Notice of Intent to Sole Source

The Department of the Interior's Interior Business Center issued a Notice of Intent to Sole Source on March 24, 2026, for a firm-fixed-price acquisition with the State of Alaska Department of Labor & Workforce Development. This special notice pertains to the development and annual update of a Distressed Communities Report and related consulting services for the Denali Commission. The State of Alaska Department of Labor & Workforce Development has been identified as the sole source capable of performing this work, as it is the only known entity that gathers, maintains, and interprets the critical economic data necessary for the project. The notice invites interested parties to submit capability statements by April 8, 2026, to demonstrate their capacity to fulfill the requirement. This approach allows the government to assess whether other qualified contractors exist before proceeding with the sole-source award.

The primary objective of this acquisition is to develop a comprehensive report that identifies Alaskan communities as "distressed" based on specific economic indicators, including per capita market income, poverty rate, and underemployment rate. The contract structure includes a 12-month base period followed by four optional 12-month renewal periods, with work performed at contractor facilities. Interested contractors must submit capability statements not exceeding 10 pages in Microsoft Office-compatible or Adobe Acrobat format (with 11-point minimum font size) by 10:00 A.M. ET on April 8, 2026, to the Contracting Officer and Contract Specialist identified in the notice. While the State of Alaska Department of Labor & Workforce Development is presently the intended sole source due to its exclusive access to Permanent Fund Dividend and Unemployment Insurance data, the government reserves the right to issue a Request for Quote or proceed with a competitive acquisition based on responses received. Interested parties should note that all submission costs are their responsibility, and all submissions will become government property.