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1
What is a Government-wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC)?
A Government-wide Acquisition Contract (GWAC) is a task-order or delivery-order contract for Information Technology establish...
2
What is the CCR?
The CCR is Central Contractor Registration (CCR) is the primary registrant database for the U.S. Federal Government. CCR coll...
3
How do I find out more about GSA?
Here is GSA's main website: http://www.gsa.gov/portal/category/100000 Here is GSA Alliant website: http://www.gsa.gov/po...
4
Why did GSA align the scope of the Alliant contracts with the Federal Enterprise Architecture (FEA)/Department of Defense Enterprise Architecture (DoDEA)?
Because we wanted to provide the most comprehensive and flexible IT contracts possible. The FEA alignment will facilitate age...
5
Does the DoD encourage the use of GSA Contract Vehicles?
Yes they do. For more information, please visit the following link: http://www.acq.osd.mil/dpap/cpic/cp/interagency_acquisit...
6
What can be purchased using the Alliant contracts?
The Alliant contracts are for Information Technology (IT) services and IT services-based solutions. Ordering Contracting Offi...
7
What is the value proposition for using Alliant and Alliant Small Business?
The Alliant contracts offer a high level of flexibility and streamlined efficiency. By incorporating innovative concepts, cus...
8
How does a federal agency access the Alliant contracts?
Federal buyers who wish to use the Alliant contracts must receive delegation of procurement authority from GSA prior to issui...
9
Can a Contracting Officer limit competition of task orders to a set number of prime contractors?
No. All contract holders must be provided a fair opportunity to be considered for all orders in accordance with FAR 16.505 un...
10
Where can I find ordering procedures for the Alliant contracts?
Ordering procedures are explained in the Alliant Ordering Guides (one for Alliant and one for Alliant Small Business) that ar...
11
When should we use Alliant vs. Schedule 70?
The OCO, through their acquisition planning, will determine the appropriate contract vehicle to use. The benefits to using A...
12
Which agencies are expected to use the Alliant vehicle? Who do you expect to be the largest initial buyers?
Although Alliant is not a required contract vehicle, we anticipate agencies that have used GSA GWACs before may continue to u...
13
What are you doing to bring DOD and the DOD Acquisition community aboard?
We are actively engaged in the DoD Acquisition community to educate the DoD buyers to better understand the benefits of Allia...
14
Can state and local governments use Alliant?
No, state and local governments may not use Alliant based on current legislation.
15
Section G.2 states that the contract is for use by authorized federal contractors as well as Government agencies. But, Section G.3.4, second paragraph, states that an OCO is a Federal Government official only, and that person must be authorized. If the ordering agency uses an authorized Federal Contractor to do its ordering, can that contractor become authorized?
We are reviewing this discrepancy and may consider your suggestion on a future modification.
16
How will GSA support clients who need a contracting shop? What do we tell them and where should they go for help?
GSA provides contracting support through the use of the Assisted Acquisition Service. Further information can be obtained by...
17
If a client uses the GSA Alliant Contracting Office to procure on their behalf: 1) is there an additional fee; 2) If GSA is the OCO in this case, how would the source agency be recognized in the current report formats of G.9.7?
If a client uses GSA’s Assisted Acquisition Service (AAS) in lieu of Direct Order Direct Bill (DODB) to procure on their beha...
18
Section G.3.4. Regarding the clause that "Contractors shall ensure that an OCO has the required delegation by requesting a copy of the OCO delegation from the ACO...." Given that there are more than 50 Alliant Prime Contractors and hundreds of contracting officers across the Federal Government who will be authorized, would GSA consider posting the authorized OCOs on the GSA Alliant website so that Contractors can simply verify instead of requesting copies of delegations? Also, if Federal Contractors are authorized, they could be posted there too.
Periodically we will provide an email updated list of OCOs (OCO name and agency information only) to the Alliant Contract Hol...
19
Section G.3.4 states that contractors shall ensure that an OCO has the required delegation by requesting a copy of the OCO delegation from the ACO prior to award of a task order. Would GSA entertain developing a centralized location where all OCO delegations could be stored and reviewed by the contractors instead of requiring the OCO to produce the delegation for every task order they issue?
The PCO will make the DPA list available on a frequent basis. GSA will review your suggestion and put it under consideration...
20
How is fair opportunity going to be implemented for Alliant regarding distribution of task orders to all primes?
Fair Opportunity will be implemented through automated systems like e-Buy, ITSS, the CONTACT ALL in the Alliant webpage, or b...
21
Can companies cross-team on the vehicle? That is, can a company be a subcontractor on more than one of the GSA Alliant Contracts? Can a GSA Alliant Prime be a subcontractor on another GSA Alliant Prime’s contract?
There is no prohibition for Alliant Primes to team with other Alliant Primes and no restrictions on subcontracting by any of ...
22
What are the plans regarding phasing out Millennia? Are task orders under this contracting vehicle going to be discontinued once Alliant is available for task order processing?
The Millennia GWAC, which expire October 31, 2009, can still have orders placed against it right up to the expiration date. ...
23
If there is an incumbent for a TOR will that fact be stated in the TOR information? Will the name of the incumbent also be included?
The Task Order OCO will be the driver of the requirement and may provide such information at their discretion. The Task Orde...
24
Are there any constraints regarding using the vehicle for ODCs including IT hardware and software tools?
No, there are no constraints for ODCs to include hardware and software tools as long as the ancillary purchases are integral ...
25
G.3.6 indicates that contractors should expect Industrial Operations Analyst (IOA) visits to conduct Customer Assist Visit’s (CAV’s). Is the report card to be used by the IOA the same that is used for other GSA CAV’s or will it be specific to the Alliant contract requirements? If different, where and when will it be posted?
IOA CAV visits will be performed as determined necessary for the GWAC Program. Currently we do not have any planned CAV visi...
26
SECTION G.9.7(c) - MODIFICATION PA01 (page 6 of 14) Purchase data - The contractor shall report purchase data from each invoice within sixty (60) calendar days from the date the invoice is submitted for payment. Please confirm our interpretation of this requirement which is as follows: after every invoice submitted on all Orders awarded under GSA Alliant, within sixty (60) calendar days, we are required to submit a Purchase Data report to the ACO with the required information outlined in the above referenced section. This is not intended to mean within the sixty (60) calendar days at the close of each Order, but for every invoice submitted to customers throughout the entire period of performance of each Order.
Purchase data is required for every invoice submitted to customers throughout the entire period of performance of each Order....
27
Will primes be required to post labor categories and rates like GSA schedules on GSA library?
No. The rates will be posted by the GWAC Contracting Officer to the Alliant webpage.
28
Can we add labor categories? If so, what is the process?
At the Task Order level, the OCO may propose and negotiate skill labor categories specific to the requirement.
29
Are there any specific criteria used for "off-ramping" an Alliant contract holder (e.g. zero bids in 6 months, 1 bid in a year, etc)? Will there be bid threshold targeted to support making “off-ramp” decisions?
Sub-standard performance and/or not bidding on any fair opportunity requirements (as well as abandonment of the contract) in ...
30
In reference to Section H.22.1, During the "open season" during which new Alliant Contractors are added, are the original holders grandfathered in? Or must they also re-compete?
The original awardees retain their contracts and do not need to recompete. In an “open season”, the intent is to add new con...
31
Have off-ramp criteria and schedule been established?
The off-ramp and schedule has not been established. These actions are highly dependent on situations that require a GWAC Cont...
32
Will the government pay for or reimburse contractors for new and mandated reporting requirements?
Contractors may request equitable adjustment at the time the modification is issued.
33
Please discuss the new payment on T&M and L-H orders clause in detail.
Please read FAR 52.232-7 Payments Under Time-and-Materials and Labor-Hour Contracts, and FAR 52.216-29 Time-and-Materials/Lab...
34
When 2 or more Alliant contract holders enter into a Prime-Sub relationship on an Alliant Proposal, do the subs’ Alliant rates apply or do the sub’s fall under the Prime’s rates? If the former, who pays the CAF for the task? Does your answer apply to all contract types?
Dependent on the contract type, the OCO will need to specify either a blended rate or a separate rate for its subcontractors ...
35
E-buy, ITSS, FedBizOpps – how will we “not” miss an opportunity? Will there be e-mail notifications on all solicitations' to all primes?
An automated email notification is the process of receiving notifications of opportunities under Alliant through the various ...
36
Will there be a posted pipeline of pending RFP releases?
No, the GWAC Program does not have this information. RFP releases are viewed by the GWAC Program at the same time the RFP is...
37
When does the 10 year POP start?
The GWAC Ordering Period is May 1, 2009.
38
Is the annual GWAC OMB report available to industry partners?
The annual GWAC OMB report is not available to industry partners. It is an internal document requirement to meeting our OMB ...
39
Section G.8 item "d" regarding the Subcontractor Summary Report (SSR) states, "The SSR report encompasses all Contracts with GSA and is submitted annually." Does "all Contracts with GSA" include non-Alliant contracts and BPAs? Or, does it mean Alliant delivery orders? If it includes all non-Alliant contracts, those are already reporting to their respective contractive officers. Why would Alliant want those reports?
A contractor would normally submit only one SSR to each agency via the e-SRS system. The principal exception to this rule occ...
40
The rate buildup, using the Alliant-provided spreadsheets in Section J Attachments 2 and 3, did not include an allowance for the Contract Access Fee (CAF). The contract states in Section B.5 that the OCO may require contractors to include CAF in their Loaded Hourly Labor rate on Labor Hour type orders. Will the contractors be allowed to increase their Loaded Hourly Labor rate to accommodate the CAF if needed?
Yes, the contractors will be allowed to increase their Loaded Hourly Labor rate to accommodate the Contract Access Fee. The ...
41
Section B.5. If a contract is cost plus incentive fee and if that fee is variable depending upon performance, how is the CAF determined at quote time, versus collected on invoices? Is it quoted on the cost only?
The Contract Access Fee is quoted for all CLINS including Incentive Fees. Actual Contract Access Fee payment amount is reflec...
42
Section B.5 refers the CAF cap to the Alliant website. What is the cap amount?
The CAF (Contract Access Fee) reimburses GSA for the cost of developing and operating its respective contract vehicles and en...
43
Section B.5 regarding the CAF cap. If a modification to an order means that the order+mod is over the cap, does the cap apply to the order+mod total? Or is each modification subject to a new cap based on its own individual amount? Is CAF Cap by government fiscal year or calendar year?
The cap on the Contract Access Fee is reset at the Order awarded anniversary (annual) and applies to the invoiced amounts.
44
Section B.5 regarding CAF cap. If an order option is exercised and funded, and if the original order+option exceeds the CAF cap, does the cap apply to the order+option total? Or, is each option subject to a new cap on its own total?
The cap on the Contract Access Fee is reset at the Order awarded anniversary (annual). If the estimated annual value of the ...
45
Section G.9.5 regarding changing CAF. If an order was funded under a CAF percent of 0.75% and the CAF changes, do all following invoices carry the old 0.75% fee? If not, then wouldn't the new fee affect order funding?
If and when the Contract Access Fee rate changes, the new rate is reset at the Order awarded anniversary (annual), preceding ...
46
Section G.9.5 regarding CAF changes. If an invoice carries labor hours from both the original order and from a modification, then if a CAF fee or CAF cap change applied to the modification alone, the CAF would not be a straight percentage of the order total. How will GSA check the correct amount of CAF from the CAF reimbursement reports of Section G.9.7?
47
Section G.9.5. If an order was quoted under a CAF of 0.75% and the CAF changes, would options be exercised at the old or new CAF rate?
48
Section G.9.5 and B.5 regarding CAF cap. If the CAF cap amount changes, then would the new cap only apply to new orders quoted after a certain date? How does it apply to new modifications to old orders? How does it apply to options of old orders when they are exercised.
49
Section B.5. Mod PA01 has removed the requirement to quote and invoice the CAF as a separate line item on an order. The clause has been modified to now allow the OCO to require the CAF as part of the rates. However, our T&M contract rates did not includ the CAF. Would contractors add the CAF percentage on top of the existing contract rates in a quote to a customer?
Yes, the T&M rates will need to have the Contract Access Fee amount included, if not cited as a separate CLIN. Either method ...
50
Section B.5 Mod PA01 allows for OCOs to require the CAF to be included in T&M rates. If the order contains a combination of T&M rates, equipment, travel and materials, the CAF must be calculated on all of them. Would the total CAF for the order be placed only on the labor rates in this case? Or would it be included in each line item quoted on the order?
The Contract Access Fee amount would be calculated for all items invoiced. For equipment, travel, and materials, the Contrac...
51
Section G.9.5 requires CAF payments within 45 days of collection. NASA SEWP collects the entire Agency Fee on the first invoice, eliminating multiple reports and payments as invoices occur from then on. It also reduces the complications introduced by a changing CAF and changing fee caps. This reduces both Government and contractor costs and reporting. Would that be possible for Alliant?
No. The Contract Access Fee is collected based on invoiced amount.
52
Section G.9.5 states that the GSA can change the CAF fee at any time, but does not address the CAF cap. Might the cap be changed as well?
The cap is subject to change and is calculated by the GWAC Program Office.
53
Section G.9.5 requires CAF payments within 45 days of collection. However, there is a CAF report required within 14 days of monetary transfer to GSA (G.9.7), and an invoice report (G.9.7), which also contains the CAF, within 60 days of submitting the invoice. Since the information about the CAF is essentially the same, can these reports be combined somehow so that there is just one periodic report at some time interval that covers all CAF activity?
No. The reporting is designed to occur at various intervals because they are separate activities.
54
Section G.9.5 requires contractors to pay the CAF through the Automated Clearing House (ACH) procedure. It also requires a report 14 days after payment. Doesn't the ACH record the payment, and if so, why would a separate report be necessary 14 days later? If the CAF report contains more data than the ACH collects, could the ACH be enhanced to collect that data?
The ACH may not capture specific Task Order projects being applied to the Contract Access Fee payment; therefore, it is neces...
55
Section G.9.7(c). The invoice does not have the customer order number on it. How will GSA track invoices without this?
Invoices inputted through the GWAC Management Module will be applied against existing orders populated in the GSA IT Solution...
56
Section G.9.7(d) item (1). Who or what provides the trace/voucher number?
The contractor will receive the trace/voucher number when paying the Contract Access Fee by EFT to the U.S. Treasury.
57
Alliant GWAC requires contractors to provide an Alliant web site that includes "a link to the contractor's CCR webpage". Strictly speaking, it appears a contractor can only provide a link to the main CCR page and the user will need to enter a contractor DUNS number into the CCR webpage in order to get to the contractor's webpage. Is a link to the main CCR webpage sufficient?
Yes, the link to the CCR is sufficient. The DUNS number must be posted to the Contractor's webpage for Alliant.
58
There appears to be a conflict between G.9.7 Deliverables and F.5 (c) as to when the invoicing report is due. G.9.7 says 60 days from performance acceptance and F.5 (c) says 60 calendar days from the date of the invoice is submitted for payment. Could you clarify which one is correct?
59
We completed a merger since our bid. From a branding perspective, does GSA care about company names/brand on website and marketing materials?
The company name should be posted on your webpage to match the name awarded under the SF26 award document. This reduces conf...
60
Dependent upon the type of work being performed in support of the integrated IT solution, and the OCO's Determination and Findings, is it possible to use an incrementally-funded Time & Materials order under the Alliant contract vehicle?
Yes, it is possible. There is nothing written in the Alliant contract that prohibits the use of incrementally-funded T&M orde...
61
Can GSA provide OCO services to a federal agency using the Alliant GWAC contract vehicle?
Yes. The GSA Assisted Services can provide support to federal agencies that lack their own organic contracting support. GSA ...
62
The Assisted Acquisition process is not mentioned in the body of the Alliant GWAC Contract, although it is noted in the Alliant GWAC Ordering Guide; is this because it is a service provided by GSA as the contract's administering organization vice being part of a contract itself?
Yes. Generally speaking, the contract is a communication/agreement directed more toward industry partners and government Cont...
63
If a federal agency in Norfolk, VA. elected to access the Alliant contract using Assisted Acquisition services, what GSA office would provide OCO support?
This is largely dependent upon the size and complexity of the requirement. A good starting point is to contact GSA's Office o...
64
What is projected to be the shortest possible and average ordering cycle time for an Alliant task order?
The process is dependent on the Ordering Contracting Officer. We cannot provide this answer nor have any Alliant Task Orders ...
65
Will GSA administer the Alliant contract using a centralized (most actions flow through the Alliant Program Office) or decentralized (most actions handled by a designated District or local GSA office) architecture?
The Orders are decentralized. The GWAC program office does not issue or manage Orders.
66
Does the Alliant contract have the flexibility to allow the addition/modification of subcontractor support following task order award?
The Basic contract has not approved any subcontractors. The OCO will review and approve, whenever necessary, any subcontracto...
67
Are there any restrictions regarding the use of subcontractors or vendors that are not Alliant primes?
Alliant has no restrictions. Review and approval are done by the OCO at the Order level. If you have questions, always ask ...
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