RFI-7200-24-GC-01 - USAID Sovereign Loan Guarantee Outside Counsel.pdf

Subject: USAID/Office of General Counsel Request for Information (RFI) No. RFI-7200-24-GC-01

Activity Name: USAID Sovereign Loan Guarantee Outside Counsel

Date of Issuance: May 23, 2024

Submission Deadline: June 23, 2024, at 5:00 PM EST

Via email to: danmoore@usaid.gov with a copy to daarmstrong@usaid.gov

To All Interested Organizations:

The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Office of General Counsel is conducting market research for a potential activity entitled “USAID Sovereign Loan Guarantee Outside Counsel”. This Request for Information (RFI) intends to:

● Obtain information concerning the Contractor’s community interest in the USAID/GC’s anticipated requirement described herein;

● Obtain information on the level of capacity and capabilities of potential contractors relative to the tasks described herein;

● Obtain input, advice, knowledge, and best practices on the scope of legal services that could support USAID’s GC.

The Fiscal Year 2024 State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs Appropriations Act, Section 7030(b), provided USAID with the authority to administer certain loan guarantees, as follows:

(b) LOAN GUARANTEES.—Funds appropriated under the headings ‘‘Economic Support Fund’’ and ‘‘Assistance for Europe, Eurasia and Central Asia’’ by this Act and prior Acts making appropriations for the Department of State, foreign operations, and related programs, including funds made available pursuant to this section, may be made available for the costs, as defined in section 502 of the Congressional Budget Act of 1974, of loan guarantees, for Egypt, Jordan, Small Island Developing States, and Ukraine, which are authorized to be provided and which shall be administered by the United States Agency for International Development unless otherwise provided for by this Act or any other provision of law: Provided, That amounts made available under this paragraph for the costs of such guarantees shall not be considered assistance for the purposes of provisions of law limiting assistance to a country: Provided further, That funds made available pursuant to the authorities of this subsection shall be subject to prior consultation with the appropriate congressional committees and the regular notification procedures of the Committees on Appropriations.

USAID welcomes all segments of the public to respond to the RFI. Small businesses are highly encouraged to respond. To be of most help, all responses to this RFI should be submitted by the due date via email to the addressee noted above.

The RFI is solely for information gathering purposes and is not a Request for Proposal/Application (RFP/RFA), a Request for Quotation (RFQ), an Invitation for Bids (IFB), a solicitation, or an indication that USAID will make and award for the activities described herein.

If a solicitation is eventually issued, it will be announced on https://www.grants.gov or https://www.sam.gov at a later date, and all interested parties must respond to that solicitation. It is the responsibility of interested organizations to monitor this site for additional information pertaining to any potential future requirement.

mailto:danmoore@usaid.gov mailto:daarmstrong@usaid.gov https://www.grants.gov/ https://sam.gov/content/home

INSTRUCTIONS:

USAID welcomes all segments of the public to reply to the RFI. Small businesses are encouraged to respond.

Please review and comply with the Submission Instructions/Additional Response Format Instructions, below. Only one submission will be accepted per organization. Responses sent by any other means or in any other format may not be reviewed.

Cover Page:

All submissions must include a cover page (one page maximum) that includes the following information:

● Organization name and address

● Organization’s point of contact name, UEI number (if applicable), telephone number, and email address

● Organization type, i.e. commercial, public sector, educational institution, NGO, etc.

● If applicable, socioeconomic status, e.g., other than small business, small business, woman-owned, veteran-owned, and etc.

● Primary field(s) of expertise/work

● Geographic presence that addresses what countries in which your organization is currently working as well as a list of the countries in which your organization is legally and formally registered

● North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code, if applicable

Responses to RFI:

RFI responses should include any or all responses to the following questions as well as respondents are encouraged to provide more detailed input on the prospective activity.

Organizational Capabilities

Please provide organizational capabilities relative to the following illustrative tasks, specifically related to Sovereign Loan Guarantee from Section 7030(b), noted above:

1. Legal Due Diligence/Drafting Responsibilities:

Conduct minimal due diligence. Review and draft as appropriate, all loan documentation related to the transaction, including an assessment of the borrower's legal authority to enter into the loan, the purpose of the loan, and its compliance with FFB regulations. Advise the program attorney on how policy objectives that the USG wants to pursue with the loan would need to be framed in FFB terms. This would also involve ensuring that the terms of the loan are clearly defined and that they further the articulated purpose (parallel with USAID Attorney).

2. Negotiation:

Provide advice to USAID, lead negotiations on the non-programmatic elements of the loan, and have the capacity to address; interest rates, repayment terms, covenants, default scenarios, redress, how to characterize/frame tranching terms, and other key terms consistent with policy.

3. Past Experience:

Provide a list of previous activities similar to any of the technical areas in this RFI. Include organizational and activity information that is demonstrative of the organization’s ability to successively achieve the outcomes aforementioned.

GC Loan Guarantee

RFI-7200-24-GC-01

Technical and Contractual Feedback:

1. Technical Questions:

a. Resource Management:

Due to the nature of the program and its need for specialized skills provide

i. Recommendation on what type of partnerships or staffing model your organization foresees as necessary to efficiently achieve the program’s objectives successfully.

ii. The range of hourly rates that the USG can expect to pay for a comparable scope of work

iii. Suggested labor categories and/or key personnel needs to conduct the activity

b. Supplementary Information:

i. Do the stated objectives sufficiently capture the breadth of activities required to meet the program’s stated purpose?

ii. Are there gaps or other issues in the illustrative tasks that would impede achieving these objectives?

iii. Are there additional tasks that should be included in the scope, or revisions to the tasks identified above?

iv. Provide any additional general feedback or recommendations on the illustrative tasks noted herein? Are there any areas for improvement, clarification, or suggested approaches are welcomed.

2. Contractual Questions:

i. Have you provided legal services to the United States government previously, and if so under what type of contracting vehicle?

ii. Are you on the GSA Schedule or do you have a suggested contracting vehicle that would work well for this requirement (e.g. GSA Multiple Award Schedule, GWAC, et al.)?

iii. Do you have any feedback or recommendations that you would like to share with USAID regarding any anticipated solicitation for this requirement?

GC Loan Guarantee

RFI-7200-24-GC-01

Submission Instructions/Additional Response Format:

All submissions must be emailed as a single attachment comprised of (1) electronic copy of your response in accordance with the following instructions:

● Subject Line: ATTN: RFI-7200-24-GC-01 – [Your Organization’s Name]

● Email To: danmooore@usaid.gov and daarmstrong@usaid.gov

All submissions must adhere to the following format:

● Responses must be typed and in Microsoft Word Format:

o No less than 11-point Times New Roman font o Single-spaced with one-inch margins on the electronic equivalent of 8.5 x 11-inch paper o Pages shall be numbered consecutively starting on Page 1 (not including cover page) o Responses shall not exceed 12 pages (excluding cover page)

● The cover page should include the organization name, address, contact information, business type (e.g. large, small), and date of submission.

In accordance with FAR 15.201(e), responses to this notice are NOT considered offers and CANNOT be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Therefore, USAID is not seeking technical or cost proposals at this time. Please do not submit a full proposal as these will not be reviewed and will be discarded.

Responses to this RFI are strictly voluntary and USAID will NOT reimburse respondents for the preparation of information submitted in response to this RFI. Submissions in response to this RFI will NOT be returned and respondents will NOT be notified of the results of the review but may be contacted if there is a need for clarification on any part of an RFI submission. Respondents may receive a confirmation of receipt of the response.

If a solicitation is issued for the USAID Sovereign Loan Guarantee Outside Counsel & Other Legal Services, it will most likely be announced on the Beta.Sam.Gov website: https://beta.sam.gov/ at a later date, and all interested parties must respond to that solicitation announcement separately. It is the organization’s responsibility to monitor this site or other relevant sites for the release of any further information. By responding to this RFI, there will be no advantage to any entity in any subsequent procurement. This RFI does NOT restrict the Government's acquisition approach on a future solicitation.

USAID appreciates any feedback provided. Thank you for your time and interest in USAID’s activities.

Sincerely, Daniel Moore

USAID M/OAA/RM/A

GC Loan Guarantee

RFI-7200-24-GC-01

mailto:danmooore@usaid.gov mailto:daarmstrong@usaid.gov https://beta.sam.gov/