Amendment_1 _RFP_NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048.pdf

AMENDMENT #1 RFP NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048 1

Amendment No. 1

NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048

“Mycobacterium Tuberculosis (Mtb) Quality Assessment Program (TBQA)”

Solicitation Number: NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048

Amendment Number: One (1)

Amendment Issue Date: February 4, 2016

Proposal Due Date/Time: Monday, March 7, 2016 at 3:00 PM, Local Time (Unchanged)

Issued By: John R. Manouelian

Contracting Officer

OA/DEA/NIAID/NIH/DHHS

5601 Fishers Lane, Room 3D10, MSC 9821 Bethesda, Maryland 20892-9821

Points of Contact: PRIMARY patrick.finn@nih.gov Patrick Finn, Contract Specialist Phone: 240.669.5401

SECONDARY

manouelj@mail.nih.gov John R. Manouelian, Contracting Officer Phone: 240.669.5152

Please note that we do NOT intend to extend the due date for submission of proposals as a result of this amendment. The date specified for receipt of proposals remains unchanged.

Offerors must acknowledge receipt of this Amendment by identifying the amendment number and the date of the amendment on each copy of the submitted proposal. Failure to receive your acknowledgement may result in the rejection of your proposal. Except as provided herein, all terms and conditions of the solicitation remain unchanged and in full force and effect.

The purpose of Amendment 1: (1) revise Attachment 1, Packaging and Delivery of Proposals for Use with eCPS, to include a page limitation for the technical proposal; and

(2) update clauses throughout the solicitation.

AMENDMENT #1 RFP NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048 2

As a result of the above revisions, the following areas of the solicitation are revised to read as follows:

Attachment 1, Packaging and Delivery of Proposals for Use with eCPS, paragraph II., subparagraph B., is hereby revised to include a page limitation for the Technical Proposal and shall read as follows:

1. The total page count for the Technical Proposal shall not exceed 150 pages (inclusive of all appendices and attachments). Total page count does not include: Title and Back Page; Table of Contents; Section Dividers that do not contain information other than title of Section. There is no page limitation for the Business Proposal.

2. Pages in excess of this limitation will be removed from the proposal and will not be considered.

ARTICLE G.2., KEY PERSONNEL, HHSAR 352.242-70 (January 2006), is hereby revised to replace the HHSAR clause reference with HHSAR 352.237-75 (December 2015), and shall read as follows:

ARTICLE G.2., KEY PERSONNEL, HHSAR 352.237-75 (December 2015)

The key personnel specified in this contract are considered to be essential to work performance.

At least 30 days prior to the contractor voluntarily diverting any of the specified individuals to other programs or contracts the Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer and shall submit a justification for the diversion or replacement and a request to replace the individual. The request must identify the proposed replacement and provide an explanation of how the replacement's skills, experience, and credentials meet or exceed the requirements of the contract (including, when applicable, Human Subjects Testing requirements). If the employee of the contractor is terminated for cause or separates from the contractor voluntarily with less than thirty days notice, the Contractor shall provide the maximum notice practicable under the circumstances. The Contractor shall not divert, replace, or announce any such change to key personnel without the written consent of the Contracting Officer. The contract will be modified to add or delete key personnel as necessary to reflect the agreement of the parties.

(End of Clause)

The following individual(s) is/are considered to be essential to the work being performed hereunder:

Name Title To be specified prior to award

ARTICLE H.16. ELECTRONIC AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

ACCESSIBILITY, HHSAR 352.239-73(b) (January 2010) is hereby revised to replace the HHSAR clause reference with HHSAR 352.239-73 (December 2015), and shall read as follows:

AMENDMENT #1 RFP NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048 3

ARTICLE H.16. ELECTRONIC AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY

ACCESSIBILITY, HHSAR 352.239-73 (December 2015)

a. Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (29 U.S.C. 794d), as amended by the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and the Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board Electronic and Information (EIT) Accessibility Standards (36 CFR part 1194), require that when Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, Federal employees with disabilities have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to the access and use by Federal employees who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency. Section 508 also requires that individuals with disabilities, who are members of the public seeking information or services from a Federal agency, have access to and use of information and data that is comparable to that provided to the public who are not individuals with disabilities, unless an undue burden would be imposed on the agency.

b. Accordingly, any offeror responding to this solicitation must comply with established HHS EIT accessibility standards. Information about Section 508 is available at http://www.hhs.gov/web/508 . The complete text of the Section 508 Final Provisions can be accessed at http://www.access-board.gov/guidelines-and standards/communications-and-it/about-the-section-508-standards .

c. The Section 508 accessibility standards applicable to this solicitation are stated in the clause at 352.239-74, Electronic and Information Technology Accessibility. In order to facilitate the Government's determination whether proposed EIT supplies meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must submit an HHS Section 508 Product Assessment Template, in accordance with its completion instructions. The purpose of the template is to assist HHS acquisition and program officials in determining whether proposed EIT supplies conform to applicable Section 508 accessibility standards. The template allows offerors or developers to self-evaluate their supplies and document--in detail--whether they conform to a specific Section 508 accessibility standard, and any underway remediation efforts addressing conformance issues. Instructions for preparing the HHS Section 508 Evaluation Template are available under Section 508 policy on the HHS Web site http://www.hhs.gov/web/508 . In order to facilitate the Government's determination whether proposed EIT services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, offerors must provide enough information to assist the Government in determining that the EIT services conform to Section 508 accessibility standards, including any underway remediation efforts addressing conformance issues.

d. Respondents to this solicitation must identify any exception to Section 508 requirements.

If a offeror claims its supplies or services meet applicable Section 508 accessibility standards, and it is later determined by the Government, i.e., after award of a contract or order, that supplies or services delivered do not conform to the described accessibility standards, remediation of the supplies or services to the level of conformance specified in the contract will be the responsibility of the Contractor at its expense.

AMENDMENT #1 RFP NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048 4

(End of provision)

The "HHS Section 508 Product Assessment Template" is included in SECTION J - List of Attachments, of this solicitation.

ARTICLE I.3., ADDITIONAL CONTRACT CLAUSES, paragraph b., item 1., HHSAR Clause 352.223-70, Safety and Health (January 2006), is hereby revised to read as follows:

1. HHSAR Clause 352.223-70, Safety and Health (December 2015)

ARTICLE I.3., ADDITIONAL CONTRACT CLAUSES, paragraph b., item 2., HHSAR Clause 352.231-70, Salary Rate Limitation (August 2012), is hereby revised to read as follows:

2. HHSAR Clause 352.231-70, Salary Rate Limitation (December 2015)

Note : The Salary Rate Limitation is at the Executive Level II Rate.

See the following website for Executive Schedule rates of pay:

https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/salaries-wages/ .

(For current year rates, click on Salaries and Wages/Executive Schedule/Rates of Pay for the Executive Schedule. For prior year rates, click on Salaries and Wages/select Another Year at the top of the page/Executive Schedule/Rates of Pay for the Executive Schedule. Rates are effective January 1 of each calendar year unless otherwise noted.)

ARTICLE I.3., ADDITIONAL CONTRACT CLAUSES, paragraph b., item 3., HHSAR Clause 352.270-1, Accessibility of Meetings, Conferences and Seminars to Persons with Disabilities (January 2001), is hereby deleted.

SECTION L – INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS, AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS,

paragraph 2., subparagraph c., item 7., Mentor-Protégé Program, HHSAR 352.219-70 (January 2010), is hereby revised to read as follows:

7. Mentor-Protégé Program, HHSAR 352.219-70 (December 2015)

a. Large business prime contractors serving as mentors in theHHS Mentor-Protege Program are eligible for HHS subcontracting plan credit, and shall submit a copy of their HHS Office of Small and Disadvantaged Business Utilization (OSDBU) approved mentor-protege agreements as part of their offers. The amount of credit provided by the Contracting Officer to a mentor firm for protege firm developmental assistance costs shall be calculated on a dollar for dollar basis and reported by the mentor firm in the Summary Subcontract Report via the Electronic Subcontracting Reporting System (eSRS) at www.esrs.gov . The mentor firm and protege firm shall submit to the Contracting Officer a signed

AMENDMENT #1 RFP NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048 5

joint statement agreeing on the dollar value of the developmental assistance the mentor firm provided. (For example, a mentor firm would report a $10,000 subcontract awarded to a protege firm and provision of $5,000 of developmental assistance as $15,000 of subcontracting plan credit.) The mentor firm may use this additional credit towards attaining its subcontracting plan participation goal under this contract.

b. The program consists of--

1. Mentor firms--large businesses that:

(i) Demonstrate the interest, commitment, and capability to provide developmental assistance to small business protégé firms; and

(ii) Have a Mentor-Protege agreement approved by

HHS' OSDBU;

2. Protege firms--firms that:

(i) Seek developmental assistance;

(ii) Qualify as small businesses, veteran-owned small businesses, service-disabled veteran-owned small businesses, HUBZone small businesses, small disadvantaged businesses, or woman-owned small businesses; and

(iii) Have a Mentor-Protege agreement approved by HHS' OSDBU; and

3. Mentor-Protege agreements--joint agreements, approved by HHS' OSDBU, which detail the specific terms, conditions, and responsibilities of the mentor-protégé relationship.

(End of provision)

END OF AMENDMENT NO. 1, RFP No. NIAID-DAIDS-NIHAI2015048