JA (Border Wall two-phase design-build construction) 18 Jul 25 (002)_Redacted.pdf

Justification and Approval for

Other than Full and Open Competition

1. CONTRACTING AGENCY: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Los Angeles District (SPL), Contracting Division, 915 Wilshire Ave, Los Angeles, CA.

2. DESCRIPTION OF ACTION: In support of the President’s “Declaration of a National Emergency on the Southern Border of the United States,” dated January 20, 2025 (the “Presidential National Emergency Declaration”), and the unusual and compelling urgency directive received from the Secretary of Defense on May 9, 2025, approval is requested for a Justification and Approval (J&A) to down-select to a single offeror for award of a two-phase design-build construction, firm-fixed-price (FFP) contract to on an other than full and open competition/sole-source basis. The type of funds utilized will be 10 U.S.C. 2803, Emergency Construction (2803) funds. There are two planned options identified for the contract.

3. DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES/SERVICES: The purpose of this contract will be to provide design-build construction services in accordance with (IAW) the Presidential National Emergency Declaration identified above. Work effort will consist of design and construction of approximately sixteen (16) miles of new protective barrier, access gate installations and roadway improvements within the Barry M. Goldwater Range (BMGR) Sector, formerly referred to as Yuma 10/27, in Arizona. The new protective barrier will be thirty (30)-foot bollard fencing with five (5)-foot anti-climb plate including installation of access gates.

The estimated total value of the contract to be awarded under this J&A is $184 Million.

The period of performance for the design-build contract is anticipated to be less than twelve (12) months in total. Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.302-2(d)(l)(ii) limits the period of performance to one (1) year, including all options, unless the head of the agency determines that exceptional circumstances apply. In this case, performance is expected to be less than one (1) year.

4. AUTHORITY CITED: Title 10 USC § 3204(a)(2), as implemented by FAR 6.302-2, Unusual and Compelling Urgency.

5. REASON FOR AUTHORITY CITED: In support of Presidential National Emergency

Declaration identified above the agency's need for the supplies or services is of such an unusual and compelling urgency that the government would be seriously injured unless the agency is permitted to down-select the most highly qualified firm for participation in Phase II and negotiate price on a sole-source basis with the chosen firm.

Justification: The President has determined a national emergency exists at the southern border of the United States. As such, SPL requires the ability to award a sole-source contract to a responsible contractor that can begin work immediately. As outlined in the memorandum from the Secretary of Defense, “I have also determined that this military construction project is so urgent that deferral of the project for inclusion in the next Military Construction Authorization Act would significantly delay construction and impede the ability of the Department to protect military operations on BMGR and obtain full operational control of the border. . .These projects will be carried out under the direction and supervision of the Secretary of the Army, through the US Army Corps of Engineers as the DoD Construction Agent and in coordination with the USD (A&S) and the Secretaries of the Military Departments.” The urgency applied to the construction authority under 10 U.S.C § 2803 (Section 2803) does not in and of itself provide an exception to competition. SPL’s request to limit the number of sources from whom the government solicits Phase I proposals was approved on July 3, 2025. From those limited sources, it is now necessary to down-select to a single firm in Phase II so that SPL can conduct sole-source negotiations and award the contract within the four-week timeframe from Phase I solicitation. This will allow the contractor to begin performance immediately.

Without limiting competition to a single source in Phase II, the Government would be unable to undertake construction this fiscal year and would not meet the delivery schedule of less than twelve (12) months which is critical to securing the BMGR. A traditional two-phase design-build project acquired IAW the requirement for full and open competition under the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) could take upwards of nine (9)-twelve (12) months to award based upon historical averages for contracts of this dollar amount. The time savings achieved through use of other than full and open competition is eight (8)-eleven (11) months, and this time savings is critical in order for construction to begin as soon as possible, to ensure complete operational control of the southern border in response to the national security and public safety emergencies laid out in the Presidential National Emergency Declaration.

Alternative: The Contracting Officer examined all forms of alternative contractual mechanisms for fulfilling these requirements, but no other alternative would allow for performance to begin immediately. Existing Multiple Award Task Order Contracts (MATOCs) do not have the capacity or cover the area of the requirement needed to accommodate a task order of this magnitude. Due to the unusual and compelling urgent need for this project, no other method other than limiting competition would allow for expedited evaluation and award and for construction to begin as soon as possible.

As determined by the President, the current situation at the southern border presents a border security and humanitarian crisis that threatens core national security interests and constitutes a national emergency.

The Department of Defense has provided Armed Forces design-build construction support and resources to the Department of Homeland Security at the southern border. Because of the gravity of the current emergency situation, it is necessary for the Armed Forces to provide additional support to address the crisis. Failure to down select to one firm and conduct sole source negotiations during Phase II and begin construction this fiscal year with completion within twelve (12) months would result in mission failure. If SPL cannot proceed as proposed, there will be severe adverse impacts on safety and territorial integrity to the United States. Approval of this J&A will enable SPL to expedite the Phase II solicitation and evaluation for urgently needed design and construction services identified above in paragraph 3, allowing for expedited negotiation and award in Phase II.

Selection of Sole Source Contractor: As discussed in paragraph 8, Market Research, SPL is conducting this procurement IAW the Two-Phase Design-Build Selection Procedures in FAR

36.3. Supported by a Limited Source J&A approved by the Senior Procurement Executive on July 3, the five (5) firms determined to have the bonding capacity were solicited in Phase I.

On July 3, 2025 the government sent a solicitation to the five firms that were deemed capable in the above mentioned market research, (1) , (2)

(3) , (4) and (5) was determined to be the most highly qualified firm. The five projects that submitted were all completed within the past six years. The solicitation required projects be submitted within the last ten years and therefore exceeded the recency requirement. The most recent contract that they held on was terminated for convenience in May 2021. The fifth project that presented, , was completed in February 2025.

The five projects that submitted were all rated as Very Relevant. All five projects were for design-build construction of permanent physical barriers and supporting facilities along the southern border, performed as a prime contractor, utilized the same Designer of Record that is proposed for the new BMGR project, and utilized many environmental requirements such as erosion and sediment control, dust control, and protection of biological resources/ sensitive species, and historical and culturally sensitive elements. Three of the five projects submitted were also completed under emergency declarations.

received three overall final CPARS ratings of Very Good, and two overall ratings of

Exceptional. The final CPARS that received on the and project included a rating of Exceptional for the evaluation area of Schedule and Very Good for both Quality and Management. For the received Exceptional ratings in the evaluation areas of Quality, Schedule, Management, and Safety. Comments included “this project was completed during COVID-19 and was completed ahead of schedule... the adherence to safety plan resulted in a record of zero lost time incidents.” The Final

CPARS rating for the resulted in Exceptional ratings in Schedule and Management and Very Good in Safety. The Final CPARS rating for the resulted in Very Good ratings for Schedule, Management, and Safety.

demonstrated that it is able to consistently exceed performance standards and provide effective solutions to contractual problems, thereby reducing the risk of unsuccessful performance to the Government. This consistent high level of performance is a significant benefit to the Government and gives a high degree of confidence that their performance on this project will be successful.

Further, has a well-thought-out proposed schedule which identifies various construction constraints and identified potential solutions to meet or beat the schedule requirements, such as utilizing concrete batch trucks, suggesting early execution of options, and gaining additional access points. Additionally, addressed their plan for fast tracking as a critical tool and has demonstrated experience utilizing this method.

and plans to utilize previous geotechnical information to support its fast-track efforts, along with utilizing multiple work crews, extended work hours, and weekend work. thorough analysis of multiple risk-points and solutions provide full confidence in their ability to problem-solve which appreciably increases the probability of successful contract performance.

demonstrated in their proposal that they were the most highly qualified through both their past performance and their schedule. Their consistent high level of past performance, coupled with a well-thought-out proposed schedule decreases the perceived risk to the government and increases the level of confidence that this project will be successful.

6. EFFORTS TO OBTAIN COMPETITION: SPL solicited from as many firms as practicable under the circumstances by competing the Phase I design-build requirement among five (5) firms determined to be capable of providing the required services. However, as discussed in paragraph 5, Alternative, no other alternative than down-selecting to a single offeror in Phase 2 will allow performance to begin expeditiously. The synopsis and award notices required at FAR 5.201 will not be published based on the exception at FAR 5.202(a)(2), Unusual and Compelling Urgency.

7. ACTIONS TO INCREASE COMPETITION: SPL is mindful of the requirement in FAR

6.302-2 to request offers from as many potential sources as is practicable under the circumstances, and therefore did conduct a robust search and evaluation of potential sources following the procedures outlined in Paragraph 8, Market Research. However, here it is not practicable to request an offer from more than one (1) source under Phase II of this design-build procurement, because without entering into negotiations on a sole source basis, SPL would be unable to award a contract in sufficient time to address the National Emergency at the Southern Border.

8. MARKET RESEARCH: Across the Border Infrastructure program, the government routinely maximizes competition to the greatest extent practicable in accordance with FAR Part 6. As stated in the Phase I Limited Source Justification, a list of twenty-one (21) contractors were identified during market research. Eleven (11) firms that expressed interest in the acquisition. Evaluation was conducted on the responses. Five (5) firms were deemed as capable based on bonding capacity and capability to complete horizontal construction.

9. INTERESTED SOURCES: See Paragraph 8, Market Research. In this instance, the need to undertake construction as soon as possible is of such an unusual and compelling urgency that the government would be seriously injured unless the government is able to sole source its requirements in Phase II to one single contractor with whom to negotiate. That single firm is

10. OTHER FACTS: NA