specialists shall meet the minimum background investigation security level requirements. All interpreters must have two (2) valid forms of government issued photo ID. The Project Officer will provide the Contractor with the requirements regarding accepted photo IDs, and badging process. During contract performance, the rights of ingress and egress, to and from any office for Contractor’s personnel, shall only be made available as deemed necessary by the Government. All contractor personnel, whose duties require their presence at any Government facility, shall be clearly identifiable by a distinctive badge furnished by the Government. The FEMA-issued badges shall be worn on the outer garments, above the waist, at all times. All badges shall be returned to the Project Officer upon termination of employment, or at the expiration of the period of performance. All on-site contractor personnel shall abide by security regulations applicable to that site.

SCHEDULE:

Closure of Federal Government due to Inclement Weather or Emergency: Interpreters will not report to work if the federal government is closed due to inclement weather or emergency. No cancellation fee or charges shall be assessed. The contractor will not bill the government for interpreter service hours when the government is closed due to inclement weather or emergency.

Other Unscheduled Federal Government Closures: In the event of an unscheduled closure of the federal government interpreters will not report to work or to their scheduled assignments. No cancellation fee or charges shall be assessed. The contractor will not bill the government for interpreter service hours when the government is closed.

Federal Holidays: Interpreter services may be required on federal holidays and weekends during a disaster declaration. If work is performed on holidays, the contractor shall bill for services performed.

Inclement Weather – Non-Closures: In the event of severe inclement weather or an emergency, service providers are responsible for calling FEMA’s Project Officer, and shall abide by the delay arrival policy pertaining to Federal employees established for the Joint Field Office. If the interpreter is not able to provide service, the contractor will not bill the government for interpreter service hours for the day(s)/hours.

In the event any or all of the interpreters are unable to come to work, the contractor is required to notify the FEMA POC. The contractor will be required to replace the interpreter(s). In the event, the contractor is unable to supply the Agency with replacement interpreters; the contractor will not bill the government for interpreter service hours when the contractor is not able to provide the interpreters.

5.0 ASSIGNMENT LOG

The Project Officer shall maintain a log of the time the order was placed, the job number, the date of the assignment, the start time of the assignment, the location, the anticipated duration, and a description of the event for each assignment given to the ASL/CART interpreters. The log shall be made available to the Contracting Officer (CO) for inspection.

6.0 EVALUATION OF SERVICES

The Contractor shall be solely responsible for the quality of services provided. The Contractor shall also be liable for Contractor employee negligence, and any fraud, waste, or abuse. Recipients of interpreter services and event POC may provide feedback on the quality of the services to the Project Officer and/or the Contracting Officer. Feedback will be provided to the contractor within twenty-four (24) hours of receipt of the feedback when necessary. The Contracting Officer and/or the Project Officer shall take appropriate action based on the feedback. Contractor personnel shall be dismissed at the discretion of the Project Officer or Contracting Officer if there are deficiencies in performance, ethical standards, dress code, timeliness, or if other quality standards are unsatisfactory. If dismissal is necessary, the contractor personnel shall only bill for actual time worked on the day of dismissal.

7.0 INVOICING

The contractor shall invoice on a monthly basis. The contractor shall bill the agency using the fixed hourly rate established in the contract. The invoice will include time records with names, dates, and number of hours of service provided each month for each service provider. The contractor shall only bill for hours of service actually worked during each billing cycle, as well as any mileage fees owed. Contractors shall follow the invoicing instructions outlined in the SOW and the contract. The invoice shall also include the contractor's business address, office phone, fax number, email address, and Contract Number.

8.0 EQUIPMENT – GOVERNMENT FURNISHED

Not Applicable

9.0 DELIVERY SCHEDULE

All work shall be effective beginning on the date of award through 30 days.

10.0 PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

Contractor personnel shall report to the FEMA JFO each day located at 415 N. 15th Street, Baton Rouge, LA. The Place of Performance for ASL services will be at each of the following:

Procurement Sensitive Data

FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY