Sources Sought for JASON Recompete

PART 1 GENERAL INFORMATION 1. INTRODUCTION: This is a non-personal services contract to provide Program Management services for the JASON independent scientific advisory group. The Government shall not exercise any supervision or control over the contract service providers performing the services herein. Such contract service providers shall be accountable solely to the Contractor who, in turn, is responsible to the Government. 2. BACKGROUND: The JASON independent scientific advisory group (hereafter “JASONs”) are a group of approximately 70 world-class scholars with their own charter, independent of the United States Government (USG). The JASONs provides independent, unbiased, highly specialized research, analysis, and advice to support Department of Defense (DoD) and USG strategic decision-making and policy-making objectives. The JASON program supports the DoD mission with studies and scientific research in matters of national security for all USG. 3. DESCRIPTION OF SERVICES: The Contractor shall provide management and logistics support to JASONs and its members as defined in this PWS except for those items specified as government furnished property and services. The Contractor shall perform to the standards in this contract. 4. OBJECTIVES: There are two broad classes of contracted support for this effort: • 1. The Program Management and the associated support for the program itself. • 2. The work by the JASONs themselves, who, historically, have been compensated at a "daily rate" or "day rate" (see Section X) SCOPE: The management and logistics support to be provided by the contractor include coordinating all travel for each JASON; preparing for, scheduling, and hosting the meetings that the JASONs attend (minimum four per year, Spring, Summer, Fall, and Winter); preparing and submitting all proposals for each Government sponsored research topic both unclassified and classified; coordinating all final study reports to each Government sponsor; and providing the necessary classified facility, communications, and computing resources for the JASONs to perform their work at the appropriate level of security. Specific support activities are described in detail below The Contractor shall be responsible for the following: • Providing daily program management (to include business management and financial management) to support the JASONs • Providing daily security management (to include personal and physical (i.e., facility) security administration, document control) to support the JASONs • Coordinating all technical, logistical, and administrative support requirements for the JASONs meetings -- 1 of 4 -- • Coordinating and developing the study support plans 5. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: The period of performance shall be for one (1) Base Year of 12 months and four (4) 12-month option years. 6. CONTRACT TYPE: The Government will award a Firm Fixed-Price contract, with cost- based CLINs for travel and facility rental costs. 7. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE The work to be performed under this contract will be performed primarily at the contractor’s facilities. PART 5 SPECIFIC TASKS The Contractor will perform three interdependent tasks: 5.1 JASON Management Support The Contractor will provide day-to-day administrative/management support and assistance required necessary to execute the JASON program. The contractor is not to provide inherently governmental responsibilities. This effort requires performing oversight and management responsibilities, in coordination with the government program manager and contracting officer’s representative, and includes, but is not limited to the following subtasks: 5.1.1 Establish individual agreements with JASON members and, as needed, with JASON consultants. JASON consultants are non-JASON members with specialized scientific expertise necessary to accomplish research studies or projects during the term of this contract. 5.1.2 Provide all day-to-day administrative and management support and assistance required to execute the JASON program, to include project planning, scheduling, logistics and coordination; reviewing project plans and cost estimates; coordinating funding documentation between study sponsors and the government program manager; developing and maintaining project files, databases, and spreadsheets to be available on a continuing basis through contract execution, as well as developing data and statistics concerning JASON operations. 5.1.3 Maintain an archive of completed reports and library, including classified and unclassified reports, either digitally or in hard copy. 5.1.4 Provide day-to-day research assistance support to the JASON members by obtaining and providing important articles/journals/books/references requested by the JASON members to complete the studies; facilitating briefings with subject matter experts; providing analytic support as needed to complete studies 5.1.5 Ensure that Terms of Reference (TOR) are prepared for each study, mutually agreed by JASON and the study sponsor. The TOR will describe the overall objective of the study; specify the precise questions and/or issues that the sponsor wishes JASON to address; identify the study size (Letter, Regular, or Large) and include schedule and deliverables. The schedule typically -- 2 of 4 -- specifies a final draft delivery date in October, though this date may be changed if agreed by both JASON and the study sponsor. 5.1.6 Ensure that a study report is completed for each study within the timeline set forth in the terms of reference. Reports shall conform to the technical requirements described in the TOR. Provide staff support as required for writing, formatting and delivering JASON report 5.1.7 Provide an annual overarching report, in conjunction with the JASON members, which will be submitted to the Contracting Officer Representative upon request. The report shall detail the studies conducted, the funds expended, issues observed, lessons learned, and the survey result…