This is a combined synopsis/solicitation in accordance with FAR Part 12 for field investigative services. ATF intends to issue multiple Basic Ordering Agreement (BOAs) to multiple offerors that will be available for placing orders. BOAs may be awarded to various offerors throughout the United States depending on location need and ATF workload. ATF will review proposals starting on the day this announcement is posted. All responses will be evaluated and a sufficient number of agreements will be issued to offerors who meet the minimum requirements. ATF's objective is to provide a sufficient number of sources, geographically distributed, to ensure prompt and efficient performance of background investigations. ATF reserves the right to retain all proposal materials for any vendor that is denied based on geographic location only. As the needs of the Contract Background Investigation Program change, vendors who were previously denied based solely on geographic location may be reconsidered for an award. This solicitation may also change. Therefore, any interested offerors should ensure they are in receipt of and submit a proposal following the current requirements and guidelines found in the most recent posting/modification/amendment to this solicitation, which may remain open for the full potential period of performance (i.e., 60 months). ATF reserves the right to amend this solicitation and include proposal submission periods to incorporate opening and closing dates. Each BOA that is awarded shall be evaluated each year. ATF may terminate a BOA at any time after notifying the offeror. BOAs may remain in effect for up to one base year and four option years. Offerors selected from this solicitation will be offered the opportunity to become a party to a BOA, which is not a contract. A BOA, as defined by the Federal Acquisitions Regulations 16.703, as a "written instrument of understanding, negotiated between an agency, contracting activity, or contracting office and a contractor, that contains (1) terms and clauses applying to future contracts (orders) between the parties during its term, (2) a description, as specific as practicable, of supplies or services to be provided, and (3) methods for pricing, issuing, and delivering future orders under the basic ordering agreement." There will be no minimum or maximum guaranteed quantity. Orders shall be competed among regionally located contractors with current BOAs If an order is place under a BOA, ATF will reimburse contractors based on the rates as outlined in the current SOW and the Points and Payment Schedule. Offerors are hereby informed that if offered an order under a BOA, the contractor is responsible for filing his/her own state and Federal taxes. ATF will provide a 1099-Misc tax form to qualified contractors. The ATF is not required to provide a 1099-Misc form to any vendor who is incorporated and/or does not receive at minimum of $600 during any calendar year. The following clauses are incorporated in full force: FAR Part 52.212.1 Instructions to Offeror - Commercial Items (Oct. 00) and FAR 52.212-4, Contract Terms and Conditions-Commercial Items Required to Implement Statutes or Executive Orders-Commercial (incorporated by reference). If a contractor is awarded a BOA, he/she shall complete a copy of the provisions at FAR 52.212-3, Offeror Representation and Certifications-Commercial Items and FAR 52.209-5, Certification Regarding Responsibility Matters. The contractor shall also provide a statement proving he/she has read and understands the term and conditions set forth in the FAR 52.212-4. Evaluation and Selection Criteria: ATF will issue a BOA to an offeror, as needed, based on meeting minimum requirements of past performance, qualifications and experience and the ability to cover a necessary locale. All offerors must submit complete responses to the questions in the solicitation in order to be evaluated. Incomplete packages may not be evaluated. Contractors will be initially screened by location and then reviewed for experience, qualifications, past performance and capabilities. Additionally, proposals will be reviewed on a pass/fail basis regarding the contractor's acceptability to mandatory terms and regulations. Offerors will be rated on each response given to the below questions. The rating scale is (from low to high rating): unsatisfactory, marginal, satisfactory, very good and exceptional. Offerors that reside in a necessary location, agree to the mandatory requirements, and whose proposal Satisfy minimum requirements will be offered a BOA. Offerors must participate in an interview. Interviews will consist of a series of questions related to the contractors past performance, experience and qualifications. Following the interview, contractors will be required to submit a writing sample (e.g. sample report of investigation). Contractors will be provided guidance regarding the writing sample requirements during the interview and additional information via email upon the completion of the interview. The contractor will have 3 business days to provide PSD with the completed writing sample. ATF will review the writing sample and the results of the proposal package and interview responses. Those contractors who receive overall evaluation of satisfactory or higher, satisfy the interview and minimum requirements of the writing sample will be issued a BOA. No order award is ever guaranteed. Contractors must also be able to obtain a favorably adjudicated Tier 5 background investigation (BI) and Top Secret clearance, must be willing and able to obtain a Dun and Bradstreet number and register with the System for Award Management. These are mandatory requirements and any offeror will be eliminated that fails to comply with them. Experience/Qualifications/Past Performance: Must have at least 3 years of current experience conducting personnel security background investigations. Contractors are required to have experience of either a college degree (bachelors) or 4 years of general experience, 4 years of specialized experience within the last 5 years or 1 year of specialized Federal background investigative experience. ATF will evaluate each contractor's experience on the basis of its breath, depth, and relevance to the work that will be required under the prospective BOA. Evaluators will consider the years of experience conducting investigations in the federal environment and experience conducting personnel security investigations (including overseas experience). ATF may assess the contractor's communication and written skills, and familiarity with directives governing the conduct of background investigations through an interview. Past performance is a measure of how well a contractor satisfied its customers in the past and complied with laws and regulations. ATF may contact some of the contractor's customers to ask whether or not they believe (1) that the contractor was capable, efficient, and effective; (2) that the contractor's performance conformed to the terms and conditions of its contract; (3) that the contractor was reasonable and cooperative during the performance; and (4) that the contractor was committed to customer satisfaction. In evaluating past performance, ATF may contact some of the references provided by the contractor and other sources of information, including, but not limited to: other government agencies, and electronic databases (i.e., Contractor Performance and Rating System, System for Award Management, etc.). Capabilities: Capabilities is a method of evaluation to ensure the contractor appears to be capable of adhering to the general specifications of ATF's Contract Background Investigation Program; ability to utilize ATF owned laptop and other required equipment/programs. Capability criteria includes, but is not limited to: (1) ability to accept and complete work assignments; (2) information technology proficiency; and (3) equipment requirements. Acceptability: ATF will determine the acceptability of each offeror's proposal on a "pass" or "fail" basis. A contractor's offer is acceptable when it manifests the contractor's assent, without exception, to the terms and conditions of the solicitation, including attachments and amendments (if any). If a contractor takes exception to any of the terms and conditions of the scope of work, ATF will consider its offer to be unacceptable. Contractors wishing to take exception to the terms and conditions stated are strongly encouraged to contact the Contracting Officer before doing so. Contractors with recent ATF experience will be evaluated on the performance they provided to ATF. ATF will consider performance that contractors have previously rendered to ATF to be more influential than past performance rendered to another source based on ATF's annual review of BOA performance. All requests for a full copy of the SOW and/or Points and Payment Schedule should be submitted via email to [email protected]. All questions should be directed to the program office, the Personnel Security Division, by sending an email to [email protected]. All proposals must be submitted in writing to [email protected]. Proposal Requirements: Anyone wishing to respond to this solicitation should: 1. Submit a current, professional resume; and 2. Submit responses to the below listed questions. Resumes shall highlight the contractor's experience and capabilities in performing background investigations. Provide examples of your qualifications and how those duties relate to the contractor's past and/or current performance. These examples will be used in evaluating the contractor's qualifications and past performance. Each individual offeror must submit his/her own proposal. Offerors will be notified of their proposal evaluation results in writing. (No phone calls will be accepted). ? Solicitation Questions: Past Performance/Experience For the following nine (9) questions, respond in no more than 3-5 sentences. Failure to respond to any of the listed questions will result in an automatic failure to meet minimum requirements. 1. Do you have a four year college degree (bachelors)? If so, provide specifics (i.e. type of degree(s), when obtained, what school). 2. Select the most appropriate response from the below list and provide specifics regarding your experience: a. I have at least one year of Federal background investigative experience. b. I have four years within the last five years of experience conducting investigations (i.e., criminal, law enforcement, etc.). c. I have at least four years of general experience with skills applicable to the investigative field. 3. Do you have experience in the administration of a personnel security program? If so, identify your experience in the administrative functions. 4. Have you ever attended training for Federal background investigations and/or suitability or security adjudication training? If so, provide brief details of the training (dates, vendor who provided training, etc.). 5. What purpose do you believe Federal background investigations serve? 6. What is your familiarity with the Tiered Investigations? 7. Identify and describe at least four investigative coverage requirements for a Tier 5 background investigation. 8. List at least two differences in coverage requirements between a Tier 2S and a Tier 5. 9. Briefly define personal identifiable information and identify the investigators responsibility for safeguarding this type of information. Capabilities For the following four (4) questions, describe your abilities for each category and provide at least one example. 1. Describe your ability to read and implement written directions pertaining to changes in policies and procedures. 2. Describe your ability to switch priorities while maintaining organization and steady flow of processing. 3. Describe how you would assess your written communication skills. 4. Describe your ability to effectively communicate with clear and concise thoughts. Acceptability For the following nine (9) questions, provide either a yes or no. These questions are evaluated on a pass/fail basis. Failure to respond to any of the listed questions will result in an automatic failed evaluation. 1. Do you have the knowledge of and experience to meet the information technology requirements outline in the SOW? 2. Do you believe you are able to obtain and maintain a favorably adjudicated Tier 5 investigation (Top Secret eligibility)? 3. Do you understand that if you were offered a position as a contract background investigator you must obtain and Dun and Bradstreet number and register with the System for Award Management? 4. Are you willing to sign and adhere to the terms of the Contractor Certification? 5. You must complete all assigned ATF training courses at your own expense, are you willing to comply with this requirement? Are you willing to acknowledge and adhere to the terms and conditions of the "Non-Disclosure Agreement for Access to Unclassified Sensitive Information?" 6. Are you willing to maintain and safeguard an ATF owned laptop, PIV card and other materials? 7. Are you willing to prepare and submit thorough Reports of Investigation adhering to ATF reporting standards and utilizing ATF reporting systems? 8. Are you willing to read and implement all changes in policies and procedures? 9. Are you able to accept assignments requiring travel up to and beyond a 200 mile radius? ? Priority Cities: A list of priority cities for this requirement is listed below. However, any interested parties outside of these priority cities will not be precluded from responding to this announcement. Alabama - Montgomery Alaska - Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau Arizona - Yuma California - Bakersfield, Redding, San Jose Connecticut - Hartford, New Haven Guam - Any location Idaho - Northern Idaho, Boise Iowa - Des Moines Kentucky - Lexington Louisiana - Baton Rouge, Lafayette, New Orleans Massachusetts - Springfield Michigan - Lansing Mississippi, Jackson Nebraska - Omaha New Jersey - New Brunswick, Trenton New York - New York North Dakota - Any location Ohio - Cincinnati, Cleveland, Toledo Oregon - Eugene Pennsylvania - Harrisburg, Scranton, State College, Williamsport Rhode Island - Any location South Carolina - Charleston South Dakota - Any location Tennessee - Knoxville, Memphis Texas - Corpus Christi, Eagle Pass, Laredo Virginia - Richmond, Roanoke Washington - Yakima