Lodging for Boot Camp Participants

This is a combined/synopsis solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice and the attachments. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; proposals are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. This solicitation incorporates provisions and clauses for commercial items in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular FAC 2005-29 dated November 14, 2008. The associated NAICS code is 721110 and the small business size standard is $7M, respectively. Solicitation number AG-7482-S-09-0001 is issued as a Request for Proposals (RFP) and is issued using Commercial Acquisition Procedures under FAR Part 12, FAR Part 15, and FAR Part 16. All proposals shall reference the RFP number and shall be submitted not later than 2:30 PM central local time on December 16, 2008. All proposals or questions may be emailed to judith.weber@ftw.usda.gov or sent to: USDA-NRCS-NCSU, Attn: Judith Weber, 501 W. Felix, Bldg #23, Fort Worth, TX 76115. Telephone and fax inquiries will not be honored. This acquisition is being issued as full and open. Multiple awards will not be considered. The resulting contract will not obligate the Government beyond the minimum Task orders will be issued for each session ordered which will establish the estimated nights to be ordered. The Government will only pay for the actual nights used at the rate established in the order. All reimbursements will be made only for sleeping rooms actually used per night and will be based on the per diem rates as published in the Federal Travel Regulation and available at www.gsa.gov. These rates are customarily updated on an annual basis. Locations offered for lodging and training shall be within a 45 mile radius of the current working farm located at zip code 73003. Venue must be rated minimum 3 stars or above based on hotel's rating chain. Venue must be in a secure location with minimal crime activity. The Government will NOT pay for and is not liable for items such as in room movies, alcohol, room service or any other charges beyond the agreed to room occupancy rate. These items must be paid for directly by the room occupant prior to checkout. Lodging is for room rental only and does not include incidental room charges such as food, drinks, alcohol, mini bar, pay per view movies & games, room service, long distance & local phone calls, tips and laundry service. The venue MUST be FEMA approved and listed on the U.S. Fire Administration Hotel and Motel National Master List found at (www.usfa.fema.gov/hotel/search.cfm). Offers proposed facilities that are not listed will be rejected as technically unacceptable. In addition, the offerors facility must be compliant with the requirements of the Americans with Disabilities Act (Public Law 101-336) (42 U.S.C. 12101 et. Seq.). Proposal must indicate whether the hotel agrees to the right of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) to use their own audiovisual equipment and if there is a cost incurred for connection to hotel sound system with use of own equipment. NOTE: Government reserves the right to hire an outside audiovisual company without any penalties incurred as part of the fair practice procurement regulations. Any lodging site may be subject to unannounced inspections by authorized representatives of the Contracting Officer with proof of identification. The venue shall provide access to requested facilities with little or no notice. Any location not meeting local or state codes for lodging facilities or not meeting the minimum requirements of this solicitation and/or resulting contract will not be considered for award or may be terminated under FAR 52.212-4 (l). Instructions for submittal of proposals: Submit signed and dated proposals to the office specified in this solicitation at or before the exact time specified in this solicitation. In lieu of submitting a hard copy of a proposal, offers may be emailed on or before the time stated above; however the offerors should follow-up with an original signed notarized proposal. All offers should be accompanied by proof that the person signing the offer is authorized to do so. In addition, as a minimum, offers must show -- (1) The solicitation number; (2) The time specified in the solicitation for receipt of offers; (3) The name, address, and telephone number of the offeror; (4) A description of the facilities being offered in sufficient detail to evaluate compliance with the minimum requirements in the solicitation. This may include any additional amenities offered; (5) Acknowledgment of any Solicitation Amendments; (6) Past performance information, to be submitted either on the enclosed form or a similar format. When a similar format is used it must contain the same information. (7) A statement specifying the extent of agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation. Offers that fail to furnish required representations or information, or reject the terms and conditions of the solicitation may be excluded from consideration. (8) Period for acceptance of offers. The offeror agrees to hold its offer firm for 60 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of offers, unless another time period is specified in an addendum to the solicitation. (9) Multiple offers. Offerors are encouraged to submit multiple offers presenting alternative terms and conditions or commercial items for satisfying the requirements of this solicitation. Each offer submitted will be evaluated separately. (10) Offerors are responsible for submitting offers, and any modifications, revisions, or withdrawals, so as to reach the Government office designated in the solicitation by the time specified in the solicitation. (11) Any offer, modification, revision, or withdrawal of an offer received at the Government office designated in the solicitation after the exact time specified for receipt of offers is - late and will not be considered unless it is received before award is made, the Contracting Officer determines that accepting the late offer would not unduly delay the acquisition; and'if it was transmitted through an electronic commerce method authorized by the solicitation, it was received at the initial point of entry to the Government infrastructure not later than 5:00 p.m. one working day prior to the date specified for receipt of offers; or there is acceptable evidence to establish that it was received at the Government installation designated for receipt of offers and was under the Government's control prior to the time set for receipt of offers; or if this solicitation is a request for proposals, it was the only proposal received. However, a late modification of an otherwise successful offer, that makes its terms more favorable to the Government, will be considered at any time it is received and may be accepted. Acceptable evidence to establish the time of receipt at the Government installation includes the time/date stamp of that installation on the offer wrapper, other documentary evidence of receipt maintained by the installation, or oral testimony or statements of Government personnel. If an emergency or unanticipated event interrupts normal Government processes so that offers cannot be received at the Government office designated for receipt of offers by the exact time specified in the solicitation, and urgent Government requirements preclude amendment of the solicitation or other notice of an extension of the closing date, the time specified for receipt of offers will be deemed to be extended to the same time of day specified in the solicitation on the first work day on which normal Government processes resume. (12) Offers may be withdrawn by written notice received at any time before the exact time set for receipt of offers. Oral offers in response to oral solicitations may be withdrawn orally. If the solicitation authorizes facsimile offers, offers may be withdrawn via facsimile received at any time before the exact time set for receipt of offers, subject to the conditions specified in the solicitation concerning facsimile offers. An offer may be withdrawn in person by an offeror or its authorized representative if, before the exact time set for receipt of offers, the identity of the person requesting withdrawal is established and the person signs a receipt for the offer. (13) The Government intends to evaluate offers and award a contract without discussions with offerors. Therefore, the offeror's initial offer should contain the offeror's best terms from a technical standpoint. However, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions if later determined by the Contracting Officer to be necessary. The Government may reject any or all offers if such action is in the public interest; accept other than the lowest offer; and waive informalities and minor irregularities in offers received. (14) This solicitation requires the Contractor to be registered in the Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database. If the offeror does not have a DUNS number, it should contact Dun and Bradstreet directly to obtain one. An offeror within the United States may contact Dun and Bradstreet by calling 1-866-705-5711 or via the Internet at http://fedgov.dnb.com/webform. An offeror located outside the United States must contact the local Dun and Bradstreet office for DUNS number. The offeror should indicate that it is an offeror for a Government contract when contacting the local Dun and Bradstreet office. Unless exempted by an addendum to this solicitation, by submission of an offer, the offeror acknowledges the requirement that a prospective awardee shall be registered in the CCR database prior to award, during performance and through final payment of any contract resulting from this solicitation. If the Offeror does not become registered in the CCR database within five working days of notification to do so by the Contracting Officer, the Contracting Officer may proceed to award to the next otherwise successful registered Offeror. Offerors may obtain information on registration and annual confirmation requirements via the Internet at http://www.ccr.gov or by calling 1-888-227-2423 or 269-961-5757. (15) Offeror must provide company tax information number and DUNS Numbers. (l6) If a post-award debriefing is given to requesting offerors, the Government shall disclose the following information, if applicable: (1) The agency's evaluation of the significant weak or deficient factors in the debriefed offeror's offer. (2) The overall evaluated technical rating of the successful and debriefed offeror and past performance information on the debriefed offeror. (3) The overall ranking of all offerors, when any ranking was developed by the agency during source selection. (4) A summary of rationale for award; (5) For acquisitions of commercial items, the make and model of the item to be delivered by the successful offeror. (6) Reasonable responses to relevant questions posed by the debriefed offeror as to whether source-selection procedures set forth in the solicitation, applicable regulations, and other applicable authorities were followed by the agency. Evaluation Factors: (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: Technical capability of the venue to meet the Government requirements and proposed amenities; Price; Past performance (see FAR 15.304); (b) Technical, and price when combined are more important than Past Performance. Price is established at the same rate for all offerors for evaluation purposes since the Government has established a ceiling price for each sleeping room based on the published per diem rate which would be paid to whatever venue is selected. However, this does not preclude the venue from offering a price for each sleeping room at a rate lower than the established per diem rate. If a venue chooses to offer a price lower than the per diem rate, this will be considered as more advantageous to the Government during the Best Value determination. Any taxes to be applied and included in the final room rate must be disclosed. The Government will not pay any federal taxes. (c) A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer's specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award. Technical Evaluation: The evaluation of each proposal will assess and measure the ability of the Offeror to provide the services described herein and in accordance with the attached documents. In the evaluation, the evaluator will use the following adjectives and related definitions to define the Technical Capability the proposal possesses. RATINGS EVALUATION CRITERIA Blue Proposal meets all solicitation requirements, demonstrates an excellent understanding of the requirements, and possesses services that offer significant advantages to the Government. Excellent in all aspects. Advantages/strengths are not offset by disadvantages/weaknesses. The proposal demonstrates capability to provide additional complimentary equipment, services, and amenities. Green Proposal meets solicitation requirements and demonstrates an adequate understanding of the requirements but does not offer significant advantages to the Government over basic requirements. Where there were areas of concern, clarifications given by the Offeror were acceptable. Disadvantages/weaknesses are not significant. The proposal demonstrates capability to provide all required services. Yellow Proposal meets some but not all of the solicitation requirements, but offers disadvantages (weaknesses) outweighing other advantages (strengths). Pink Proposal meets some but not all of the solicitation requirements. Proposal does not address all required criteria. Proposal contains errors, omissions or deficiencies that may be able to be corrected without major rewrite or revision of proposal. Red Proposal demonstrates little or no understanding of the solicitation requirements; or approach fails to meet acceptable expectations. Proposal does not offer the minimum requirements and/or amenities. There is an unacceptably high degree of risk in meeting the Government's requirements. Price will be evaluated in terms of cost for accommodations and services, cancellation fees, attrition costs, and amenities. However, NRCS will not consider or accept a proposal submitted by an offeror that is not a hotel. (This is not a solicitation for Event Planning Services or 3rd Party Event Planning Services. An offer which requires the Government to execute a separate agreement with a third party hotel shall be deemed technically unacceptable.) An Offeror's Past/Present Performance will be evaluated at a factor level that most accurately defines the Offeror's performance considering all potential evaluation criteria identified in the following section. The evaluation will consider the Offeror's past/present performance relating to the following factors: (1) Customer Relationship (2) Prior Experience (3) Adherence to Delivery Schedule (4) Ability to Successfully Perform In conducting the performance assessment, the Government may use data provided by the Offeror, and/or data obtained from other sources. The Offeror should provide the Government with not more than 3 (three) of the most current past/present performance references. A reference name, contact number, phone number, and e-mail address should be submitted to allow the Government to obtain adequate past/present performance information. To arrive at a Best Value decision, the Contracting Officer will integrate the evaluation of Technical Capability with Price. Technical Capability will be rated slightly higher than Price. Together they will be rated significantly higher than Past/Present Performance. Applicable Provisions or Clauses Any contract resulting from this solicitation will be an Indefinite Delivery/Requirements type contract. As such the following Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) clauses apply: 52.212-3 -- Offeror Representations and Certifications -- Commercial Items. (Jun 2008) An offeror shall complete only paragraph (l) of this provision if the offeror has completed the annual representations and certificates electronically at http://orca.bpn.gov . If an offeror has not completed the annual representations and certifications electronically at the ORCA website, the offeror shall complete only paragraphs (b) through (k) of this provision. FAR 52.212-4 -- Contract Terms and Conditions -- Commercial Items. (Oct 2008) FAR 52.212-5 -- Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders -- Commercial Items. (Oct 2008) FAR 52.216-18 - Ordering. (Oct 1995) (a) Any supplies and services to be furnished under this contract shall be ordered by issuance of delivery orders or task orders by the individuals or activities designated in the Schedule. Such orders may be issued from date of award through September 30, 2012. (b) All delivery orders or task orders are subject to the terms and conditions of this contract. In the event of conflict between a delivery order or task order and this contract, the contract shall control. (c) If mailed, a delivery order or task order is considered - issued when the Government deposits the order in the mail. Orders may be issued orally, by facsimile, or by electronic commerce methods only if authorized in the Schedule. (End of Clause) FAR 52.216-19 -- Order Limitations. (Oct 1995) (a) Minimum order. When the Government requires supplies or services covered by this contract in an amount of less than 10 nights, the Government is not obligated to purchase, nor is the Contractor obligated to furnish, those supplies or services under the contract. (b) Maximum order. The Contractor is not obligated to honor -- (1) Any order for a single item in excess of 750 nights per session; (2) Any order for a combination of items in excess of 4000 nights on an annual basis; or (3) A series of orders from the same ordering office within 180 days that together call for quantities exceeding the limitation in subparagraph (b) (1) or (2) of this section. (c) If this is a requirements contract (i.e., includes the Requirements clause at subsection 52.216-21 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR)), the Government is not required to order a part of any one requirement from the Contractor if that requirement exceeds the maximum-order limitations in paragraph (b) of this section. (d) Notwithstanding paragraphs (b) and (c) of this section, the Contractor shall honor any order exceeding the maximum order limitations in paragraph (b), unless that order (or orders) is returned to the ordering office within ten calendar days after issuance, with written notice stating the Contractor's intent not to ship the item (or items) called for and the reasons. Upon receiving this notice, the Government may acquire the supplies or services from another source. (End of Clause) FAR 52.216-21 -- Requirements. (Oct 1995) (a) This is a requirements contract for the supplies or services specified and effective for the period stated, in the Schedule. The quantities of supplies or services specified in the Schedule are estimates only and are not purchased by this contract. Except as this contract may otherwise provide, if the Government's requirements do not result in orders in the quantities described as - estimated or - maximum in the Schedule, that fact shall not constitute the basis for an equitable price adjustment. (b) Delivery or performance shall be made only as authorized by orders issued in accordance with the Ordering clause. Subject to any limitations in the Order Limitations clause or elsewhere in this contract, the Contractor shall furnish to the Government all supplies or services specified in the Schedule and called for by orders issued in accordance with the Ordering clause. The Government may issue orders requiring delivery to multiple destinations or performance at multiple locations. (c) Except as this contract otherwise provides, the Government shall order from the Contractor all the supplies or services specified in the Schedule that are required to be purchased by the Government activity or activities specified in the Schedule. (d) The Government is not required to purchase from the Contractor requirements in excess of any limit on total orders under this contract. (e) If the Government urgently requires delivery of any quantity of an item before the earliest date that delivery may be specified under this contract, and if the Contractor will not accept an order providing for the accelerated delivery, the Government may acquire the urgently required goods or services from another source. (f) Any order issued during the effective period of this contract and not completed within that period shall be completed by the Contractor within the time specified in the order. The contract shall govern the Contractor's and Government's rights and obligations with respect to that order to the same extent as if the order were completed during the contract's effective period; provided, that the Contractor shall not be required to make any deliveries under this contract after March 1, 2013. (End of Clause) PLEASE NOTE: The Government is only required to order the supplies or services from the Contractor provided that the location of the working farm remains within a 45 miles radius of the location of the lodging. The Government reserves the right to terminate this contract in accordance with FAR 52.212-4 (l).