10/23/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/23/2024 13:22
Great Lakes Program Grantee Technical Assistance for Regulatory Compliance
OVERVIEW
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) seeks a qualified Contractor to assist NFWF and its grantees with compiling, reviewing and submitting federal regulatory compliance requirements for NFWF's Great Lakes Programs - Sustain Our Great Lakes, Chi-Cal Rivers Fund, Southeast Michigan Resilience Fund and Great Lakes projects awarded under the Conservation Partners Program. The Great Lakes Programs are designed to restore and enhance habitat and water quality in the Great Lakes basin. You can obtain a copy of the Program's Business Plan on NFWF's website, https://www.nfwf.org/programs/sustain-our-great-lakes-program.
BACKGROUND
While the program includes a variety of goals, the scope of work under this contract is for the development of a Projects selected for funding through these programs often are subject to federal compliance requirements. NFWF is seeking a qualified contractor to provide technical assistance to grantees in meeting such compliance requirements, including the following:
NFWF's Great Lakes Programs have grown, the need for effective technical guidance and support has grown as well. We are seeking to learn how a professional environmental consultant or company may be able to assist potential grantees with the necessary compliance documentation.
SCOPE OF WORK
The selected party will perform the following activities for the Sustain Our Great Lakes, Chi-Cal Rivers Fund and Southeast Michigan Resilience Fund grant programs.
NFWF anticipates the following project compliance needs in the coming year:
In addition to the consultations and documentation, the contract deliverables will also include providing information/updates upon request outside of the set schedule for check-ins.
This list above outlines the general scope of work to be addressed under this RFP; however, it is subject to change in response to additional similar task orders as needed.
The period of performance will be 13 months from the date of the award to the selected party with an option to extend for additional years, to be exercised at NFWF's discretion.
REQUIRED EXPERTISE AND PROPOSED STAFF
Eligible applicants are nonprofit organizations, for-profit businesses, and individual consultants. Qualified, certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprises (DBE) (small, minority and women-owned businesses) are strongly encouraged to apply.
CRITERIA FOR COMPETITIVE APPLICATIONS
Proposals will be evaluated and scored on the following criteria. Offerors should organize their Proposal Narrative based on these sections:
ELIGIBLE OFFERORS & CONFLICT OF INTEREST STATEMENT
Eligible applicants include institutions of higher education, other nonprofits, commercial organizations, international organizations, and local, state, and Indian tribal governments. Small and minority businesses, and women's business enterprises are strongly encouraged to apply.
By submitting a proposal in response to this solicitation, the offeror warrants and represents that it does not currently have any apparent or actual conflict of interest, as described herein. In the event an offeror currently has, will have during the life of the contemplated contract, or becomes aware of an apparent or actual conflict of interest, in the event an award is made, the offeror must notify NFWF in writing in the proposal, or in subsequent correspondence (if the issue becomes known after the submission of the proposal) of such apparent or actual conflicts of interest, including organizational conflicts of interest. Conflicts of interest include any relationship or matter which might place the contractor, the contractor's employees, or the contractor's subcontractors in a position of conflict, real or apparent, between their responsibilities under the award and any other outside interests, or otherwise. Conflicts of interest may also include, but are not limited to, direct or indirect financial interests, close personal relationships, positions of trust in outside organizations, consideration of future employment arrangements with a different organization, or decision-making affecting the award that would cause a reasonable person with knowledge of the relevant facts to question the impartiality of the offeror, the offeror's employees, or the offeror's future subcontractors in the matter. Upon receipt of such a notice, the NFWF Contracting Officer will determine if a conflict of interest exists and, if so, if there are any possible actions to be taken by the offeror to reduce or resolve the conflict. Failure to resolve conflicts of interest in a manner that satisfies NFWF may result in the proposal not being selected for award.
By submitting a proposal in response to this solicitation, the Offeror warrants and represents that it is eligible for award of a Contract resulting from this solicitation and that it is not subject to any of the below circumstances:
Has any unpaid Federal tax liability that has been assessed, for which all judicial and administrative remedies have been exhausted or have lapsed, and that is not being paid in a timely manner pursuant to an Contract with the authority responsible for collecting the tax liability, where the awarding agency is aware of the unpaid tax liability, unless the agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government; or
Was convicted (or had an officer or agent of such corporation acting on behalf of the corporation convicted) of a felony criminal violation under any Federal or State law within the preceding 24 months, where the awarding agency is aware of the conviction, unless the agency has considered suspension or debarment of the corporation and made a determination that this further action is not necessary to protect the interests of the Government; or
Is listed on the General Services Administration's, government-wide System for Award Management Exclusions (SAM Exclusions), in accordance with the OMB guidelines at 2 C.F.R Part 180 that implement E.O.s 12549 (3 C.F.R., 1986 Comp., p. 189) and 12689 (3 C.F.R., 1989 Comp., p. 235), "Debarment and Suspension, " or intends to enter into any subaward, contract or other Contract using funds provided by NFWF with any party listed on the SAM Exclusions in accordance with Executive Orders 12549 and 12689. The SAM Exclusions instructions can be found here: https://www.sam.gov/SAM/
SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS
Proposals must be submitted under the same cover at the same time, in three distinctly labeled and separate documents: 1) Technical Proposal, 2) Budget, and 3) Evidence of Financial Stability. Interested parties should submit proposals electronically to NFWF (Traci Giefer, [email protected]) using the requirements below:
Technical Proposal
Budget:
Evidence of Financial Stability:
SELECTION PROCEDURE
A panel of NFWF staff will review the proposals. Offerors may be asked to modify objectives, work plans, or budgets prior to final approval of the award. Only one award will be made for this project. If multiple institutions are involved, they should be handled through subcontracts.
SUBMISSION DEADLINES
November 6, 2024 |
Deadline for questions about the solicitation to NFWF. Offerors should submit questions regarding this solicitation via email to Traci Giefer ([email protected]). NFWF will post all the questions and responses to all questions so that all offerors have access to them at the same time. In order to provide equitable responses, all questions must be sent to NFWF no later than 5:00 PM CT on November 6, 2024. |
November 8, 2024 | NFWF will post the questions submitted regarding the solicitation and responses on the NFWF website at www.nfwf.org/greatlakes. |
November 19, 2024 |
Deadline for receipt by NFWF of proposals. Proposals must be sent electronically as an email attachment to Traci Giefer by 5:00 PM CT November 19, 2024. Proposals must be provided in Word format or searchable PDF. |
December 2024 | Contract award to selected Offeror |
December 31, 2025 | Deliverables due |