Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

Questions and Answers Q1: Regarding the requirement, "If Certified Arborist determines it would be beneficial to health of natural area, removed material may be ground on site and distributed evenly t... Questions and Answers Q1: Regarding the requirement, "If Certified Arborist determines it would be beneficial to health of natural area, removed material may be ground on site and distributed evenly throughout work area as mulch not to exceed 3” depth”, is grinding the only acceptable form of mulching or could chipping be used as an alternative, if the Certified Arborist determined that it would be beneficial to the health of the natural area? A1: Chipping is acceptable provided the certified arborist determines it would be beneficial to the health of the natural area. Q2: The following questions all relate to the Tree Risk Assessment of the remaining trees within the marked area. Is it acceptable to list the required information ONLY for specific trees that are deemed to pose a risk to the safety of personnel and/or property and to address the remaining trees with a blanket statement to the effect of “trees not specifically mentioned in this report are healthy and, at this time, do not pose a risk to the safety of personnel and/or property”? A2: Yes. Q3: Is there a specific report format required? Or would an email containing the requested information fulfill the requirement? A3: Tree risk assessments shall be their own document. Digital documents attached to an email are acceptable. Q4:How specific should the Certified Arborist be in his report? Is “healthy/unhealthy” acceptable? Is “low/medium/high” risk acceptable? A4: The purpose of the report is to determine overall health of the tree(s), assess risk, and list recommended corrective action. At a minimum the report shall include: Tree number or other means of unique identification, species, height, name of assessor, vigor (low, normal, high), signs of pest/disease, typical failures associated with species, crown and branch health (cracks, weak points, damage, decay, pathological problems, etc.), trunk and root health (dead or missing bark, cracks, damage, decay, excessive lean, pathological problems), overall condition, fall distance, likelihood of failure (low, med, high), likelihood to impact structures (low, med, high). Alternatively, the contractor can use the ISA Basic Tree Risk Assessment Form located here: https://wwv.isa-arbor.com/education/resources/BasicTreeRiskAssessmentForm_Print_2017.pdf Q5: As the Certified Arborist, what liability follows this Tree Risk Assessment and for how long? For example, a healthy, low risk tree could fall in highly unusual conditions. Will the government seek damages from the Certified Arborist if a low risk, healthy tree did cause harm to personnel and/or property? A5: USDA does not plan to seek damages for trees falling by natural conditions. Q6: Will there be a requirement to utilize any proper survey of the trees and/or gps/gis location plotting software for reporting purposes? If so, will the government be supplying/training on said software, if so, will the awarded firm be able to bill Arborist hourly rate for training time? A6: There is no requirement for production of proper surveys. For reporting purposes, trees can be designated by number, physical tags, gis coordinates, or other identifiable means. This is a Combined Synopsis/Solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. Solicitation number 12405B24Q0484 is issued as a request for quote (RFQ). The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2005-83. The associated NAICS code is 561730 (Landscaping Services) with a small business size standard of $9.5 Million. USDA, ARS, PSF 3127 Ligon Street Raleigh, NC 27606 Is looking for procurement of Tree Removal and Pruning Services which fits with the associated Statement of Work / Specifications. The Government anticipates award of a Firm Fixed Price contract. Each offer must show a breakdown giving price of each element, provide descriptive literature or information showing that the offered services meet all parts of the Statement of Work. Also, please provide past performance information. Vendors responding to this announcement shall submit their quote in accordance with FAR 52.212-2. The Government anticipates award of a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose quote conforms to the RFQ and specifications using tradeoff best value to the Government in accordance with FAR 13.106-2(b)(3) considering three major areas: technical acceptance, past performance, and price. Quotes will be evaluated by performing a comparative evaluation in accordance with FAR 13.106-2(b)(3). Submission of quote shall include the following: (1) Technical Specifications, (2) Past Performance and (3) Price (to include shipping). Technically Acceptable; Quote clearly meets the minimum requirements of the SOW. Technically Unacceptable; Quote does not meet the minimum requirements of the SOW. Past performance will be evaluated in accordance with FAR 13.106-2. Past Performance will be rated on an “acceptable” or “unacceptable” basis. The apparent successful, prospective contractor must have “acceptable” past performance. System for Award Management (SAM.gov) exclusions list, Federal Awardee Performance and Integrity Information System, and Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) shall be considered as part of the past performance evaluation process. Any past performance that is found to be “Negative,” shall result in the entire Past Performance rating as “Unacceptable.” “Negative” is defined as any CPARS past performance evaluation rated less than “Satisfactory,” any Terminations for Default/Cause, or any negative performance references will be rated as ‘Unacceptable.’ Note: In the case of an offeror without a record of relevant past performance or for whom information on past performance is not available or so sparse that no meaningful past performance rating can be reasonably assigned, the offeror may not be evaluated favorably or unfavorably on past performance. Therefore, the offeror shall be determined to have unknown past performance. In the context of acceptability/unacceptability, “unknown” shall be considered “acceptable.” Any past performance that is found to be “negative,” shall result in the entire Past Performance rating as “Unacceptable” making the overall Technical Acceptability as “Unacceptable.” Electronic submissions are preferred. Please email all quotes to lynn.hults@usda.gov. NO LATE QUOTES WILL BE ACCEPTED. INSPECTON AND ACCEPTANCE TERMS: Supplies will be inspected by requiring office's technical representative and accepted at destination. The following Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) and the Department of Agriculture Acquisition Regulation (AGAR) provisions and clauses apply to this acquisition: FAR 52.202-1 Definitions; FAR 52.203-5 Covenant Against Contingent Fees; FAR 52.203-6 Restriction on Subcontractor Sales to the Government; FAR 52.203-7 Anti-Kickback Procedures; FAR 52.203-17 Contractor Employee Whistleblower Rights and Requirement to Inform Employees of Whistleblower Rights; FAR 52.204-7 Central Contractor Registration; FAR 52.204-10 Reporting Executive Compensation and First-Tier Subcontract Awards; FAR 52.204-14 Service Contract Reporting Requirements; FAR 52.204-16 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting; FAR 204-17 Ownership or Control of Offeror; FAR 52.204-18 Commercial and Government Entity Code Reporting; AGAR 452.204-70 Inquiries; FAR 204-19 Incorporation by Reference of Representations and Certifications; FAR 52.209-6 Protecting the Government's Interests when Subcontracting with Contractors Debarred, Suspended or Proposed for Debarment; FAR 52.209-10 Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations; AGAR 452.209-71 Assurance Regarding Felony Conviction or Tax Delinquent Status for Corporate Applicants; FAR 52.212-1 Instructions to Offers-Commercial Items; FAR 52.212-2 Evaluation- Commercial Items (filled in as follows: Technical specifications, Past Performance, and price); FAR 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items; FAR 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes of Executive Orders-Commercial Items; FAR 52.216-24 Limitation of Government Liability; FAR 216.25 Contract Definitization; FAR 52.219-6 Notice of Total Small Business Set-Aside; FAR 52.219-28 Post Award Small Business Program Re-representation; AGAR 452.219-70 Size Standard and NAICS Code Information; FAR 52.222-3 Convict Labor; FAR 52.222-17 Non-displacement of Qualified Workers; FAR 52.222-21 Prohibition of Segregated Facilities; FAR 52.222-26, Equal Opportunity Employment; FAR 52.222-36 Affirmative Action for Workers with Disabilities; FAR 52.222-50 Combating Trafficking in Persons; FAR 52.223-18 Encouraging Contractor Policy to Ban Text Messaging While Driving; FAR 52.225-13 Restrictions on Certain Foreign Purchases; FAR 52.225-25 Prohibitions on Contracting with Entities Engaging in Certain Activities or Transactions Relating to Iran-Reps and Certs; FAR 52.232-1 Payments; FAR 52.232-33 Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer-Central Contractor Registration; FAR 52.232-39 Unforceability of Unauthorized Obligations; FAR 52.233-2 Service of Protest; FAR 52.233-3 Protest After Award; FAR 52.233-4 Applicable Law for Breach of Contract; FAR 52.242-15 Stop-Work Order; FAR 52.243-FAR 52.244- 6 Subcontractors for Commercial Items; FAR 52.252-1 Solicitations Provisions Incorporated by Reference; FAR 52.243-1, Alternate 1, Changes – Fixed Price; FAR 52.243-4 Changes; FAR 52.249-2 Termination for Convenience of the Government (Fixed Price); 52.252-2 Clauses Incorporated by Reference. To be eligible for an award, all contractors must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM). A contractor can contact SAM by calling 1-866-606-8220 or e-mail at www.sam.gov. NO EXCEPTIONS. A UEI (Unique Entity ID) number is required in order to register. All invoices shall be submitted and paid electronically. Quotes must be received no later than September 6, 2024, 4:00pm Central Standard Time. Questions regarding this combined synopsis/solicitation are due no later than 3:00 PM CST on Wednesday September 4, 2024. Answers to any questions received by that time will be posted as an amendment to this combined synopsis/solicitation.