JOFOC- DCI.pdf

OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY

Transportation Acquisition Manual (TAM) 1206

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011

Pursuant to the requirements of the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) as implemented by the Revolutionary Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Overhaul (RFO) in accordance with the requirements of RFO 6.104-1, this Justification and Approval (J&A) for the use of the statutory authority under RFO Subpart 6.103-3 is based on the following facts and rationale required under RFO 6.104-1 as follows:

(1) Agency and the Contracting Activity, and Specific Identification of the Document as a “Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition" In accordance with the requirements of RFO Subpart 6.103, the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology (OSTR), intends to execute a contract action on a basis of other than full and open competition. This justification is predicated on the determination that the specific nature of the requirement, a Federal Funded Research and Development Center, precludes competitive solicitation under the authority provided in RFO 6.103-3, ensuring full compliance with federal acquisition regulations and Small Business Administration (SBA) protocols regarding non-competitive awards.

(2) Nature and/or Description of the Action Being Approved The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), Office of the Assistant Secretary for Research and Technology Office (OSTR), proposes to issue a contract titled "Technical Support for Advancing the Digital Corridors Initiative (DCI)" with the MITRE Corporation, a Federal Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), for two-years with period of performance starting 10/30/2026 to 10/29/2028 for $2,500,000.00.

Under the authority of RFO Subpart 6.103-3, it has been determined that competition will be limited to the MITRE Corporation due to the industrial mobilization; engineering, developmental, or research capability; and expert services for the infrastructure transportation modernization effort under the Digital Corridor Initiative (DCI). The MITRE Corporation (MITRE) possesses unique, specialized technical expertise in three specific areas listed below, needed to accomplish and accelerate the initiative.

1. Systems Engineering and Architecture Expertise

2. Advanced Cyber-Physical Trust Capabilities

3. Cross-Jurisdictional Interoperability Experience

The total estimated value of this proposed action is $2,500,000.00.

(3) Description of the Supplies or Services Required to Meet the Agency’s Needs (Including the Estimated Value)

The scope of this requirement encompasses the delivery of turnkey technology based on the unique qualifications, structural role, and extensive capabilities to execute the DCI.

The specific technical requirements and deliverables include:

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011

FFRDC Institutional Status and Neutrality: As an operator of federal laboratories functioning as a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), MITRE is legally and structurally mandated by federal law to maintain independence from commercial market biases and proprietary equipment vendors. This structural neutrality is a prerequisite for serving as a trusted, multi-jurisdictional data broker across sovereign state DOT platforms.

Systems Engineering and Architecture Expertise: MITRE possesses immediate, specialized capabilities required to adapt pre-deployment systems integration, translate multi-state Traffic Management Center (TMC) software interfaces to the national ARC-IT framework, and freeze configuration requirements within the first 60 days of award.

Advanced Cyber-Physical Trust Capabilities: MITRE possesses world-class expertise in defense-grade and civilian infrastructure cybersecurity. They have a proven record of adapting NIST Zero- Trust principles and Security Credential Management System (SCMS) PKI architectures to live network environments, ensuring that real-time streaming data from edge nodes remains fully secure and authenticated.

Cross-Jurisdictional Interoperability Experience: MITRE has extensive experience coordinating complex technical operations across multiple federal, state, and regional entities, making them uniquely qualified to manage the physical rollout, live-traffic testing, and automated data handovers required across state boundaries along a high-priority interstate freight corridor.

The Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) has been established and is maintained within the official acquisition file. This estimate accounts for the unique technical complexities;

State DOT data exchange coordination and implementation serve as the baseline for this requirement.

(4) An Identification of the Statutory Authority Permitting Other than Full and Open Competition

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C. §3304 as implemented by:

[Select only one of the following circumstances permitting other than full and open competition:]

RFO 6.103-1 Only one responsible source and no other supplies or services will satisfy agency requirements

RFO 6.103-2 Unusual and compelling urgency

RFO 6.103-3 Industrial mobilization; engineering, development, or research capability; or expert services

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011

RFO 6.103-4 International agreement

RFO 6.103-5 Authorized or required by statute

RFO 6.103-6 National security

RFO 6.103-7 Public interest

(5) A Demonstration that the Proposed Contractor’s Unique Qualifications or the Nature of the Acquisition Requires Use of the Authority Cited

MITRE’s unique system engineering and Enterprise Architecture, that help build a trusted and secure aviation technology, is the foundation needed to accelerate digital data exchange coordination among the States. FFRDC established state relationship provides the trust framework to help coordinate this effort among approximately 46 state corridors and more.

This is critical especially key states like Wyoming, Tennessee, West Virginia, Alabama and others lacking the capacity and resources for the DCI framework.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) formalized the long-term relationship with the MITIRE Corporation in 1990 for independent research and development to secure our national airspace systems. The government will save money by leveraging previous and similar work done supporting domestic aviation coordination through data exchange security, coordination and implementation. It is a crucial opportunity leverage existing system and operation minimizing potential duplicative effort already established.

Pursuant to 41 USC 3304(a)(6), as implemented by RFO 6.103-3, the MITRE Corporation, as a federally funded research center, has an unique knowledge and application of transportation data exchange systems. This acquisition represents an inherently integrated, coordinated effort with State DOT’s Work Zone Data Exchange technology requirements and standards. Compete-and-award procedures with a new unvetted and untrustworthy source would introduce unacceptable delays, minimize the DCI, and compromise the U.S. transportation competitive edge and integrity.

(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 RFO Subpart 5.2 and, if not, which Exception under RFO 5.201(b)91) Applies

The description should include whether a sam.gov notice was or will be publicized, as required by RFO Subpart 5.2, and if not, which exception under RFO 5.201(b)(1) applies. If the

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011 justification covers a brand name item, this section should address compliance with RFO 5.201.

If an announcement has already been made in sam.gov, give the date of issuance.

Tailor the following statement to address your particular circumstance...

OST intends to publicize this requirement, prior to award, as required by FAR Overhaul Subpart 5.101 by posting a notice on sam.gov on 10/19/2026.

OST does not intend to publicize this requirement, prior to award, based on the following FAR Overhaul Subpart 5.101: N/A

The Contracting Officer will ensure the Government receives a fair and reasonable price through a comprehensive evaluation in accordance with RFO 15.402. The proposal submitted by the vendor will be analyzed using established price and cost analysis techniques, including a direct comparison against the Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) and a detailed review of historical pricing benchmarks from similar high-security Department of Transportation (DOT) technology infrastructure projects.

Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition

Pursuant to 41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(6), as implemented by RFO 6.103-3 " Industrial mobilization," engineering, developmental, or research capability; or expert services is justified for this requirement. Disclosure of the Government’s specific technical specifications, operational constraints, physical security posture, or mission-critical data through the public solicitation process would compromise sensitive information and create an unacceptable risk to transportation infrastructure operations.

The Government has determined that MITRE is the only responsible source capable of satisfying this requirement while strictly safeguarding sensitive information. The contractor uniquely possesses the requisite specialized knowledge data exchange technology, data securities sensitivities, and an existing technical platform necessary to implement the DCI.

(7) A Description of the Market Research Conducted (see FAR Part 10) and the Results or a Statement of the Reason Market Research Was Not Conducted

Commercial market evaluations for a data streamlining and exchange platform revealed high recurring subscription costs and proprietary vendor lock-in. To ensure public stewardship, minimal cost to taxpayers, and governmental data ownership, a non-commercial, federally grounded framework is required.

To convene, coordinate, and maintain a multi-State Department of Transportation (State DOT) complex data exchange, the project leverages a Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC) framework combined with existing inter-agency funding mechanisms.

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011

Implementation Framework

1. FFRDC Institutional Setup

• Operating Structure: Engage or designate an existing transport/technology-focused FFRDC (or University Transportation Center / Volpe Center equivalent) to act as the neutral, non-commercial administrator.

• Mission Mandate: Establish a single-mission directive focused on national data inter-operability, schema standardizations, and open-architecture maintenance across participating DOTs.

• IP & Data Ownership: All core software architectures, schema registries, and data exchanges remain open-source or held strictly under government ownership, eliminating commercial license fees.

2. Core Technical & Operational Responsibilities

• Data Harmonization & Schema Management: Standardize multi-state data formats, API protocols, and validation pipelines.

• Neutral Hosting & Exchange Architecture: Deploy host-agnostic, open-source data exchange pipelines (cloud or government-owned infrastructure) avoiding vendor lock-in.

• Technical Assistance & Security: Provide ongoing cybersecurity compliance (FedRAMP standards), system support, and onboarding to participating state DOTs.

Therefore, pursuant to 41 U.S.C. § 3304(a)(3), an award to a non-profit FFRDC is required to maintain this essential capability for data exchange integrated between systems.

(8) Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other than Full and Open Competition

The anticipated cost of $2,500,000 of two-year period of performance starting October 30, 2026, to October 29, 2028, deemed fair and reasonable to do the amount of data exchange coordination between states, security and trust needed to accelerate the infrastructure modernization keeps the U.S. in the competitive posture globally. Developing and implementing specific technology from the ground and of this magnitude would exceed beyond the cost of $2.5 million. This work is leveraging years of work previously done within the Department for FAA and FHWA (ITS_JPO) https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/wz/wzdx/index.htm. This is the groundwork to connect and modernize the state’s transportation communication and data exchange in preparation for future transportation technology implementation. There are no initial start-up costs or security issues with awarding MITRE. Furthermore, it accelerates our transportation safety portfolio and prepares the Nation for future transportation generations.

https://ops.fhwa.dot.gov/wz/wzdx/index.htm

(9) A Listing of the Sources, if any, that Expressed, in Writing, an Interest in the Acquisition

This action leverages work done with FAA to support the National Airspace Systems (NAS). The data security platform, multimodal engagement and enterprise architecture already exist and

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011 can be quickly and easily adapted for this Work Zone Data Exchange and Connected Work Zone project- DCI.

(10) A Statement of the Actions, if any, the Agency May Take to Remove or Overcome any Barriers to Competition before any Subsequent Acquisition for the Supplies or Services Required

After award of this action, DOT intends to post the approved/signed justification pursuant to RFO 6.301

After award of this action, DOT does not intend to post the approved/signed justification in accordance with RFO 6.301(e).

(11) Contracting Officer Certification that the Justification is Accurate and Complete to the Best of the Contracting Officer’s Knowledge and Belief

I certify that the data supporting the recommended use of other than full and open competition is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

___________________ ___10/13/2026______ Date

Contracting Officer

Technical/Requirements Personnel Certification I certify this requirement meets the Government’s minimum need and that the supporting data, which forms a basis for this justification, is complete and accurate.

_ ___ ___10/13/2026_____ Date

Technical Representative / COR Approvals

Over $900,000 but not exceeding $20 million [and any determination and justification for a contract awarded under FAR 6.103-7, Public Interest, regardless of dollar amount]:

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION (JOFOC)

41 U.S.C. 3304 | FAR 6.104-1 - PR No. OR2026R43K011

Date

OST Advocate for Competition