Description
The Office of Portsmouth/Paducah Project Office (PPPO), within the Office of Environmental Management, in the Department of Energy (DOE), plans to issue a modification to Swift & Staley, Inc. (SSI) contract by means other than the use of full and open competition. The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 10 U.S.C. ?3304 (c)(1) or 41 U.S.C. ?3304 (a)(1), as implemented by FAR 6.302-1(a)(2). A competitive follow-on to the contract with SSI was awarded on June 17, 2015 to SSI. On July 6, 2015, the award of the new contract was timely protested to the Government Accountability Office (GAO) requiring immediate suspension of the award pending resolution of the protest. To continue the work under the SSI contract, an extension of approximately six (6) months is required to allow for the GAO decision, award and transition of the follow-on contract. SSI was awarded the current contract (effective December 16, 2009) after a small-business set-aside procurement was concluded by DOE. The current period of performance expires on September 15, 2015. Consistent with the current contract arrangement, the contract type for this modification will remain Cost-Plus-Award-Fee (CPAF). The Paducah Infrastructure Support Services contractor will have the primary responsibility for performing infrastructure support services as discussed below. Many activities must continue to be performed through the transition of the follow-on infrastructure contractor. With the award in due process there's a need to extend the period of performance of the Swift & Staley contract, via a sole source modification. The current contract ceiling for the work that SSI is accomplishing during the current five year performance period is estimated at $137 million. The estimated dollar value of this contract extension is $15 million. The PPPO requires a contractor to provide infrastructure support services under this acquisition to include (but not limited to) surveillance, maintenance and repair of facilities; janitorial services; grounds maintenance; roadway/parking lot maintenance; pest control; computing, telecommunication, and cyber security; fleet management; real and personal property management; records management and document control; safeguards and security; environment, safety, health, and quality (ESH&Q) program; and training services. The harms facing the DOE are multi-faceted if the period of performance for this contract is not extended. These include: 1) Regulatory: Without services provided by the infrastructure contractor, the Deactivation and Environmental Remediation contractors will be unable to perform actions required in their contracts resulting in lapses of services agreed upon with other federal and state agencies (U.S. EPA, KY Department of Environmental Protection, etc.). The infrastructure contractor maintains all computing networks for the Deactivation and Environmental Remediation contractors required for fulfilling their contractual obligations. These services are critical to the Deactivation and Environmental Remediation contractors to fulfill contractual and regulatory commitments. Without an increase in the period of performance to the infrastructure contract, required deliverables to other federal and state agencies could not be developed or submitted by the Deactivation and Environmental Remediation contractors which could result in potential notice of violations and failures to meet regulatory milestones defined in the Federal Facilities Agreement. The infrastructure contractor is also responsible for the records management and document control programs at the Paducah site. This includes maintaining historical records and properly processing and storing current records. Without these continued services, historical records could be damaged and/or lost. Additionally, current records generated by the Deactivation and Environmental Remediation contractors may not be properly stored and/or preserved in accordance with DOE requirements. Any lapse in service of the infrastructure contractor would therefore, put at risk all historical records as well as all newly generated records at the Paducah site. 2) Safety: Without services provided by the infrastructure contractor, the condition of site facilities and equipment will degrade, potentially to a level where the safety of site employees and the environment is at risk. Safety services provided by the infrastructure contractor include fire services, roadway/parking lot maintenance services (including bridge and railroad inspections, facility inspections and services, janitorial services, pest control, grounds maintenance, and fleet management). A lapse in these services could jeopardize the safety of every employee located at the site (from all of the services listed) as well as potentially the public accessing the site (roadway maintenance including bridges and railroads). These services must continue to ensure these risks are kept to a minimum. 3) Security: The infrastructure contractor is the cognizant security authority for the Paducah site. This includes cyber security and physical security responsibilities. The infrastructure contractor maintains the Site Security Plan for all DOE operations at the Paducah site and prepares security plans in support of other DOE programs (e.g., physical security, site visits, etc.) The infrastructure contractor also provides personnel security, which includes clearance processing, personnel security program support, visitor control and badging, and certified laboratory testing services related to drug testing of all current on-site personnel. In addition, the infrastructure contractor is responsible for DOE information security at the site including both classified and unclassified, to include, Unclassified Controlled Nuclear Information (UCNI). The infrastructure contractor is responsible for physical security for DOE programs and assets at the site, which includes the lock and key program, logical access control and physical access control systems, security, and facility registration. The responsibilities also include operations security (OPSEC), security awareness, training and development, policies and procedures (including self-assessment), program plans (including the DOE portion of the site security plans and Vulnerability Assessments, with associated threat statement or Design Basis Threat), the Foreign Ownership, Control, and Influence (FOCI) program, and tracking assessment, audit, and survey findings. The infrastructure contractor provides a classification program, which includes classification reviews/determinations, technical reviews, large scale declassification review, legacy issues, litigation support (including but not limited to Inspector General and Department of Justice), workers? compensation support, and review for release of information to the public (although not the final determination of release) under the Freedom of Information Act and Privacy Act. Without the services provided by the infrastructure contractor, the security of classified material and/or nuclear material at the Paducah site may be at risk. 4) The infrastructure contractor performs work that enhances the efforts of the Deactivation Contractor at the Paducah site. This includes work on the 14-kV switchyard modification, providing radio and communication equipment, automated site access upgrades, and nuclear material control and accountability for the Deactivation Contractor. The increase in the period of performance of the contract with SSI represents the most cost effective option for the government until such time that the protest can be resolved. Since of the Paducah Infrastructure Support Services contract has been protested and therefore delayed, the PPPO needs to increase the period of performance of the SSI contract, to allow for a continuation of these activities and associated funding, until the protest can be resolved, to ensure a safe and compliant Paducah site. The request to increase the period of performance of the contract with SSI on a non-competitive basis is in the best interest of the Government, price and other factors considered. Delay in the award of a period of performance increase to SSI would result in serious injury to the Government, as there would be a lapse in vital support services to Paducah Deactivation Contractor and the Paducah Environmental Remediation Contractor and therefore, a lapse in the above described support activities at the Paducah site. This contract extension will allow the Government to ensure that the infrastructure services being provided by SSI can continue until such time the protest can be settled. The extension in the period of performance of the contract with SSI represents the most cost effective option for the government until such time that the follow-on infrastructure contract is awarded. The Government has not contacted with another source. The Government does not anticipate any similar non-competitive requirements in the future unless the award of the Paducah Infrastructure Support Services is further delayed.