JOFOC_.pdf

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION

41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(7)

Pursuant to the requirements of the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 6.3 and in accordance with the requirements of FAR 6.303-1, the justification for the use of the statutory authority under FAR Subpart 6.3 is justified by the following facts and rationale required under FAR 6.303-2 as follows:

1. Agency and Contracting Activity. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Office of the Chief Procurement Officer (OCPO), Mitigation Section is the contracting activity. The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration (FIMA), Federal Insurance Directorate (FID) is the requiring activity.

2. Nature and/or Description of the Action being Approved. A short paragraph or two describing the effort to be placed on contract, or the modification action. This section should include all of the following information:

(a) Nature of action Type of action: FEMA intends to award a sole source contract for Law360 General and Insurance Authority Subscription. The contract will include one (1) 12-month base period (yearly).

(b) Name and address of the contractor.

RELX, LexisNexis (Law360) 9443 Springboro Pike Miamisburg, OH 45342-4425

(c) Contract type: Subscription

(d) Estimated total value (including options). Provide breakdown as shown below:

Period Time Unit Price Quantity Total Base Period 12 months 20 Users Base Period 12 months

(e) Year of funding FY24

(f) Solicitation number. N/A

(g) Background information about the requirement.

The Federal Insurance and Mitigation Division furthers the Federal Insurance and Mitigation Administration’s (FIMA) mission of reducing the loss of life and property by lessening the impact of disasters through the provision of comprehensive, timely and professional legal counsel, and zealous and ethical representation in litigation for the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), Flood Map Modernization, Mitigation grant programs, Flood Mitigation Assistance Program, National Dam Safety Program, National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program, National Hurricane Program, for the Office of Environmental Planning and Historic Preservation, and for other programs and activities administered by FIMA. Law360 provides news, analysis, and tools that will help the

Federal Insurance and Mitigation Legal Division (FIMLD) and its clients throughout FIMA stay abreast of legal developments in insurance, reinsurance, litigation, and other key fields.

3. Description of Supplies/Services. Describe the supplies or services to be acquired. Include the purpose the supplies or services are intended to fulfill or the function the supplies or services provide.

Law360 allows the Write Your Owns (WYO) to set up alerts for all pending lawsuits which enhances FEMA's litigation oversight such as accessing news and analysis related to False Claims Act case(s) at the Supreme Court, as well as a reinsurance disputes. FIMLDs subscription is for “Insurance Law” (general insurance) and “Insurance Authority” (National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP), private flood, etc.).

The Law360 platform tier subscription will allow five (5) users unlimited access to all current news, email newsletters, archive access, platform tools (including cases and underlying documents, expert analysis as well as unlimited customizable email alerts; any future practice areas added to the platform and access to Law360 Briefcase a research organization and sharing tool.

4. Identification of Statutory Authority Permitting Other Than Full and Open Competition.

The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is [10 U.S.C. 2304(c)(1) (for USCG) or 41 U.S.C.3304(a)(1) (for other Components)] implemented by the FAR Subpart 6.302-1 entitled “Only One Responsible Source and No Other Supplies or Services Will Satisfy Agency Requirements.”

5. Identification of Exception to the Buy American Statute N/A

6. Demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited. Law360 aggregates insurance and reinsurance information across, state, Federal, and international borders. Law360 recently expanded its insurance offerings to provide a focus on insurance authority for property lines and for specialty lines, both of which involve climate and flood concerns. Across all of its insurance offerings, Law 360 information includes breaking updates and analysis regarding proposed and enacted legislation and regulation;

litigation; major forces in the marketplace; and other related finance and compliance areas. The Office of Chief Counsel identified that there are no alternative provider offering this sort of news and analysis.

Law360 provides services in the following:

• Banking

• Bankruptcy

• Class Action

• Competition

• Employment

• Energy

• Expert Analysis

• Insurance

• Intellectual Property

• Product Liability

• Securities

• NFIP

• Private Floods, etc.

This type of support helps FIMA as:

• It continues to mature its reinsurance and ILS programs.

• News and analysis on legal developments including litigation filings, case settlements, verdicts, regulation, enforcement, legislation, corporate deals, and business of law.

• It assesses the impact of climate change and ESG (environmental, social, governance) issues on the insurance marketplace.

• The private market develops in the flood insurance space.

• It faces litigation from previous flood disasters as well as anticipated litigation of future flood disasters.

(a) Rationale for using the authority cited in section 4 of the J&A; Law360 is the only known source with the ability to supply the required support without a lapse in these mission critical services when mitigating insurance matters.

(b) Details covering what events lead to the situation requiring use of other than full and open competition procedures including whether any portion of the work can be segregated to allow for competition; Various NFIP litigation require research and law citations when litigating specific NFIP lawsuits. For example: FIMLD was able to access news and analysis related to a False Claims Act case at the Supreme Court, as well as a reinsurance dispute involving the NY Metropolitan Transportation Authority and their reinsurer

(c) The Government considered using a competition; however, a competition would not provide the resources the litigation teams when preparing for cases or identifying risks. Law360 is a subscription-based, legal news service operated by LexisNexis, a division of RELX Inc.

There are other resources that provide piecemeal alternatives, but they did not provide quite the depth of resources as Law360. To provide a similar level of service, a competitor would need to not only aggregate the news but also develop a team of writers and legal analysts with a comparable level of experience.

(d) Impact to the mission that would result if the J&A is not approved and, consequently, the product or service not provided. Attorneys would need to dedicate additional time to survey insurance headlines on a daily basis and then independently assess whether the news impacts NFIP programs or interests. This effort could take hours, depending on the number of updates and ease of locating the information, and may lead them to abandon the effort and operate without the benefit of this knowledge.

(e) Rationale for use of the nonavailability exception to the Buy American statute, including detailed information explaining why the particular articles, materials, or supplies of the class or kind to be acquired, either as end items or components, are not mined, produced, or manufactured in the United States in sufficient and reasonably available commercial quantities and of a satisfactory quality (Section is required to be completed when the J&A includes the exception listed under FAR 25.103(b)(2) or FAR 25.202(a)(2)). N/A

7. Description of Efforts Made to Ensure that Offers are Solicited from as Many Potential Sources as is Practicable. This section should include the following information: N/A

(a) If an announcement has already been made in SAM.gov, provide the date of publication; or

(b) If an announcement is being planned for posting in SAM.gov, provide the estimated date of publication.

(c) If an announcement will not be published, identify the applicable exception under FAR 5.202.

8. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and Reasonable. The Government may compare proposed prices to historical prices paid by the Government under the current agreement. The Government may also compare the proposed prices with the Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) for these services.

9. Description of Market Research. Market research is required by FAR Part 10, and the results of the market research should be summarized here. Include the following information:

The internet was searched for a list of vendors that would be able to provide similar services.

(a) Describe the market research results that support the determination that the items are non-available (Section is required to be completed when the J&A includes the exception listed under FAR 25.103(b)(2) or FAR 25.202(a)(2)).

Below is the list of vendors that offered similar services:

• Casetext is a legal tech startup that gives users access to millions of cases, statutes, and regulations annotated by members of the legal community. The Casetext library includes federal cases (Supreme Court, appellate, and district court) since 1925, and appellate cases from all 50 states. It also has federal statutes and regulations, and state statues from California, Delaware, Florida, New Jersey, and New York. Although it is a free service, it is human generated and it only includes statues from five states, and annotations depend on users, so many cases lack annotations.

• Casemaker is a research tool available for free to all members of bar associations who join the Casemaker Consortium. After each bar association pays a license fee, there are no additional costs. No individual subscriptions are currently available. Customers can choose an optional service “Casemaker PRO (prices vary by state)” which offers a negative citator, case alerts for new appellate court decisions, and a brief analyzer that automatically creates a table of authority.

• Fastcase is a legal research site that provides access to federal and state case law and statutes. It also has bankruptcy cases, Tax Court decisions and decisions of the Board of Immigration Appeals. The site has currently partnered with 21 state bar associations to provide free research to their members. The fees are nominal; however, the depth of research is limited and there is no way to tell whether or not the case is good law. It lacks headnotes, locate, and annotations.

10. Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other Than Full and Open Competition. This section presents an opportunity to strengthen the justification by presenting supplemental or supporting information. Do not summarize or duplicate information already stated in previous sections. This section should include information such as: N/A

(a) An explanation why technical data packages, specifications, statement of work, or purchase descriptions are not suitable for full and open competition.

(b) Discuss why your requirement cannot be modified to enhance competition.

(c) For a proposed contract subject to the restrictions of FAR 6.302-1 for follow-on acquisitions as described in 6.302-1(a)(2)(ii), all Components except USCG must provide an estimate of the cost to the Government that would be duplicated and detailed information on how the estimate was derived.

Similarly, for a proposed contract subject to the restrictions of FAR 6.302-1 for follow-on acquisitions as described in 6.302(a)(2)(iii), the USCG must provide an estimate of the cost to the Government that would be duplicated and detailed information on how the estimate was derived.

(d) For a proposed contract subject to the restrictions of FAR 6.302-2(d) or HSAR 3006.302-270 and where FAR 6.302-2 is cited as the authority, describe the exceptional circumstances allowing for an award for a period of performance in excess of the one-year limitation (applicable to all federal agencies) or the DHS-specific statutory 150-day limitation.

Note: If using FAR 6.302-2 Unusual and Compelling Urgency, the data, estimated costs, or other rationale covering the extent and nature of the harm to the Government is not required to cover all safety concerns – just those that may be life threatening.

11. A Listing of the Sources, if Any That Expressed, in Writing, an Interest in the Acquisition.

See Paragraph 9, Description of Market Research above.

12. A Statement of the Actions, if Any, the Agency May Take to Remove or Overcome Any Barriers to Competition Before Any Subsequent Acquisition for Supplies or Services Required.

Include a statement of actions taken or that will be taken to increase competition for future acquisitions of the same item/service. Include information such as:

(a) Will the Government revise overly technical specifications, acquire data rights, etc.? N/A

13. Contracting Officer’s Certification. 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.

Contracting Officer Date

14. 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.

LORRAINE A GLOSTER

Digitally signed by LORRAINE A

GLOSTER

Date: 2024.07.17 15:14:58 -04'00'

Technical Representative Date

APPROVAL:

Contracting Officer Date

Procuring Activity Advocate for Competition Date

Head of Contracting Agency Date