Sources Sought Notice for Request for Information (RFI) 1630J2-19-FSCTSEAST. The Government reserves the right to compete any acquisition resulting from this notice. This sources sought notice is for planning purposes only and does not commit the Government to pay for the information requested, issue a solicitation, or award a contract. A Solicitation document does not exist at this time. A determination by the Government to proceed with the acquisition as a set-aside is within the discretion of the Government. THIS IS NOT A REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL. The United States Department of Labor, Employment & Training Administration is conducting market research for an upcoming procurement for Career Transition Services (CTS) for graduates and former enrollees of Job Corps civilian conservation centers (JCCCC) in the eastern half of the country that are operated by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Forest Service. The NAICS Code is 561990, with a size standard of $11M. It is anticipated that a single cost-plus-fixed-fee contract with a two year base period and three unilateral option periods will be awarded. The contractor will provide CTS for all graduates and former enrollees, regardless of where the graduate or former enrollee resides or matriculates, and former enrollees within their eligibility period that separated under the prior operator, from the following USDA operated Job Corps Civilian Conservation Centers: Cass JCC (AR) Pine Knot JCC (KY) Harpers Ferry JCC (WV) Mingo JCC (MO) Frenchburg JCC (KY) Oconnluftee JCC (NC) Blackwell JCC (WI) Flatwoods JCC (VA) Lyndon B. Johnson JCC (NC) Great Onyx JCC (KY) Jacobs Creek JCC (TN) Schenck JCC (NC) See attached Career Transition Services Workload report for historical information regarding the number of graduates and former enrollees from each named Civilian Conservation Center. Contractors will be expected to provide all material, services, and necessary personnel to perform Career Transition Services as set forth in the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) of 2014. WIOA supersedes the Workforce Investment Act of 1998 and authorizes the Job Corps program. Contractors are also required to comply with the Job Corps Policy and Requirements Handbook (PRH). The PRH is available at http://eprh.jobcorps.gov. Job Corps is a national residential training and employment program administered by the U.S. Department of Labor to address the multiple barriers to employment faced by at-risk youth, 16-24 years of age, throughout the United States. Job Corps provides educational and career technical skills training and support services. The unique combination of services provided in the Job Corps is intended to better prepare youth to obtain and hold gainful employment, pursue further education or training, or satisfy entrance requirements for careers in the Armed Forces. The contractor shall provide: 1. Trained professional staff. 2. Integration with local workforce development systems. 3. Project oversight, financial and project management. 4. Career transition support resulting in placement in careers aligned with training attained in Job Corps. 5. Placement of all graduates and former enrollees as defined by the PRH and contract. 6. Job development and referral services. 7. Follow up placement services to graduates and former enrollees. 8. Transition support with housing, childcare and transportation for Job Corps graduates during the specified service window. All contractors doing business with the Federal Government shall be registered in Central Contractor Registration (CCR) database which is located on the System for Award Management website, SAM.gov. The website for registration is https://sam.gov. All active CCR records have migrated to SAM. ALL QUALIFIED SMALL BUSINESSES, INCLUDING 8(A) FIRMS, ARE ENCOURAGED TO PARTICIPATE. Interested contractors responding to this RFI will be required to indicate their ability to successfully manage and perform CTS by responding to the capability requirements listed below. The contractor should also indicate the number of students/program participants served for each described contract. FOR A CONTRACTOR TO BE DEEMED CAPABLE, THE CONTRACTOR MUST BE FOUND CAPABLE IN ALL 7 REQUIREMENTS LISTED BELOW. Capabilities Requirements 1. Describe your organization’s demonstrated record of placing at-risk youth into employment and postsecondary education. 2. Describe your organization’s experience with providing transition and placement services to program graduates and former enrollees (as defined by the Job Corps Policy and Requirements Handbook and contract). Experience should include: transition support with housing, childcare, and transportation during the specified service window; job development and referral services; and follow up placement services. 3. Describe your organization’s demonstrated record of locating and establishing employment and post-secondary education opportunities for at-risk youth that aligns with their selected career pathways. 4. Describe your organization’s experience making linkages between employers and graduates crossing state/district lines. 5. Describe the strong fiscal controls your organization has in place to ensure proper accounting of Federal funds, and a description of how your organization will meet the requirements of section 159(a). Section 159(a) requires contractors to maintain a financial management information system that will provide-- accurate, complete, and current disclosures of the costs of Job Corps operations; and sufficient data for the effective evaluation of activities carried out through the Job Corps program. In addition, Section 159(a) requires each operator to maintain funds received in accounts in a manner that ensures timely and accurate reporting as required by the Secretary of Labor. Section 159(a) also requires that center operators remain fiscally responsible and control costs, regardless of whether the funds made available for Job Corps centers are incrementally increased or decreased between fiscal years. 6. Describe your organizational financial management experience of a cost reimbursement type contract, and demonstrate your organization’s ability to access financial resources sufficient to satisfy requirements of operating a CTS operation for the first 60 days of operation or the ability to obtain them prior to award. 7. Describe your organization’s infrastructure for corporate oversight and support, and management/corporate services. All interested parties are invited to submit in writing, by the closing date indicated below for receipt of responses, a package entitled “Statement of Qualifications / Capabilities Statement” (which must include the contractor's indication of their ability to fulfill requirements). The Statement of Qualifications / Capabilities Statement package must be transmitted under a cover letter. The response must be specific to each of the capability requirements listed above. The submittals shall not exceed 11 pages, TOTAL. The capabilities statement package must be transmitted under a cover letter and must cite the following information at a minimum: 1. Response to RFI Number 1630J2-19-FSCTSEAST 2. Company Name, Address, and Company Point of Contact 3. DUNS Number 4. Business Size Standard/Classification and socio-economic status, if applicable 5. NAICS code certifications The closing date for the receipt of responses is November 27, 2019 at 2pm Eastern Time. Send your responses to Robert Hilton at the following email address,
[email protected]. PLEASE NOTE: THE SUBJECT LINE OF YOUR EMAIL MUST STATE: “Response to Sources Sought Notice 1630J2-19-FSCTSEAST.” No questions in connection with this notice will be accepted. Only submit responses to the Qualifications and Capabilities requirements provided above.