USA | VA | FAIRFAX COUNTY | HERNDON | 22092 Small City
Task Order/ Hotline Management
R-- Limited- Sources Justification Addendum, LIHEAP - In accordance with Federal Acquisition Regulation ( FAR) ****- 6( a)( 2)( i), a redacted version of the Limited- Sources Justification ( LSJ) Addendum to awarded task order ****, Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program Support ( LIHEAP) Services,
Limited Sources Justification for LIHEAP Support Services
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This is a limited sources justification for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Community Services (OCS) Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP) support services. The acquisition is being conducted under the authority of FAR ****(a)(1)(i) due to an urgent and compelling need to ensure continuity of services. The contracting activity is the Department of the Interior (DOI), Interior Business Center (IBC). The purpose is to issue a task order on a sole source basis to Apprise Inc. against its GSA Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) contract. The services required include maintaining the LIHEAP clearinghouse and performance management website, managing the national energy assistance referral phone hotline and email service, providing training, assisting in the annual calculation of the LIHEAP funding formula, preparing LIHEAP reports, and coordinating with ACF tech. The current task order is set to expire on August 29, 2025, and a follow-on recompete is anticipated to be awarded in the second quarter of fiscal year 2026, necessitating a bridge task order to Apprise Inc. to maintain critical support. The justification highlights that Apprise Inc. is the incumbent contractor, intimately familiar with the support required, and qualified to support ACF OCS with minimal interruption. Awarding to a different contractor for this bridge support is not in the government's best interest due to the time required for a new contractor to familiarize themselves with the complex services. Market research indicated potentially several capable vendors under GSA MAS SIN ****, but there is not adequate time to follow competitive procedures to ensure a timely award without a break in services. A request for quotation (RFQ) will not be released on GSA eBuy as it has been determined that Apprise Inc. is the only source capable of providing the services due to the urgent and compelling need. A notice will be posted on SAM. gov with a redacted copy of the justification. The need for a subsequent sole source task order will be mitigated in the future through the award of a competitive follow-on task order.
The bid notice states that the contracting officer will determine the anticipated price will be fair and reasonable through the use of the GSA MAS program and through the programs schedule pricing. The rates used by GSA MAS program schedule contract holders have been determined at the time of schedule contract award to be fair and reasonable. To further ensure the price is reasonable, price evaluation will be conducted in accordance with FAR ****(d). In accordance with DOI ****, enhancing competition, and due to only one quote being received, the price analysis tools and techniques at FAR ****(b)(2) may be used to further determine the price fair and reasonable.
The bid notice states that as the incumbent, Apprise Inc. is intimately familiar with the support required and is qualified to support ACF OCS while AQD continues with the competitive follow-on task order process. Apprise Inc. 's performance under the current task order has been satisfactory. Apprise Inc. has the capability and expertise to continue to support this requirement with minimal interruption or schedule impact.
