Combined Synopsis Solicitation Grounds Maintenance WNYNC.docx

GENERAL INFORMATION:

Option 3: 1 June 2026- 31 May 2027 Option 4: 1 June 2027- 31 May 2028

Place of Performance: Western New York National Cemetery, 1254 Indian Falls Road, Corfu, New York, 14036.

Attachments: Attachment A – Price Schedule Western NY Attachment B – WNYNC Grounds Maintenance SOW Base Four Option Years Attachment C – Wage Determination 2015 4181 Rev 21 Attachment D -- Past Performance Questionnaire Grounds Maintenance WNYNC Attachment E-Wage Determination NY20230001 Attachment F-WNYC 936 GM map

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.603 as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ), solicitation number 36C78623Q50096.

This solicitation incorporates provisions and clauses in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) FAC 2023-01 (eff. 12/30/2022).

NORTH AMERICAN INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION SYSTEM (NAICS) CODE:

The (NAICS) code for this procurement is 561730. The business size standard number of employees is $9.5 Million.

This notice shall not be construed as a commitment by the Government to ultimately award a contract, nor does it restrict the Government to a particular acquisition approach.

The U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs, National Cemetery Administration, anticipates the award of an Indefinite Delivery, Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Contract. IDIQ Contracts does not procure or specify a firm quantity of services (other than a minimum or maximum quantity). The awardee shall be issued via Task Orders (TOs) for the performance of services during the period of the contract. This contract is for Western New York National Cemetery, 1254 Indian Falls Road, Corfu, New York, 14036.

DIGNITY CLAUSE:

Respect for Headstones and Markers in National Cemeteries; Handling of Markers and Headstones Every action by Offeror personnel at a national cemetery must be performed with the special care, reverence, dignity, and respect that acknowledges the cemetery as the final resting place that commemorates the service and sacrifice that service members, Veterans and their families made for our Nation. Critically important is the awareness required of the Offeror employees of the remains buried in the grounds where the work is performed. The utmost care must be given to these remains and the headstones and flat grave markers that mark those gravesites and memorialize the service of individuals.

Offerors cannot walk, stand, lean, sit or jump on headstones or markers. Nor can they drive over them.

No tools, equipment or other items will be placed or leaned on headstones or markers.

Use care not to scratch or damage markers in any manner.

Offeror shall be responsible for replacing damaged headstones and markers and for restoring turf damaged during performance of this work.

Additionally, should any activity result in the exposure and/or damage to any remains, container for remains (e.g., casket or urn), or outer burial container, the Offeror must contact the COR, Director/Assistant Director, or Contracting Officer (CO) for guidance.

Any doubts as to proper procedures shall be brought to the attention of the COR, Director/Assistant Director, or CO for guidance or resolution.

The Offeror is required to discuss the guidance with employees and/or subcontractors and have each employee sign a statement of compliance and deliver the signed statement to the COR before work may begin.

Contracted Site Supervisor will ensure that no Offeror personnel work will cause any funeral, ceremony, procession or visitation to be delayed, altered, or otherwise impacted in such a way that the dignity, security, or safety of the event or visit is compromised.

A list of scheduled ceremonies will be provided the week prior to the event, and a list of scheduled committal services will be provided on the day of the service. The Site Supervisor shall communicate not less than daily with the COR, to ask questions and ensure he/she and contracted personnel understands the off-limit areas.

RESPONSE TO REQUEST FOR QUOTATION (RFQ): Quotes are due to the Contracting Officer no later than 5:00PM EST on 4/10/2023. Responses to this announcement will result in an indefinite delivery, indefinite quantity (IDIQ). The Government intends to make award without discussions. All information submitted in response to this announcement is voluntary and the Government will not pay for information provided nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided for the Government. Offerors are responsible for obtaining any and all amendments or additional information concerning this announcement at sam.gov.

SOLICITATION QUESTIONS:

All questions regarding this solicitation are to be submitted to the Contracting Officer, via email, no later than close of business, 3/31/2023 10:00AM EST. Questions pertaining to this announcement shall be sent by email to: Antionette.Collins@va.gov and Joselito.Roman@va.gov . Telephone inquiries will not be accepted. Associated answers to questions submitted will be provided via a solicitation amendment. Should an amendment not be endorsed by the interested Offeror, the quote will be considered Non-Responsive.

SITE VISIT: Offerors or quoters are urged and expected to inspect all sites where services are to be performed and to satisfy themselves regarding all general and local conditions that may affect the cost of contract performance. In no event shall failure to inspect a one or all sites constitute grounds for a claim after contract award. If you plan to conduct a site visit / inspection of the Western New York National Cemetery, YOU MUST CONTACT the following personnel to make arrangements prior to a site visit:

SITE VISIT IS SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 3, 2023 at 11:00AM EST

James Metcalfe – Director, Western New York National Cemetery……… (585) 297-1300 Lisa Hastee – Operations Supervisor, Western New York National Cemetery…. (585) 297-1300 Ryleigh Toles – Management Analyst, Western New York National Cemetery ….(585) 297-1300

INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS:

Interested Offerors MUST be registered with the System of Award Management (SAM) at http://www.sam.gov and must compete the Online Representations and Certifications Application (ORCA) at http://www.sam.gov prior to the solicitation closing date. Failure to comply will result in the offeror being considered Non-Responsive.

Anyone submitting a quote as a Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) and Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB) socio-economic category concerns MUST have an active/current registration with the SBA Veteran Small Business Certification (Vet Cert). Failure to comply will result in the offeror being considered Non-Responsive.

Interested Offerors who do not have a current/active Sam account registration or who are not certified in Vet Cert upon solicitation close date will be considered non-responsive.

All offers are to be submitted to the Contracting Officer, via email at Antionette.Collins@va.gov and Joselito.Roman@va.gov no later than 5:00PM EST on 4/10/2023.

QUOTATION PREPARATON INSTRUCTIONS: Offerors shall submit quotes in four (4) separate Adobe Acrobat (.pdf) documents identifying each .pdf document as Volumes A, Volume B, Volume C, and Volume D. Interested Offerors who fail to submit the four (4) separate .pdf documents will be considered non-responsive.

Company Information (Volume A) The following information shall be included in Volume A:

· Legal Business/Company Name (as listed in www.sam.gov)

· Complete Company Address (No P.O. Boxes)

· Duns Number

· SAM UID

· Company Point of Contract Name and Title

· Telephone Number

· Email Address

· Company Capabilities Statement

· One (1) Signed Copy of all Solicitation Amendments

· One (1) Copy of Completed FAR Clause 52.223-3 “Hazardous Material Identification and Material Safety Data” (if applicable).

· One (1) copy of Completed FAR Provisions 52.212-3 “Certifications and Representations” or indicate whether contractor has completed the annual representation and certifications electronically at www.sam.gov (copy of current SAM status)

· In accordance with Public Law 116-183 a Small Business claiming Veterans First Status, Service Disable Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), or Veteran Owned Small Business (VOSB), must certify in writing that their firm are performing 50 percent of the work. Therefore, Interested Offerors who claim SDVOSB or VOSB status shall provide (1) document stating their compliance with PL 116-183. Failure to provide such document will result in the Interested Offeror being considered Non-Responsive. Should award be made to an SDVOSB or a VOSB who is suspected of violating PL 116-183 this Agency will refer suspected violators to its department’s inspector general for investigation and possible fines, suspensions, or debarments.

Technical Proposal (Volume B) The following shall be included as part of the Offeror’s technical submission, Volume B:

· The contractor’s capability statement, not to exceed 15 pages, demonstrating how it will meet the requirements of this solicitation.

· Management plan shall include the managerial and technical qualifications of key personnel to include Resumes.

· Work Plan/Staffing plan to accomplish the required services to include man hours, methodology, list of equipment/vehicles to be used, licenses, permits and insurance information.

Past Performance (Volume C) The following shall be included as part of the Offeror’s Past Performance submission, Volume C: Past Performance Questionnaire (Attachment D) from at least three (3) references in the last five (5) years. Past Performance information provided must be similar or somewhat similar to the required service(s).

Pricing (Volume D) The following information shall be included in Volume D

· Proposed pricing shall be submitted on the Price/Cost Schedule of Services (Attachment A)

EVALUATION PROCESS: 52.212-2 Evaluation Commercial Items (Oct 2014)

(a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. Quotations/Offers will be evaluated by performing a comparative evaluation in accordance with FAR 13.106-2(b)(3) to determine which response represents the “best” as a whole.

Quotations/Offerors will be evaluated by performing a direct comparison of one Quotation/Offer with another in a uniform manner to determine which Quotation/Offer provides the government with its needs, as identified in the RFQ. The government reserves the right to consider a response that Quotes or Offers more than the minimum and select that response if it provides a benefit to the government. The government has the discretion to accept other than the lowest priced Quoter/Offer that provides additional benefits. The government also has the discretion to make an award based on whether the lowest priced of the Quotation/Offer having the highest past performance rating possible represents the best benefit to the government.

The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers.

1. Technical

2. Past Performance

3. Price Describe the Technical and the Sub-Factors 1-3 in the sections provided below.

FACTOR 1: Technical Approach and Understanding of the Work:

Offer shall be evaluated in accordance with the criteria contained in the Statement of Work and on how well the technical approach meets the Government requirements. Technical approach will be evaluated for the following:

FACTOR 2: Past Performances Past performance shall be evaluated based on the Offer’s technical qualifications on projects within the last 5 years that are comparable in size, complexity, and scope. Past Performance information shall be obtained by the following methods.

Note: Non-like type referrals will be rated lower than referrals that are more closely related to this project. If an offeror’s past performance is rated unacceptable, the matter shall be referred to the Small Business Administration for a Certificate of Competency determination.

FACTOR 3: Price Proposed price will be evaluated for Reasonableness The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced when despite an acceptable proposal, the price of one or more items is significantly over or understated. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).

A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer's specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award.

End of Document

SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES / COSTS

Price Schedule: Contractor shall furnish all labor, supervision, equipment, materials and supplies necessary to provide complete Cemetery Grounds Maintenance Services at the Western New York National Cemetery, 1254 Indian Falls Road, Corfu, New York, 14036. Services will be provided in accordance with all terms, conditions, specifications, requirements, and schedules of the contract, including National Cemetery Administration Standard Operating Procedures and Operational Standards & Measures.

Contract period will be from 1 June 2023- 31 May 2024 with four, one-year options.

Solicitation Provisions and Contract Clauses 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions- Commercial Items (Dec 2022) Addendum to FAR 52.212-4 52.252-2 Clauses Incorporated by Reference (FEB 1998) http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html (FAR) and https://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/index.asp (VAAR)

FAR Clauses 52.203-16 Preventing Personal Conflicts of Interest (JUN 2020) 52.203-17 Contractor Employee Whistleblower Rights and Requirement To Inform Employees of Whistleblower Rights (JUN 2020) 52.204-4 Printed or Copied Double-Sided on Postconsumer Fiber Content Paper (May 2011) 52.204-13 System for Award Management Maintenance (OCT 2018) 52.216-18 Ordering (AUG 2020) Note: (a) Any supplies and services to be furnished under this contract shall be ordered by issuance of delivery orders or task orders by the individuals or activities designated in the Schedule. Such orders may be issued from TBD through TBD.

52.216-19 Order Limitations (OCT 1995)

(a) Minimum order. When the Government requires supplies or services covered by this contract in an amount of less than 1 quantity, the Government is not obligated to purchase, nor is the Contractor obligated to furnish, those supplies or services under the contract. (b) Maximum order. The Contractor is not obligated to honor- (1) Any order for a single item in excess of the stated quantity per CLIN (2) Any order for a combination of items in excess of the sated quantity per CLIN; or (3) A series of orders from the same ordering office within 60 days that together call for quantities exceeding the limitation in paragraph (b)(1) or (2) of this section.

52.216-22 Indefinite Quantity (OCT 1995) 52.217-8 Option to Extend Services (NOV 1999) 52.217-9 Option to Extend the Term of the Contract (MAR 2000) 52.233-2 Service of Protest (Sept 2006)

52.232-19 Availability of Funds for the Next Fiscal Year (Apr 1984) 52.232-40 Providing Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors (DEC 2013) 52.237-3 Continuity of Services (JAN 1991)

VAAR Clauses 852.212-70 Provisions and Clauses Applicable to VA Acquisition of Commercial Items (APR 2020) 852.201-70 Contracting Officers Representative (DEC 2022) 852.203-70 Commercial Advertising (MAY 2018) 852.219-73 VA NOTICE OF TOTAL SET-ASIDE FOR VERIFIED SERVICE-DISABLED VETERAN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESSES (NOV 2022) 852.233-70 Protest Content/Alternative Dispute Resolution (OCT 2018)

852.237-75 KEY PERSONNEL (OCT 2019)

(End of Addendum to 52.212-4)

52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders- Commercial Items (OCT 2022) 52.212-1 Instructions to Offerors-Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Nov 2021) (Addendum to FAR 52.212-1) 52.252-1 Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (FEB 1998) http://www.acquisition.gov/far/index.html (FAR) and http://www.va.gov/oal/library/vaar/index.asp (VAAR) 52.204-7 System for Award Management (OCT 2018) 52.209-7 Information Regarding Responsibility Matters (OCT 2018) 52.204-16 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting (AUG 2020) 52.216-27 Single or Multiple Awards (OCT 1995)

VAAR Provisions 852.252-70 Solicitation Provisions or Clauses Incorporated by Reference (JAN 2008)

(End of Addendum to 52.212-1)

52.212-2 Evaluation-Commercial Items (OCT 2014) 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications-Commercial Items (FEB 2021)

End of Document

See Attached Attachment A – Attachment A – Price Schedule Western NY See Attached Attachment B –Attachment B – WNYNC Grounds Maintenance SOW Base Four Option Years See Attached Attachment C – Attachment C – Wage Determination 2015 4181 Rev 21 See Attached Attachment D -- Attachment D -- Past Performance Questionnaire Grounds Maintenance WNYNC See Attached Attachment E -- Attachment E- Wage Determination NY20230001 See Attached Attachment F-- Attachment F-WNYC 936 GM map