The White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) 2022 Conference

CLARIFICATION:  Quotes are due MONDAY, March 21, 2022 at 12:00pm EDT.  Some places in the solicitation incorrectly stated that March 21, 2022 was a Thursday.  Quotes are due MONDAY, March 21, 2022.

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice.  The solicitation for commercial services is being conducted under FAR Part 12 in conjunction with FAR Part 13. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued.  Solicitation HBCU-2022-01 is issued as a request for quotation (RFQ).  The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular (FAC) Number 2022-04, FAC Effective Date: 01/30/2022.  The NAICS Code is 721110, Hotels (Not Casino) and Motels, and small business size standard is $35M.

The U.S. Department of Education (ED) has a requirement to obtain meeting space and hotel guest room accommodations for a conference hosted by The White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU) in September 2022.  The preferred program dates are September 20-23, 2022. The Department will not accept dates that conflict with Congressional Black Caucus events during the month of September, which may negatively impact attendee participation at the HBCU event.  The Department’s preference is that all lodging and meeting space be in one general location.

AREA OF CONSIDERATION:  Downtown Washington, DC and Maryland hotels within 10 miles of the Reagan National Airport Metro Station.  Large hotels capable of blocking 400 or more sleeping rooms, plus meeting space that can accommodate 900 - 1200 attendees in rounds, will be considered.  The majority of lodging and conference rooms must be at the same general location, although we will consider partnering arrangements where locations within close proximity of each other are proposed.  At this time, there is no flexibility with the distance.

DATES:  Hotel shall be able to accommodate the schedule above in September 2022.   Preferred dates:  September 20-23, 2022.

Any quote from a source other than the hotel or lodging venue itself must include written evidence that the quoter is currently authorized to submit binding quotes on behalf of the venue whose accommodations and/or facility are being offered.  Evidence shall include a signed agreement between the vendor and the quoter.  Quotes that fail to provide such evidence shall be deemed technically unacceptable and will not be considered for award.

The entity selected to receive an offer from ED is required to register in the System for Award Management (SAM) and to maintain active registration during the life of the purchase order.  SAM can be accessed at https://www.sam.gov.  Quoters shall include their DUNS and/or SAM Unique Entity ID (UEI) number in their quote.  If the quoter does not have a UEI , it should contact the entity designated at www.sam.gov for UEI establishment directly to obtain one. The quoter should indicate that it is an offeror for a Government contract when contacting the entity designated at www.sam.gov for establishing the UEI.  The quoter selected for an offer from the Department will need to provide Offeror Representations and Certifications prior to any award.

CLARIFICATION QUESTIONS:  Submit all clarification questions concerning this solicitation in writing via E-Mail to Anya Hook at Anya.Hook@ed.gov and Gary Weaver at Gary.Weaver@ed.gov.  ED will accept clarification questions until 12:00 pm EST Thursday, March 14, 2022.  After this date ED does not guarantee that a response will be given.

QUOTE DUE DATE:  Quotes are due by 12:00 pm EST, MONDAY, March 21, 2022 to Gary Weaver, Contracting Officer, at Gary.Weaver@ed.gov.  The Department will make an award decision as soon as possible after the quote due date so that a room block, space, etc. can be locked in.

PLEASE SEE THE FULL RFQ, INCLUDING APPENDIX, UPLOADED AS SEPARATE DOCUMENTS FOR COMPLETE REQUIREMENTS, BASIS FOR AWARD, AND COMPLETE QUOTE INSTRUCTIONS.