WFO Modification JOFOC_Redacted.pdf

NRC JUSTIFICATION AND APPROVAL

This Justification for Other Than Full and Open Competition (JOFOC) supports the issuance of a noncompetitive modification to increase the IDIQ maximum value from $4,299,877 by $4,300,123 to $8,600,000.

2. Contract Type: Cost-Reimbursement

3. Period of Performance & Total Estimated Value of Contract

The estimated total ceiling is revised to $8,600,000.

The effective period of performance is four years and ten months.

The current base and exercised ordering periods are 6/1/2023 – 3/29/2027.

There is one remaining one-year option period (3/30/2027 – 3/29/2028).

4. Provide a background and description of the supplies or services required to meet the agency's needs, including the rationale for the estimated value change (if applicable).

CNWRA was established on October 15, 1987. Since then, the Commission has subsequently approved continued sponsorship of the CNWRA every five years, mostly recently in 2022.

The first renewal of CNWRA established the work for others (WFO) concept and procedures because the NRC recognized that fluctuations of high-level waste management requirements covered under the “Charter” contract were foreseeable.

Consequently, the CNWRA may, as approved by NRC, perform work for others to ensure CNWRA staff are retained and fully engaged, including work for federal or commercial organizations/entities, or NRC program offices, within its purpose, mission, scope, and special competencies.

CNWRA provides the NRC with access to resources with highly technical and specialized competencies needed to support NRC’s regulatory program related to nuclear fuel cycle activities. The NRC relies on CNWRA’s expertise and specialized capabilities, free of OCOI, to ensure the credibility of the NRC as an independent regulator.

Since the WFO Contract renewal was awarded in 2023, the NRC’s WFO program requirements have exceeded those initially anticipated. A ceiling increase is now necessary to allow the ordering flexibility to award new work for the remaining two years of the ordering period. Moving forward, the NRC envisions the need for continued research and technical assistance under the WFO Contract in areas of development, testing, and validation of NRC’s reactor consequence code systems and structural and seismic design and construction of new nuclear power plants. The estimated value change was based on the average annual usage of the contract over the first three years of the ordering period, as well as consideration of planned future work.

5. Authority:

RFO 6.103-3 Industrial mobilization; engineering, developmental, or research capability; or expert services

Specifically, the authorization at RFO 6.103-3(b)(2), “To establish or maintain an essential engineering, research, or development capability to be provided by…a federally funded research and development center”

6. Supporting Rationale

The following rationale supports the use of the authority cited in Section 5 of this document.

RFO 6.103-3 Rationale

This modification is being issued pursuant to the authorization at RFO 6.103-3(b)(2), “to establish or maintain an essential engineering, research, or development capability to be provided by…a federally funded research and development center.”

CNWRA was established as the NRC’s FFRDC to provide research and technical expertise, within its areas of special competency, to support NRC’s waste management program. CNWRA’s special competencies currently include: (1) Civil, Structural and Mechanical Engineering; (2) Environmental Science and Environmental Engineering; (3) Geology and Geophysics; (4) Hydrology and Hydrologic Transport; (5) Material Sciences; (6) Health Physics; and (7) Performance Assessment. Specific work to be completed in the remainder of the WFO Contract includes existing and additional work in these areas: (1) seismic and structural analysis in support of licensing for advanced reactors and (2) development, testing, and validation of NRC accident consequence computer codes. The combination of these capabilities cannot be provided as effectively by existing in-house or commercial contractor resources without organizational conflicts.

Maintaining CNWRA’s essential engineering, research, and development capability is necessary to support future work within the scope of the contract. Increasing the contract ceiling allows the NRC to maintain mission-critical capabilities and expertise at CNWRA, free of organizational conflicts. As a result of the NRC’s response to and compliance with Executive Order (EO) 14300, Ordering the Reform of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the NRC is progressing through a significant period of transformation in both organizational structure and how the agency approaches its mission. The CNWRA will be critical in ensuring the NRC is positioned to be successful during this period of transformation by providing research and technical assistance related to development, testing, and validation of NRC’s reactor consequence code systems and structural and seismic design and construction of new nuclear power plants, including guidance development. This work will allow the NRC staff to review future submittals in an expedited manner to support accelerated deadlines, and to facilitate advanced nuclear development in the United States.

7. Market Research:

As part of the recent exercise of Option Period Three, the NRC staff conducted a comprehensive review of the use and need of the FFRDC. The NRC staff determined there is a continuing need for a contractor free of OCOI with potential or current applicants or licensees, to provide research and technical support in non-waste management areas to make use of CNWRA’s special competencies.

Beginning in 2027, NRC will perform an analysis including market research to determine whether the NRC should continue to sponsor the CNWRA to support the agency’s waste management program for up to another five years. If an affirmative determination is made, NRC will consider the need for support from CNWRA in non-waste management areas to maintain the specialized capabilities and technical expertise of the CNWRA.

8. A description of efforts made to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as is practicable, including whether a notice was or will be publicized.

In accordance with RFO 6.103-3, this action is being conducted on a sole-source basis. As a result, offers were not solicited from multiple sources because the NRC has determined that it is necessary to award the modification to SwRI to maintain the essential engineering and research capabilities of the CNWRA.

A pre-solicitation notice for this ceiling increase modification will not be publicized in accordance with the exemption at RFO 5.101(b)(2).

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

The Contracting Officer will determine that the anticipated cost for new work is fair and reasonable as task orders are awarded. To make this determination, the Contracting Officer will consult with the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR) to confirm the technical validity and reasonableness of the proposed level of effort to ensure that it accurately reflects the work necessary to meet the NRC’s requirements.

To establish cost reasonableness, the Contracting Officer will:

compare cost to historical pricing for similar services, compare CNWRA labor rates with published labor rates for similar professional labor categories in technical fields;

and ensure indirect rates are in accordance with the rates approved by the Defense Contract Audit Agency, which are incorporated into the contract.

Additionally, the contract includes language that caps employee compensation at the FFRDC (in accordance with 3 USC 102 for information on the President’s salary and 41 USC 4304(a)(16) as amended by section 702 of The Bipartisan

Budget Act of 2013 (Pub. L. 113-67) for the limit set therein).

Upon completion of this review, the Contracting Officer will document the determination that the cost for the task order is fair and reasonable and represents the best value for the Government.

10. Any other facts to support justification.

The NRC deemed certain capabilities essential and spent considerable time, effort, and appropriated funds to develop these capabilities at the CNWRA. If the CNWRA cannot maintain these essential capabilities, the NRC will lose an investment of 39 years and over $260 million dollars. CNWRA is an organization which has continued to be free of OCOI and provides high-quality research and technical support to the NRC. The loss of this independent support would threaten the credibility and continuity of the NRC’s technical program. It would also jeopardize NRC’s ability to be flexible in reacting to the Nation's evolving policy on nuclear waste, and advanced reactors and new and advanced fuels.

To retain its high-caliber experts, the CNWRA must maintain a stable, technically challenging work environment.

Consequently, the agency staff has concluded that if the NRC does not maintain continuous staffing at the CNWRA, it would take years to reestablish the required technical expertise with staff functioning at the level required to provide adequate support to the NRC.

All task orders under this IDIQ Contract are Section 508 Compliant as applicable.

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

Not Applicable

12. 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.

a. Approximately every five years, the NRC staff reviews the status of and need for continued sponsorship of the FFRDC. Results of the review and evaluation will be used as a basis to provide recommendations to the Commission to determine if an FFRDC is still required and if an open competition is warranted. NRC will begin this review in Fiscal Year 2027.