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US Millennium Challenge Corporation Combined Synopsis and Solicitation Program Officer (Legal) – MC-301-4C Or Program Specialist (Legal) - MC-301-5 Office of General Counsel (OGC) Announcement Number:... US Millennium Challenge Corporation Combined Synopsis and Solicitation Program Officer (Legal) – MC-301-4C Or Program Specialist (Legal) - MC-301-5 Office of General Counsel (OGC) Announcement Number: 95332420Q0070 Title: Program Officer (Legal) – Position Description MCC-301-4C Or Program Specialist (Legal) – Position Description MCC-301-5 Position Information: Full-Time OR Intermittent, Personal Services Contractor (PSC) One year (2,087 hours per year Full-Time) or (1,664 hours per year Intermittent), renewable for up to 4 additional years at the sole discretion of the Government Pay Band: MC-301-4C ($32.11 - $48.92 per hour) MC-301-5 ($23.48 - $40.44 per hour) https://www.mcc.gov/careers/pay-bands The Full-Time PSC may receive a pay supplement of 15% of the contractor’s direct labor cost in lieu of fringe benefits The Intermittent PSC may receive a pay supplement of 30% of the contractor’s direct labor cost in lieu of fringe benefits Closing Date for Questions: September 18, 2020 by 12.00 pm ET Questions must be submitted via email to fullerdf@mcc.gov and maxwellre@mcc.gov Submission Deadline: October 12, 2020 by 12.00 pm ET Submissions must be submitted via email to fullerdf@mcc.gov and maxwellre@mcc.gov Position Security Level: Secret (Non-Critical Sensitive) Who May Be Considered: U.S. citizens Duty Location: Principal place of performance in Washington, DC, USA Type of Contract: Time-and-material (T&M) with 1 Base Year and 4 Option Year Periods Multiple awards may result from this solicitation. 1. Introduction and Background MCC’s mission is to provide grant assistance to support economic growth and poverty reduction in select developing countries with a demonstrated commitment to just and democratic governance, economic freedom, and investments in their citizenry. MCC’s partner countries enter into a five-year agreement (Compact) with MCC that includes a plan for achieving shared development objectives and the responsibilities of each country in achieving those objectives. Our model is defined by core principles, of selectivity, country ownership, transparency, and a focus on results. Our values identify who we are and what is important to us. Our Values are CLEAR: Embrace Collaboration, Always Learn, Practice Excellence, Be Accountable and Respect individuals and ideas. MCC’s values define how we behave on a daily basis, both as individuals and as an institution, in pursuit of our mission. They guide how we make decisions, set priorities, address challenges, manage tradeoffs, recruit and develop staff, and work together with our country partners and stakeholders. 2. Scope of Position This position is located in the Office of the General Counsel (OGC), Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC). OGC’s mission is to provide full-service legal support for all requirements driven by MCC’s mission. The position provides a myriad of lead assistance as well as other duties in support of legal and other activities ancillary to the work of attorneys. 3. Personal Services Contract MCC is authorized to enter into a contract with an individual as a Personal Services Contractor (PSC) under the authority of Section 614(a) (8) of the Millennium Challenge Act of 2003. A personal services contract is different from non-personal services Government contract, which establishes an independent contract relationship. Under a non-personal services contract, the contractor or employees of the contractor are subject to the technical direction but not the supervision of the MCC. As defined by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 37.104, a personal services contract is characterized by the employer-employee relationship it creates between the Government and the contractor personnel. Thus, the PSC is subject to the relatively continuous technical direction, supervision, and control of the MCC. PSCs may be assigned inherently governmental duties (see FAR 7.502). By law and by the contract’s terms, the PSC is subject to most of the laws, rules and regulations applicable to the direct hire employee such as MCC regulations, conflict of interest, under some circumstances MCC authorized employment security clearances and financial disclosure. However, under the MCC personal services contract authority, PSCs are not employees for purposes of laws administered by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM). The following elements apply to this contract: 1) Performance in Washington, D.C., US, MCC eligible countries, other US and foreign cities (as required for outreach purposes), and/or at the PSC’s home of record. 2) Principal tools and equipment furnished by the Government. 3) Services are applied directly to the integral effort of agencies or an organizational subpart in furtherance of assigned function or mission. 4) Comparable services, meeting comparable needs, are performed in the same or similar agencies using civil service personnel. 5) The need for the type of service provided can reasonably be expected to last beyond 1 year. 6) The inherent nature of the service, or the manner in which it is provided, reasonably requires directly or indirectly, Government direction or supervision of contractor employees in order to— i. Adequately protect the Government’s interest; ii. Retain control of the function involved; or iii. Retain full personal responsibility for the function supported in a duly authorized Federal officer or employee. 4. Key Requirements Awardee must satisfy the following key requirements: • U.S. citizenship. • Must be able to obtain and maintain a federal security clearance. • Performance in Washington, DC USA, MCC eligible countries, other US and foreign cities (as required for outreach purposes), and/or at the PSC’s home of record. • Domestic and/or international travel may be required. • Statement of Employment & Financial Interest (e.g., Office of Government Ethics “OGE Form-450” or similar statement) may be required. • Active System for Award Management (www.sam.gov) registration (this is a free, Government website) and be listed as sole-proprietor. • Designated and/or random drug testing may be required. 5. Duties a) Major Duties and Responsibilities Program Officer (Legal) MC-301-4C • Provides on-going technical and administrative support to OGC attorneys in order to provide legal and administrative services in support of departmental goals. • Provides support to MCC’s program on preventing, detecting and remediating fraud and corruption, including contributing to the development and refinement of policy and guidance documents, training materials, operational procedures, performance standards, and other antifraud and corruption-related priorities; maintains a compilation of the status of all allegations of fraud and corruption in MCC programs; maintains liaison with the OIG and other MCC departments on the processing of all fraud and corruption allegations; compiles summaries of relevant meetings related to allegations of fraud and corruption, and organizes and conducts MCC training. Tracks the progress of actions and conducts follow-up to ensure timely submission of reports and information. • Supports administrative aspects of MCC’s Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) program, including conducting legal research, assisting the lead FOIA Program Officer in processing FOIA requests. • Performs legal and other research using both electronic (e.g., Westlaw) and manual library searches, and provides results to the requesting attorney. Provides support, as needed, on issues related to OGC databases and programs. Updates licensees and coordinates training related to OGC databases and programs. • Supports OGC contracting actions and provides assistance to the Program Manager or Contracting Officer Representative (COR) where practicable. Assists with coordinating and tracking contracting activities and documents. • Reviews and resolves discrepancies in electronic copies of due diligence files with respect to compact and threshold program development, prepares hard copies for archives, and scanned records, and determines appropriate disposition of hard copies. Manages, or supports management of, Delegation of Authority and MOU documents and tracking requirements. • Finalizes, formats, proofreads and prepares documents for signature, including MCC grant and related agreements; coordinates document production and signing logistics under supervision of OGC attorneys; and ensures proper delivery of executed documents to relevant parties. • Provides support to OGC attorneys in review of MCC policies, including conducting legal research and maintaining information and records related to applicable policies. Monitors policy revisions and ensures implementation. • Develops and maintains filing systems, including databases, related to preserving and managing agency records for which OGC has primary responsibility, as well as OGC’s departmental records and other memoranda, analysis and documents. Ensures departmental compliance with federal recordkeeping requirements and MCC policies on records. Prepares and files all necessary documents and notices with the Federal Register. Provides support, as needed, on administrative matters applicable to MCC Board of Director meetings. • Performs other duties as assigned. Program Specialist (Legal) MC-301-5 • Duties and responsibilities are substantially similar to Program Officer, MC-0301-4C level, except that the incumbent receives tailored instructions, guidance, training, and supervision designed to provide the knowledge and skills necessary for successful performance at the full performance level/target position. Supervision becomes progressively less detailed as incumbent gains more experience. While occupying this position, the incumbent performs progressively more responsible assignments, which lead to the target level position as a Program Officer, MC-0301-4C. • Incumbent may be promoted non-competitively to target position pending: o Incumbent demonstrates ability to perform at target pay band level; o Higher level work exists at target pay band level; o Increased responsibilities are assigned; o Supervisor recommends promotion; o Incumbent completes all required training; and, o Incumbent completes all regulatory requirements for career ladder promotions. Consequently, promotion is not guaranteed. b) Travel Domestic and/or international travel may be required. c) Supervisory Controls The supervisor makes assignments by defining objectives, priorities, and deadlines, and assists the contractor with unusual situations which do not have clear precedents. Within these parameters, the contractor is responsible for planning and organizing the work, coordinating with staff. The contractor informs the supervisor(s) of potentially controversial findings, issues, or problems with widespread impact. Completed work is reviewed for technical soundness, conformity to requirements, and for compatibility with organizational goals, guidelines, and effectiveness in achieving intended objectives. d) Guidelines Guidelines consist of standard legal and administrative programs references and agency policy, practices and precedents that requires interpretation and adaptation. The incumbent interprets and applies available guides, modifying and adapting them to meet specific situations. Situations to which existing guidelines require significant deviations, or situations for which the guidelines are conflicting or ambiguous are referred to the supervisor. e) Complexity Work assignments involve duties requiring different processes, methods and application of appropriate research methods, practices, and techniques to complete assignments. In deciding what must be done, the incumbent must ensure that all relevant MCC and OGC administrative policies and procedures have been properly followed. The work requires making many decisions concerning such things as interpretation and relevance of information. Considerable judgment will be necessary for interpretation of findings. Research duties requires attention to detail. f) Scope and Effect The purpose of the work is to provide legal and administrative support to OGC and to identify, analyze and make recommendations on program and administrative issues problems and situations. The work contributes to the success of the OGC in fulfilling its mission to provide sound legal advice to its internal and external constituencies. g) Personal Contacts/Purpose of Contacts Personal contacts include staff from within and outside MCC in a moderately unstructured setting. Contacts also include individuals or groups from outside the corporation in moderately unstructured settings. Contacts also include agency officials who are several managerial levels removed from the contractor. Must recognize or learn the role and authority of each party during the meeting. The purpose of contacts is to provide advice and assistance on organization or program-related issues and concerns. Contacts typically involve such matters as identification of options and alternatives and progress in meeting program or organizational goals. h) Physical Demands The work is primarily sedentary, although some walking, bending, or carrying of light items may be involved. Travel may be required. i) Work Environment Work is performed primarily in an office setting. 6. Deliverables Deliverables are associated with the tasks identified in Section 5. Duties to include reports as required by the Contracting Officer Representative (COR). The PSCs will submit biweekly timesheets on a schedule and format determined by MCC. Timesheets will include a list of hours worked per compact or country program, along with a brief description of the tasks undertaken for each program during the pay period. The PSCs also will produce reports and analyses as requested by MCC. 7. Qualifications Offerors must meet all the Required Qualifications described below by the closing date of this announcement. Desired Qualifications are not required but preferred and will only be considered once all Required Qualifications are met. Offerors must demonstrate that they possess the following: a) Required Qualifications: • Experience Level: o Program Officer (Legal) MCC-301-4C – 8+ Years o Program Specialist (Legal) MCC-301-5 – Minimum of 3 Years • Knowledge of a variety of research tools (e.g., Westlaw, LexisNexis, public information databases, manual, online and print resources) in order to research and obtain information on program-specific matters. • Ability to organize information through automated means such as scanning, indexing and controlling of documents into a database. • General knowledge of FOIA program operations sufficient to conduct research and to draft and prepare responses. • Experience processing FOIA/Privacy Act (PA) actions, legal reports, correspondence, notices, internal memoranda, or related documents. • Experience preparing, formatting, proofreading and preparing documents for higher level signature. • Ability to communicate in writing in order to prepare a variety of documents such as summaries, letters, instructions, reports, notices, etc. • Ability to express ideas effectively, both orally and in writing in order to respond to proofread, edit, and format documents. Note: All experience must be well-documented on the resume and within the Submission. All aspects of the Submission must specifically show how the offeror meets the qualifications required. Credit may be given for appropriate unpaid and/or part-time work. To receive credit, Submissions should clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours worked per week. 8. Required Documentation Interested offerors must submit following required documents, including but not limited to: 1) A completed and signed Bio-Data Form (Addendum 2) with proposed salary (see Subsection 12(c). Submission Instructions to PSCs Candidates (Offerors) in regard to permissible signature types); 2) A curriculum vitae or resume (limit 10 pages); 3) A written narrative clearly describing relevant experience and knowledge of each of the qualification requirements (limit 5 pages); and 4) At least 3 and no more than 5 professional references with current contact information. Desired Documentation: 1) A cover letter, not to exceed one page, to highlight your suitability for this position. The cover letter is not considered as the required written narrative (bullet no. 4 above); and 2) A copy of Transcript(s). Transcript(s) may be requested by MCC before award to validate the offeror’s successful education history. 9. Compensation PSCs for the services of individual experts or consultants are limited by the Classification Act. In addition, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) has established requirements which apply in acquiring the personal services of experts or consultants in this manner (e.g., benefits, taxes, conflicts of interest). This is a “Full-Time” or “Intermittent” position for the Program Officer or Program Specialist and the maximum number of hours allowed is 2,087 hours per year for full-time each position or 1,664 hours per year for intermittent position. Each contract will include four one-year option periods that may be exercised at the sole discretion of MCC. Overtime is not authorized on this contract. However, compensatory time (also called “credit hours”) may be authorized. The pay range for this position is $32.11 - $48.92 for Program Officer MC-301-4C and $23.48 - $40.44 for Program Specialist MC-301-5 (https://www.mcc.gov/careers/pay-bands), inclusive of locality pay. Final compensation will be negotiated within this pay range based upon the successful offeror’s work experience. A salary above this pay range will not be entertained or negotiated. MCC issues W-2s to the PSCs. For U.S. citizens and legal resident aliens, MCC makes the employer contribution to FICA and Medicare for the PSCs. MCC withholds FICA, Medicare, federal tax and state tax on behalf of the PSCs. The PSCs is not eligible for the Foreign Earned Income Exclusion. 10. Benefits Under the MCC personal services contracting authority, PSCs are not employees for purposes of laws administered by OPM, such as Federal Retirement Benefits and health and life insurance. As such, the PSCs is not eligible for participation in the Civil Service Retirement System or the Federal Employees Retirement System. Moreover, the PSCs is ineligible to receive Federal Health and Life Insurance or participate in the Federal Thrift Savings Plan. Notwithstanding the above, and if agreed upon by the Government and the PSCs before the award of a contract, the PSCs may receive a pay supplement of 15% for full-time PSCs or 30% for intermittent PSCs. of the employee’s direct labor cost in lieu of fringe benefits. Benefits for Full-Time PSC (Intermittent PSC is not eligible for the following benefits): a) Sick Leave A full-time PSC earns sick leave on the same basis as direct-hire MCC employees, that is, maximum four (4) hours for every biweekly pay period. b) Annual Leave A full-time PSC earns four, six, or eight hours of annual leave for each biweekly pay period depending on the number of years of previous federal government employment based upon determination made by MCC. c) Parking & Transit Subsidy A full-time PSC working at MCC Headquarters in Washington, DC is eligible for parking or transit subsidy, subject to the availability of funds. The full-time PSC whose duty station is overseas is not eligible for this subsidy. d) Credit Hours A full-time PSC is eligible for credit hours (up to 24 hours earned) under the MCC Credit Hour Program. PSCs may not receive credit hours for time spent in travel status. The PSCs shall be compensated for the credit hour balance upon termination, subject to availability of funds. NOTE: An intermittent PSC is not eligible for sick leave, annual leave, payment for holidays and other days closed, parking/transit subsidy, compensatory time off for travel or credit hours. 11. Travel Rules The PSC is subject to the Federal Travel Regulations and MCC travel policies and procedures to the same extent as MCC direct-hire employees. 12. Submission Instructions to PSC Candidates (Offerors) In accordance with FAR 52.214-34 and 52.214-35, all submissions are to be in the English language and US Dollars. Submissions in other languages or monetary denominations will not be considered. This section is the basis for evaluating all Submissions. Offerors must separately address each listed qualification requirement and demonstrate how s/he meets each qualification under Section 7. Qualifications. Unless stated otherwise, all qualification elements will be weighted equally. a) Qualified individuals must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) before submission, either in “Active” or “Submitted” status. The approval of your record in SAM may take weeks and the Government cannot award a contract without an “Active” SAM registration. Offerors without a SAM registration (neither “Active” nor “Submitted”) at the close of the RFQ submission deadline may be rejected. MCC will extract pertinent representations and certifications from the offeror’s SAM account. b) Submissions shall be formatted to fit on 8 ½ x 11” paper. Suggested margins are 1” all around and the font should be Calibri or Times New Roman, no larger than 12-point. Hourly rates shall not be mentioned anywhere in your submission other than on the Bio-Data Form (Addendum 2). It is the responsibility of the offeror to ensure that all pages are properly formatted to fit and that all information properly fits within the margins of each page. c) Qualified individuals must submit a completed and formally signed Bio-Data Form (Addendum 2). Typed signatures are not acceptable. Either physically sign or save the Bio-Data Form as a PDF and electronically sign it. Please ensure that you provide a current, valid e-mail address and telephone number for notification purposes. The Bio-Data Form must be fully completed including a proposed hourly rate & signed for the submission to be considered. A Bio-Data Form without a proposed hourly rate and/or signature may cause you to not be considered. d) Qualified individuals must submit a curriculum vitae or a resume, which clearly demonstrates their education, experience, knowledge, and skills and abilities as they relate to the qualification elements. Resume must indicate: the earliest possible start date for the offeror; as well as formal title, and duration (start date / end date) for each listed position. Resume is limited to 10 pages and must not contain a photo or any salary information. Note that your salary negotiation will be based on the number of years of relevant experience. e) Describe your experience and knowledge in regards to the qualification requirements in no more than five pages. Clearly demonstrate how your prior experience is either relevant or directly related to the duties of this position as listed under Section 5. Duties. The responses should describe specifically and accurately what experience, training, education and/or awards you have received that are relevant to each factor. Cite specific examples where appropriate. f) Qualified individuals must submit at least three but no more than five professional references, who are not relatives or family members. Submitted references must include current information, as follows: 1) Name of reference 2) Offeror’s relationship to reference 3) Title of reference at current job 4) Reference current telephone number (work or personal) 5) Reference e-mail address (work) At least one reference should be from direct supervisors (current or prior) who can provide information regarding the applicant’s knowledge and experience in the relevant field. Preferably, the references should be from within the last 5 years of the applicant’s professional employment history. g) Submissions must be signed and received prior to the closing date and time specified above to be considered for this position. Only physically signed or electronic signature are permitted; typed signatures are not acceptable, e.g. “/s” or “[typed name of the offeror].” h) To ensure consideration of submissions for the intended position, please reference the position title and announcement number on the subject line of your submission email and on supporting documentation and any cover letter. 13. Response Deadline Electronic submission is required. Mailed copies of any submission shall not be accepted. Electronic packages shall be submitted by e-mail to fullerdf@mcc.gov and maxwellre@mcc.gov before the deadline stated on page 1 of this Combined Synopsis Solicitation. Submission shall reference the position title and the announcement number on the subject line of the e-mail. MCC does not accept responsibility for delays in transmission or receipt of any submission. Offerors are responsible for submitting their package so as to reach the designated Government office by the closing date and time specified on page 1 of this Combined Synopsis Solicitation. Submissions received after the closing date and time will not be considered, unless there is acceptable evidence to establish that it was indeed received by the Government installation prior to the time and date specified in this announcement. Receipt of submissions in response to this announcement does not constitute an award commitment. The U.S. Government will not reimburse any costs incurred in the preparation of a submission. Any submission is at the sole risk of the offeror. 14. Question Deadline Any questions regarding this announcement must be submitted in writing via email to fullerdf@mcc.gov and maxwellre@mcc.gov before the submission deadline as given on page 1 of this Combined Synopsis Solicitation. 15. Selection Process a) Selection Process In order to be considered for the requirement, an offeror must at a minimum meet the Required Qualifications listed above in Section 7. Qualifications. Consideration and selection will be based on a panel evaluation of the offeror’s qualifications. In addition to the materials listed above, offerors are strongly encouraged to write a cover letter, not to exceed one page, to highlight their suitability for this position. The cover letter is not required and is not accepted as the required written narrative. All Submissions will be evaluated based on the documentation submitted, the offeror’s evidence of the above qualification requirements, performance in a potential discussion/negotiation session, if conducted, and information provided by references, if contacted. Please note that for evaluation purposes, MCC will take into consideration your proposed labor rate and any requested pay supplement in lieu of fringe benefits. All submissions will receive one of three scores for each of the required and desired qualifications: Does Not Meet, Meets, or Exceeds. MCC reserves the right to conduct interviews with the most qualified offerors and/or conduct a reference check on those individuals. Offerors are strongly encouraged to ensure the work history portion thoroughly documents the duties, responsibilities and accomplishments that are directly related to this requirement in order to verify specialized experience. Errors or omissions may affect your evaluation. The U.S. Government and MCC are not obligated to make any award or pay for any costs associated with the preparation and submission of a proposal in response to this announcement. Award of this contract is contingent on availability of funds. MCC reserves the right to not award any contract as a result of this announcement. 16. Contract Award A time-and-materials (T&M) type contract with options will be awarded to the offeror found to be the best value to the Government. This contract shall be awarded directly by MCC to an individual, not to a firm. At the Government’s discretion, e.g. unable to identify a best-value offeror or secure sufficient funding, this solicitation may be canceled without an award. The Government may consider opening a new solicitation for this position. 17. Contract and Period of Performance The successful offeror(s) may be offered a personal services type contract for a one-year base period plus four (4) option periods, based upon performance, agency requirements, and available funding. The base period of performance shall be from date of award for 12 months. All option periods are exercised at the sole discretion of MCC. The contract will be for a “Full-Time” or “Intermittent” PSCs position with maximum total yearly hours of 2,087 for a Full-Time position or 1,664 for an Intermittent position. 18. Place of Performance Place of Performance of contract, either at MCC headquarters, contractor’s address if a remote worker, or duty station if overseas. Principal place of performance will be in Washington, DC, USA and/or PSC's home of record. 19. Addenda See attachments for: 1. Position Descriptions 2. Bio-Data Form 3. Provisions and Clauses 4. How to Apply for a PSC Position with MCC