RFI_No__DOIDFBO220018_-_ACF_ORR_Child_Advocate_Services.pdf

United States Department of the Interior

INTERIOR BUSINESS CENTER

Washington, DC 20240

Request for Information (RFI) / Sources Sought

Title: Child Advocate Services for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Administration for Children & Families (ACF) Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) / Division of Unaccompanied Children Operations

(DUCO)

Response Due Date: Monday, March 7, 2022 at 10:00AM, Eastern Time (ET)

E-mail: Correspond directly with the Contracting Officer, Gabriella Jones, at Gabriella_Jones@ibc.doi.gov and copy Contract Specialist, Ebony Jones, at Ebony_Jones@ibc.doi.gov. Responses submitted by any other method will not be accepted or answered. Please ensure that your e-mail response has “Child Advocate Services” in the subject line.

Issued by: This RFI/Sources Sought is being issued by the U.S. Department of the Interior (DOI), Acquisition Services Directorate (AQD), Interior Business Center (IBC), on behalf of

HHS ACF ORR/DUCO.

RFI Purpose: The Government is seeking information related to Child Advocate Services and requests feedback from industry on the Draft Performance Work Statement (PWS). In addition, the Government is requesting capability statements from interested vendors.

Additional Information: Responses to this RFI/Sources Sought are strictly voluntary and will not affect any vendor’s ability to submit an offer if, or when, a solicitation is released. This is being issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation or obligation on the part of the Government. Neither unsolicited proposals nor any other kinds of offers will be considered at this time. No entitlement to payment by the Government of direct or indirect costs or charges will arise as a result of the submission of information in response to this RFI/Sources Sought.

The Government will not be liable for or suffer any consequential damages for any improperly identified proprietary information. Proprietary information will be safeguarded in accordance with the applicable Government regulations. If you submit proprietary information, you must clearly mark “PROPRIETARY” on every sheet containing such information and segregate the proprietary information to the maximum extent practical from other portions of your response (e.g., use an attachment or exhibit). Respondents are responsible for adequately marking proprietary information in their response. All information received in response to this RFI/Sources Sought that is marked “Proprietary” will be handled accordingly. An electronic acknowledgement of the vendor’s submission will be provided. If you do not receive an acknowledgement within one business day, please notify the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist to ensure successful delivery.

Submission Information: This RFI/Sources Sought is issued via https://sam.gov. All potential sources with the capability to provide the requirements referenced in this RFI and Draft PWS are invited to submit, in writing, sufficient information within the page limitation (listed below).

This information shall demonstrate the vendor’s ability to fulfill the requirements and be responsive to the technical and acquisition-related questions in this RFI, as indicated below.

Questions Due:

The vendor community is encouraged to include their questions with their response (see Section 1). Vendor questions will be considered when drafting the impending solicitation; however, the Government will not be responding to questions about the solicitation at this time.

Responses Due:

All responses must be submitted electronically and emailed to the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist. All responses must be received no later than Monday, March 7, 2022 at

10:00AM ET.

Submission Format:

Submissions must be in .doc, .docx, or.PDF format. The typed font and point for your response must be Times New Roman 11 point.

Submission Contents:

Your submission, at a page limit of no more than 8 pages (not including Section 2), must contain:

• Cover Sheet

• Section 1- General Response to Government Requirement

• Section 2- Feedback on Draft PWS

• Section 3- Vendor Response to Questions

• Section 4- Capabilities Statement

Responses must address the following requirements:

A cover sheet which includes:

a. RFI/Sources Sought Title;

b. Vendor Name;

c. Address;

d. Name of Point of Contact;

e. Email Address;

f. Phone Number;

g. Vendor DUNS Number; and

h. Your socio-economic status based on the applicable North American Industry

Classification System (NAICS) code 624110 – Child and Youth Services, and any recommended NAICS code.

Sections:

1. General Response to the Government Requirement, to include any questions the vendor has for the Government;

2. Feedback on Draft PWS, noted in track changes or comments on Draft PWS document;

3. Vendor Response to Questions;

4. Capabilities Statement

QUESTIONS:

Draft PWS Questions:

Industry responses to the following questions will be taken into consideration to help finalize the Draft PWS.

1. Is there additional information you need to be provided in order to fully understand the requirement?

2. Are there any requirements included in the Draft PWS that are unreasonable and/or unattainable? If so, please explain.

3. What alternative requirements should the Government consider that would meet the intent of the goals/objectives of requirements that appear to be unreasonable and/or unattainable?

4. What other recommendations do you have to better structure this requirement?

5. Would you be interested in being added to an interested vendors’ list? If so, provide an email address for a POC.

Capability Questions:

Industry responses to the following questions will be used to help the Government determine previous experiences and capabilities to perform the work.

1. Describe your company/business unit’s capability, experience, and methodology for properly staffing the child advocate infrastructure to support the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) – Division of Children’s Services requirement similar in size, scope, and complexity as referenced in the Draft PWS (Attachment A) including through teaming arrangements, subcontractors/small businesses.

2. Describe your corporate capabilities as they relate to managing the work under this requirement following strong management and oversight procedures, under a comprehensive quality assurance plan, and involving a team of regular and temporary staff working across the United States to support the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) – Division of Children’s Services of the size and scope detailed in the Draft PWS (Attachment A).

Acquisition Questions:

Industry responses to the following questions will be used to help the Government determine an acquisition strategy.

6. Does your company fall within one or more of the following socioeconomic categories?

If so, please identify which category(ies) your company falls into.

i. Small Business

ii. SDVOSB

iii. 8(a)

iv. HUBZone

v. Women-Owned

vi. Alaskan Native Corporation (ANC)/Native Hawaiian Organization (NHO)

vii. Indian Small Business Economic Enterprise (ISBEE)

viii. Indian Economic Enterprise

7. It is the Government’s intent to award a Time & Material/Labor Hour contract type. Is this contract type for the work required in the Draft PWS feasible? If not, what other contract type would be appropriate to meet the needs of the Draft PWS? Explain rational for recommended contract type.

8. Are you interested in responding to a future solicitation for this requirement?

9. How long do you feel it will take your firm to prepare a formal response (technical and price quote) to a solicitation for this project (i.e., number of months/weeks/days, etc.)?

10. What existing contract vehicles does your firm utilize for similar projects [i.e., GSA Schedule, GWACS such as GSA Alliant, open market (FAR12 &15)]? Are any of these applicable to this requirement?

11. To fully perform this work, will your company perform teaming arrangements with other vendors to enter into prime-subcontractor relationships?

12. Does your firm have experience (past performance data) related to a federal government requirement of similar size and scope?

13. Other than NAICS 624110, are there any other codes you would suggest for this effort?

14. Does your firm have any additional questions, comments, or concerns about the framing of this requirement.

Please see the Draft PWS for all proposed technical requirements.

We are looking to industry experts to help make this Government requirement better for the end user and ultimately reduce the cost to the taxpayer. Thank you for your support.

ATTACHMENTS:

Attachment 1 - Draft PWS