MODIFICATION
R -- Administrative Support Services
- Notice Date
- 9/11/2012
- Notice Type
- Modification/Amendment
- NAICS
- 561110
— Office Administrative Services
- Contracting Office
- Department of Agriculture, Natural Resources Conservation Service, Minnesota State Office, 375 Jackson Street, Suite 600, St. Paul, Minnesota, 55101-1854
- ZIP Code
- 55101-1854
- Solicitation Number
- AG-6322-S-12-0005
- Archive Date
- 10/2/2012
- Point of Contact
- Todd R Davis, Phone: 6516027932
- E-Mail Address
-
todd.davis@mn.usda.gov
(todd.davis@mn.usda.gov)
- Small Business Set-Aside
- Total Small Business
- Description
- Additional Questions and Answers 23. Q. There is no line item for any supervisory position/PM to oversee all clerks performing services under this contract (non-personal services). Does the Government want the supervisor hours loaded into the burdened hourly rate for each clerk or can a line item (clerk supervisor or project manager) be added to this requirement in a revised RFP? A. The NRCS does not require a dedicated project manager. Any costs for supervision/management of the employees should be included in the single bill rate proposed. 24. Q. In regards to the background checks, there is conflicting language concerning who pays the cost for this. Page 2 of the PWS states that "Contractor must be able to obtain and maintain every five years a National Agency Background Investigation which is initiated and paid for by the Government" Page 3 of the PWS states that "The Contractor must conduct pre-screening of all persons proposed for work under this contract and ensure that employees who will provide services under the contract have submitted to the Government a completed Standard Form 85, Questionnaire for Non-Sensitive Positions within 15 calendar days after hire. Due to the heightened concern for Homeland Security, all Standard Form 85's will be reviewed by NRCS. NRCS will concur with or decline the selection of Contractor employees based on identified security concerns. The costs relative to completing the SF 85 and any required fingerprinting shall be borne by the Contractor." Please clarify who is to pay the cost of the background checks on contractor personnel. If the Contractor is responsible for this cost, please specify what this cost is currently. A. Both references are correct, but I will clarify. In order for a background check to be completed an SF 85 and fingerprints must be obtained. The employer or employee must pay the cost for obtaining fingerprints (usually a nominal amount at a local police station) and the time it takes the employee to complete the SF 85 (the form states that estimated average time to complete it is 30 minutes). Once these documents are submitted to the Government a background check will be initiated and completed by the Government at its expense. I will also be issuing an amendment to make it clear that a Contractor's employee can continue to work at NRCS locations while the background check has been initiated and is being conducted. However, continued work at NRCS locations is dependent upon favorable adjudication of the background check. 25. Q. Solicitation AG-6322-S-12-0005 (Section (v) Contract Line Item Numbers and 52.222-42) and Wage Determinations (Page 1 of 15 and 11 of 15): Section (v) of the Synopsis Solicitation document specifies that bidders are to use the Occupation Code 01111 General Clerk I as the basis for their costing for this solicitation. Clause 52.222-42 states that the federal hire equivalent level for these positions is GS-5 ($13.14/hour) and/or GS-7 ($16.28/hour). The rates for the General Clerk category on the provided Wage Determinations range from $11.51 to $14.03/hour, significantly less than the stated GS equivalents. The salary rates associated with the General Clerk II ($12.56 to $15.31/hour) and III ($14.09 to $18.28/hour) on the provided Wage Determinations appear more comparable to the rates provided for the GS equivalents. In addition, the complexity of the work described in the PWS and the need for these individuals to perform work independently without direct supervision given the likelihood of working alone in a given USDA office is more appropriately mapped to the General Clerk II/III level position description in the DOL SCA Directory of Occupations. Request that the government change the Occupation Code to be used to 01112 General Clerk II to allow vendors to provide the quality of support staff required to meet PWS requirements. A. The equivalent rates clause states that "This Statement is for Information Only: It is not a Wage Determination". However, upon further review only the GS-5 rate should be listed in this clause making it more consistent with the grade level actually required. Also, after reviewing the PWS and the DOL SCA Director of Occupations definitions, use of the General Clerk II is more appropriate given the PWS requires the incumbents to have a "working knowledge of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) software" and it also requires them to review the "accuracy of documentation, compliance with regulations, and justification..." This would require some "simple adaptations and interpretations of a limited number of substantive guides and manuals" and have "familiarity with the terminology of the office unit" as defined in the directory for a General Clerk II. An amendment will be issued immediately to make this change to the solicitation and the PWS. 26. Q. 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required To Implement Statutes or Executive Orders, 52.219-14 Limitations on Subcontracting (Page 11 of 15): Please clarify if the 50+% requirement under clause 52.219-14 will be required to be met on a task order by task order basis or across the entire contract (IDIQ). A. The 50% requirement would need to be met on a task order by task order basis since it is not certain from the outset the total price of all delivery orders that may be issued over the life of the contract. For example if only one task order was issued and the contractor subcontracted more than 50% than it would be impossible to meet the requirement. A contractor could not rely on the possibility of future task orders to fall under the 50% requirement.
- Web Link
-
FBO.gov Permalink
(https://www.fbo.gov/spg/USDA/NRCS/MNSO/AG-6322-S-12-0005/listing.html)
- Place of Performance
- Address: Various counties within the State of Minnesota., Minnesota, United States
- Record
- SN02876640-W 20120913/120912000237-7d1f2670490e7d5c9dfa96bb3c72cebe (fbodaily.com)
- Source
-
FedBizOpps Link to This Notice
(may not be valid after Archive Date)
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