CBP JA for Integrated Surveillance Towers Sustainment Final Signed 11.26.2025_Redacted.pdf

JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN

COMPETITION

((41 U.S.C. 3304(a)(5))

Pursuant to the requirements of the Competition in Contracting Act (CICA) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 6.103 (FAR Class Deviation 25-11) and in accordance with the requirements of FAR 6.104 (FAR Class Deviation 25-11), the justification for the use of the statutory authority under FAR 6.103 (FAR Class Deviation 25-11) is justified by the following facts and rationale required under FAR 6.104-1 (FAR Class Deviation 25-11) as follows:

1. Agency and Contracting Activity.

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS), U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), Office of Acquisition, proposes to enter into a contract on a basis other than full and open competition by awarding a sole source 8(a) direct award in excess of $30 million to an Indian Tribal Entity pursuant to FAR 6.103-5(c)(1)(FAR Class Deviation 25-11) and FAR 19.805- 1(b)(2).

2. Nature and/or Description of the Action being Approved.

(a) Nature of action.

CBP intends to procure on a sole source basis Integrated Surveillance Tower (IST) sustainment services through an 8(a) directed award to a Tribally owned entity.

(b) Name and address of the contractor.

S&K Security Group, LLC (hereafter “SKSG”) 63066 Old Highway 93, Suite S, Saint Ignatius, Montana 59865-9008.

(c) Contract type.

The award will be a hybrid firm, fixed-price and time and materials contract type.

(d) Estimated total value (including options).

Period Total

Base Year 12 mo.

Option Year 1 12 mo.

Option Year 2 12 mo.

Option Year 3 12 mo.

Option Year 4 12 mo.

Total $413,197,000

(e) Type of funding.

(b) (4)

Operations and Support (O&S)

(f) Year of funding.

Fiscal Year 2026

(g) Solicitation number.

20154975

(h) Background information about the requirement.

On November 22, 2019, CBP entered into agreement with the FAA to provide sustainment support IST systems. The FAA’s original approach was to contract with General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT) to perform the work, who in turn subcontracted to SKSG. It was SKSG that was primarily responsible for satisfactorily maintaining the systems within the prescribed performance Metrics. Given that CBP’s Service Order Agreement (SOA) between the Agency and FAA expires in December 2025, as does the FAA’s contract with GDIT, CBP must either award a new contract themselves or take over the work in-house through Office of Information Technology (OIT), which does not have the capacity, infrastructure or resources in place to do so.

3. Description of Supplies/Services.

CBP has a requirement for contract support to conduct sustainment and other services to maintain approximately four-hundred seventy-eight (478) deployed medium and long-range surveillance tower systems, communication relay towers, and associated technology deployed across the U.S. Border Patrol Sectors 24/7/365 days per year, as well as future deployed systems which may exceed 1,500 towers in total over the next three to five years.

Integrated Surveillance Tower (IST) systems covered under the IST sustainment requirement include Remote Video Surveillance System-Overhaul (RVSS-O), Northern Border Remote Video Surveillance System (NB- RVSS), Remote Video Surveillance System-Legacy (RVSS-L), Remote Video Surveillance System-Upgrade (RVSS-U), Integrated Fixed Towers (IFT), Trailer Mounted Surveillance Towers (TMST), and future Integrated Surveillance Towers delivered under the Consolidated Tower Surveillance Equipment (CTSE) contract.

Additional surveillance systems requiring sustainment services may be included in the future.

CBP’s requirement for IST sustainment consists of a contractor-provided turnkey program for providing preventive and corrective maintenance on existing and future IST tower systems; procurement and warehousing of spares, access road maintenance, site preparation, removing outdated tower subsystems (e.g., power, communications, sensors) and replacing them with new equipment; appropriate metrics for reporting Operational Availability (Ao), response times, establishing regional service centers to support the sustainment of deployed tower systems for technicians, warehouse space for spare parts and consumables, and for shipping and receiving inoperable sensors and other components that must be shipped back to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for repair.

The IST Sustainment contractor will have service centers located throughout the southern and northern borders which will warehouse the spares and consumable parts and serve as a shipping/receiving location for inoperable components that must be shipped back to the original equipment manufacturer (OEM) for repairs.

4. Identification of 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(a)(5) implemented by FAR 6.103-5(c)(1)(FAR Class Deviation 25-11) (Authorized or required by statute) which expressly authorizes or requires that the acquisition be made from a specified source or through another agency, including sole source awards under the 8(a) Program (15 U.S.C. 637). Additionally, per FAR 19.805-1(b)(2) for awards over $30 million, the SBA may accept the requirement for a sole source 8(a) award if where SBA accepts the requirement on behalf of a concern owned by an Indian Tribe.

5. Demonstration that the proposed contractor’s unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited.

Upon reviewing the capabilities and experience within the marketplace, it was determined there were both large and small businesses which could be considered for the requirement; however, there are also SBA 8(a) small businesses who can perform the requirement, including SKSG, the Indian Tribal entity that is currently satisfactorily performing the identical work as a subcontractor under several CBP contracts and an Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)-administered prime contract. The IST program office determined it was in the best interest of the Government to award directly to the indicated Indian Tribal entity, SKSG, as authorized under statute, and that this approach posed minimal risk for the performance of the requirement. Interviews with program management staff familiar with SKSG’s work and performance under the prime contracts indicated satisfactory or better performance and highly recommended SKSG for a direct award to continue performing the required services.

SKSG possesses the personnel, equipment, and training required to perform the scope of this work of this magnitude and complexity. SKSG maintains sufficient qualified personnel with active CBP-approved background investigations (BI) with specialized knowledge, experience, equipment, and training necessary to perform the required services without interruption or disruption to the continuity of the sustainment services.

SKSG has performed this work both as a prime contractor and subcontractor to the FAA, as well as a subcontractor under several prime contracts awarded by CBP over the last 12 years.

A direct award to SKSG avoids the risk of a potential break or degradation of service due to the transition of work from SKSG, who is currently performing the identical requirement, to another company during a time of heightened security issues along the Southern and Northern borders.

The IST Sustainment services for deployed surveillance towers are currently being performed for CBP through interagency agreement (assisted acquisition) with the FAA.

The interagency agreement period of performance ends on December 23, 2025. CBP leadership made the determination that CBP would directly oversee the requirement. The U.S. Border Patrol, in conjunction with the Office of Acquisition, performed market research and determined it was in the best interest of the Government to make a direct award to the 8(a) Indian Tribal entity versus pursuing a full and open competition. No portion of the work can be segregated to allow for a separate competition for part of the work

The U.S. Border Patrol evaluated the option of having the Office of Information and Technology (OIT) maintain the Southwest border sites organically, based on their experience maintaining a much smaller number of older version surveillance towers that are deployed along the Northen border. The U.S. Border Patrol determined OIT was neither staffed nor resourced to absorb the much larger workload associated with the requirement.

Competition was also considered; however, the risk to system performance is extremely high because there is no room left in the FAA’s contract to extend services with the current contractor to provide for a transition to another potentially successful contractor.

The performance risk, coupled with the risk to national security, is too great to allow a collapse in services and system performance. The U.S. Border Patrol determined it was in the best interest of the Government to award directly to SKSG, as authorized by statute, and that this approach posed minimal risk for the performance of the requirement.

Should the J&A not be approved and the service not provided, the Operational Availability (Ao) of tower systems along the Southwest Border would plummet. Ao is expected to be at 99% to identify, classify, and track illegal and elicit traffic across the border into the United States. A lack of sustainment activities would degrade Ao by virtue of towers not being sustained, sensors failing, fuel depletion resulting in no power for the systems, and a myriad of other related issues. The risk to national security would be the inability to prevent illegal border crossings, entry of illegal drugs, human trafficking, and the entry of counterfeit goods.

6. Description of Efforts Made to Ensure that Offers are Solicited from as Many Potential

Sources as is Practicable.

The U.S. Border Patrol determined it is in the best interest of the Government to award directly to a Native American corporation, S&K Security Group, LLC (SKSG), as authorized under Statute, and posed minimal risk to the performance of the requirement. The award will be a new contract which will be executed as a direct award to SKSG, an 8(a) Indian Tribal entity that has performed this work both as a prime contractor to the FAA as well as a subcontractor under several prime contractors. SKSG has over 12 years of experience providing sustainment support to the IST program, has the requisite staff with the technical knowledge and CBP clearances, and has multiple facilities along the Border to serve as support centers. Additionally, an announcement is not required per FAR 5.101(b)(2)(FAR Class Deviation 25-11).

7. Determination by the Contracting Officer that the Anticipated Cost to the Government will be Fair and Reasonable.

The Contracting Officer has determined that the anticipated price(s) will be fair and reasonable based on conducting a proposal analysis using techniques outlined in the FAR 15.404-1. The contracting officer will have access to prior acquisition history. CBP has prepared an Independent Government Cost Estimate (IGCE) to determine the likely cost associated with procuring the necessary equipment to establish, repair, maintain, and support spares, training, engineering, logistics, and services for the Integrated Surveillance Tower infrastructure. CBP fully understands the costs of this effort and can determine whether the services provided under this agreement are fair and reasonable based on current, highly similar programs, and cost data. Further, CBP will analyze the cost structure of the SKSG price proposal to include the basis of estimate for all costs, resources, equipment, materials, and personnel.

Finally, the Contracting Officer will request other than certified cost data from SKSG. CBP anticipates negotiations with the vendor prior to final award.

8. Description of Market Research.

Upon reviewing the capabilities and experience within the marketplace, it was determined there were both large and small businesses which could be considered for the requirement;

however, there are also 8(a) small businesses who can perform the requirement, one of which is an Indian Tribal Entity who is currently satisfactorily performing the identical work as a subcontractor under several FAA and CBP administered prime contracts.

Competition was considered; however, the risk to system performance is extremely high because there is no room left in the FAA’s contract to extend services to provide for a transition from another potentially successful contractor. The performance risk, coupled with the risk to national security, is too great to allow a collapse in services and system performance.

The U.S. Border Patrol determined it was in the best interest of the Government to award directly to SKSG, as authorized by Statute, posed minimal risk for the performance of the requirement. Interviews with program management staff familiar with SKSG’s work and performance under the prime contracts indicated exceptional performance and highly recommended SKSG for a direct award to continue performing the required services.

9. Any Other Facts Supporting the Use of Other Than Full and Open Competition.

There are no other facts supporting the use of other than full and open competition.

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

Acquisition.

CBP did not issue a synopsis, a sources sought notice, or request for information on sam.gov and, therefore, had no other sources express interest in the requirement.

11. 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.

Before any future acquisition of IST requirement, CBP will conduct market research to reassess industry’s capability to perform the services.

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12. 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.

KIMBERLY L COOPER

Ms. Kimberly L. Cooper Contracting Officer

Date

13. 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.

Mr. Khalid A. Elhillali Portfolio Director Integrated Surveillance Towers Technical Representative

Date

APPROVAL:

KIMBERLY L COOPER

Contracting Officer Date

(b) (6)

(b) (6)

JUDITH A

SIMPSON

Mr. Earl L. Lewis, III Head of Contracting Activity

Date

Paul Courtney DHS Chief Procurement Officer

Date

EARL J LEWI

Ms. Judith A. Simp Procuring Activity Advocate for Competition

PAUL R

COURTNEY

(b) (6)