The Office of Fair Housing and Equal Opportunity (FHEO) intends to negotiate and award on a sole source basis to United Spinal Association, Inc., Accessibility Services120-34 Queens Blvd. #330 Kew Gardens, NY 11415 unnder the authority ) 13.104 and 13.106-1a. This acquisition is in requires the services of an architectural accessibility standards expert to support the Department’s activities related to developing an updated architectural accessibility standard to be included in proposed updates to HUD’s regulation for Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (“Section 504”) and draft commentary explaining the new requirements. Section 504 prohibits discrimination against individuals with disabilities in any program or activity that receives Federal funds from HUD. Section 504 is codified at 29 U.S.C. 794(a). Under Section 504, all recipients and subrecipients of federal financial assistance from HUD must comply with Section 504 and HUD’s Section 504 implementing regulation at 24 CFR part 8. HUD has published in the Federal Register an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) entitled "Nondiscrimination on the Basis of Disability: Updates to HUD's Section 504 Regulations." The next step will be to publish a Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) that will included a proposed architectural accessibility standards. The contractor’s work will be integral to this phase of the rulemaking. The goal of the work product is to sufficiently assist HUD in producing a proposed standard and commentary adequate for the public to understand and make substantive comments on in a notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM). The tight timeframes between the current ANPRM and the next stages of the regulatory process necessitate this work to supplement internal staff efforts. The work requires a consultant with extensive experience in both Federal Rulemaking and development of the nation’s leading consensus-based accessibility Standard (the International Code Council’s A117.1 Standard). Ultimately, the updated Standard will be foundational in any litigation or dispute involve the physical access of people with disabilities to HUD funded housing and related facilities and, as such, the necessary work will have long-term impact and significant consequences. The primary objective is for the contractor to prepare expert analysis, provide advice, and a completed report with a comprehensive set of recommendations for an updated standard with explanations that can be utilized for commentary in the upcoming NPRM. The contractor shall provide research on architectural standards and expertise that will independently provide support services to satisfy the overall objectives of the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. The contractor will assist the Department in developing a proposed updated architectural accessibility standard to be included in updates to HUD’s regulation for Section 504 and draft commentary explaining the proposed standard. The work product will be used by HUD’s regulatory team to produce a final version of the proposed standard and associated commentary. p the Architectural Barriers Act Accessibility Standard (ABAAS), the 2010 ADA Standards for Accessible Design (2010 Standards), and the most recent version of the International Building Code (2021 IBC) with the 2017 International Code Council’s A117.1 Standard for Accessible and Usable Buildings and Facilities (2017 ICC A117.1). The contractor will reconcile the most stringent federal standard, the ABAAS, with the most current voluntary consensus standard for technical requirements, the 2017 ICC A117.1. The contractor must conduct research among all the Standards stated above, then evaluate and integrate the requirements into a single cohesive document that does not currently exist. Additionally, the contractor will advise on the structure and application of a such a unified standard. Additionally, the contractor will advise on the structure and application of a such a unified standard. The contractor will assist in the analysis of public comments on a possible architectural standard or those pertaining to facility issues that could affect such a standard. The contractor will provide the Department, specifically FHEO and OGC’s Office of Fair Housing with a comprehensive set of recommendations for an updated standard and a report explaining the recommendations that can be utilized for commentary in a notice of proposed rulemaking.The period of performance is for a 180 days after contact award The NAICS code 541310 Architectural Servicethe size standard is $12.5M. This notice of intent is not a request for competitive quotations. However, any firm that believes it can meet these requirements may submit a written response via email to Brend K. Lee at the email address below by noon on September 25, 2023Supporting evidence must be furnished in sufficient detail to demonstrate the ability to comply with the above requirement. Information received will be considered; however, a determination by the Government not to compete the proposed acquisition based on responses to this notice is solely within the discretion of the Government. If no responses are received, HUD will proceed with the sole source award. The anticipated award date of this requirement is around September 25, 2023. please submit your capability statement to
[email protected]. Response to this announcement will not be return.