INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE Congressional Awards Congressional Award Foundation SS-CNS-22-070 The Bureau of Fiscal Service (Fiscal Service), on behalf of the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), intends to contract with Congressional Award Foundation P.O. Box 77440, Washington, DC 20013, on a sole source basis, under authority of FAR 6.302-1, for Congressional Awards. Congressional Award Foundation has been identified as the only source capable of providing the awards that meet the needs of the CNCS. The proposed contractor’s unique qualifications and the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited as follows: The Congressional Award Foundation provides the Congressional Award to young Americans participating in Volunteer Public Service, Personal Development, Physical Fitness, and Expedition/Exploration. The Congressional Award Program is non-partisan, voluntary, and noncompetitive. The program is open to all 14- to 24-year-olds. Participants earn Bronze, Silver and Gold Congressional Award Medals and or Certificates. The Congressional Award is the first and only award specifically for youth by the United States Congress. Congress established the Congressional Award in 1979 to recognize initiative, achievement, and service in young people. It began as a bipartisan effort in both the United States Senate and the House of Representatives. The original bill was sponsored by Senator Malcolm Wallop of Wyoming and the late Congressman James Howard of New Jersey. The enabling legislation (Public Law 96-114) established the Congressional Award as a private-public partnership, which receives all funding from the private sector, and was originally signed into law by President Jimmy Carter. Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H.W. Bush, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama, Donald J. Trump, and Joe Biden have each signed continuing legislation. The only other medal awarded by Congress are the Medal of Honor and the Congressional Gold Medal; and those two medals are not to be confused with the Congressional Award. Also, not to be confused with The Congressional Award are those awards affiliated with the International Award Association, including the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. The identified contractor, Congressional Awards Foundation, is the provider and is currently the only source for these awards. NO SOLICITATION IS AVAILABLE. A request for more information, or a copy of the solicitation, will not be considered an affirmative response to this Special Notice. Telephone responses or inquiries to this Special Notice will NOT be accepted. Fiscal Service will consider written responses received no later than 1:00 PM EST May 19, 2022. Responses must be submitted electronically to
[email protected], Attn: JSchofield/BCooper REF SS-CNS-22-070 Vendor responses must include sufficient evidence that clearly shows the proposed product is capable of meeting all of the characteristics of the services needed and described above. If no written response is received that clearly demonstrates an ability to meet all requirements and is received by the aforementioned deadline, Fiscal Service shall make award on a sole source basis to the Congressional Awards Foundation. Qualified contractors must provide the following: The name and location of your company, contact information, and identify your business size and socioeconomic category (Large Business, Small Business, Disadvantaged Business, 8(a), Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business, HUBZone, etc.). Please ensure contact information includes the name of the point of contact, email address, and telephone number should the Government have questions regarding individual responses. Whether your product is available through a Government contract vehicle or Open Market. A narrative description of how your proposal meets all of the characteristics needed for the subscription. A brief capabilities statement (not to exceed 5 pages) that includes a description of your company's standard line of business, as well as a list of customers your company currently provides these products/services for. UEI Number. The following file extensions are not allowable and application materials/data submitted with these extensions cannot be considered: .bat, .cmd, .com, .exe, .pif, .rar, .scr, .vbs, .hta, .cpl, and .zip files. Microsoft Office compatible documents are acceptable. No other information regarding this Special Notice will be provided at this time. This notice does not restrict the Government to an ultimate acquisition approach. All firms responding to this notice are advised that their response is not a request that will be considered for contract award. All interested parties will be required to respond to any resultant solicitation separately from their response to this notice, should one be issued.