SPECIAL NOTICE
D -- BRIDGE JUSTIFICATION FOR AN EXCEPTION TO FAIR OPPORTUNITY (ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems)
- Notice Date
- 12/11/2025 10:25:23 AM
- Notice Type
- Justification
- NAICS
- 541512
— Computer Systems Design Services
- Contracting Office
- WATER, TRIBAL & SCIENCE DIVISION Cincinnati OH 45268 USA
- ZIP Code
- 45268
- Solicitation Number
- HHSN316201200012W_68HERD20F0128
- Archive Date
- 12/31/2025
- Point of Contact
- Kareen Mansfield, Phone: (919) 541-4817
- E-Mail Address
-
Mansfield.Kareen@epa.gov
(Mansfield.Kareen@epa.gov)
- Award Number
- HHSN316201200012W
- Award Date
- 06/02/2020
- Description
- BRIDGE JUSTIFICATION FOR AN EXCEPTION TO FAIR OPPORTUNITY Upon the basis of the following justification, I, as Contracting Officer, hereby approve this exception to the fair opportunity process required by FAR 16.505(b)(2)(ii)(B) on the basis that it is in the interest of economy and efficiency because it is a logical follow on to an order in accordance with FAR 16.505(b)(2)(i)(C). l. Agency And Contracting Activity: Contracting Office: United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Acquisition Solutions (OAS) Information Technology Acquisition Division (ITAD) 109 T.W. Alexander Drive, Mail Code AA005 Research Triangle Park (RTP), NC 27711 Project Office: United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Office of Mission Support (OMS) Office of Grants and Debarment (OGD) 1301 Constitution Ave NW WJC Building West Washington, DC 20460 2. Nature And/Or Description Of Action(s) Being Approved: EPA�s Office of Records, Administrative Systems and eDiscovery (ORASE) and Office of Grants and Debarment (OGD) IT Grants Management Systems (ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems) Contract Task Order (TO), HHSN316201200012W/ 68HERD20F0128, was awarded to Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) on June 2, 2020, with a performance period inclusive of a twelve (12) month Base Period, four (4) twelve (12) month Option Periods, and an Option to Extend six (6) months in accordance with FAR 52.217-8, Option to Extend Services (NOV 1999). This TO was solicited as full and open competition under the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Information Technology Acquisition and Assessment Center�s (NITAAC) government-wide acquisition contract (GWAC) Chief Information Officer Solutions and Partners 3 (CIO-SP3). Work performed under this TO includes the development, enhancements, and operational maintenance for the Next Generation Grants System (NGGS). The NGGS is EPA�s enterprise-wide grants management system and is the successor to the Integrated Grants Management System (IGMS). NGGS was developed to address shortcomings in the Agency�s pre-award, post award, and closeout activities identified in the General Accounting Office (GAO) and Office of Inspector Generation (OIG) findings. This system automates the grant process from the initial negotiation of the grant work plan, through application, award, and closeout of the grant. The NGGS system provides grantees and EPA staff the ability to develop, review, approve, and share documents as well as manage activities in an electronic environment. The purpose of this exception to fair opportunity is to justify the Agency�s need for a four (4) month bridge contract extension for the OGD IT Management Systems TO. The work in support of the OGD IT Management Systems TO is currently being performed pursuant to FAR 52.217-8 Option to extend services (NOV 1999) as a six (6) month option to extend the performance period, which ends on November 30, 2025. The work being performed on this contract is essential to the EPA as it provides agency-wide grants management services, providing support to over 3,500 grants community users. In alignment with EPA executive management direction and the current administration�s mission to increase efficiency, reduce costs, and consolidate federal contracts, the ORASE program office and the OGD program office plan to pivot grants management services to existing internal EPA contracts. While efforts are underway to onboard these services to the existing contracts, the transition cannot occur without the risk of a potential lapse in the current contract vehicle. A potential lapse in services would disrupt critical grants management and operational continuity during the FY26 grants season. The follow-on work is scheduled to be integrated into EPA�s Information Technology EnterpriseDevelopment (ITED) and Enterprise Support Services and Endpoint Technology (ESSET) contracts. The transition of services currently performed under the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract to ITED and ESSET is planned to begin between . Since the current period of performance concludes on November 30, 2025, a bridge contract extension is necessary to maintain ongoing critical agency-wide grant awarding capabilities, ensure seamless continuity of mission operations, and begin to facilitate successful transitions for both federal and contractor employees. 3. Description Of Supplies And/Or Services Required To Meet The Agency�s Needs, Including The Estimated Value: Work performed under a four-month bridge contract extension in support of the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract by the incumbent (SAIC) is required to sustain operations and maintenance and help desk support services, and to transition services to the established EPA ITED and ESSET contracts. The ORASE and OGD program offices are taking precautions to provide technical direction to the contractor to perform only the necessary tasks in the PWS. There is currently no planned development work . Overall, the likelihood of development work is minimal. However, in rare instances, development work might be required if mandated by statute or if it is essential for the proper functioning of NGGS. Therefore, the PWS will be updated to include an addendum that emphasizes essential tasks for transitioning work from the incumbent to ITED and ESSET, ongoing operations and maintenance activities, and developmental work only if it is funded, required by statute, or necessary for the proper functioning of NGGS. This strategic decision was made to ensure that the requested bridge contract extension limits contractor performance to only the necessary work to meet the Agency�s requirements until the follow-on work is transitioned to the new contracts. The estimated value for the four-month bridge contract extension is (redacted). Since the current period of performance ends on November 30, 2025, a four-month bridge contract extension would allow the contract's period of performance to extend through March 31, 2026. Proposed Contractor: Science Applications International Corporation (SAIC) 12010 Sunset Hills Road Reston, VA 2019 4. Exception To The Fair Opportunity Process And The Supporting Rationale: In accordance with FAR 16.505(b)(2(i)(C)), the work to be performed under the four-month bridge contract extension is a logical follow-on to an original order, and the original order was placed in accordance with the fair opportunity process and was not issued under sole source or limited sources procedures. The work being performed under the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract is planned to be transitioned to EPA�s ITED and ESSET contracts. Both ITED and ESSET are Interagency Agreements (IAs) between GSA and the EPA. GSA administers the contracts, and EPA staff and EPA Technical Point of Contacts (TPOCs) manage the day-to-day operations. The process to transition services from the current ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract undergoes a different process than a solicited acquisition. This transition is more complex than traditional procurements due to the division of services between two follow-on contract vehicles instead of one follow-on contract vehicle. This division increases risks during the transition process and necessitates greater government oversight. Awarding a four-month bridge contract extension will mitigate these risks and ensure a seamless continuity of operations during the transition. To ensure continuity of operations during the onboarding and transition to ITED and ESSET, it is crucial for the incumbent, SAIC, to continue providing essential services for the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract and facilitate the transition. SAIC brings over twenty years of experience with both the legacy grants system, IGMS, and the current grants system under the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract, NGGS. This extensive experience provides SAIC with the technical knowledge and specialized expertise necessary for NGGS software development, understanding of grants business rules and workflows, user support, and familiarity with the user community and operational environment. As mentioned earlier, this transition process differs from the typical acquisition process of awarding a single follow-on contract from an incumbent contractor to a successor contractor. Instead, the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems requirement is being divided between two EPA contracts: ITED and ESSET. This division adds complexity and requires more government oversight and coordination. It is imperative that critical grants management business operations continue without disruption. Therefore, SAIC is best positioned to support EPA�s ongoing requirement for continued NGGS operations and to facilitate the transition of services to ITED and ESSET. The award of a four-month bridge contract to another contractor would impose risks including, the disruption of critical agency-wide grants award capabilities, unacceptable service delivery delays, and duplication of costs. Additionally, no other contractor is in the position or possesses the necessary grants management system and operational support knowledge to begin performance immediately for a short period of performance before supporting the transition to the successor contractors. Furthermore, any lapse in services would impact EPA�s ability to perform critical functional requirements (grants management and reporting) and would disrupt the business operations and mission for ORASE and OGD. The Agency recognizes that there may be potential contractors that could perform the services in support of the ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract, however, considering the short period of performance contemplated with this bridge contract extension, the performance risks to the agency are too high, and could negatively impact the Agency�s grants management operations and mission. Furthermore, since there is transition work proposed with this bridge contract extension, no othercontractor other than the incumbent is capable of seamlessly transitioning work to the successors. 5. Determination That The Anticipated Cost To The Government Will Be Fair And Reasonable: Since the Task Order (TO) is an award issued under NITAAC�s CIO-SP3 Government-Wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC), the contractor�s labor rates were initially competed and deemed fair and reasonable by the NITAAC Contracting Officer (CO). Additionally, the EPA CO assessed the contractor�s labor rates and confirmed their fairness and reasonableness at the time of the TO award. 6. Other Facts Supporting The Justification For The Exception To The Fair Opportunity Process: None at this time. 7. Actions, If Any, The Agency Will Take to Remove or Overcome Any Barriers That Led To Restricted Consideration Before Any Subsequent Acquistio For Supplies And Servives Is Made: The four-month bridge contract extension will support the Agency in maiintaining ongoing grants management operations and transitioning services from the ncumbent to the successors. The follow-on contracts are anticipated to be awarded under two existing EPA contracts - ITED and ESSET. According to the guidance in Office of Management and Budget Memo 19-13, agencies are encouraged to effectively manage contract spending and mnimize contract duplication. Since the Agency already has internal contract solutions that can fulfill the requirements of these seervces, it aligns with policy t use these existing contract solutions for the follow-on effort. As previously mentioned, the current ORASE/OGD IT Grants Management Systems contract is set to expire November 30, 2025. Therefore, awarding a short-term four-month bridge extension to the incubment is in the Agency's best interest to ensure continuity of operations and to facilitate a smooth transition of services to the successor contractors. There are no barriers to competition. There are no forseeable plans t restrict competition further or seek additional bridge contract extensions. 8. Odering Activity Contracting Officer Certification: The Contracting Officer certifies that this justification is accurate and complete to the best of their knowledge and belief aas noted by their signature below. 9. Project Office Certification: I hereby certify that any supporting data ehich forms the basis for this exception to fair ooportunity is complete and accurate.
- Web Link
-
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- Place of Performance
- Address: USA
- Country: USA
- Country: USA
- Record
- SN07663000-F 20251213/251211230032 (samdaily.us)
- Source
-
SAM.gov Link to This Notice
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