ASH-IV_II Questions & Answers Screening Information Request (SIR) 693KA9-24-R-00004 Question 1: As an offerors standard accounting practice may require an indirect rate to be applied on subcontracted direct labor, will the Government confirm that rates provided by subcontractors via Tab E are compliant if they are equal to or below prime offeror rates provided in Tab C? In many cases, subcontractor rates may be below prime offeror rates and will not exactly match. Answer 1: The proposed rates by subcontractors must match the rate used by the prime offeror in completing Tab C. There is no requirement for the subcontractor rate to be equal to the prime contractor�s rates. Question 2: Will the Government confirm that subcontractors must only complete and submit Tab E from Attachment L.2 and no other tabs must be completed by subcontractors? Answer 2: Yes. Question 3: As an offeror may have multiple subcontractors as Labor Categories are applied against any/all service areas as an IDIQ contract, will the Government confirm that multiple subcontractor Tab E's can be provided in an offerors response to the solicitation? Can the Government also confirm that multiple subcontractors may propose fully burdened labor rates for the same Labor Category across separate Tab E submissions? Answer 3: In accordance with SIR Section L.16.2.b Prime Offerors must complete the T&M Rate Buildup in Tab C of Attachment L.2. The Offerors must propose a single fully burdened ceiling labor rate for each labor category inclusive of all contract periods, utilizing the labor category descriptions within Attachment J-1, Labor Category and Skill Descriptions. The fully burdened labor rates must include all direct labor and indirect costs applicable to that direct labor (such as fringe benefits; overhead; cost of money, if applicable; and G&A), and profit. Offerors must also input the escalation factor applicable to each Option Year after the Base Year. Once Tab C is completed, Tab A � TEP Summary, and Tab B � T&M Rate Table will be automatically populated because Tab C is linked to Tab B and Tab B is linked to Tab A. The information provided in the cells of Tab C must not be password protected, and the formulas must be visible and unbroken. In cases where subcontractors do not share the rate buildup with the prime, the subcontractor fully burdened rate(s) must be input in the columns for the Base Year, and Option Years 1-4 of Tab C. SIR Section L.16.3.a further states - The prime contractor must provide a narrative that addresses the following areas: Rationale used for development of the proposed fully burdened Labor Rates. Offerors must clearly explain the rationale and methodologies used to buildup and develop the rates, including blended rates, if applicable. The information provided must address the direct labor and the indirect rates separately. The Offerors must identify all proposed indirect rates, to include allocation bases, and describe the company�s accounting practices for application of the rates. Question 4: Would the government consider removing the requirements in Section L, �Instructions, Conditions, and Notices to Offerors� that require subcontractors to provide T&M rate build ups? Answer 4: No. Question 5: If not, would the government consider extending the due date to allow small business subcontractors additional time to comply with the requirements in Section L, particularly those requiring subcontractors to provide T&M rate build ups and to submit the L.2 price model to prime vendors or directly to the government? Answer 5: No. Question 6: The government released a market survey on May 15, 2024, for FAA AXE-400 Contract Support Services (SAM Notice ID # FAAAXE-400_CONTRACTORSUPPORTSERVICES). The scope of services included in this RFI includes significant overlap with this SIR. Since this SIR and the market survey support the same FAA line of business with many similar services, many of the same vendors who are responding to this SIR (as a prime or subcontractor) are also interested in responding to the AXE-400 market survey. However, responding to two large opportunities at the same time is straining the capacity of the small businesses who have relevant capabilities to offer ASH, so the government may not receive responses from otherwise qualified small businesses given the existing overlapping response dates. To maximize small business participation in this SIR and in the AXE-400 market survey, would the government consider extending the due date of both opportunities? Answer 6: The due dates for submission for both opportunities will not be extended. The due dates remain unchanged.
