Notice of Intent to Sole Source Integrated Standards Support

The Department of Veterans Affairs Strategic Acquisition Center (SAC) intends to negotiate a Firm Fixed Price (FFP) sole source award to Book Zurman Inc., a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB), for the immediate recovery and continuation of critical program requirements until the VA's Integrated Health Technologies 2.0 (IHT 2.0) contract is finalized. The contract will provide specialized services crucial to the VA's Standards and Interoperability community. The applicable North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) code 541618 – Other Management Consulting Services is most appropriate for this requirement. The size standard is:

$16.5 million. The Product Service Code (PSC) is R499 – Support- Professional: Other. In accordance with VAAR 819.7008, the determination to make a sole source award to an SDVOSB is a business decision wholly within the discretion of the Contracting officer; therefore, the requirement to ensure that offers are solicited from as many potential sources as practicable is not applicable to this procurement.

In addition, 819.7008(c) further authorizes the Contracting officer to make the award without first determining that only one SDVOSB source can meet the requirement. The statutory authority permitting other than full and open competition is 41 U.S.C.§ 253(c)(5) as implemented by the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) Subpart 6.302-5 entitled, “Authorized or required by statute”.

The applicable statute is Public Law 109-461: “Veterans Benefits, Health Care, and Information Technology Act of 2006” specifically, the “Veterans First Contracting Program” outlined in 38 USC § 8127(c). This is not a request for proposals. The Government is not responsible for any costs associated with responding to this notice.