SOW - 1.11.2023.pdf

ORNL | Relocation Services SOW 1

Statement of Work

Relocation Services

January 11, 2023

I. Scope

a. Introduction to Oak Ridge National Laboratory

Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) is a multi-program science and technology laboratory managed for the Department of Energy (DOE) by UT-Battelle, LLC, referred to hereafter as “the Company.” Scientists and engineers at ORNL conduct basic and applied research and development to create scientific knowledge and technological solutions that strengthen the nation's leadership in key areas of science, increase the availability of clean, abundant energy, restore and protect the environment, and contribute to national security.

b. Relocation Services Background

The Company offers domestic and international relocation services to newly hired employees and postdoctoral researchers, referred to hereafter as “the Employee.”

As a prime contractor to DOE, the relocation services that the Company offers to Employees must comply with our prime contract, which includes some Federal Travel Regulations (FTR). The Company is seeking a turnkey subcontract for Employee relocation services.

II. Applicable Codes, Procedures and References

a. ORNL Domestic Relocation Assistance Package

b. ORNL Postdoc Relocation Assistance Package

c. ORNL International Relocation Assistance Package

d. ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy

e. ORNL Cybersecurity Requirements

III. Services Required

a. Relocation Assistance Policy Consulting

i. Provide the Company with recommendations on how to maintain the competitiveness of the Company’s Relocation Assistance Policy, when identified or requested.

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ii. Keep the Company abreast of relocation policy trends and changes (as they occur) in real estate, tax laws, and other regulations that might impact the Company's Relocation Assistance Policy.

iii. Proactively identify ways for the Company to reduce relocation costs and enhance the level of service provided to Employees and provide recommendations to the Company.

iv. Provide the Company recommendations for process changes to support outsourcing.

v. Provide the Company recommendations for package/policy changes.

b. Relocation Counseling, to include:

i. An agent of the Seller dedicated to the Company account.

ii. A phone call to the Employee within 24 hours of notification of a new hire by the

Company. The call shall include, at a minimum:

• An overview of the relocation process,

• A detailed explanation of the benefits available to the Employee under the

Policy authorized by the Company for their relocation, including benefits expiration requirements (i.e., 12 months after start date, unless approval for an additional 12 month extension is obtained),

• An explanation and examples of unallowable expenses, including the process related to unauthorized unallowable expenses billed to the Seller’s corporate credit card (hereafter, referred to as unallowable expenses), and

• A phone number for the dedicated Seller point of contact for the Employee.

iii. A written overview to the Employee of the Employee’s relocation benefits.

iv. A copy of the current applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package that has been provided to the Seller by the Company’s Onboarding Specialist.

v. Periodic communication to the Employee to update the status of the relocation and to provide the Employee instructions on the next phase of the move process.

c. Movement and Storage of Household Goods:

i. The Seller shall move or coordinate the move of household goods of relocating Employees per the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

ii. All aspects of the household goods move shall be communicated to the Employee by the Seller’s dedicated point of contact.

iii. The Seller will abide by the service level guarantee for resolution of disputes, damages, losses and catastrophic loss agreed to in the proposal.

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iv. The Seller shall arrange for temporary storage and subsequent delivery consistent with the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

v. The Seller shall ensure rates for expenses related to the movement and storage of household goods are consistent with the 400DOE tariff and applicable tenders.

vi. The Seller shall complete HHG moves within a timeframe defined by the Company (e.g., 4-6 weeks).

d. Personal Vehicle Moves:

i. The Seller shall move or coordinate the move of Employee vehicles as authorized by the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

ii. The Seller shall use a reputable transport Carrier with a satisfactory rating per the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration SAFER System.

iii. Unless authorized in advance by the Company, the Seller shall not engage a moving company at rates higher than the submitted tariffs and discount rates.

e. Travel Arrangements:

i. The Seller shall provide travel arrangements for the Employee for all trips as allowed by the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

ii. Travel arrangements shall be coordinated and communicated to the Employee by the Seller’s dedicated point of contact.

iii. The Seller must ensure all travel costs adhere to applicable provisions of the Federal Acquisition Regulation, the FTR, Fly America Act, Open Skies Act, the Internal Revenue Service auto allowance and the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

iv. The Seller must ensure use of the Company’s rental car insurance agreement by Employee (i.e., Employee must not purchase insurance from car rental company).

f. Temporary Housing Arrangements:

i. The Seller shall assist the Employee with securing temporary housing according to the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy (the Seller must include an Oak Ridge, TN option for temporary housing).

ii. All aspects of the temporary housing arrangements shall be communicated to the Employee by the Seller’s dedicated point of contact.

g. Home Assistance Programs:

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i. The Seller shall assist the Employee and process reimbursements for costs associated with the continuing ownership of the former principal residence according to the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

ii. The Seller shall assist the Employee and process reimbursements for closing costs incident to the disposition of the former principal residence according to the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

iii. The Seller shall assist the Employee and process reimbursements for closing costs incident to acquiring a home in the new location according to the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package.

h. Move Management Software:

i. The Seller shall provide a software interface that includes the following minimum requirements:

1. A centralized location for the Employee to:

• Review their specific move benefit,

• Plan their move,

• Track expenses and payments,

• Communicate with their dedicated Seller point of contact,

• Edit personal information, and

• Access local area information [e.g., school system ratings, local administrative offices such as Department of Motor Vehicles and Social Security Office, etc.].

2. A database/software platform for the Company to:

• Track status and progress of Employee relocations,

• Generate reports,

• Review disbursements to Employees,

• Determine Tax and Payroll requirements,

• Review invoices and related receipts,

• Modify/notify Seller of changes (e.g. Employee start date changes), and

• Provide multiple levels of access for various Company roles (e.g., Human

Resources, Relocation, Payroll, Accounts Payable).

3. The software and/or server storing Company data must meet ORNL

Cybersecurity requirements (see Appendix E).

i. Expense Administration:

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i. The Seller must make every effort to minimize/eliminate occurrence of unallowable expenses, including requiring the employee to sign the Relocation Agreement prior to the Seller incurring expenses on the employee’s behalf or submitting employee expenses to ORNL for reimbursement, communicating/explaining unallowable expenses to Employee during Relocation Counseling (i.e., during the initial phone call), and providing copies of the appropriate ORNL Relocation Assistance Package to the Employee.

ii. Any and all expenses authorized by the Seller that do not comply with the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package and have not been authorized by the Company’s Onboarding Specialist prior to initiation shall be the sole responsibility of the Seller.

iii. The Seller shall calculate and administer relocation allowances and expenses consistent with the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package, and provide summary explanations to the Employee.

1. The Seller shall track expenses with limits as identified by the Company (such as continuing ownership, home sale, home purchase) to ensure limits are not exceeded. Seller shall provide status to the Employee periodically to allow the Employee to review remaining balances for these benefits.

2. The Seller shall include the $5,000 Miscellaneous Expense Allowance only after the employee has relocated themselves to the new work location.

3. The Seller shall track benefit expiration dates and coordinate with Employees to ensure all relocation benefits are completed within the required timeframe (i.e., within 12 months of Employee start date unless approval is obtained to extend benefits an additional 12 months).

4. The Seller shall track unallowable expenses incurred by the Employee and communicate to the Employee in writing any expenses that will be withheld from the Employee’s paycheck prior to submitting expenses to the Company for reimbursement and for withholding from the Employee’s paycheck.

iv. The Seller shall process unallowable expenses timely (e.g., within the next applicable invoice and payroll cycle after charges are identified on the Seller’s corporate card; see Payroll Expense Processing and Invoicing sections below for details).

v. The Seller shall process and administer Employee reimbursements consistent with the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy, the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package and applicable laws and regulations (refer to appropriate Appendix).

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vi. The Seller shall distinguish between the following expense types by utilizing unique wage type assignments as directed by Company, for all expenses submitted to Company, as follows:

1. Taxable employee reimbursements – Allowable

2. Taxable employee reimbursements – Unallowable

3. Nontaxable employee reimbursements – Allowable

4. Imputed Income from taxable third party payments

5. Nontaxable third-party payments

6. Gross-up employee payments

j. Destination Services:

i. The Seller shall provide the Employee with home finding programs

1. Homeowners

2. Renters

ii. Other destination programs:

1. Area orientation and settling in

2. Dependent school search

3. Career and family assistance

4. Cost of living reports

IV. Exceptions from the Authorized Policy

a. The Seller shall make all reasonable efforts to accommodate the Employee’s needs within the approved Policy.

b. The Seller shall submit exception requests from the ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy and the applicable ORNL Relocation Assistance Package to the Company’s Onboarding Specialist.

c. The Seller shall not proceed with the exception until written authorization is received from the Company’s Onboarding Specialist.

d. Unallowable expenses authorized by the Seller without advance approval by the Company will be the sole responsibility of the Seller.

V. Quality Assurance Requirements

a. The Seller shall issue a survey to every Employee that is relocated to assess the

Employee’s satisfaction with the move process, including the performance of the Seller.

i. The survey shall be delivered to the Employee electronically within a timeframe established by the Company.

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ii. The survey questions shall be approved by the Company.

iii. Items noted on the survey that require action will be addressed within a timeframe established by the Company.

iv. The survey results shall be provided to the Company’s Onboarding Specialist on a quarterly basis.

b. The Seller shall take appropriate corrective actions to address areas of dissatisfaction.

VI. Deliverables

a. Payroll Expense Processing:

i. The Seller shall provide information downloads via a secure website/server in Excel format.

1. Per Payroll processing schedule provided by Company, Seller shall provide periodic reports by wage type to the Company (in a format defined by the Company), via secure web interface, of allowable reimbursements (taxable and nontaxable) to be made to Employees by the Company.

2. The Seller shall provide a file monthly, during the regular payroll cycle, which provides imputed income, by Employee, resulting from allowable taxable relocation expenses paid to third parties by the Seller.

• Imputed income amounts submitted to Company for tax withholding from employee’s paycheck in the current month’s regular payroll cycle must match taxable third party payments made by Seller and submitted to Company for reimbursement to Seller in the same month. See VII.

Invoicing.

• Any and all amounts submitted by Seller to Company as Employee imputed income must represent amounts already paid by Seller.

3. The Seller shall provide a file, by Employee badge number, during the regular payroll cycle, of any unallowable payments (i.e., made by the Seller to 3rd parties) to be deducted from the Employees paycheck.

• The total dollar amount for unallowable payments submitted to Company for deduction from employee’s paycheck in the current month’s regular payroll cycle must match the unallowable payments invoiced by Seller to Company in the same month. See VII. Invoicing.

4. The Seller shall provide a file during the applicable payroll cycle that provides gross-up calculations to be paid to the Employee, by Employee, on allowable taxable relocation expenses.

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5. The Seller shall provide communications to the Company when data is available on the secure website/server.

6. The Seller shall adhere to an annual cut-off each December, as communicated by the Company no later than September 30 of each calendar year, by which the Seller discontinues making any third party payments for Employee relocation expenses and/or Employee reimbursements of relocation expenses.

7. Any and all third party taxable payments made by Seller on behalf of Employees in a particular calendar year must be submitted by Seller to Company as employee imputed income in the same calendar year.

b. Reports:

i. The Seller shall provide reports (at least quarterly) that include the following:

1. Total number of relocations in process (preferably by Division and Directorate),

2. Number of Staff Relocations (by Division and Directorate),

3. Number of Postdoc Relocations (preferably by Division and Directorate),

4. Cost of completed Relocations (preferably by Division, Directorate, Employee, Employee type),

5. Customer satisfaction survey results,

6. Report of unallowable expenses incurred by the Employee and billed to

Seller’s corporate credit card, including costs and number of charges, and

7. Report of approved exceptions, including cost, number of exceptions.

ii. The Seller shall provide reports (at least monthly) that include the following:

1. Report of total expenses by Employee and expense type (in a format defined by the Company), including separately identifiable taxable expenses, nontaxable expenses, and gross-up payments (must include all payments made by the Company and the Seller on behalf of the Employee). The file must contain expenses, by month, with cumulative totals by calendar year.

2. Ad-hoc reporting capabilities to the Company that address data needs that may be critical to relocation management, including fiscal year-end reporting capabilities.

iii. The Seller shall annually provide to Company and Employee, a complete electronic accounting of employee relocation expenses (excluding administrative fees paid to Seller by Company), including third party payments associated with the relocation. The accounting will include both taxable and nontaxable expenses. The information provided to the Employee should explain the taxable

ORNL | Relocation Services SOW 9 and nontaxable expenses in sufficient detail to enable the Employee to complete his/her personal income tax return(s).

VII. Invoicing

i. The Seller shall provide invoices and backup documentation (i.e., receipts) by

Employee badge number to the Company’s Onboarding Specialist for expenses to be reimbursed to the Seller twice monthly (on the 1st and 15th of the month).

1. The Seller shall provide separate monthly invoices by Employee for administrative fees to be paid to the Seller.

2. The Seller shall provide separate monthly invoices by Employee and wage type for taxable and nontaxable relocation expenses which have been paid by the Seller for reimbursement to the Seller.

• Taxable relocation expenses invoiced by Seller in the current month must equal imputed income amounts submitted for employee tax withholding processing in the same month.

3. The Seller shall provide separate monthly invoices by Employee for unallowable expenses (i.e., billed to the Seller’s corporate card by the Employee) that have been paid by the Seller. The invoice shall itemize individual expenses incurred by the Employee.

• Unallowable expenses must be separately invoiced to the Company for reimbursement to the Seller on the second invoice submittal of the month (the 15th of the month).

• Unallowable expenses invoiced to the Company for reimbursement to the Seller must be submitted to Payroll during the same month on the regular payroll cycle for deduction from the Employee’s paycheck and must be identified using the designated unallowable wage type. The total dollar amount of unallowable expenses invoiced to the Company must match the total dollar amount submitted to Payroll for deduction from the Employees’ paychecks.

VIII. Appendices

Appendix A – ORNL Domestic Relocation Assistance Package

Appendix B – ORNL Postdoc Relocation Assistance Package

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Appendix C – ORNL International Relocation Assistance Package

Appendix D - ORNL Relocation Assistance Policy

Appendix E – ORNL Cybersecurity Requirements