jofoc ASCLD-LAB.pdf

Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655 Version 1.0 Page 1 of 6

FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655

Date: 06/15/2021

Estimated Contract Dollar Value: _______

1. Identification of the agency and contracting activity.

The U.S. Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), Finance Division (FD), National Acquisition Programs Unit (NAPU) has prepared this justification for other than full and open competition for the FBI Laboratory’s reaccreditation on behalf of the Laboratory Division

(LD), Forensic Analysis Support Unit (FASU).

2. The nature and/or description of the action being approved, i.e., sole source, limited competition, establishment of a new source, etc.

This Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition is being prepared in accordance with the authority of Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 6.302-1; “Only One

Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.”

The proposed firm-fixed price contract with the American National Standards Institute

(ANSI)-National Accreditation Board (ANAB) for reaccreditation services (e.g., full reassessment, annual fees, surveillance activities for a four (4) year accreditation cycle) is a logical follow-on to an existing contract. The American Society of Crime Laboratory

Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB) has accredited the FBI Laboratory since 1998. ASCLD/LAB merged with ANAB in April 2016.

3. A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency’s needs.

The FBI Laboratory needs reaccreditation services of its forensic laboratories in Quantico, Virginia and Huntsville, Alabama. The FBI Laboratory’s accreditation expires on August 31, 2022. The process to apply, submit required records, undergo full reassessment, and resolve corrective actions can take up to a year and must occur and be resolved prior to the expiration date.

As of December 2015, the Department of Justice (DOJ) requires that department-run forensic laboratories obtain and maintain accreditation (press release December 2015 - Attorney

General Memo dated November 23, 2015, RE: Recommendations of the National Commission on Forensic Science Announcement for NCFS Meeting Eight).

Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655 Version 1.0 Page 2 of 6

The objectives are to provide the FBI Laboratory with reaccreditation services that:

• Assess the level of the FBI Laboratory’s conformance to established standards of performance.

• Evaluate the FBI Laboratory’s quality management system.

• Maintain the FBI Laboratory’s national and international accreditation for the accreditation cycle.

• Allow the FBI Laboratory to participate in National DNA Index System (NDIS).

To maintain consistency, the FBI Laboratory desires to obtain reaccreditation services for its laboratories from the same accrediting body as for its current accreditation and other DOJ and

FBI forensic laboratories. Furthermore, in support of the FBI Laboratory’s mission, the accreditation must include both peer and government-based recognition at the federal, state, local, and international levels of law enforcement.

Total estimated dollar value: ________

4. The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

For purposes of this acquisition, the statutory authority permitting the use of other than full and open competition is delineated at 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(1) and further defined at Federal

Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 6.302-1; “Only One Responsible Source and No Other

Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.”

5. Demonstrate the unique qualifications of the proposed contractor or the nature of the action requiring the use of the authority.

ANAB is uniquely qualified to provide these services to the FBI Laboratory based upon the following:

ANAB is nationally and internationally recognized by the forensic science community as the leading accrediting body for crime laboratories and has almost 40 years of continuous experience in accrediting crime laboratories. ANAB has accredited more than 500 forensic laboratories under the International (ISO 17025 based) program. ANAB is recognized as an ISO 17011 compliant forensic science testing accrediting body by the InterAmerican Accreditation Cooperation (IAAC) and the International Laboratory Accreditation Cooperation (ILAC). Furthermore, the NDIS

Procedures Board has designated ANAB as one of two accrediting bodies that satisfy the three criteria specified in Federal law (not-for-profit, association of persons actively engaged in forensic science, national recognition within the community) for NDIS participation purposes.

ANAB has previously accredited the FBI Laboratory in 1998, 2003, 2008, 2013, and 2018.

Additionally, ANAB accreditation is the standard for the FBI’s forensic/digital evidence laboratories. ANAB accredited laboratories in the FBI include the FBI Laboratories in Quantico, VA, and Huntsville, AL, the FBI Digital Evidence Laboratory, and 25 of the FBI Regional

Computer Forensic Laboratories. DOJ laboratories accredited by ANAB include eight laboratories of the Drug Enforcement Administration and four laboratories of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655 Version 1.0 Page 3 of 6

Firearms, and Explosives. Numerous other federal forensic laboratories are accredited by ANAB, including the United States Secret Service Laboratory; the Department of Defense’s POW/MIA

Accounting Agency Laboratory, Armed Forces Medical Examiner System – Armed Forces DNA

Identification Laboratory, and Department of Defense – Cyber Crime Center; the Department of

Homeland Security Investigation Forensic Laboratory; and the United States Food and Drug

Administration Forensic Chemistry Center Laboratory.

The FBI Laboratory Quality System has as its base the requirements of ISO/IEC 17025 - General

Requirements for the Competence of Testing and Calibration Laboratories and the 2019 ANAB

ISO/IEC 17025:2017- Forensic Science Testing and Calibration Laboratories Accreditation

Requirements (AR 3125). ANAB has exclusive use of the ANAB AR3125 requirements.

Therefore, ANAB is the only accrediting body capable of assessing and reaccrediting the FBI

Laboratory according to the current standards in use. In addition, the assessment of the FBI

Laboratory’s forensic laboratories will include an audit of DNA operations using the requirements set forth in the FBI Quality Assurance Standards for Forensic DNA Testing

Laboratories and the FBI Quality Assurance Standards for DNA Databasing Laboratories.

Additionally, the assessment will include an audit of toxicology operations to the American

Board of Forensic Toxicology (ABFT) requirements.

Since the FBI Laboratory Quality System includes adherence to the ANAB AR3125 requirements, it would need to undergo extensive revision to meet another accrediting body’s requirements. The cost to the FBI Laboratory in terms of human resources, time, and money to convert its present quality system from one based on ANAB AR3125 requirements to the requirements of another accrediting body would be prohibitive and difficult to achieve before the FBI Laboratory’s current accreditation expires on August 31, 2022. Additional factors include the DOJ mandate for its forensic laboratories to be accredited and for DOJ prosecutors to only utilize accredited laboratories for presenting evidence in court, the FBI Laboratory cannot have a lapse in accreditation.

ANAB meets the requirement for providing technical assessors trained in the application of

ISO/IEC 19011 - Guidelines For Auditing Management Systems and the interpretation of ISO

17025 and the ANAB AR3125 requirements. To be qualified as a technical assessor, an individual must meet ANAB requirements with respect to education, employment, work experience, and personal attributes in addition to completing the ANAB technical assessor training process. The training of technical assessors consists of an 8-12 hour on-line prerequisite as well as a multiple-day instructor-led course. Following completion of the training, all participants must pass a final examination to be qualified. All ANAB Lead Assessors are contractors for ANAB.

Therefore, acquisition of accreditation services from ANAB will fulfill the objectives and requirements of the FBI Laboratory.

6. A description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by Subpart 5.2 and, if not, which exception under 5.202 applies.

https://www.acquisition.gov/far/html/Subpart%205_2.html#wp1107980 https://www.acquisition.gov/far/html/Subpart%205_2.html#wp1107990

Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655 Version 1.0 Page 4 of 6

The Contracting Officer will publicize this requirement on the SAM.gov website. This announcement will give an opportunity for other vendors to demonstrate their ability to meet the FBI's specific needs through a submission of technical capabilities and cost information.

7. The anticipated dollar value of the proposed acquisition, including options if applicable, and a determination by the Contracting Officer that the anticipated cost to the

Government will be fair and reasonable.

Before awarding a contract, the Contracting Officer will perform a price analysis in accordance with FAR 15.804-2(a)-(e), (and a cost analysis, if required), to determine whether the price is fair and reasonable.

8. A description of the market research conducted and the results.

Based on the results of a market survey conducted by the FBI Laboratory Forensic Analysis

Support Unit, there are two organizations that offer accreditation of forensic science laboratories in the United States and that are recognized by the NDIS board: ANAB [www.anab.org] and

American Association for Laboratory Accreditation (A2LA) [www.a2la.org]. ANAB has several features that distinguish its ISO 17025 accreditation program and make it uniquely able to fulfill the accreditation requirements of the FBI Laboratory. Furthermore, this reaccreditation acquisition is a logical follow-on to an existing contract for the FBI Laboratory’s initial and subsequent ISO

17025-based accreditations.

ANAB is nationally and internationally recognized by the forensic science community as one of the leading accrediting bodies for crime laboratories and has almost 40 years of continuous experience in accrediting crime laboratories. The market research found that other DOJ forensic laboratories (i.e., DEA, ATF), FBI forensic testing laboratories (i.e., Regional Computer Forensics

Laboratories), the FBI Digital Evidence Laboratory, and the FBI Laboratories in Quantico, VA and Huntsville, AL, are all currently accredited by ANAB.

The market research also determined that each accrediting body has its own unique additional requirements document that supplements the requirements of ISO 17025. The FBI Laboratory’s established Quality System is based on the ANAB AR3125 requirements and would have to be revised to meet another accrediting body’s requirements. Any such revision would result in an additional cost to the FBI. The cost to the FBI Laboratory in terms of human resources, time, and money to convert its present quality system from one based on ANAB requirements to one based on the requirements of another accrediting body would be prohibitive and difficult to achieve before the FBI Laboratory’s current accreditation expires on August 31, 2022 as the reassessment process must occur and be resolved prior to the expiration date.

Additionally, the market research determined that the A2LA accreditation cycle is for two years instead of ANAB’s four-year accreditation cycle which would result in additional preparation for the full assessment in terms of human resources, time, and money.

ANAB also now offers an assessment to the ABFT requirements for $500 based on an alliance agreement with ABFT. The current costs associated with maintaining an independent ABFT

Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655 Version 1.0 Page 5 of 6 accreditation cost the FBI Laboratory, a $1000 application fee and a $4500 annual accreditation fee that are now covered by the ANAB accreditation fees the FBI Laboratory already pays.

ANAB also has an established on-site surveillance visit program and has experience in planning, organizing, and conducting surveillance visits in large ANAB accredited laboratories.

9. Any other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition.

There is currently no universally accepted ISO 17025 supplemental standard in the forensic science community. Therefore, each accrediting body has established its own unique and proprietary requirements document that supplements the requirements of ISO 17025. The FBI Laboratory

Quality System is based on the ANAB AR3125 requirements and would have to be revised to meet another accrediting body’s requirements. The cost to the FBI Laboratory in terms of manpower, time, and money to convert its present quality system to the requirements of another accrediting body would be prohibitive and difficult to achieve before the FBI Laboratory’s current accreditation expires on August 31, 2022.

The additional estimated costs, not including overhead, of acquiring accreditation services from a source other than ANAB would likely exceed the simplified acquisition threshold of

$250,000.00. This is based on prior level of efforts to revise the quality system.

Estimated breakdown of additional costs:

$ 74,720 - Revising Division Level policies and practices to meet new requirements, (960 hours – GS14 @ $65/hr and 160 hours – GS15 @ $77/hr)

$135,655 - Revising Unit Level policies and procedures (2087 hours – GS 14 @ $65/hr)

$ 11,700 - Creating new conformance file (180 hours – GS 14 @ $65/hr)

$ 33,930 - Revise audit program and conduct internal audits against new requirements, (522 hours – GS14 @ $65/hr)

10. A listing of any sources that expressed a written interest in the acquisition.

None

11. A statement of any actions the agency may take to remove or overcome any barriers to competition, if subsequent acquisitions are anticipated.

The FBI will continue to perform market research to identify potential sources on subsequent acquisitions.

Requisition Number: DJF-21-0700-PR-0003655 Version 1.0 Page 6 of 6

Reviews and Approvals (Not exceeding $700,000)

Requestor:

I certify that the facts and representations under my cognizance, which are included in this justification and which form a basis for this justification, are complete and accurate.

Signature Date

Contracting Officer:

I certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Bryan Lane Date bvlane@fbi.gov mailto:bvlane@fbi.gov