NOTICE OF INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE – 34300025Q0038 – Rafael Dix-Carneiro

The U.S. International Trade Commission has published a Special Notice announcing its intent to award a sole source purchase order to Professor Rafael Dix-Carneiro for global macroeconomic modeling and training services. The contract falls under NAICS code 541618 for Other Management Consulting Services and will cover a base year performance period from August 1, 2025 to May 31, 2026. The Commission is utilizing the sole source authority under FAR 6.302-1, citing that only one responsible source exists that can satisfy the agency's requirements. Professor Dix-Carneiro, located in Durham, North Carolina, originally developed the specialized dataset model that the Commission requires. The notice emphasizes that this is not a competitive solicitation and no formal solicitation document will be issued.

The Commission requires 160 hours of services to produce quantitative analysis necessary to comply with its statutory obligations, specifically focusing on global macroeconomic modeling that incorporates labor adjustment costs, unemployment, trade dynamics, and trade balances. The justification for sole source award is based on Professor Dix-Carneiro's unique expertise as the model's creator and his exclusive access to proprietary data and estimation techniques not publicly available. The Commission determined that no other academic researcher possesses comparable methodology capable of modeling numerous countries and industries simultaneously. Any information or feedback from interested parties must be submitted within five days of the posting date (by July 18, 2025) to Contracting Officer Alisha Hunt at Alisha.Hunt@usitc.gov. The Commission retains sole discretion in determining whether to compete this action, and telephonic inquiries are discouraged.