Sole Source Justification CyberFeds Redacted.pdf

Justification for Other than Full and Open Competition Sole Source Justification – CyberFeds Subscription Renewal with Add Ons

(1) Identification of the agency and the contracting activity, and specific identification of the document as a “Justification for other than full and open competition.”

Ordering Activity Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, 50C 810 Vermont Ave NW Washington, DC 20420

Contracting Activity Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General, 53P 810 Vermont Ave NW Washington, DC 20420

(2) Nature and/or description of the action being approved.

Continued use of cyberFEDS (CF) on the Web subscriptions with a reduction in the number of licenses. Manufacturer name LRP Publications.

(3) A description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency's needs (including the estimated value).

The VA OIG requires software licenses, eLearning subscriptions and access to workers’ compensation library under these product descriptions:

cyberFEDS on the Web subscriptions: This service provides daily updates on developments caselaw in judicial and administrative in forums in which Counselors represent the VA OIG, including MSPB, EEOC, and the Federal Circuit Court of Appeals.

cyberFEDS eLearning library add-on: This add-on provides OIG Counselors, Paralegals, and ER/RA Specialists a single portal from which they can access mandatory and refresher training on core areas involving Employee Relations, Reasonable Accommodation, EEOC and Workers’ Compensation.

Workers’ Compensation Library on cyberFEDS: This is a separate subscription that provides OIG Attorneys and ER/RA Staff access to a database of Employee Compensation Appeal Board decisions, as well as step-by-step guidance on how to thoroughly research a claim.

Estimated Total Cost: $

(4) An identification of the statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition.

RFO FAR 6.103-1(b) One responsible source.

(5) A demonstration that the proposed contractor's unique qualifications or the nature of the acquisition requires using the authority cited.

CF is currently the only platform that provides data repositories, detailed webinars, training platforms, current case decisions, workers’ compensation database available to legal, and non-legal personnel involved in the personnel research field all in one database. Access to these databases will continue to allow 50C to provide effective management of ongoing and future cases.

CF also provides access to libraries important for case preparation including: the preparation of motions, responsive pleadings, and identification of relevant case law, which vital to VA OIG’s requirement to meet extremely tight deadlines.

Other vendors providing this type of service do not have all the databases VAOIG personnel utilize in one place. Without CF we would have to purchase multiple databases from multiple vendors to retain the functionality we have with CF.

CF is the only service capable of fulfilling all of VA OIG’s requirements with one provider. Use of any other source or brand would require additional procurement actions to replace the missing features and capabilities, at unacceptable cost to the Government.

With the change of administration, it is vitally important for the Attorneys and Paralegals within VA OIG to remain abreast with the development of new caselaw resulting from the placement of new leadership at both the EEOC and MSPB.

Market Research has revealed that there is no other single provider who possesses the specialized databases offered by CF. Also, in addition to offering case summaries in all of the forums relevant to 50C’s representation of the agency, CF also contains a single point of access to numerous practitioner guides, including: A Guide to Federal Sector Equal Employment Law and Practice by Ernest Hadley; A Guide to Merit Systems Protection Board Law; and Practice by Peter Broida. No other source was identified that contained such a concentration of relevant data on a single platform.

Further, using this sole vendor would prove to be the most economical and efficient choice, as having to navigate disparate libraries provided by multiple, separate vendors would result in the agency paying more money for a less efficient solution. Users having to search multiple databases on disparate cites would clearly be more time-consuming and less efficient than being able to find everything VA OIG needs in one database.

(6) A description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as possible, including whether a notice was or will be publicized as required by part 5 and, if not, which exception under part 5 applies.

No additional offers will be solicited, as only LRP Publications is able to fulfill this requirement.

This notice will be posted to SAM.gov as required.

(7) A determination by the contracting officer that the anticipated cost to the Government will be fair and reasonable.

The pricing offered by LRP Publications is in line with the IGCE and with publicly posted pricing for all customers. The final price is determined to be Fair and Reasonable as it is not expected to be different for VA OIG than for any other customer.

(8) The market research conducted (see part 10) and the results or a statement of the reason market research was not conducted.

The agency conducted market research by conducting Google and internet searches for any vendors that provided the same or similar services to meet our office requirements. This effort identified no other vendors that possessed the specialized databases unique to CF on the Web.

Other vendors had portions of the datasets available from CF, but none had all the functionality in one place.

(9) Any other facts supporting using other than full and open competition, such as:

The Office of the Counselor has a long history of using CF on the Web subscriptions so there would be no time lost having to become familiar with multiple other systems to access information already available on CF. Further, using this sole vendor would prove to be the most economical and efficient choice, as having to navigate disparate libraries provided by multiple, separate vendors would result in the agency paying more money for a less efficient solution, Use of CF would allow us to lower our overall cost to the agency.

(i) When 6.103-1 is cited for follow-on acquisitions as described in 6.103-1(c)(2), an estimate of the cost to the Government that would be duplicated and how the estimate was derived.

N/A

(ii) When 6.103-2 is cited, data, estimated cost, or other rationale as to whether and how much the Government would be harmed.

N/A

(10) A listing of the sources, if any, that expressed an interest in the acquisition in writing.

No other sources have provided a written interest in this action.

(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 the supplies or services required.

No additional actions will be taken at this time, as only LRP Publications is able to fulfill this requirement.

VA OIG will continue to perform Market Research to identify emerging possible sources to fulfill similar requirements in the future.

(12) Contracting officer certification that the justification is accurate and complete to the best of the contracting officer's knowledge and belief.

I certify that the facts are representations under my cognizance, which are included in this justification, are complete and accurate, and the particular brand name, product, or feature described above is essential to the VA OIG's requirements, and market research indicates other companies' similar products, or products lacking the particular feature, do not meet, or cannot be modified to meet, the agency's needs.

Roy Fredrikson Principal Deputy Counselor VA OIG 50C Date

I hereby certify that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief.

Brett Pickett Date Contracting Officer

VA OIG 53P

ROY FREDRIKSON

Digitally signed by ROY

FREDRIKSON

Date: 2026.06.12 13:40:33 -04'00'

06/16/2026