SBU - CONTRACTING AND ACQUISITIONS

MINUTES OF PRE-QUOTATION CONFERENCE

February 12, 2026

RFQ: 19RP3826Q0020

GROUP LOCALLY EMPLOYEED STAFF LIFE INSURANCE COVERAGE

Introduction

The Contracting Officer welcomed all attendees and introduced representatives from the Contracting & Procurement Section (C&P) and Human Resource Management (HR).

Discussion of the Solicitation Package

The following sections of the solicitation were highlighted:

1) SF 1449 cover sheet (pages 1) o Deadline of submission of offers: March 9, 2026 (refer to block 8), no later than 4:00pm (Philippine local time), No offers will be accepted after 4:00pm.

o EMAIL SUBMISSIONS will be accepted. Kindly follow the submission specific size and format not to exceed 10MB per file (Also, refer to Invitation Letter) o Fill out page 1, blocks 12, 17, 19-24, and 30 a-c as appropriate

2) Section 1 – The Schedule (pages 2-19)

Subsection B (2-8 pages)– Group Life Insurance Rates o Fixed-price with economic-price-adjustment- requirements type of contract ** Price offers are firm and not subject to adjustment for escalation in costs of materials, tools, equipment, fuel, transportation, labor, inflation, estimation errors, unforeseen difficulties, or currency exchange rate fluctuations.

o The USG will issue firm fixed price task orders o The fixed prices/premium rates in Philippine peso per one thousand of salary to provide life insurance, accidental death and dismemberment and partial and total disability coverage.

Please complete sections B.1 through B.7 based on the details of the offer.

o B.8 VALUE ADDED TAX (VAT). The Government will not reimburse the Contractor for VAT under this contract. The Contractor shall not include a line for VAT on Invoices as the U.S. Embassy has a tax exemption certificate with the host government.

o B.9 Local firm shall be in Philippine Peso.

o U.S. firms are eligible to be paid in U.S. dollars. U.S. firms desiring to be paid in

U.S. dollars should submit their offers in U.S. dollars. A U.S. firm is defined as a company which operates as a corporation incorporated under the laws of a state within the United States.

o Contractor shall provide a minimum of 50 persons. The amount of all orders, for base and all option years shall not exceed 1,500 persons. This reflects the contract maximum.

o B.11 Retention Amounts per Separate Premium Paid per Employee o B12. Economic Price Adjustment (EPA)- This outlines the procedures for filling an EPA.

Subsection C Description/Specifications/Work Statement (page 9-15)- To be discussed by the COR.

Subsection D – Deliveries or Performance o The Contract will be for a one (1) year period from the date of the contract award, with four (4) one year option to renew and one six-months option, if exercised by the Government.

Subsection E- Contract Administration Data o E.1. COR Duties o E.2 Submission of Invoices and Payments

Invoices send invoices to FMC’s electronic inbox only:

MNLFMCDBO@state.gov . Prompt payment will be processed by FMC upon receipt of an electronic or scanned copy of the invoice.

ORE Staff. The Chief of Mission and/or Deputy Chief of Mission will make payment directly to the Contractor for the entire premium amount of the ORE staff, whether or not the ORE employee is contributing to the premium amount.

Peace Corp Personal Service Contracts (PSC). The Peace Corp Philippines will make payment directly to the Contractor for the entire premium amount of the Peace Corp employee, whether or not the Peace Corp employee is contributing to the premium amount.

List of Attachments (pages 20-24)

ATTACHMENT A – EMPLOYEE STATISTICS

ATTACHMENT B - ORE EMPLOYEES RIDER

ATTACHMENT C –PEACE CORP (PSC) RIDER

ATTACHMENT D- CLAIMS EXPERIENCE

3) Section 2- Contract Clauses (pages 25-45) o Contract clauses are incorporated by reference or full text and forms part of the contract.

The clauses can be accessed electronically at the website provided under Section 2, Addendum to Contract Clauses. If the Contractor is unable to access the sites, the Contractor may request the Contracting Office for a full text copy in writing, and a copy shall be provided.

o Statue NDAA 889(a) (1) (B) and the prohibition on contracting with entities using certain telecommunications and video surveillance service or equipment. Please review FAR 4.21 and clause FAR 52.204-25 in Section 2 and the provision 52.204-24 in Section 5 and the offerors requirement to certify:

• That they will or will not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services to the Government.

• Whether they do or do not use covered telecommunications equipment or services that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services

If the offeror does not comply with representations and certification (either in their offer or in SAM), the offer is considered non-responsive. The CO may remove the offer from consideration for award per FAR 4.2103. If the Offeror represents that it does use the prohibited technology or services, it is only eligible for award if a narrow exception applies or if a waiver is obtained.

Covered telecommunications equipment or services means telecommunications equipment produced by Huawei Technologies Company, ZTE Corporation (or any subsidiary or affiliate of such entities), Hytera, Hikvision, Dahua, and other designated entities.

This is a security measure to protect U.S. government systems from potentially risky foreign technology. Please ensure that communications with the Embassy do not utilize equipment or services from these prohibited brands.

o FAR 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons. USG has a zero tolerance policy re trafficking. Every instance of trafficking will be examined and could result in termination of employees or subcontractors, suspension of contract payments or contract terminations.

o FAR 52.204-13, System for Award Management Maintenance, The Contractor shall maintain registration in SAM during contract performance and through final payment of any contract.

o FAR 52.228-4 DBA insurance, in accordance with FAR 28.305 and PIB 2017-04 also, US Embassy Manila has an active waiver. Although contractors are encouraged to review and read this clause.

o FAR 52.216-22, Indefinite Quantity, The quantities of services specified in the Schedule are estimates only and are not purchased by this contract.

Delivery or performance shall be made only as authorized by orders issued in accordance with the Ordering clause.

o FAR 52.217-8 OPTION TO EXTEND SERVICES The Government has the unilateral right to exercise this provision. The period shall not exceed six months.

https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-4-administrative-and-information-matters#id1989H0G40RF https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#id1989I600I4C https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#id1989I600I4C https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-4-administrative-and-information-matters#id1989G0W90SA https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#i1051105 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-28-bonds-and-insurance#i1087897 https://usdos.sharepoint.com/sites/A-OPE/PD/Lists/PIBs/PIBs.aspx o FAR 52.217-9 OPTION TO EXTEND THE TERM OF THE CONTRACT

The Government reserves the unilateral right to exercise option periods not to exceed five years.

o 52.232-19 AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS FOR THE NEXT FISCAL YEAR

The USG’s fiscal year ends on September 30 of the current calendar year. The USG’s obligation for performance of this contract beyond that date is contingent upon the availability of appropriated funds from which payment for contract purposes can be made.

o 652.242-70 CONTRACTING OFFICER’S REPRESENTATIVE The COR for this contract is the Human Resources Assistant (Francis O’Dell). The COR is not authorized to issue changes or direct to the Contractor to perform work outside of the scope of the contract. Only the CO has the authority to issue a change or changes to the contract terms and conditions through contract modification(s) o Tax on Certain Foreign Procurement Payments (Zadroga Act), please see FAR

29.402-3 and PIB 2020-05. This Act of the Internal Revenue Code imposes a tax of two percent (2%) on the amount of payment for each payment. Unless the exceptions in FAR 29.402-3 apply. If an exception does apply then you will need to highlight the requirement to fill out Internal Revenue Service Form W-14 and the form is required with their offer and every invoice. Under Section 5 clause 52.229-12 and the provision FAR 52.229-11.

This tax generally applies to foreign corporations, foreign individuals, and foreign governments.

Exemptions: Certain exemptions may apply based on tax treaties, the vendor's status, or the nature of goods and services. If you believe an exemption applies to your company’s situation, please identify this in your quotation and IRS- W-14 and be prepared to provide supporting documentation.

The burden of proof for exemption falls on the vendor.

4) Section 3 – Solicitation Provisions (pages 46-52)

- Volume I o SF-1449 cover page (blocks 12, 17, 19-24, and 30 as appropriate), and o Section 1 Price proposal for the base year and option years of life insurance programs; however, a price proposal for an option year with no proposal for the base year will not be considered, nor will a proposal for a base period which does not include a proposal for all option periods for that same type of insurance.

o Section 1- B.11 Retention Amounts per Separate Premium Paid per Employee o Section 5 Representations and Certifications (as appropriate and fill in all the blanks) https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-29-taxes#id205VI010V4Y https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-29-taxes#id205VI010V4Y https://usdos.sharepoint.com/sites/A-OPE/PD/Lists/PIBs/PIBs.aspx https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-29-taxes#id205VI010V4Y https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-29-taxes#id205VI010V4Y https://www.irs.gov/forms-pubs/about-form-w-14 https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#id205VI0L0TXK https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#id205VI0L0TXK https://www.acquisition.gov/content/part-52-solicitation-provisions-and-contract-clauses#id205VI0L0TXK

- Volume II – Information demonstrating the offeror’s/quoter’s ability to perform

*** Please utilize this document as both a guide and checklist. Submissions should be clear and comprehensive, with all criteria addressed.

- Electronic submissions are allowed. (Refer to Invitation Letter) Offers must be emailed to ManilaContracting@state.gov in separate file folders indicating Volume I and Volume II. Kindly follow the submission specific size and format not to exceed 10MB per file.

Must be submitted in specific size and format; in MS-Word 2007/2010 or MS-Excel 2007/2010 or Adobe Acrobat (pdf) file format. The file size must not exceed 10MB.

If the file size should not exceed 10MB, the submission must be made in separate files and attached to separate emails with less than 10MB each.

- FAR52.204-7, System for Award Management – To be eligible for award, offerors must be registered in SAM.gov at the time of submission and maintain that registration through contract award.

5) Section 4 – Evaluation Factors (page 53-54)

- Criteria by which the USG will evaluate offers. The USG intends to award to the lowest priced, technically acceptable offer.

- Acceptability will be determined by assessing the offeror's compliance with the terms of the RFQ.

- Non-conforming quotations may be deemed ineligible for award at the Government's discretion.

6) Section 5 – Representations and Certifications (pages 55-79)

- Fill out only those that are applicable and indicate N/A for item that does not apply.

- NDAA pages 55-57

- Zadroga Pages 77-78

Reminders:

Attendance at the pre-quotation conference does not relieve offerors of the responsibility to review the complete solicitation thoroughly.

All questions must be in writing. Deadline of submission for questions is on or before 18

February 2026 4:00 PM (Philippine local time).

o QUESTIONS – To ensure transparency and equal access to information, all questions must be submitted in writing. Written responses will be provided to all offerors. If any response necessitates a change to the solicitation, an amendment will be issued. All questions and answers will be compiled and made available in a general Q&A format on SAM.gov.

o When submitting questions, please reference the specific section or portion of the solicitation to which the question pertains.

mailto:ManilaContracting@state.gov

Deadline for submission of quotations is on 9 March 2026 4:00 PM (Philippine local time)

All questions and answers, minutes of the meeting and amendments (if any) will be posted on SAM.gov.

Conclusion

The Pre-Quotation Conference concluded and attendees were thanked for their presence and expression of interest in serving the U.S. Government. The meeting was adjourned.