PWS_Amendment0001.pdf

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT (PWS)

Sign Language Interpretive Services for

US Army Corps of Engineers Corporate Information Directorate

1 Background The Directorate of Corporate Information (CI) delivers secure and effective information technology (IT) solutions that enable the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) team to accomplish missions. USACE is a complex organization employing over 33,000 people working on hundreds of projects in locations all around the world. To be effective, the USACE team needs to be in communications with access to key software applications, information and services in the office, at home and on the go. It is the CI team’s responsibility to assure that USACE designs, secure, effective, reliable and affordable IT solutions when they need them.

1.1Scope USACE requires on-location American Sign Language (ASL) interpreting services to meet the requirements of Title 1 of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 and the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. These services shall provide a form of reasonable accommodation necessary to fully integrate an individual with auditory disabilities into the workforce at the USACE Headquarters in Washington, DC. Interpretation services are required during assignments, meetings, conferences, training activities, one-on-one interactions, and any other work-related activities requiring communication.

2 General Requirements This section describes the general requirements for this effort. The following sub-sections provide details of various considerations on this effort.

2.1 Non-Personal Services

The Government shall neither supervise contractor employees nor control the method of performance which the contractor performs the required tasks. Under no circumstances shall the Government assign tasks to, or prepare work schedules for, individual contractor employees. It shall be the responsibility of the contractor to manage its employees and to guard against any actions that are of the nature of personal services. If the contractor believes that any actions constitute, or are perceived to constitute personal services, it shall be the contractor's responsibility to notify the Procuring Contracting Officer (PCO) immediately.

2.2 Key Personnel

The contractor shall provide up to a total of two (2) interpreters as required by the standards of the profession of American Sign Language interpreters to fulfill this requirement:

- One primary interpreter that will be on-site daily.

- One ad-hoc interpreter to report upon request.

The primary interpreter shall be the same person throughout the life of the contract. If the primary interpreter has to be replaced, prior written approval must be provided from the Contracting Officer and the replacement interpreter must meet the qualifications of this

PWS.

The ad-hoc interpreter is not required to be the same person each time.

If an interpreter fails to meet the needs of the USACE deaf employee/project manager, the Government reserves the right to request the removal of that interpreter(s). Such interpreter(s) shall not be reassigned work under this contract. Interpreters must be qualified by the approval of the deaf employee/project manager receiving services.

The contractor shall provide interpreters who are proficient in the following areas:

• Proficient and competent use of ASL;

• Ability to sign interpret and voice interpret ASL at a working and normal conversational rate;

• Ability to interpret and interact with hearing and Deaf adults;

• Knowledge and experience interpreting Information Technology/Information

Management business processes and areas of discipline;

• Knowledge and experience interpreting Information Technology/Information

Management Enterprise Architecture, Project management, Portfolio Management, Data Architecture;

• Ability to establish and maintain effective working relationships with supervisors, colleagues and other personnel; and,

• Ability to effectively schedule and use calendar and e-mail; ability to read, write, understand and communicate in English and ASL sufficiently to perform the essential functions of the position; sound judgment; integrity, physical condition commensurate with the duties of the position.

2.3 Location of Work

The primary place of performance for this requirement is:

USACE, HQ

441 G Street NW Washington, DC 20314

Alternate work sites may include the contractor’s facility or another USACE location as determined and approved by the COR. Onsite spaces may be revoked at any time per government requirements. Contractor Personnel shall report to the primary place of work or other location as determined by the COR as mutually agreed to by the COR and the contractor PM.

2.4 Travel / Temporary Duty (TDY)

The majority of assignments shall be located at the HQ USACE located in the GAO building in Washington DC; however, some meetings and training shall be away from the GAO building within the Washington Metropolitan Commuting Area. When the commuting area for the attendee(s) of various meetings and training classes is within a 50-mile radius of the GAO Building in Washington DC, the contractor will receive no additional travel-related expenses such as travel time and mileage for travel conducted within the 50-mile radius. Authorization for travel outside the 50 mile radius must be pre-approved by the COR prior to the travel and will be reimbursed in accordance with Federal Travel Regulations and the Government Joint Travel Regulations (JTR) in accordance with FAR 31.205-46. Established Federal Government per diem rates will apply to all contractor travel. Documentation of costs such as hotel receipts, airline tickets (stubs), car rental receipts, etc. must be furnished with request for payment. No profit, G&A or additional handling charge allowed.

2.5 Period of Performance

The period of performance for this requirement is expected to last for a period of one base year with four option years.

• Base Period: 10/10/2016 to 10/09/2017 o Transition Period:10/10/2016 to 10/28/2016

• Option Period 1: 10/10/2017 – 10/09/2018

• Option Period 2: 10/10/2018 – 10/09/2019

• Option Period 3: 10/10/2019 – 10/09/2020

• Option Period 4: 10/10/2020 – 10/09/2021

2.6 Business Hours

Contractor shall remain onsite during normal business hours. Typical business hours are from 8 AM to 5 PM ET.

2.7 Recognized Holidays / Government Closures

The contractor is not required to perform services on the holidays listed below:

New Year’s Day President’s Day Martin Luther King Jr.’s Birthday Memorial Day Independence Day Labor Day Columbus Day Veteran’s Day Thanksgiving Day Christmas Day

Furthermore, the contractor is not required to perform services if the Federal Government is closed due to inclement weather, emergency, or unscheduled Federal Government closures unless the deaf employee is required to telework. Remote video telephones will be used between interpreters and deaf employee for any meetings/events via teleconferences. No cancellation fee or charges shall be assessed unless teleworking.

The contractor shall abide by the Office of Personnel Management delay arrival policy pertaining to Federal employees in the Washington DC metropolitan area.

2.8 Dress & Behavior

The Contractor shall adhere to published guidelines regarding appropriate dress, using proper phone etiquette, and showing respect to others in the workplace while on site and while communicating with stakeholders. The Contractor shall ensure that the work products are professional in nature without typographical and grammatical errors. They shall also ensure that documents are formatted according to USACE standards and best business practices.

3 Performance Objectives The contractor shall perform ASL interpretation services on-location at Headquarters USACE primarily in the Washington, DC area. The contractor may be required upon request by the COR and/or deaf employee to attend periodic coordination meetings, conferences, and demonstrations at designated government facilities for data gathering, meetings, etc. The interpretive services provided will be, in general, for activities that will last for one hour or less.

3.1 The contractor shall provide a primary interpreter for daily on-site services.

The primary days for service to be provided will be Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday. The hours for each day during a work week will vary from 6 to 8 depending on the needs of the deaf employee. The deaf employee will give the contractor a minimum of two business days (48 hours) prior notice for any unscheduled meeting requests and or schedule changes. USACE will also provide a minimum of two business days (48 hours) prior notice in the event of any cancellations.

3.1.1 Telework Days

When the deaf employee teleworks, the interpreter shall not provide on-site services.

Instead, the interpreter may be required to provide web-cam services at the contractor’s location if a meeting with interpretation services is held. The Government will provide a minimum of 2 hours prior notice for any required meetings when teleworking.

The deaf employee has a regularly occurring telework day on Mondays; however, this day is subject to change. If the deaf employee has a change in his schedule, the interpreter must be able to provide on-site services for that day.

3.1.2 Activities lasting more than one (1) hour.

Should the on-site primary interpreter be required to work beyond one hour without the support of a second interpreter, one of the following will occur: the Government Program Manager (PM) must schedule a break for a minimum of 15 minutes every hour; the PM may cancel the interpreting activity; or, the PM may request that one (1) interpreter continue the interpreting activity, should the interpreter agree, and the contractor will bill as if two interpreters are providing services.

3.2 The contractor shall provide an ad-hoc interpreter upon request.

The ad-hoc interpreter will assist with scheduled sessions lasting longer than 1 hour. The deaf employee will give the contractor a minimum of five (5) business days prior notice for service needed for any scheduled meeting that will require interpretive services lasting longer than 1 hour. USACE will also provide a minimum of 2 business days (48 hours) prior notice in the event of any assignment cancellations.

3.3 The contractor shall participate in any transition at the end of this contract’s period of performance.

If applicable, up to the last three (3) weeks of this requirement’s contract’s period of performance will become a transition period in which the current contractor will be required to train and prepare the (potential) newly awarded contractor for providing the interpreting service independently. The training will include any special interpreting symbols and gestures currently used.

4 Special Requirements This section describes the special requirements for this effort. The following sub-sections provide details of various considerations on this effort. The contractor’s personnel shall be responsible for compliance with all laws, rules, and regulations governing conduct with respect to health and safety. The contractor shall also be required to adhere to CECI policies and follow CECI business processes.

4.1 Security Requirements

4.1.1 Site Security

The Contractor shall be responsible for obtaining and maintaining adequate security clearances. A Government issued CAC will be required for the primary interpreter for un-escorted entry to building site and network access. All personnel will be required to follow any and all security and access rules and regulations (i.e., physical access or network access requirements) as set forth by the US Government in order to gain access to USACE offices or systems to perform work assignments or for the delivery of equipment.

4.1.2 Antiterrorism (AT) Level I Training

All contractor employees, including subcontractor employees, requiring access to Army installation, facilities, or controlled access areas shall complete AT Level I awareness training within 30 calendar days after contract start date or effective date of incorporation of this requirement into the contract, whichever applies. The contractor shall submit certificates of completion for each affected contractor employee and subcontractor employee to the COR within 10 calendar days after completion of training by all employees and subcontractor personnel. AT Level I training is available at https://atlevel1.dtic.mil/at.

4.1.3 Access and General Protection/Security Policy and Procedures The contractor and all associated subcontractors’ employees shall comply with applicable installation, access and local security policies and procedures. The local Security Office will provide policies and procedures. The contractor workforce must comply with all personal identity verification requirements as directed by DoD, HQDA and local policies.

In addition to the changes otherwise authorized by the changes clause of this contract, should the Force Protection Condition (FPCON) at any individual facility or installation change, the Government may require changes in contractor security matters or processes.

4.1.4 iWATCH Training The contractor and all associated subcontractors shall brief all employees on the USACE iWATCH program. This locally developed training will be used to inform employees of the type of behavior to watch for and instruct employees to report suspicious activity to the COR. The training shall be completed within 30 calendar days of contract award and within 30 days of new employees commencing performance on the contract. The contractor shall provide certification of completion to the COR within 10 days of training completion. The Security Office will provide training documents.

https://atlevel1.dtic.mil/at

4.1.5 Access to Government Information Systems

All contractor employees with access to a government information system must successfully complete the DoD Information Assurance Awareness training prior to access to the information system and then annually thereafter.

4.1.6 Operations Security (OPSEC) Standing Operating Procedure/Plan The contractor and all associated subcontractor employees shall comply with applicable installation OPSEC plan and requirements to include initial OPSEC briefing within 30 days of reporting to duty and annual training.

4.1.7 Operations Security (OPSEC) Training

All new contractor employees will complete Level I OPSEC training within 30 calendar days of their reporting for duty. Additionally, all contractor employees must complete annual OPSEC awareness training.

4.1.8 Information Assurance (IA)/Information Technology (IT) Training All contractor employees and associated subcontractors’ employees must complete the DoD IA awareness training before issuance of network access and annually thereafter.

All contractor employees working IA/IT functions must comply with DoD and Army training requirements in DoD 8570.01, DoD 8570.01-M and AR 25-2 within 6 months of employment.

4.1.9 Information Assurance (IA)/Information Technology (IT) Training Certification All contractor employees supporting IA/IT functions shall be appropriately certified upon contract IAW DoD 8570.01-M, DFARS 252.239-7001 and AR 25-2. The baseline certification as stipulated in DoD 8570.01-M must be completed upon contract award.

4.1.10 Contract employees will be escorted in areas where they may be exposed to classified and/or sensitive materials and/or sensitive or restricted areas All contractor employees, including subcontractor employees who are not in possession of the appropriate security clearance, will be escorted in areas where they may be exposed to classified and/or sensitive or restricted areas. The contractor will coordinate with the COR and/or facility security office for access when required.

4.1.11 Pre-screen candidates using E-Verify Program

“The Contractor must pre-screen Candidates using the E-verify Program website to meet the established employment eligibility requirements. The Contractor must ensure that the Candidate has two valid forms of Government issued identification prior to enrollment to ensure the correct information is entered into the E-verify system. An initial list of verified/eligible Candidates must be provided to the COR no later than 3 business days after the initial contract award." When contracts are with individuals, the individuals will be required to complete a Form I-9, Employment Eligibility Verification, with the designated Government representative.

4.2 Government Furnished Property and Services

All equipment and supplies needed to carry out the above duties are to be provided by the Government. Since the requirements of this PWS necessitate access to USACE Information Systems, the following Government furnished property and services will be provided. The Government will provide office space, office supplies, a computer workstation, phone line and access to required computer systems for use in providing services under this contract. Telework Days: The Government will provide an air-card for usage so the interpreter can log on when support is needed during telework days. The contractor will need to provide the interpreter with all other equipment to provide support to the deaf employee, including a computer, webcam, necessary software, etc.

4.3 Invoicing Instructions

General. The Government shall pay the Contractor as full compensation for all work required, performed and accepted under this contract, inclusive of all costs and expenses, the firm-fixed price stated in this contract.

Invoice Submission. In accordance with FAR 52.212-4(g), the Contractor shall submit a monthly electronic invoice via e-mail to CEFC.CEFC-PAYMENTS@USACE.ARMY.MIL and copy furnish the Contracting Officer’s Representative. The subject line shall include the contract number, project number, and invoice number and the contractor’s final invoice should be marked as such.

Questions Regarding Payment. Questions regarding status of payment should be directed to the USACE Finance Center at CEFC-Payments@usace.army.mil (if more than 30 days have passed since the invoice was submitted).

4.4 Contractor Manpower Reporting Application

The contractor shall report ALL contractor labor hours (including subcontractor labor hours) required for performance of services provided under this contract for ASL interpretation via a secure data collection site. The contractor is required to completely fill in all required data fields using the following web address: https://cmra.army.mil/.

Reporting inputs will be for the labor executed during the period of performance during each Government fiscal year (FY), which runs October 1 through September 30. While inputs may be reported any time during the FY, all data shall be reported no later than October 31 of each calendar year of contract performance. Contractors may direct questions to the help desk at help desk at: http://www.cmra.army.mil to review user manuals and gain an understanding about the data fields that will be included in the reporting structure that is hosted at http://www.cmra.army.mil/

5 Deliverables The Contractor shall provide a monthly activity report to the POCs listed below within five

(5) working days after the end of the each month. At a minimum, the report shall contain a description of all major activities completed during the month and hours worked, any problems encountered including follow-on mitigation or escalation actions taken, products and services delivered during the month, and a brief synopsis of the projects to be worked in the upcoming month.

CI POCs shall inspect all services performed by the Contractor under this PWS through the monthly report and provide feedback and acknowledgement of acceptance of the deliverables.

mailto:CEFC.CEFC-PAYMENTS@USACE.ARMY.MIL mailto:CEFC-Payments@usace.army.mil https://cmra.army.mil/ http://www.cmra.army.mil/ http://www.cmra.army.mil/

6 Performance Metrics

Metric Desired

Outcome Objective Measure Target Source Method of

Surveillance

Incentive/Disincentive for meeting or not meeting target

Quality of Work

High Quality of Work ratings

Deliver services that earn high Quality of work ratings by Gov’t POCs

POC

Quality of work Ratings

Quality of Work shall be within 95%

Monthly Contractor Assessment Reports

In-person, via correspondence, Teleconference

Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory performance rating as reported to the KO

Timely Submittal of Monthly Activity Report

Receive reports no later than 5 working days after the end of the month

Monthly reports should be received as specified in

PWS.

Date report received

All reports provided within 95% time frame

Monthly Contractor Assessment Reports

Monthly Assessment

Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory performance rating as reported to the KO

Responsive and Participative

Team member who participates in meetings and is responsive to email and phone calls

Consistence attendance at PDT meetings and teleconferences, no longer than next business day call response

1) PDT

Meeting Attendance

2) Email and telephone response

90% of meetings attended and emails and calls returned within 1 business day

Monthly feedback from PM

Monthly Assessment

Satisfactory/Unsatisfactory performance rating as reported to the KO

Standard Language/Specific PWS Requirements Requirement

Method of Surveillance Frequency Who

Acceptable Quality Level

Was the requirement met? Remarks iWatch Training Standard Language

(para 4.1.4)

Has the contractor been briefed on the iWATCH program within

30 calendar days of contract?

Training report from the prime contractor Once COR 90%

Standard Installation or Facility Access

Language (para 4.1)

Has the contractor followed installation or facility access procedures?

(contingency example)

Incident reporting

Once a month

COR in coordination with the District security office

No more than one incident per month

OPSEC

(para 4.1.6)

Has the contractor completed the initial and annual OPSEC training?

Certificates submitted by the contractor

Within 30 calendar days of contract award

Received by the COR and provided to the OPSEC officer

100%

Info Assurance Standard Clause (para 4.1.5, 4.1.8, 4.1.9)

Are IA workforce personnel trained IAW DoD and Army policy?

Submitted by the contractor

Within 30 calendar days of contract award

Received by the COR 100%

AT Level 1 training (para 4.1.2)

Has the contractor completed the initial and annual AT training?

Certificates submitted by the contractor

Within 30 calendar days of contract award

COR in coordination with unit info security officer

100%