Inactive Total Small Business Set-Aside (FAR 19.5)

COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Research Vessel MANTA Shipyard Work for Maintenance and Repair Services. (I) This is a combined synopsis/solicitat... COMBINED SYNOPSIS/SOLICITATION National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Research Vessel MANTA Shipyard Work for Maintenance and Repair Services. (I) This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Subpart 12.6, as supplemented with additional information included in this notice and in accordance with the simplified acquisition procedures authorized in FAR Part 13. This announcement constitutes the only solicitation; quotes are being requested and a written solicitation will not be issued. (II) This solicitation is issued as a request for quotation (RFQ). Submit written quotes on RFQ number 1305M320QNCND0019DR. (III) The solicitation document and incorporated provisions and clauses are those in effect through Federal Acquisition Circular 2020-04 (Jan 2020) and NOAA (Deviation 2019-03) (June 2019). (IV) This solicitation is total small business set-aside. The associated NAICS code is 336611. The small business size standard is 1,250 employees. (V) This combined solicitation/synopsis is for purchase of the following commercial services: Line Item No 0001 - Services, non-personal, to provide all equipment, labor, and materials necessary to complete specific work tasks on R/V MANTA in accordance with the statement of work. (VI) Description of requirements is as follows: See statement of work which is attached to the SF-18 Request for Quote Form. Department of Labor Wage Rates: will be applied to this requirement although place of performance is unknown. To view or find your location wage determination can be found on: www.wdol.gov SITE VISIT: A visit to the vessel is encouraged prior to quote submission and should be coordinated with: LT Melissa M. Trede, NOAA Vessel Operations Coordinators Ofc. (409) 356-0395 Cell (979) 777-7183 Or alternate point of contact: George P. Schmahl. Superintendent Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary Ofc. (409) 356-0383 R/V MANTA is docked at: Texas A&M University at Galveston 200 Seawolf Parkway Galveston, TX 77553. (VII) Date(s) and place(s) of delivery and acceptance: Period of performance: From time of award (estimated award date 03/17/2020) through 04/24/2020 (VIII) FAR 52.212-1, Instructions to Offerors -- Commercial Items (Oct 2018)(Reference), applies to this acquisition and is in full text in the RFQ SF-18. NOTICE TO OFFERORS: Instructions for submitting quotations under this request for quote must be followed. Failure to provide all information to aid in the evaluation may be considered non-responsive. Offers that are nonresponsive may be excluded from further evaluation and rejected without further notification to the offeror. In addition to written price quotes, offers are instructed to provide: 1. Quotes shall be fully executed and returned on the Standard Form (SF) 18 and any acknowledgements of solicitation amendments on the SF 30 (if any are issued). 2. Submit quotations to the office specified in this solicitation at or before the time specified in the solicitation. Email quotes are acceptable and can be sent to Diana.Romero@noaa.gov. 3. At a minimum the contractor shall provide the following information: a) Point of contact name, telephone and E-mail address. b) DUNS Number 4. Provide all evaluation criteria in accordance with 52.212-2 in this package. 5. The offeror shall complete the annual representations and certifications electronically in System for Award Management at https://www.sam.gov/portal/public/SAM/. CONTRACTORS MUST BE ACTIVE IN SAM IN ORDER FOR QUOTES TO BE ACCEPTABLE. THE GOVERNMENT DOES NOT ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR NON-RECEIPT OF QUOTES. IT IS THE CONTRACTOR'S RESPONSIBILITY TO REQUEST AND RECEIVE A CONFIRMATION OF THE QUOTE RECEIPT. (IX) 52.212-2, Evaluation - Commercial Items (Oct 2014) (a) The Government will award a contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered. The following factors shall be used to evaluate offers: 1) Technical capability - The quote shall include all documentation for the government to make the determination that the contractor is capable of performing theses services. Documentation to describe corporate and individual qualifications for the work; adequacy of equipment, materials and facilities proposed; experience with similar projects. Failure to provide this information may result in “not technically capable due to lack of information”. 2) Past Performance – quote shall include at least two reference for similar services including a name, the phone number, full address, and email address (if available). The Government will use its discretion to determine the sources of past performance information used in the evaluation, and the information may be obtained from references provided by the offeror, the agency’s knowledge of the contractor performance, other government agencies or commercial entities, or past performance databases, and past performance will be based on responsiveness, timeliness, quality, and customer service; and 3) Price. The government intends to award a firm-fixed price order on a best value basis based on trade off. (b) Options. The Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. The Government may determine that an offer is unacceptable if the option prices are significantly unbalanced. Evaluation of options shall not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s). (c) A written notice of award or acceptance of an offer, mailed or otherwise furnished to the successful offeror within the time for acceptance specified in the offer, shall result in a binding contract without further action by either party. Before the offer’s specified expiration time, the Government may accept an offer (or part of an offer), whether or not there are negotiations after its receipt, unless a written notice of withdrawal is received before award. (End of provision) (X) The clause at FAR 52.212-3 Offeror Representations and Certifications—Commercial Items (DEC 2019), applies to this acquisition and is in full text in the RFQ SF-18 applies to this acquisition and is in full text in the RFQ SF-18. The offeror shall complete the annual representations and certifications electronically in System for Award Management at https://www.sam.gov/portal/SAM/#1. (XI) The clause at 52.212-4 Contract Terms and Conditions—Commercial Items (Oct 2018) (Deviation 2017-02)(Aug 2017), applies to this acquisition and is in full text in the RFQ SF-18. (XII) The clause at 52.212-5 Contract Terms and Conditions Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders—Commercial Items (Jan 2020) (Deviation 2019-03) (June 2019) applies to this acquisition and is in full text in the RFQ SF-18. (XIII) The following clauses are also applicable to this acquisition: 52.252-1 Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998) This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es): https://www.acquisition.gov/far/ (End of provision) 52.252-2 Clauses Incorporated by Reference (Feb 1998) This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this/these address(es): https://www.acquisition.gov/far/ (End of clause) 52.252-6 Authorized Deviations in Clauses (Apr 1984) (a) The use in this solicitation or contract of any Federal Acquisition Regulation (48 CFR Chapter 1) clause with an authorized deviation is indicated by the addition of “(DEVIATION)” after the date of the clause. (b) The use in this solicitation or contract of any Commerce Acquisition Regulation. (48 CFR 1352) clause with an authorized deviation is indicated by the addition of “(DEVIATION)” after the name of the regulation. (End of clause) 52.204-7 System for Award Management (Oct 2018) 52.232-40 Providing Accelerated Payments to Small Business Subcontractors (Dec 2013) 52.204-24 Representation Regarding Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment (Aug 2019) (a) Definitions. As used in this provision— “Covered telecommunications equipment or services”, “Critical technology”, and “Substantial or essential component” have the meanings provided in clause 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment. (b) Prohibition. Section 889(a)(1)(A) of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 (Pub. L. 115-232) prohibits the head of an executive agency on or after August 13, 2019, from procuring or obtaining, or extending or renewing a contract to procure or obtain, any equipment, system, or service that uses covered telecommunications equipment or services as a substantial or essential component of any system, or as critical technology as part of any system. Contractors are not prohibited from providing— (1) A service that connects to the facilities of a third-party, such as backhaul, roaming, or interconnection arrangements; or (2) Telecommunications equipment that cannot route or redirect user data traffic or permit visibility into any user data or packets that such equipment transmits or otherwise handles. (c) Representation. The Offeror represents that— It ? will, ? will not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services to the Government in the performance of any contract, subcontract or other contractual instrument resulting from this solicitation. (d) Disclosures. If the Offeror has responded affirmatively to the representation in paragraph (c) of this provision, the Offeror shall provide the following information as part of the offer (1) All covered telecommunications equipment and services offered (include brand; model number, such as original equipment manufacturer (OEM) number, manufacturer part number, or wholesaler number; and item description, as applicable); (2) Explanation of the proposed use of covered telecommunications equipment and services and any factors relevant to determining if such use would be permissible under the prohibition in paragraph (b) of this provision; (3) For services, the entity providing the covered telecommunications services (include entity name, unique entity identifier, and Commercial and Government Entity (CAGE) code, if known); and (4) For equipment, the entity that produced the covered telecommunications equipment (include entity name, unique entity identifier, CAGE code, and whether the entity was the OEM or a distributor, if known). (End of provision) 52.204-26 Covered Telecommunications Equipment or Services-Representation (Dec 2019) (a) Definitions. As used in this provision, “covered telecommunications equipment or services” has the meaning provided in the clause 52.204-25, Prohibition on Contracting for Certain Telecommunications and Video Surveillance Services or Equipment. (b) Procedures. The Offeror shall review the list of excluded parties in the System for Award Management (SAM) (https://www.sam.gov) for entities excluded from receiving federal awards for “covered telecommunications equipment or services”. (c) Representation. The Offeror represents that it ? does, ? does not provide covered telecommunications equipment or services as a part of its offered products or services to the Government in the performance of any contract, subcontract, or other contractual instrument. (End of provision) 52.222-49 Service Contract Labor Standards-Place of Performance Unknown (May 2014) (a) This contract is subject to the Service Contract Labor Standards statute, and the place of performance was unknown when the solicitation was issued. In addition to places or areas identified in wage determinations, if any, attached to the solicitation, wage determinations have also been requested for the following: ________ [insert places or areas]. The Contracting Officer will request wage determinations for additional places or areas of performance if asked to do so in writing by on or before 12:00 pm MST on March 12, 2020. (b) Offerors who intend to perform in a place or area of performance for which a wage determination has not been attached or requested may nevertheless submit bids or proposals. However, a wage determination shall be requested and incorporated in the resultant contract retroactive to the date of contract award, and there shall be no adjustment in the contract price. (End of clause) Department of Commerce (DOC) Commerce Acquisition Regulation (CAR) Solicitation Provisions and Contract Clauses FOR FULL TEXT OF COMMERCE ACQUISITION CLAUSE OR PROVISIONS YOU MAY TO GO THE FOLLOWING WEBSITE: Acquisition.gov https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=8b5f22b07c12a52e8b29841ad60f1fd9&mc=true&tpl=/ecfrbrowse/Title48/48chapter13.tpl 1352.201-70, Contracting Officer's Authority (Apr 2010) (Reference) 1352.209-73 Compliance With the Laws (Apr 2010) (Reference) 1352.209-74 Organizational Conflict of Interest (Apr 2010) (Reference) 1352.233-70 Agency Protests (Apr 2010) (a) An agency protest may be filed with either: (1) the contracting officer, or (2) at a level above the contracting officer, with the appropriate agency Protest Decision Authority. See 64 Fed. Reg. 16,651 (April 6, 1999) (b) Agency protests filed with the Contracting Officer shall be sent to the following address: Chad Hepp Director Western Acquisitions Division 325 Broadway, SOU6 Boulder, CO 80305-3328 FAX: 303-497-6984 (c) Agency protests filed with the agency Protest Decision Authority shall be sent to the following address: Barry Berkowitz Senior Procurement Executive and Director, Office of Acquisition Management U.S. Department of Commerce Room 6422 Herbert C. Hoover Building 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington DC 20230 FAX: 202-482-1711 (d) A complete copy of all agency protests, including all attachments, shall be served upon the Contract Law Division of the Office of the General Counsel within one day of filing a protest with either the Contracting Officer or the Protest Decision Authority. (c) Service upon the Contract Law Division shall be made as follows: U.S. Department of Commerce Office of the General Counsel Chief, Contract Law Division Room 5893 Herbert C. Hoover Building 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20230. FAX: (202) 482-5858 (End of Solicitation and Contract Language) 1352.233-71 GAO and Court of Federal Claims protests (Apr 2010) (a) A protest may be filed with either the Government Accountability Office (GAO) or the Court of Federal Claims unless an agency protest has been filed. (b) A complete copy of all GAO or Court of Federal Claims protests, including all attachments, shall be served upon (i) the Contracting Officer, and (ii) the Contract Law Division of the Office of the General Counsel, within one day of filing a protest with either GAO or the Court of Federal Claims. (c) Service upon the Contract Law Division shall be made as follows: U.S. Department of Commerce Office of the General Counsel Chief, Contract Law Division Room 5893 Herbert C. Hoover Building 14th Street and Constitution Avenue, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20230. FAX: (202) 482-5858 (End of Solicitation and Contract Language) Department of Commerce (DOC) NOAA Acquisition Manual (NAM) Solicitation and Contract Language FOR FULL TEXT OF NOAA SOLICITATION AND CONTRACT LANGUAGE YOU MAY TO GO THE FOLLOWING WEBSITE: https://www.ago.noaa.gov/acquisition/AcqManual/09_part1330-52.html#Subpart%201330-52.3%20NOAA%20AGO%20Solicitation%20and%20Contract%20Language%20Matrix 1330-52.222-70 NOAA SEXUAL ASSAULT AND SEXUAL HARASSMENT PREVENTION AND RESPONSE POLICY (MAY 2018) (a) Definitions. Contractor Employees - The term “contractor employees,” as used in this solicitation and contract language, refers to employees of the prime contractor or its subcontractors, affiliates, consultants, or team members. Sexual Assault - The term sexual assault, as used in this solicitation and contract language, means any conduct proscribed by state or federal sexual abuse laws, including, but not limited to, those defined in chapter 109A of title 18 of the U.S. Code (sexual abuse), and assaults committed both by offenders who are strangers to the victim and by offenders who are known or related by blood or marriage to the victim. Sexual Harassment - As defined by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964. It includes unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal, non-verbal, or physical conduct of a sexual nature when any of the following are true: • Submission to such conduct is made either explicitly or implicitly as a term or condition of an individual's employment; • Submission to or rejection of such conduct by an individual is used as the basis for employment decisions affecting such individual; • The conduct unreasonably interferes with an individual's work performance or creates an intimidating, hostile, or offensive working environment. The main characteristics of sexual harassment are that the harasser's conduct is targeted against the recipient’s sex, gender identity, or sexual orientation, and is unwelcome to the recipient. It may include, but is not limited to: offensive jokes, slurs, epithets or name calling, undue attention, physical assaults or threats, unwelcome touching or contact, intimidation, ridicule or mockery, insults or put-downs, constant or unwelcome questions about an individual's identity, and offensive objects or pictures. (b) Requirements. 1. It is the responsibility of the contractor to ensure that contractor employees maintain the highest degree of conduct and standards in performance of the contract. In support of this, NOAA urges its contractors to develop and enforce comprehensive company policy addressing sexual assault and sexual harassment. 2. The contractor shall include wording substantially the same as this solicitation and contract language in every subcontract so that it is binding upon each subcontractor. 3. If a contractor employee observes or is the object of sexual assault or sexual harassment, he or she is highly encouraged to report the matter, as soon as possible, to their immediate supervisor, the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), subset of the COR (e.g. Task Manager or Assistant COR), or contracting officer (CO) if a COR is not assigned to the contract. The contract employee may also contact the NOAA Civil Rights Office to obtain guidance on reporting instances of sexual assault or sexual harassment. If deemed necessary, the contractor employee may also report such instances to local law enforcement. In the case where the incident occurs while performing at a remote location, such as at sea or in the field (at a field camp or other isolated location) where the above referenced individuals are unavailable, the contractor employee should follow the reporting procedure set forth in NAO 202-1106, Section 6, .07, Reporting from Remote Locations. i. Swift reporting allows NOAA and the contractor to take the appropriate measures to ensure that offensive behavior stops and the complainants’ needs are addressed. ii. The COR (if assigned), CO, and contractor, where applicable, will work together to ensure appropriate action is taken in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, contract terms and conditions, and the contractor’s written policy (where applicable). 4. The contractor shall provide all contractor employees assigned to perform under this contract with mandatory sexual assault and sexual harassment prevention and response training in compliance with the requirements of NAO 202-1106, Section 5, Prevention Training and Awareness, as part of their initial in-processing and on an annual basis thereafter. The initial training shall be completed within ____ business days [30 unless a different number is inserted] of contract award or the date a contractor employee is assigned to perform under the contract, as applicable. Evidence of initial training by name and date completed for each contractor employee, shall be submitted to the COR or contracting officer (if no COR assigned) within 10 business days of completion. Evidence of annual training by name and date completed for each contractor employee shall be submitted to the COR or contracting officer (if no COR assigned) no later than March 1st of each calendar year of contract performance. i. The mandatory sexual assault and sexual harassment training provided by the contractor shall include the required elements set forth by NOAA’s Workplace Violence Program Manager. A link to the website including the required elements of the training is provided at: http://www.ago.noaa.gov/quicklinks/harassment_training.html. The website will also provide training materials and resources to assist the contractor in conducting the training. The contractor may provide training that solely addresses the NOAA required elements or may supplement existing company sexual assault and sexual harassment training in a manner that ensures all of the elements are adequately addressed. ii. The required elements of the training and resources available to the contractor for the training may be updated by NOAA periodically. The contractor is responsible for monitoring the website and incorporating any changes to the NOAA required elements into the contractor provided training. iii. NOAA’s Workplace Violence Program Manager, COR, or CO may periodically review the contractor’s training outline to ensure all required elements are included and, if necessary, any appropriate adjustments are made to the training by the contractor. iv. Contractor employees performing on assignments in a remote location, such as at a field camp or other isolated locations, are subject to receiving the same briefing on the parameters of the order provided to NOAA employees as set forth in Section 6 of NAO 202-1106. 5. The contractor shall provide a copy of this solicitation and contract language and NAO 202-1106 to contractor employees. (c) Sexual Assault/Sexual Harassment (SASH) Helpline. For NOAA employees, affiliates, and contractors who have experienced sexual assault or sexual harassment, NOAA has established the NOAA Sexual Assault/Sexual Harassment (SASH) helpline. This helpline is designed to provide crisis intervention, referrals, and emotional support to those who are victims and/or survivors of sexual harassment or sexual assault within the workplace. Contractor employees may use the helpline to receive live, confidential, one-on-one support in an occurrence of sexual harassment or assault by a Federal Government employee. All services are anonymous, secure, and available worldwide, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The NOAA SASH helpline is accessible through a variety of channels, including: ? Phone: 1-866-288-6558 ? Website & Online Chat: http://NOAASASHHelpline.org ? Mobile App: NOAA SASH Helpline (available via iOS and Android App Stores) ? Text: (202) 335-0265 (d) Confidentiality. Any party receiving information from the filing of a complaint alleging sexual assault or sexual harassment, or while performing an investigation into such a complaint, shall keep the information confidential. “Confidentiality” means that the information shall only be shared with others who have a need to know the information to conduct their official duties. 3 (e) Remedies. In addition to other remedies available to the Government, contractor employee violations of Federal requirements (e.g., law, statutes, executive orders, code, rules, regulations) applicable to sexual assault and sexual harassment and/or failure to complete the mandatory training set forth in this solicitation and contract language, may result in: 1. Requiring the Contractor to remove a contractor employee or employees from the performance of the contract; 2. Requiring the Contractor to terminate a subcontract; 3. Suspension of contract payments until the Contractor has taken appropriate remedial action; 4. Termination of the contract for default or cause, in accordance with the termination clause of 5. Suspension or debarment; or 6. Other appropriate action. (End of contract language) 1330-52.237-70 CONTRACTOR COMMUNICATIONS (APR 2010) (a) A contractor employee shall be identified both by the individual’s name and the contractor’s name when: Included in NOAA’s locator, and When submitting any type of electronic correspondence to any NOAA employee or stakeholder. (b) Any written correspondence from a contractor or any contractor employee shall be printed on company/organization letterhead or otherwise clearly identify the sender as an employee of the company or organization and shall identify the contract number. (c) Contractors and/or contractor employees shall clearly identify themselves as such in any verbal communications, whether in informal discussion or a formal meeting. (End of clause) 1330-52.237-71 NOAA GOVERNMENT-CONTRACTOR RELATIONS – NON-PERSONAL SERVICES CONTRACT (SEPT 2017) (a) The Government and the Contractor understand and agree that the services to be delivered under this contract by the Contractor to the Government are non-personal services as defined in FAR Part 37, Service Contracting, and the parties recognize and agree that no employer-employee relationship exists or will exist under the contract between the Government and the Contractor’s personnel. It is, therefore, in the best interest of the Government to afford both parties an understanding of their respective obligations. (b) Contractor personnel under this contract shall not: (1) Be placed in a position where they are under relatively continuous supervision and control of a Government employee. (2) Be placed in a position of command, supervision, administration, or control over Government personnel or over personnel of other Contractors performing under other NOAA contracts. (c) The services to be performed under this contract do not require the Contractor or the Contractor’s personnel to exercise personal judgement and discretion on behalf of the Government. Rather, the Contractor’s personnel will act and exercise personal judgement and discretion on behalf of the Contractor. (d) Rules, regulations, directives, and requirements that are issued by the Department of Commerce and NOAA under its responsibility for good order, administration, and security are applicable to all personnel who enter the Government installation and facilities, who are provided access to Government systems, or who travel on Government transportation. This is not to be construed or interpreted to establish any degree of Government control that is inconsistent with a non-personal services contract. (e) Both parties are responsible for monitoring contract activities for indications of improper employee-employer relationships during performance. In the event a situation or occurrence takes place inconsistent with this contract language, the following applies: (1) The Contractor shall notify the Contracting Officer in writing within 5 business days from the date of any situation or occurrence where the Contractor considers specific contract activity to be inconsistent with the intent of this contract language. The notice must include the date, nature and circumstance of the situation or occurrence, the name, function and activity of each Government employee or Contractor employee involved or knowledgeable about the situation or occurrence, provide any documents or the substance of any oral communications related to the activity, and an estimated date by which the Government is recommended to respond to the notice in order to minimize cost, delay, or disruption of performance. (2) The Contracting Officer will review the information provided by the Contractor, obtain additional information (if needed), and respond in writing as soon as practicable after receipt of the notification from the Contractor. The Contracting Officer’s response will provide a decision on whether the Contracting Officer determines the situation or occurrence to be inconsistent with the intent of this contract language and, if deemed necessary, will specify any corrective action(s) to be taken in order to resolve the issue. (End of Solicitation and Contract Language) 1330-52.270-304 NOAA ACQUISITION AND GRANTS OFFICE OMBUDSMAN (OCT 2016) The NOAA Acquisition and Grants Office (AGO) Ombudsman is available to organizations to promote responsible and meaningful exchanges of information. Generally, the purpose of these exchanges will be to: Allow contractors to better prepare for and propose on business opportunities. Advise as to technologies and solutions within the marketplace that the Government may not be aware of, or is not fully benefiting from. Identify constraints in transparency and process. The AGO Ombudsman will objectively, reasonably, and responsibly collaborate with parties and recommend fair, impartial, and constructive solutions to the matters presented to him/her. Further, the AGO Ombudsman will maintain the reasonable and responsible confidentiality of the source of a concern, when such a request has been formally made by an authorized officer of an organization seeking to do business with, or already doing business with NOAA. Before consulting with the AGO Ombudsman, interested parties must first address their concerns, issues, disagreements, and/or recommendations with the respective contracting officer for resolution. However, direct access to the AGO Ombudsman may be sought when an interested party questions the objectivity or equity of a contracting officer’s decision, or when there is a bona fide reason to believe that reasonable, responsible, and objective consideration will not be received from an assigned contracting officer. There are several constraints to the scope of the AGO Ombudsman’s authority, for instance: Consulting with the AGO Ombudsman does not alter or postpone the timelines of any formal process (e.g., protests, claims, debriefings, employee employer actions, activities involving A-76 competition performance decisions, judicial or congressional hearings, or proposal, amendment, modification or deliverable due dates, etc.). The AGO Ombudsman cannot participate in the evaluation of proposals, source selection processes, or the adjudication of protests or formal contract disputes. The AGO Ombudsman is not authorized to generate or alter laws, judicial decisions, rules, policies, or formal guidance. The AGO Ombudsman is not authorized to develop or alter opportunity announcements, solicitations, contracts, or their terms or conditions. The AGO Ombudsman cannot overrule the authorized decisions or determinations of the contracting officer. The AGO Ombudsman has no authority to render a decision that binds AGO, NOAA, the Department of Commerce, or the U.S. Government. The AGO Ombudsman is not NOAA’s agent relative to the service of magistrate or judicial process and cannot be used to extend service of process to another party (whether federal, public, or a private entity). After review and analysis of ...