REVISED Contracting Officers Special Information and Instructions - 7 pages.docx

CONTRACTING OFFICER’S SPECIAL INFORMATION AND INSTRUCTIONS

CONTRACT AWARD

Award may only be made with the responsible bidder whose bid, conforming to the solicitation, will be most advantageous to the government, considering only price (see FAR 52.214-19). The low price will be evaluated by the Contracting Officer prior to award to confirm that it is “a fair and reasonable price that is most advantageous to the Government.”

CONTRACTOR'S SIGNATURE

Contractual documents (e.g. bids, proposals, awards, modifications, etc.) shall be completed and signed by the Contractor as follows (see FAR 4.102):

· Individuals. Signed by the individual. Individual doing business as a firm. Signed by that individual, and the signature shall be followed by the individual's typed, stamped, or printed name and the words, "an individual doing business as __________________ (insert name of firm)".

· Partnership. Signed in the partnership name. Prior to award, provide list of all partners and designate which partners have authority to bind the partnership.

· Corporations. Signed in the corporate name followed by the word "by" and the signature, and title of the person authorized to sign. Prior to award, provide list of individuals who have authority to bind the corporation.

· Joint Ventures. Signed by each participant in the joint venture in the manner prescribed in (a) through (d) above.

· Agents. When an agent is to sign the contract, other than as stated in paragraph (a) through (e) above, the agent's authorization to bind the principal must be established by evidence satisfactory to the contracting officer.

SITE VISIT

A formal site visit has been scheduled for this project (see FAR 52.236-27). The pre-bid site visit will be at 10:00 AM (CT) on May 15, 2025, at the Fargo VA Health Care System, 2101 Elm Street North, Fargo, ND, in building 1, room BD-95. This will be the only opportunity for potential bidders to visit the site. All potential bidders, subcontractors, and suppliers are strongly encouraged to attend this site visit.

TECHNICAL QUESTIONS AND INQUIRIES

Questions of a technical nature and inquiries concerning this solicitation must be provided in writing and shall be submitted by the prospective offerors to the Contract Specialist, Scott Gifford, and Contracting Officer, Eric Reis. Questions shall be submitted only via email to: scott.gifford1@va.gov, copy eric.reis@va.gov. The subject line must read: PN: 437-25-145 Fire Hydrant Line Break Questions. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted. Questions, inquiries, or such are due no later than May 22, 2025, at 10:00 AM (CT). No late questions will be accepted or answered after this deadline. All questions will be answered and/or responded to via an amendment after the closing date.

YOU ARE INSTRUCTED SPECIFICALLY TO CONTACT ONLY THE CONTRACT SPECIALIST OR CONTRACTING OFFICER ISSUING THE SOLICITATION ABOUT ANY ASPECT OF THIS REQUIREMENT PRIOR TO CONTRACT AWARD.

BIDDING MATERIAL

Bidding materials consisting of Invitation for Bids, drawings, specifications, and contract forms will be available on https://sam.gov in electronic format only. All interested parties (subcontractors & primes) should register at https://sam.gov as an “Interested Vendor” so that others will know of your interest in participating in this procurement. A Bidder’s mailing list WILL NOT BE prepared by the Contracting Officer.

Amendments to the solicitation will be posted at https://sam.gov. Paper copies of the amendments will NOT be individually mailed. No other notification of amendments will be provided. By registering to “Receive Notification,” you will be notified by email of any new amendments that have been issued and posted. Offerors are reminded that they are responsible for obtaining and acknowledging all amendments to this solicitation prior to the time for receipt of offers. Failure to acknowledge an amendment may result in the offeror’s bid being considered non-responsive.

PREPARATION OF BIDS

The Government will not pay for any costs incurred in the preparation and submission of bids.

BID SUBMISSION DOCUMENTS

Files should be in Adobe* PDF (Portable Document Format) Files: Size: Maximum size of the e-mail message shall not exceed five (5) megabytes. If the size limits are exceeded, the VA may not receive the file and/or you may not be considered. Only one email is permitted. This email should contain at least the following:

· Standard Form (SF) 1442 Solicitation, Offer, and Award: The offeror shall complete and sign the “OFFER” section of the SF 1442. Please include your company’s Unique Entity Identifier associated with SAM.gov in Block 14.

· Acknowledgement of All Amendments: The offeror shall agree to and acknowledge all amendments by either 1.) completing block 19 of the SF 1442, or 2.) returning the signed amendment form(s) with the submission.

· Price Schedule: The offeror shall complete the Price Schedule which is provided with the solicitation.

· Bid Guarantee: The offeror shall furnish a bid guarantee (see FAR 52.228-1). The bid guarantee shall be provided on Standard Form 24. The Power of Attorney document will be included with the bid guarantee.

· Tax on Certain Foreign Procurements – Notice and Representation: The offeror shall provide their response to FAR 52.229-11 (d).

· Representations & Certifications: As the provision at FAR 52.204-7 is included in the solicitation, FAR 52.204-8 (d) applies and the fill-in for FAR 52.204-8 (b)(2) does not need to be completed. The offeror is required to complete the annual representations and certifications electronically at https://sam.gov.

· Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment: The offeror shall provide their response to FAR 52.204-24 (d) Representations.

· Post Award Small Business Program Representations: The offeror shall provide their response to FAR 52.219-28 (h), if applicable.

· Limitations on Subcontracting: The offeror shall complete and sign the VA Notice of Limitations on Subcontracting - Certificate of Compliance for Services and Construction required in VAAR 852.219-75 and return it with their bid submission. A copy of the clause to be completed and included with the bid is attached as a separate document (VAAR 852.219-75 Limitations on Subcontracting-Cert of Compliance_JAN 2023 [DEVIATION] - 2pages). The completed and signed form will become part of the official award documentation.

DELIVERY OF BIDS

In accordance with FAR 14.202-8, send all submission documents via email to the Contract Specialist, Scott Gifford at scott.gifford1@va.gov Dwayne Brauch at Dwayne.Brauch@va.gov by 10:00 (CT), June 6, 2025. The subject line must read: PN: 437-25-145 Fire Hydrant Line Break. Bids received after this time may be rejected. Bidders are responsible for ensuring and verifying their bid and all required bid documents are received at the email address designated in block eight (10) of the SF 1442 solicitation and by the date and time specified in block thirteen (13)a of the SF 1442 solicitation (subject to amendment).

BID OPENING

There will not be a face-to-face public bid opening. All Contractors providing an electronic bid submission must still meet all requirements listed under “Bid Submission Documents” in the solicitation. The bid opening and public reading of the bids will be via teleconference. Bidders may call 1 872-701-0185 on June 6, 2025, at 10:00 AM (CT) and enter phone conference ID 808 832 677# to join. To join via Microsoft Teams, the Meeting ID is: 221 914 646 772 4, passcode: nw6UE2dH

The bid submission emails will be kept in an electronic folder unread until the stated date and time at which time they will be opened and read to the public.

In the event there are any concerns with the bids, in accordance with FAR 14.402-1 (c), Microsoft Teams will be used to assist in the examination of the bid(s).

INFORMATION REGARDING BID GUARANTEE AND BONDS

Offerors are to ensure the most current version of SF24, SF25, and SF25A bond forms are used. Current versions of these forms can be found and downloaded from the GSA Forms Library (https://gsa.gov/reference/forms).

A bid guarantee (SF24) is required in an amount not less than 20 percent of the bid price but shall not exceed $2,000,000.00. Failure to furnish the required bid guarantee in the proper form and amount, by the time set for opening of bids, will require rejection of the bid in all cases except those listed in FAR 28.101-4, and may be cause for rejection even then. A copy of the bid guarantee shall be submitted as part of the electronic submission and the original hard copy of the bid bond shall be retained by the Contractor.

Failure to provide electronic bid guarantee by the date and time set for receipt of bids may deem the bid non-responsive.

Performance bond (SF25) and payment bond (SF25A) in the penal sum of 100% of the awarded contract amount shall be submitted within ten (10) calendar days after award to the Contracting Officer for approval. Commencement of construction is contingent upon approval of required bonds. Copies of SFs 25 and 25A may be obtained upon application to the issuing office.

DETERMINATION OF NON-RESPONSIVE

Bids received pertaining to this solicitation will be reviewed for responsiveness. Failure to provide documentation as outlined in the Bid Submission Documents section of the solicitation by the date and time set for receipt of bids may deem the bid non-responsive.

Any exception to the terms and conditions of this Invitation to Bid (IFB) solicitation will result in a nonresponsive bid.

Failure to provide a definitive price will result in a nonresponsive bid.

DETERMINATION OF RESPONSIBILITY

A Determination of Responsibility will be conducted for the apparent low bidder/awardee prior to award of the project. The above information, along with other information obtained from Government systems, such as, but not limited to the OSHA and EPA online inspection history databases, as well as any other information the Contracting Officer has determined to be valid, will be used to make the Determination of Responsibility. Note: Any information received by the Government that would be cause for a negative Determination of Responsibility may make the offeror ineligible for award.

The winning bidder must be determined as "responsible" by the Contracting Officer in accordance with FAR Part 9, Contractor Qualifications.

To be determined responsible, a prospective contractor must –

1. Have adequate financial resources to perform the contract, or the ability to obtain them.

1. Be able to comply with the required or proposed delivery or performance schedule, taking into consideration all existing commercial and governmental business commitments.

1. Have a satisfactory performance record.

1. Have a satisfactory record of integrity and business ethics.

1. Have the necessary organization, experience, accounting and operational controls, and technical skills, or the ability to obtain them (including, as appropriate, such elements as production control procedures, property control systems, quality assurance measures, and safety programs applicable to materials to be produced or services to be performed by the prospective contractor and subcontractors).

1. Have the necessary production, construction, and technical equipment and facilities, or the ability to obtain them.

1. Be otherwise qualified and eligible to receive an award under applicable laws and regulations.

Note: The contracting officer shall obtain information regarding the responsibility of the prospective low bidder, including requesting pre-award surveys, when necessary, promptly after a bid opening in accordance with FAR 9.105-1—Obtaining Information. The prospective low bidder shall be prepared to provide documentation to support this determination within two business days following bid opening.

VETS 4212

Title 38, USC Section 4212(d), codified at 41 CFR Section 61-300, requires that federal contractors report, at least annually, the number and category of veterans who are within their workforce. Submission of the VETS-4212 reporting information can be done electronically (https://www.dol.gov/vets/vets4212). Award cannot be made unless the awardee has filed their VETS-4212 report. Therefore, all offerors are encouraged to file every year. The Contracting Officer may request a copy of the email confirmation of receipt notification prior to awarding the project.

SYSTEM FOR AWARD MANAGEMENT (SAM)

Federal Acquisition Regulations require that federal contractors register in the System for Award Management (SAM) database (https://sam.gov) and enter all mandatory information into the system. Offerors are required to be registered in SAM at the time an offer is submitted in order to comply with the annual representations and certifications requirements (see FAR 52.204-7).

REVIEW REQUIRED REGISTRATION WITH CONTRACTOR PERFORMANCE ASSESSMENT REPORTING SYSTEM (CPARS) As prescribed in Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Part 42.1502(e), the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) evaluates contractor past performance on all construction contracts that exceed $750,000 and shares those evaluations with other Federal Government contract specialists and procurement officials. The FAR requires the contractor be provided an opportunity to comment on past performance evaluations prior to each report closing. To fulfill this requirement, VA uses an online database, CPARS, which is maintained by the Naval Seal Logistics Center in Portsmouth, Virginia. CPARS is available to all Federal agencies and is the system used to collect and retrieve performance assessment reports used in source selection determinations. CPARS also includes access to the federal awardee performance and integrity information system (FAPIIS). FAPIIS is a web-enabled application accessed via CPARS for contractor responsibility determination information.

Each contractor whose contract award is estimated to exceed $750,000 is required to register with CPARS database (https://cpars.gov) Help registering can be obtained by contacting Customer Support Desk @ DSN: 684-1690 or COMM: 207- 438-1690. Registration should occur no later than thirty days after contract award and must be kept current should there be any change to the contractor’s registered representative.

For contracts with a period of one year or less, the contracting officer will perform a single evaluation when the contract is complete. For contracts exceeding one year, the contracting officer will evaluate the contractor’s performance annually. Interim reports will be filed each year until the last year of the contract, when the final report will be completed. The report shall be assigned in CPARS to the contractor’s designated representative for comment. The contractor representative will have thirty days to submit any comments and re-assign the report to the VA contracting officer.

Failure to have a current registration in the CPARS database, or to re-assign the report to the VA contracting officer within those thirty days, will result in the Government’s evaluation being placed on file in the database with a statement that the contractor failed to respond.

BACKGROUND INVESTIGATIONS AND SPECIAL AGREEMENT CHECKS

All contractor employees are subject to the same level of investigation as VA employees who have access to VA Sensitive Information. The level of background investigation is commensurate with the level of access needed to perform all work as identified in the solicitation documents. This requirement is applicable to all subcontractor personnel requiring the same access. As per VA Directive 0710, costs of background investigations will be borne by the contractor. Please be advised the awardee will need to coordinate with the VA Medical Center concerning badging requirements.

HHS/OIG EXCLUSIONS

To ensure the individuals providing services under the contract have not engaged in fraud or abuse regarding Sections 1128 and 1128A of the Social Security Act regarding federal health care programs, the contractor is required to check the Exclusions Database – U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Office of Inspector General (OIG), List of Excluded Individuals/Entities on the website (https://exclusions.oig.hhs.gov) for each person providing services under this contract. Further the Contractor is required to certify in its proposal that all persons listed in the contractor’s proposal have been compared against the OIG list and are NOT listed. During the performance of this contract the contractor is prohibited from using any individual or business listed on the List of Excluded Individuals/Entities.

REFERENCES TO VA ENGINEER, RESIDENT ENGINEER, OR PROJECT MANAGER

Any reference contained within the solicitation/contract specifications and/or drawings to the “VA Engineer,” “Resident Engineer,” or “Project Manager,” or their abbreviations shall be replaced with “Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR).”

PRE-CONSTRUCTION CONFERENCE

Before any work is started, a Pre-Construction Conference between the Contractor, Contracting Officer, and Project Engineer will be arranged through the Contracting Officer. Such matters as work commencement, sequence of work, estimated time for accomplishment, subcontractor information, and the overall responsibilities of the Contractor, Contracting Officer, and Project Engineer in the fulfillment of all aspects of the contract will be discussed.