THE LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CONTRACTS AND LOGISTICS SERVICE 1701 BRIGHTSEAT ROAD LANDOVER, MD 20785--3799 December 21, 1998 RE: FEDLINK RFP #S-LC99015 The FEDLINK Serials Subscription Services Request for Proposal (RFP) for FY 2000, RFP #S-LC99015 is currently available for downloading at the following world-wide web address: lcweb.loc.gov/flicc. At the FLICC/FEDLINK homepage, click on "Contracting & Vendor Services" then click on "Procurement Opportunities for Vendors." The document is offered in WordPerfect 6.1 format. The RFP will not be mailed out. The closing date of the RFP is January 25, 1999. All proposals must be received by 12:00 P.M. EDT on January 25, 1999 to be considered for the FY2000 FEDLINK program. Vendors are responsible for ensuring that all amendments to RFP #S-LC99015 are received prior to submittal of the proposal. Please check the world-wide web address referenced above periodically for amendments or clarifications to RFP #S-LC99015. Detailed instructions on preparing your proposal are contained in Section L of the RFP. Please review this section carefully and submit your response accordingly. All prices submitted in response to this RFP must be keyed to the Contract Line Item Numbers (CLINs) displayed in Section B. Please read and follow all instructions and Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clauses regarding this RFP. Understanding and following all of the guidelines may greatly reduce the possibility of a delay of any award that may result from this RFP. The FAR clauses referenced in the RFP are provided in full text at www.arnet.gov/far. If you have any questions or difficulties regarding any aspect of the RFP, please immediately fax them to "FEDLINK RFP #S-LC99015" at (202) 707-0485 or e-mail at dbur@loc.gov. All questions or clarifications must be submitted prior to 12:00 P.M. EDT January 7, 1999. All proposals must be submitted to the address specified in Section L of the RFP. Enclose your entire proposal in one package with the outside of your mailing package identified with "Proposal to RFP #S-LC99015" to ensure proper handling. Joan M. McCoy Contracting Officer SOLICITATION, OFFER AND AWARD 1. Certified for National Defense under BDSA Reg 2 and/or DMS Reg. 1 RATING N/A PAGE A-1 OF 83 PAGES 2. CONTRACT NO. 3. SOLICITATION NO. S-LC99015 4. TYPE OF SOLICITATION Negotiated (RFP) 5. DATE ISSUED 6. REQUISITION/PURCHASE NO. 7. ISSUED BY The Library of Congress Contracts & Logistics Services 1701 Brightseat Road Landover, MD 20785-3799 8. ADDRESS OFFER TO (If other than Item 7) NOTE: In sealed bid solicitations, "Offer and offeror" mean "bid and bidder." SOLICITATION 9. Sealed offers in original and 3 copies for furnishing the supplies or services in the Scheduled will be received at the place specified in Item 8, or if hand carried, in the depository listed in block 7, until 12:01 p.m. local time1/25/99. CAUTION-LATE submissions, modifications, and withdrawals: See Section L, Provision No. 52.214-7 or 52.215-1. All offers are subject to all terms and conditions contained in this solicitation. 10. FOR INFORMATION CALL: A. NAME Deborah Burroughs B. TELEPHONE NO. (Include area code) (NO COLLECT CALLS) (202) 707-0460 (202) 707-0485 fax 11. TABLE OF CONTENTS (û) Section Description Page(s) Part I - The Schedule X A. Solicitation/contract form A 1-2 X B. Supplies or services and prices/costs B 1-4 X C. Description/specifications/work statement C 1-17 D. Packaging and marking X E. Inspection and acceptance E 1 X F. Deliveries or performance F 1-2 X G. Contract administration data G 1-14 X H. Special contract requirements H 1-3 Part II - Contract Clauses X I. Contract clauses I 1-7 Part III - List of Documents, Exhibits and Other Attachments X J. List attachments J 1-5 Part IV - Representations and Instructions X K. Representations, certifications and other statements of offerors K 1-12 X L. Instructions, conditions and notices to offerors L 1-8 M. Evaluation factors for award M 1-2 SOLICITATION, OFFER AND AWARD OFFER (Must be fully completed by offeror) NOTE: Item 12 does not apply if the solicitation includes the provisions at 52.214-16, Minimum Bid Acceptance Period. 12. In compliance with the above, the undersigned agrees, if this offer is accepted within ____ calendar days (90 calendar days unless a different period is inserted by the offeror) from the date for receipt of offers specified above, to furnish any or all items upon which prices are offered at the price set opposite each item, delivered at the designated point(s), within the time specified in the schedule. 13. DISCOUNT FOR PROMPT PAY (See Section I, Clause No. 52.232-8) 10 Calendar days ______ % 20 Calendar days ______ % 30 Calendar days _______ % ____ Calendar days ______ % 14. ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF AMENDMENTS (The offeror acknowledges receipt of amendments to the SOLICITATION for offerors and related documents numbered and dated: AMENDMENT NO. DATE AMENDMENT NO. DATE 15.A NAME AND ADDRESS OF OFFEROR 16. NAME AND TITLE OF PERSON AUTHORIZED TO SIGN OFFER Code: Facility: DUNS NUMBER ____________________ 15.B Telephone No. (Include Area Code) _____________________ 15.C [ ] Check if remittance address is different from above. Enter such address in schedule. 17. SIGNATURE 18. OFFER DATE: AWARD (To be completed by the Government) 19. ACCEPTED AS TO ITEMS NUMBERED 20. AMOUNT AWARDED 21. ACCOUNTING AND APPROPRIATION 22. AUTHORITY FOR USING OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION [ ] 10 U.S.C. 2304(c) ( ) [ ] 41 U.S.C. 253 (c)(0) 23. SUBMIT INVOICES TO ADDRESS SHOWN IN ITEM __________: (4 copies unless otherwise specified) 24. ADMINISTERED BY (If other than Item 7) 25. PAYMENT WILL BE MADE BY 26. NAME OF CONTRACTING OFFICER (type or print) 27. UNITED STATES OF AMERICA (Signature of Contracting Officer) 28. AWARD DATE IMPORTANT - Award will be made on this Form or on Standard Form 26, or by other authorized official written notice. ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________ _ EXCEPTION TO STANDARD FORM 33 (REV. 4/85) CONTINUATION SHEET REFERENCE NO. OF DOCUMENT BEING CONTINUED RFP #S-LC99015 PAGE of 4 NAME OF OFFEROR OR CONTRACTOR ITEM NO. SUPPLIES/SERVICES QUANTITY UNIT UNIT PRICE AMOUNT SECTION B - SUPPLIES OR SERVICES AND PRICES/COSTS Prices are firm and not subject to increase for the performance period of this basic ordering agreement (BOA). FEDLINK customers may sign basic software and database license agreements, however, inconsistencies will be resolved by order of precedence as stated in FAR 52.215-8. Standard contractor ordering forms are not applicable to FEDLINK users. Prices, services, terms and conditions found in catalogs or brochures do not apply to the extent that they modify or conflict with the prices, services, terms and conditions of this BOA. It is hereby certified that the prices provided herein do not include the provisions for the sale, lease, or rental of equipment. The services specified in Section B of this agreement are the only ones that will be provided during the performance period of the award. _____________________________________________ Signature of Certifying Officer 1001 1002 1003 1004 1005 1006 1007 1008 1009 1010 1134 1134 LOT 1 - BASIC ORDER AND RENEWAL SERVICES B.1. COST. B.1.1. Publisher's Price. Publisher's List Price must be identified in responses to requests for quotation (RFQs), invoices, and reports. Service fees will be computed and the total price of publisher's price plus service fee/discount will be given on quotes, invoices, reports, etc. As indicated in Section G.3.4, invoices shall reflect the publisher's price, fee, discount and final price. Both service fee and volume discount should be indicated separately. Contractors must bid CLIN 1001 to be considered. Firm Service Fee/Discount ______% B.1.2. Discount for Dollar Volume applicable to all orders including Optional Services. This discount shall also be available for any individual quotations requested. Value of Order A. $0 - $100,000 B. $100,001 - $200,000 C. $200,001 - $300,000 D. $300,001 - $500,000 E. $500,001 - $1,000,000 F. $1,000,000 and over 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 LOT 2 - OPTIONAL SERVICES Pricing Alternatives: Fixed Price Invoicing Cost Plus Flat Fee Per Title Average Price Index Report Journal Check-In Check-In Labels Missing Issues Electronic Data Exchange Additional Reports and Electronic Data 3001 3002 3003 3004 3005 3006 3007 LOT 3 - SPECIALIZED ELECTRONIC ACCESS SERVICES User Interfaces to Electronic Publications Management of Electronic Publication Subscriptions Licenses User Authorizations and Usage Data Customized Access or File Groupings for Individual or Consortium Customers Access to Articles and Other Portions of Individual Issues Rapid Delivery of Paper or Fax Documents as a Complement to Electronic Document Delivery SECTION C STATEMENT OF WORK C.1. INTRODUCTION C.1.1. Background of the FEDLINK Program. FEDLINK is a nationwide interagency cooperative contracting program sponsored by the Library of Congress (LC or the Library) through its Federal Library and Information Center Committee (FLICC). FEDLINK offers federal libraries, information centers and other federal activities information retrieval and library support services to help them fulfill their crucial mission of keeping the Government and the nation informed. Acting as a servicing agency under the Economy Act, 31 U.S.C. 1535-36, the Library uses its extensive knowledge of the information industry and library operations to establish contractual agreements for commercial library and information products, and then makes these agreements available to other federal offices. LC/FEDLINK contractual agreements are established through formal procurement processes that meet the requirements of the FAR. In FY98 federal offices bought more than $113 million in commercial off-the-shelf information services through FEDLINK. The program's agreements include: periodical subscription services, access to electronic databases and other publications, document delivery, acquisition of print materials from book wholesalers and publishers, cataloging and physical processing of library materials, and membership in bibliographic utilities (for cataloging, resource sharing, interlibrary loan, and reference services.) FEDLINK thus offers its 1,000 participating organizations "one stop shopping" for their information and library support requirements. Agencies with little experience with the information industry can take advantage of LC's expertise and save considerable time and expense in purchasing print and electronic publications and library services. LC/FEDLINK agreements are available to federal offices in the executive branch (including the armed forces), the legislative branch, the judicial branch, and independent agencies. In addition, contractors to government agencies who are authorized to use federal sources of supply are able to purchase through FEDLINK. Although the contracts meet the standards demanded by librarians and other information professionals, LC/FEDLINK users are not limited to libraries. Legal offices, laboratories and information centers, analysts, scientists and other end-users in federal agencies may acquire their electronic and print publications through FEDLINK. FEDLINK also provides fiscal support to members of the cooperative. When establishing an interagency agreement (IAG) with LC to use FEDLINK services, the member may choose to transfer funds to LC to pay invoices for services ordered through the IAG. Under this "transfer pay" option, the Vendor sends invoices to FEDLINK, where FEDLINK Fiscal Operations (FFO) staff examine them, pay the Vendor electronically, and send the member a statement of account with copies of the paid Vendor invoices. With transfer pay, the Vendor only has to deal with one government financial office and the member is relieved of the invoice processing workload. Alternately, members may choose a direct invoice/payment relationship with Vendors. Terms for the transfer pay or direct pay options, information on delivery orders and invoice procedures are described in Section G of this solicitation. C.1.2. Scope of Work. The Vendor shall furnish all qualified personnel, facilities, equipment, and supplies for the placement of new and renewal subscriptions to single or multiple addresses for domestic and foreign serials and periodicals published in paper and other formats, and for related services. Products and services purchased under this solicitation shall only be purchased for official Government use. The solicitation is divided into three lots. Vendors must qualify under Lot 1 in order to provide services under Lot 2 and/or Lot 3. The three lots are: (a) Lot 1 - Basic Subscription Order and Renewal Services. Basic order and renewal services include placing new and renewal orders for subscriptions to serial publications in all media and pre-paying publishers, providing administrative assistance in claiming and other routine areas of communication with publishers regarding serial publications, and providing management reports and related assistance in managing subscriptions. (b) Lot 2 - Optional Services. Optional services cover a range of serials subscription- related products and services which libraries may require in addition to basic order and renewal services described under Lot 1, for example checking in journal issues or providing serials data to load in the customer's local system. Vendors are not required to provide these services in order to qualify under the basic FEDLINK agreement; however, if a library requires one or more of the optional services, a Vendor that does not provide those services will not qualify for that single agency's procurement. (c) Lot 3 - Specialized Electronic Access Services. Under this solicitation, Vendors may offer, and libraries may procure, access to electronic publications and related systems for managing access to electronic subscriptions and articles. (Subscriptions to journals in electronic and all other formats are covered in Lot 1.) Because electronic publication of serials and access to them are in early stages of development and the market is therefore not yet stable, Vendors are not required to provide these services, and individual libraries or agencies may not base selection of a subscription agent on ability to provide specialized electronic access services. This solicitation does not include the following services or products: general or standard computer or telecommunications equipment; furniture or supplies; database development or implementation for customers; or personal services, such as on-site research staff. C.2. GENERAL REQUIREMENTS C.2.1. Subscription Services. The anticipated quantity of subscriptions to be ordered will vary between agencies. Approximately 85% of the total subscriptions placed by the agency will be renewal subscriptions. Vendor may specify pricing of services in its fee schedules to vary with volume of subscriptions placed by each agency. Vendors must demonstrate the ability to provide subscription services to all subscriptions generally available via agents from foreign and domestic publishers, assuming sufficient publication information can be supplied by the ordering agency. The Vendor must supply subscriptions to be eligible to bid on or supply any other services or supplies described herein. C.2.2. Subscription Prices. The Vendor shall be reimbursed for the lowest price available to the government for each subscription, plus a service charge to be expressed as a percentage of that price at order acceptance. The service charge shall be exacted for debt invoices only, and the Vendor shall provide prompt cancellation and return of all recovered funds without any additional administrative charges. C.2.3. Subscription Quantities. Under this agreement, the Government is not obligated to order, nor the Vendor to furnish, any products and services in any quantity except to the extent that may be agreed upon in connection with individual titles. C.2.4. Year 2000 Compliance. The Vendor shall provide information and demonstrate that it is undertaking steps to insure that products and services will be delivered in accordance with FAR 39.106. The Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) defines "Year 2000 Compliant" as: "With respect to information technology, that the information technology accurately processes date/time data including, but not limited to, calculating, comparing, and sequencing from, into, and between the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, and the years 1999 and 2000 and leap year calculations, to the extent that other information technology, used in combination with the information technology being acquired, properly exchanges date/time data with it." As stated again in Section L, responses to this solicitation must include information on the Vendor is undertaking Year 2000 Compliance. C.2.5. Licensing. Companies frequently have license agreements for their electronic publications and software products. Licenses may be for the subscription agent's proprietary products, or terms may be established by the publishers and passed through the agent to the library. FEDLINK contracting officers shall not sign license agreements for the products/services the members acquire through LC/FEDLINK BOAs. The products/services are used in the member agency and the licenses are signed and enforced by the member agency itself. This means that licenses shall be reviewed by the agency's attorneys, contracting officers, or other appropriate officials. Licenses that are ill-suited to federal customers are likely to have difficulty being approved. As a cooperative program, it is important to FEDLINK that members' local officials and Vendors are spared the need to negotiate the same license terms over and over again. Coming to a local understanding on a license agreement causes extra work for both the agency and the Vendor and usually causes delay in providing the service to end-users. It is important that all licenses associated with products/services available through FEDLINK be suitable for federal government customers. Therefore, for this procurement, FEDLINK plans to work closely with Vendors to negotiate the basic license in Section J that may become part of the contract. Subscription agents who negotiate licenses with publishers on behalf of federal libaries may refer to the license for guidance on terms that are acceptable to the Government. Any inconsistencies between this BOA and the Vendor's license terms shall be resolved by order of precedence as stated in FAR 52.215-8. Licenses presented when users logon to a system that instruct the user to "Click here to accept" or otherwise interactively agree to a standard non- FEDLINK license, do not supersede the terms of this agreement and the FEDLINK-specific licenses incorporated herein. (a) Basic License. To make the license approval process easier for both Vendors and federal agencies, FEDLINK has worked with the Library of Congress Office of General Counsel (OGC) to develop a basic license agreement that meets federal requirements and serves the needs of federal libraries while still respecting the Vendor's interests. Counsel and FEDLINK program staff developed the baisc license by reviewing existing commercial licenses for electronic database and publication services and by talking with the Vendors and with the federal librarians. Some of the considerations that went into the development of the license and that will be relevant to LC/FEDLINK negotiations are described more fully below. The basic license is included as Attachment 1 in Section J of this RFP. The Vendor is not required to adopt this license in its entirety, but its terms may serve as the basis for LC/FEDLINK's analysis and negotiation of licenses offered by the Vendor. The Vendor may, of course, choose to accept the basic license and use it with FEDLINK customers. At the very least, it is hoped that the basic license will provide the Vendor with language that is likely to be acceptable to federal agency users and counsel (regarding treatment of the FAR or payment and interest, for example.) Instructions for addressing the license in response to this RFP are included in Section L. (b) Local Negotiations. Customers and Vendors remain free to negotiate licenses separately. Such individual licenses shall only pertain to the customer for whom they were negotiated. Upon request, FEDLINK shall assist Vendors and FEDLINK customers in negotiating licenses to be applied in their local environments. The Vendor shall furnish C&L with a copy of all licenses negotiated with customers that differ from the licenses submitted with the Vendor's proposal under this RFP. (c) License Considerations. Working with members, FEDLINK has identified common commercial license terms that are likely to be unacceptable to local officials and terms that are impractical for federal agencies to implement. In all cases members need licenses that are clear, easy to understand and easy to apply. To this end, FEDLINK license negotiations shall focus on the three areas described below. (1) "Legal Terms." The first area of concern involves terms that make legal commitments about how the license shall be administered or how disputes over use of the product shall be resolved. Because such terms may easily conflict with federal statutes and FAR clauses, they are scrutinized closely by local officials and are likely to be problematic. For example, agreements which subject the Government to indefinite or potentially unlimited liability contravene the Anti-Deficiency Act. Other examples from these "legal terms" categories include: entire agreement clauses, methods of amending the license, automatic subscription renewal, prompt payment requirements, payment of taxes, contract termination, refunds, choice of law, and indemnification. FEDLINK requests that Vendors adapt their commercial licenses for FEDLINK customers by modifying the relevant clauses, by including a special section for the federal market, or by prefacing the license with language such as the following: All of the terms and conditions set forth below are governed by the language of the following FAR clauses: FAR 52.227-19, Commercial Computer Software--Restricted Rights; FAR 52.233-1, Disputes; FAR 52.249-2, Termination for the Convenience of the Government (Fixed-Price); FAR 52.249-8, Default (Fixed-Price Supply and Service). In the event any language in the terms and conditions of this license conflict with the governing FAR clauses or other federal law, the FAR clauses and federal law take precedence. (2) "Library Terms." The second focus area, "library terms," involves terms that control how the customer is allowed to access and use the product. From the Vendors, members hope for flexible terms that do not impose a heavy burden in managing or monitoring the way the product or service is used. The basic library terms members are concerned about and their preferred approaches and/or general requirements are described below. Other issues may also be negotiated, as necessary. (i) Prohibiting installation on networks. Areas of concern include: requiring that single-user products be installed on standalone workstations, prohibiting installations on wide area networks, and prohibiting dial-up access by authorized users. The modern federal library/information center needs to be able to deliver electronic publications to its agency customers through agency networks. (ii) Tying access to physical characteristics of the organization or the library. Areas of concern include: restricting access to a particular building or "site," and limiting access to particular workstation or IP addresses. Federal offices within the same organization are frequently spread across different physical facilities. Agencies' centralized telecommunications facilities often do not provide for workstation-specific connections to external systems. Access schemes based on Internet domains or other ways of defining the customer organization as a whole are preferable to schemes tied to physical factors. (iii) Calculating the number of users. Figuring the user base according to the total staffing of the agency, total users of an agency's network, or the total possible number of library patrons tends to overstate the actual use of the publication. Similarly, tying the user base calculation to the number of print or standalone CD-ROM subscriptions maintained doesn't fairly represent the way the agency shall use the electronic publication. Most libraries can fairly project how many people within the library's customer base are likely to use the particular electronic publication. Libraries can figure the number of users likely to be logged onto a product at the same time (variously called "simultaneous" or "concurrent" users). For CD-ROM systems, many members have installed metering software that can limit the number of users to the number specified in the license; online systems can also block access by excess users. Reporting would allow the library to track demand levels. (iv) Redistribution. Prohibiting access for contractors or other individuals associated with the agency, and prohibiting redistribution of search results within the customer base is a problem. Individuals legitimately associated with the agency must be able to use the information resources the agency intends to provide for them. Members agree that all usage within the defined customer base shall be consistent with the copyright doctrine of fair use. (3) Pricing Terms. The third area for negotiation involves terms that relate directly to how the product is priced. Members recognize that it is difficult to measure the potential "circulation" of an electronic publication, the support it requires, and the impact it has on its print counterpart. Nevertheless, price is a very important factor in a federal library's decision whether to add a particular electronic resource to the agency's collection. Pricing structures must be clear. C.2.6. Definitions. The definitions below apply to terms in this agreement. (a) Publisher Price. The term "publisher price," as used in this agreement, means the established publisher list price for the given subscription period at the time of order acceptance by the publisher and is accepted to be the lowest price offered to he type of client placing the order. (b) Subscription. The term "subscription," as used in this agreement, means a serial or periodical publication and related services. It also shall designate back issues of serials or periodical publications, but such issues shall be dated no earlier than one year before the current volume. The agency determines the subscription period, publisher permitting, and the Vendor must place and service it for the life of the subscription plus three months. (c) Vendor. Organization providing serial subscription services to Agencies, also known as a "serials subscription agent," "subscription agent" or serials agent". (d) Agency. Any U.S. Government library, information center or U.S. Government entity that qualifies for service with FEDLINK. (e) Consignee. Location to which items are shipped. C.3. LOT 1 - BASIC SUBSCRIPTION ORDER AND RENEWAL SERVICES. The following basic subscription order and renewal services are required, as described below. C.3.1. General Terms. New and renewal subscriptions shall be placed for domestic and foreign serial publications in all media, and other related services, at publisher price plus agency service charge, and guarantee shall be made of delivery on each subscription. (a) Subscription Periods. (1) Order Placement. Publisher permitting, Vendor will be required to place subscriptions at any time during the year, and to assist in prorating for common expiration date, as required by individual agencies. (2) Multi-Year Subscriptions. Because the requirements of each ordering office vary greatly, the Vendor must be able to provide one-, two-, or three-year subscriptions to take advantage of reduced multi-year rates (when available), as well as to offer staggered ordering of multi-year subscriptions for budgetary purposes. (3) Servicing the Subscription. The Vendor shall provide administrative and other such services for each subscription placed until three months after its expiration, i.e. the publication of the last issue covered by that subscription period. (b) Pre-Order Price Quotations. (1) Subscription List for Quotation Purposes. In the first instance of an agency requesting subscription services under this agreement, the Agency is responsible for providing a representative list of subscriptions to be ordered or renewed, and the associated "ship to" addresses. Requirements for Vendor assistance in providing current customers a list for new competitions are described in Library Management Reports, section on Claims Lists. (2) Requests for Quotation (RFQs). The Vendor will supply price quotations for new and renewal titles for the purposes of pre-order competition, as described in G.3.2. Vendors are not required to respond to each requets for quotation (RFQ) received under this agreement. Prices quoted will be based on the publisher price at the time of the quote. Estimates for "bill later" items will be included. Service fee percent and volume discounts will be binding as quoted. It is understood that publishers prices quoted may change before firm orders are placed, invoiced, or published. (3) Changes to Title List. Changes made in title mix after the quote is accepted which would affect the Vendor's service fee would require the titles to undergo pre-order competition again. (4) Option Periods. In years following the Agency's RFQ under this agreement, the Agency may exercise an option to renew services with its current Vendor(s), assuming the Library of Congress renews the underlying basic ordering agreement agreement. See Section G for further discussion of options years. (c) Initial Service Year. Unless the Agency waives the option, prior to placing the initial order the Vendor shall organize and format the list used for the pre-order price quotation into a final annual renewal list and forward it to the agency for review, as described in "Subscription Ordering Support Services," below. If the Agency does not waive this option, and the Vendor fails to obtain clarification from the Agency regarding the title list, so that the Vendor places orders based on the list submitted for competition purposes, the Agency retains the right to cancel titles ordered against their intentions and, in this instance, will not be responsible for charges the publisher will not refund to the Vendor. (d) Option Years. In subsequent, i.e. option, years, renewal order placement shall be performed in accordance with one of the following order techniques: (1) Basic Renewal Service - whereby prior to expiration, a solicitation to renew the complete list of previously ordered subscriptions is required by a mutually agreed upon date. The annual renewal listing shall be provided by the Vendor to the Agency, as described in Section C.3.1.(c)(1) The agency will make additions, deletions, corrections, etc., to the list and will return it to the Vendor as an indication to renew. Upon receipt of authorization to proceed from a contracting officer, as described in G.3.1. and G.4.1., and receipt of the corrected annual renewal listing, the Vendor will place the orders/renewals within five working days. If the list is not returned, subscriptions on the list will not be renewed. Basic Renewal Service is the default method under this agreement. (2) Until Cancel Renewal Service - provides for continued renewal of subscriptions without further action outside the delivery order/purchase order process, once the subscription is initially placed. Under "until cancel" service, the Vendor shall automatically generate orders for the Agency, until notified to the contrary, upon receipt of the authorization from the contracting officer, as long as orders do not exceed the amount authorized on the contracting document (e.g., delivery order). The Agency shall have the option of determining the date of each invoice and of the receipt of that invoice, at its convenience. Individual agency requirements under this order technique shall be specified in the RFQ. C.3.2. Basic Order Requirements. (a) Changes from Agency Order to Vendor Order. For basic renewal and "until cancel" orders originally placed by the Agency and transferred to the Vendor for renewal, the Vendor shall notify the publisher in writing of the change of billing status. (b) Order Placement. The Vendor shall place all new and renewal orders with publishers within five working days after receipt of authorization to order, or receipt of the (reviewed) title list if it is received after authorization to order. Exceptions are allowed only by written prior mutual agreement between the customer and Vendor; or, for subsets of titles within a renewal list, based on authorized previously established agreements between the Vendor and publishers regarding the batch processing of orders and payments. In the latter case, orders must be entered and confirmed within the original five day period. A list of such Vendor/publisher agreements should be submitted (subject to confidentiality terms) with the proposal to FEDLINK, and the Library of Congress reserves the right to request proof of newly negotiated agreements during the term of this agreement. (c) Use of RFQ Title List. In instances where the Vendor is in possession of a title list used in the RFQ process, orders shall not be placed using this list unless the customer Agency specifically instructs the Vendor to proceed based on the RFQ list. Instead, the Vendor will supply customer Agency complete listings of titles to be ordered, with order confirmation and placement proceeding as described below. As noted above, if the Vendor fails to obtain clarification from the customer Agency regarding the title list, so that the Vendor orders based on the list submitted for competition purposes, the Agency retains the right to cancel titles ordered against its intentions and, in this instance, will not be held liable for charges the publishers will not refund to the Vendor. (d) Monthly Status Report. In cases where follow up is required by the Vendor before an order can be placed, the Vendor shall furnish a monthly report regarding the status of each title. (e) Unavailable Titles. In cases where publications are available through a direct order arrangement only, are discontinued, are suspended, have changed title, or have otherwise become unavailable, the Vendor shall so notify the Agency no later than at the time of invoicing. (f) Costs In Excess of Authorized Funding Level. In cases where the cost of the titles on the renewal list would, when the order is submitted to the publisher, exceed the authorized funding level, the Vendor must notify the agency within three working days of discovery. The customer Agency may, at this point, request information on publishers' price changes and availability for all of those titles which have changed since the original quotation. Once the Agency instructs the Vendor to remove or substitute certain titles to accommodate the funding level, the Vendor must place orders within five working days. The Agency may choose whether, in cases where funding levels would be exceeded, the Vendor automatically continues with placing orders for all titles except those rejected by the publisher or otherwise found to exceed the authorized funding level, or halts the order process and returns to the Agency for instructions for all titles not yet ordered. Clarification of this process should be accomplished by the RFQ process, based on customers' specifications, or after selection of Vendor before order processes begin. Exceptions are allowed with prior written agreement between the customer Agency and the Vendor, e.g. via the RFQ process. (g) Payment to Publishers. (1) Advance Payment. The Vendor shall pay all regular subscription orders in advance, prior to submission of first invoice. Requests for exceptions due to prior arrangements with publishers must be submitted to LC C&L in advance. (2) Adjustments. The Vendor shall make additional payments as necessary and be required to adjust for unforeseen contingencies, such as currency fluctuations, additional volumes, etc., as specified below. (h) Records. The Vendor shall maintain complete records of all bibliographic and financial transactions of each agency for up to three years. The Vendor shall provide to the Agency immediate access to these records on demand. C.3.3. Subscription Ordering Support Services. In support of basic order and renewal services, the Vendor shall perform the following services and provide products as described below. (a) Initializing Subscription Service. Once award is made after pre-order competition, the subscription renewal and order list shall be formatted by the Vendor for review by the Agency, unless the Agency specifically waives the option. (1) Initial Title List. The Agency will forward to the Vendor (perhaps as part of the RFQ process) a complete list of subscription titles to be ordered or renewed. The Vendor shall organize the list into the format of an annual renewal listing, as specified below. The Vendor shall forward two copies of the renewal list to the Agency within calendar twenty days of (i) receipt of authorization to order in the initial year, or (ii) receipt of the initial list in subsequent years. (2) Confirmation List. The Agency will review the renewal list, make necessary changes, and return it to the Vendor. The Vendor shall reformat the renewal list, incorporating all changes, additions, and deletions, into a final confirmation list, and submit the confirmation list to the Agency for its final approval. (3) Final List. The Agency will review the confirmation list for accuracy, make any editing or other changes, and forward the confirmation list to the Vendor as the final title list. The Agency may elect to waive the final confirmation list review, i.e. the second review. (4) Order Placement. The Vendor shall place renewals with the publishers within five working days of receiving the final list or authorization to order from a contracting officer, whichever is later. (b) Subscription Title Lists. The Vendor shall be able to provide a review list as described below, in paper and in electronic format, at a minimum in an ASCII comma delimited file. The Agency may choose to receive either or both formats, paper or electronic. The Vendor may propose other formats which the Agency may, at its discretion, choose instead, e.g. word processing files or other formats ready for proprietary software. (1) Paper List. Paper copies of the renewal lists shall be on separate pages for each "ship to" address, shall alphabetically list all subscription titles ordered or on record for that consignee, unless the Agency request other sorts or formats. (2) Minimum Information. Renewal lists shall contain the following minimum information: Complete "Bill to" and "Ship to" address Account number chargeable Title Quantity Subscription Period based on Agency Data New, Renewal, Subscription added or Transfer Renewal Price: To contain latest known publishers' rates currently available Service charge Frequency Bibliographic status of those titles currently under review for renewal All additional titles which may not be due for renewal, but which are on record for a specific consignee Renewal documents; to contain an 80 character capacity local information field or fields for the storing of unique data for each title (e.g. internal fund accounting, subject identification, Agency assigned numbers, etc.) (c) Ongoing Subscription Services. In addition to renewal listings, subscription services encompass items ordered throughout the year. Such subscription order requests shall be submitted by Agency authorized persons and forwarded to the Vendor for placement with the publisher for the subscription period indicated, subject to the terms of this agreement and individual customer fees and terms as established in the RFQ process. Ongoing subscription services shall include the following: (1) New Subscriptions. (2) Renewals. (3) Late Renewals. (4) Back Issues. (5) Transfer Renewals. (6) Added Copy Subscriptions. (7) Special Orders. (8) Memberships. (9) Claiming. (d) Order information required. Each completed order will contain the following information: (1) "Bill to" and "ship to" address (2) Account number chargeable (including FEDLINK ID and IAG number for transfer pay accounts) (3) Purchase order number (if applicable) (4) Title (5) Quantity (6) Subscription period based on agency data (7) Type of services, i.e., new subscription, late renewal, transfer renewal, added copy or subscription, etc. (8) ISSN (e) Additional materials. (1) Not Included in the Basic Subscription Price. As the Vendor is responsible for providing all material published within a given subscription year, the Vendor shall notify each subscriber of special issues, indexes, and unnumbered supplements not included in the basic subscription price. These items shall be made available to the subscribers by special order under this contract at the publisher's price and firm fixed service fee percent, with no additional charges, other than any handling and transportation costs charged to the Vendor by the publisher. (2) No Charge Materials. Title pages, table of contents, annual or other indexes, and other materials normally supplied by the publisher at no added charge to a requesting subscriber, are to be supplied automatically by the Vendor at no additional charge. (f) Continuations or "Bill Later" Items. Initial pre-order price quotes will contain estimates of costs for "bill later" items. In subsequent years, estimates of such continuations will be included on renewal lists to ensure funding availability is maintained. After "bill later" titles have been invoiced, the Vendor shall supply, upon request and at no charge, a listing by title showing titles billed versus those not yet billed. (g) Rush Orders. Upon receipt of a telephone call, email or fax requesting a rush order, the Vendor shall transmit the order to the publisher within 24 hours, by telephone or comparably rapid method. If the publisher will not accept the order without prior payment, the Vendor shall send out such payment within that same 24 hour period. (h) Catalog. Vendor shall provide an annual catalog of titles available. The catalog may be print or made available electronically, e.g. via Internet, at no additional charge to the Agency. The Agency retains the right to request paper copies of catalog information for cataloged titles of particular interest. The catalogs shall have as a minimum the following information: (1) Titles (2) ISSN (3) Cost (4) Frequency (5) Enumeration (6) Title changes, with cross references (7) Documented constraints (i) Publishers' Prices. The Vendor shall supply on demand publishers invoices or other documentation acceptable to the Agency to verify subscription costs charged the government. C.3.4. Administrative Services. The Vendor shall provide the following administrative services to support subscription ordering services: (a) Personal Representative. At no additional cost, the Vendor shall assign a representative by name to provide personalized in-house assistance (via telephone) for each account. (b) Claims for Missing, Defective or Mutilated Issues. The Vendor shall act as the contact point for the Agency in obtaining from the publisher replacement copies of periodicals found to be defective, mutilated, lost in transit, or otherwise missing, provided the loss is reported within sixty calendar days. The Vendor shall handle claims for any subscription for up to three months after the termination date of the subscription. (1) Claim Forms. The Vendor shall supply the Agency and "ship-to" address with claim forms for missing issues to be used for follow-up. Vendor will indicate if claim forms other than Vendor's own are acceptable. Forms may be submitted via mail or fax. (2) Electronic Claims. As an alternative to paper-based forms, the Vendor may offer electronic claims services. The Agency retains the right to choose whether to use paper-based claims and reports, or to communicate via optional electronic means offered by the Vendor, or a mixture, e.g. transmitting claims to the Vendor electronically with periodic paper reports for confirmation. (3) Timeframe. The Vendor shall place all claims with the publisher within a minimum of five working days after receipt. In addition, the Vendor shall accept rush claims by telephone and fax and process them in fewer than five days. (4) Claim Information. The claim notice sent from the Vendor to the publisher shall include the following information: (1) Title being claimed (2) Specific issues (3) Date of Vendor's order to publisher (4) Order period (5) Amount paid (6) Proof of payment (7) Change of address, if any (5) Claim List. A list of claims which have been made shall be furnished as indicated under Claims Lists, in Management Reports, below. (c) Refunds. (1) For Lost Periodicals, Replacements, and Discontinuance of Publication. In the case where replacement is unavailable and refunds are offered instead, the Vendor shall make a refund in full of all amounts refunded by the publishers. (2) Due to Cancellation. In those instances in which a refund has been requested due to timely cancellation of a subscription, the Vendor shall provide written evidence of his attempts to secure the refund for the Government. (d) Duplicate Issues. At the request of the Agency, the Vendor shall deal directly with the publisher in correcting duplicate issue errors. (e) Addresses. (1) Bill to and Ship to Addresses. Consignee addresses shall have the capacity for up to five (5) lines for each type of address, with each line up to 30 characters. (2) Change of Address. The Vendor shall notify the publisher when consignee changes of address occur. (f) Account Management. The Vendor shall provide support to the customer Agency in tracking funds obligated against the authorized funding level. The Vendor shall provide best estimates of possible outstanding supplemental and bill-later charges, to ensure funding authorization levels will not be exceeded. The Agency may requrest a report of estimated outstanding charges prior to the end of the fiscal year. The Agency may instruct the Vendor to cancel outstanding orders, publisher permitting, to clear obligations agains prior fiscal years, or to clear funds for reobligation within the current fiscal year. The Vendor shall be responsible for ensuring that all orders are completed and invoices issued within three years of the fiscal year in which the order or renewal is placed. The Vendor shall cooperate with both FEDLINK for Transfer Pay Agencies and Direct Pay Agencies in account reconciliation. The Vendor shall report foreign and domestic pricing trends at least annually. The Vendor shall, at the customer Agency's request, provide renewal lists which indicate expected inflation and price increase estimates for the Agency's renewal list. (g) Membership Entitlements. The Vendor shall provide a written summary of all publications and/or material received through memberships, i.e., title, frequency, quantity of each publication, and special membership benefits. (h) Sample Copies. The Vendor shall request sample copies of a serial when requested to do so by the Agency. (i) Back Issues. Upon request from the Agency, the Vendor shall acquire back issues of a title for up to one year prior to the date of the current volume. (j) Information Bulletins. The Vendor shall provide, at no cost and at least quarterly, an information bulletin updating the latest known information on various serial titles. C.3.5. Library Management Reports. (a) Specifications. At no additional charge and on demand, the Vendor shall provide listings containing all or part of the following information as specified by the Agency: (1) Title (2) Ship-to address (3) Invoice-item number (4) FEDLINK ID and IAG number (5) Subscription period (6) Quantity (7) Frequency (8) Price with adjustments and estimates (9) Volume (10) ISSN (11) Local information lines: These reports shall be able to capture the stored local information category, (i.e., internal fund accounting, subject identification, agency assigned number, etc.) in fields which equal a minimum of 100 characters on the report. At least one field shall be provided for local financial data which can also appear on invoices; at least one which can be associated with each ship to address; one or more fields with a total of at least 80 characters which can be associated with each title. (b) Sorting. In addition, the Vendor will have the capability of sorting, subtotaling, and retotaling the reports by any of the above included fields of information, and shall allow for the application of a service charge determined by the requested sort criteria. (c) Medium. The Vendor shall provide reports in paper and, at a minimum, electronically in ASCII comma delimited format. The customer Agency retains the right to choose which format to receive. The Vendor may offer other electronic formats, including but not limited to files containing report data, or access to data and programs for producing reports from Vendor systems. (d) Minimum Required Reports. At a minimum, the Vendor shall be able to provide the following reports at no charge: (1) Financial Summary Report. The Vendor shall provide a listing on demand by Government fiscal year of all Vendor instigated credit or debit invoices to the Agencies for services provided. This report shall include invoice number, dollar amount, and service charge amount. (2) Claims Lists. The Vendor shall provide to the Agency an annual, quarterly, or more frequent listing of all outstanding claims and any responses received from the publishers unless the Agency waives this service. If an additional claim is required for an item appearing on the report, the report itself may be used as a reclamation document by the Agency. (3) Subscription Status Information. Monthly, or upon demand, the Vendor shall notify the Agency in writing of any irregularity or change in status, such as: bill later, noncancellable, slow, irregular, discontinued, order direct, split title, not due for renewal at this time, period restricted, establishing contact with publisher, temporarily suspended publication, foreign title, estimated price, and price increased since last billing published price, etc. (4) Ship-to List. The Vendor shall provide, on demand, a listing of all Agency consignees and their complete addresses. (5) RFQ List. On demand, the Vendor shall provide a list of current subscriptions to be used for requests for quotations. The list shall contain information as described above, exclusing Price. The report shall be available in paper and in electronic format, at a minimum as an ASCII comma delimited file on diskette. (6) Courtesy Invoice Data. The Vendor shall supply the customer Agency with, at a minimum, one additional copy of invoices or electronic invoice data to a point of contact in addition to the copy sent to the financial center for payment, e.g. to the customer library in addition to the FEDLINK or Agency Fiscal Office. (e) Additional Reports. Additional Reports and Electronic data shall be made available under Lot 2, Optional Services. Examples of such reports/data include but are not limited to electronic files of catalog data in MARC format, local or consortial holdings data, data related to usage of electronic services. C.4. LOT 2 - Optional Services. Customers may require and Vendors may offer the following: C.4.1. Pricing Alternatives. (a) Fixed Price Invoicing. The Vendor shall offer a fixed price for any given subscription or list of subscriptions and shall invoice at that price regardless of publisher action. The fixed price may be offered as a percent on the publisher price and/or a flat fee per title. (b) Cost Plus Flat Fee Per Title. The Vendor shall offer a flat fee per title added to the Vendor's cost for the title, including discounts received by the Vendor from the publisher. C.4.2. Average Price Index Report. The Vendor shall provide an average price index report to each Agency covering a three year period for all subscriptions. On demand, this report shall be arranged for each consignee by ship-to address and alphabetically by title or by subject identification. All price data shall be accessed directly from each ship-to file. C.4.3. Journal Check-In. Each ship-to address has the option to have subscriptions sent to the Vendor for check-in, physical inspection, or other services, and then reshipped to the consignee. Vendor shall provide a description of check-in services offered and make the description available on demand to potential customer Agencies under this agreement. Customers shall specify check-in requirements for individual ship-to addresses, in addition to the recording of receipt, such as number of ship-to addresses; physical inspection; reshipment; claiming; security tapes; bar coding; property stamps; packing slips; route slips; special packaging, labeling or other processing requirements; check-in reports or data; preference regarding local check-in system. C.4.4. Check-in Labels. The Vendor shall provide, on demand, a listing containing title, publisher address, payment information, quantity, frequency, and period required for claims information. This information shall be available, on non setting adhesive labels, for integration into the Agency's kardex file. C.4.5. Missing Issues. The Vendor shall provide missing issues from a storehouse of collected issues, or access to information about available issues to replace those the Agency is missing. Individual Agency requirements shall specify if fulfillment of a large number of missing issues is anticipated. C.4.6. Electronic Data Exchange. The Vendor shall describe data available and methods for exchanging data electronically system to system, or in files ready for use by proprietary software. Individual Agency requirements shall provide local system specifications. C.4.7. Additional Reports and Electronic Data. The Vendor shall provide descriptions of additional routinely available paper and electronic reports and reporting systems (if any), that have not already been included in Lot 1 or Electronic Data Exchange (C.3.2.). Examples might include but are not limited to electronic files of catalog data in MARC format, local or consortial holdings data, or data related to usage of electronic services. Descriptions should include medium or access method, and any related data specifications and system requirements. C.5. LOT 3 - Specialized Electronic Access Services. Vendors that offer subscription services under Lot 1 may also offer access to electronic journals and articles, and other software and interfaces to manage access, collection development or control of electronic text. (Online and CD electronic journal subscriptions are covered under Lot 1 as are subscriptions to serials in print, microform and other media.) At this time, selection of an agent for serials subscriptions may not be based solely on criteria in Lot 3, due to the changing and unpredictable nature of the burgeoning electronic publishing industry. Customers are likely to need access to multiple sources of electronic text in order to obtain optimum coverage of electronic collections, and may need to change providers as text coverage and interface options change. Services offered under Lot 3 may include access to electronic files mounted by the Vendor or by third parties (e.g., the publishers); user interfaces to electronic publications; management of electronic publication subscriptions, licenses, user authorizations and usage data; customized access or file groupings for individual or consortium customers; access to articles and other portions of individual issues; and rapid delivery of paper or fax documents as a complement to electronic document delivery. Pricing formulas should be predefined where possible. Fair and reasonable customer specific offerings may be negotiated on an individual basis by LC C&L, either for individual agencies or for consortia. Lot 3 covers only electronic publications access and management. FEDLINK agreements for Information Retrieval Services cover offerings by companies providing access to electronic data that do not offer general subscription services to a wide range of serial publications in paper and other media. SECTION E INSPECTION AND ACCEPTANCE E.1. NOTICE LISTING CONTRACT CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE NOTICE: The following solicitation provisions and/or contract clauses pertinent to this Section are hereby incorporated by reference: FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION (48 CFR CHAPTER 1) 52.246-2 INSPECTION OF SUPPLIES - FIXED PRICE (AUG 1996) 52.246-4 INSPECTION OF SERVICES - FIXED PRICE (AUG 1996) SECTION F DELIVERIES OR PERFORMANCE F.1. TERMS OF BASIC ORDERING AGREEMENT (BOA). The period of performance of this Basic Ordering Agreement shall be October 1, 1999 through September 30, 2000. F.2. OPTION TO EXTEND THE TERM OF THE BOA. The Vendor grants the Library the right to exercise the option to extend the terms of the Basic Ordering Agreement for four (4) one-year periods with the mutual consent of the Vendor as may be in the Library's best interest. The Library shall give the Vendor a preliminary written notice of its intent to extend at least 60 days before the BOA expires. If the Library exercises this option, the extended BOA shall be considered to include this option provision. The total duration of this BOA, including the exercise of any options under this clause, shall not exceed five (5) years. All option year pricing will be negotiated. F.3. PLACE OF DELIVERY. The place of delivery is F.O.B. destination in accordance with FAR 52.247-34. F.4. (FAR 52.242-15) STOP-WORK ORDER. (AUG 1989) (a) The Contracting Officer may, at any time, by written order to the Contractor, require the Contractor to stop all, or any part, of the work called for by this contract for a period of 90 days after the order is delivered to the Contractor, and for any further period to which the parties may agree. The order shall be specifically identified as a stop-work order issued under this clause. Upon receipt of the order, the Contractor shall immediately comply with its terms and take all reasonable steps to minimize the incurrence of costs allocable to the work covered by the order during the period of work stoppage. Within a period of 90 days after a stop-work order is delivered to the Contractor, or within any extension of that period to which the parties shall have agreed, the Contracting Officer shall either: (1) Cancel the stop-work order; or (2) Terminate the work covered by the order as provided in the Default, or the Termination for Convenience of the Government, clause of this contract. (b) If a stop-work order issued under this clause is canceled or the period of the order or any extension thereof expires, the Contractor shall resume work. The Contracting Officer shall make an equitable adjustment in the delivery schedule or contract price, or both, and the contract shall be modified, in writing, accordingly, if - (1) The stop-work order results in an increase in the time required for, or in the Contractor's cost properly allocable to, the performance of any part of this contract; and, (2) The Contractor asserts its right to the adjustment within 30 days after the end of the period of work stoppage; provided, that, if the Contracting Officer decides the facts justify the action, the Contracting Officer may receive and act upon a proposal submitted at any time before final payment under this contract. (c) If a stop-work order is not canceled and the work covered by the order is terminated for the convenience of the Government, the Contracting Officer shall allow reasonable costs resulting from the stop-work order in arriving at the termination settlement. (d) If a stop-work order is not canceled and the work covered by the order is terminated for default, the Contracting Officer shall allow, by equitable adjustment or otherwise, reasonable costs resulting from the stop-work order. SECTION G CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION DATA The following abbreviations and acronyms are used in this section and in working with FEDLINK to administer LC/FEDLINK agreements: BOA Basic Ordering Agreement FSD LC Financial Services Directorate C&L LC Contracts & Logistics FY Fiscal Year CBD Commerce Business Daily IAG Interagency Agreement COTR Contract Officer's Technical LC Library of Congress Representative NTE Not to Exceed DO Delivery Order (transfer pay) PO Purchase Order (direct pay) FAR Federal Acquisition Regulation RFQ Request for Quotes FNO FEDLINK Network Operations G.1. LC/FEDLINK BASIC ORDERING AGREEMENTS. G.1.1. Basic Ordering Agreements. The contractual vehicle issued as a result of this solicitation shall be a Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) pursuant to FAR 16.7 The BOA is a result of a public advertisement to solicit Vendors to provide serials subscription services necessary for the members in the FEDLINK program BOAs are negotiated to achieve the lowest possible price and most favorable terms and conditions using the procedures followed by the Library of Congress. Vendor sales volume is considered to be an important element to achieve maximum discounts in each BOA. G.1.2. Modification Instructions. (a) Addition of Services and/or Changes to BOA. For the life of the BOA, the Vendor shall offer no services other than those specified in this BOA unless specific application is made to LC C&L to modify this BOA to incorporate additional services and/or changes. Any new services or changes which are approved by the LC Contracting Officer shall be officially added to the BOA by modification. Submit requests for approval to modify the BOA to: The Library of Congress Contracts & Logistics Services Attn: FEDLINK 1701 Brightseat Road Landover, MD 20785-3799 (b) Constant Pricing and Discount. The Vendor shall maintain constant pricing and discount schedules under this BOA for the period from date of award through September 30 of each fiscal year. G.1.3. Correspondence with FEDLINK Members. Any Vendor correspondence, announcements, notification of offering, etc. that reference services offered through the LC/FEDLINK BOA shall be submitted to LC/FEDLINK for approval. Submit correspondence, prior to release, for approval to: FEDLINK Fiscal Operations Attn: Vendor Services Coordinator The Library of Congress 101 Independence Ave., SE Washington, D.C. 20540-4935 G.2. MEMBERS' USE OF THE FEDLINK PROGRAM. G.2.1. FEDLINK Services. The FEDLINK program provides both contracting and accounting support to federal agencies and organizations authorized to use federal sources of supply. Such offices are termed "members" of FEDLINK. LC/FEDLINK charges members a fee for participating in FEDLINK. G.2.2. Registration. Members indicate their intent to use LC/FEDLINK BOAs, choose whether they intend to transfer service dollars to LC, and establish the funding level for their services by submitting an annual FEDLINK registration form. Prospective members may register any time during the fiscal year until a cutoff date specified by FEDLINK. G.2.3. Interagency Agreements. LC/FEDLINK initiates an Interagency Agreement (IAG) between LC and the member agency for services and funding as indicated on the registration form. After the agency signs and returns the IAG, the LC Financial Services Directorate (LC/FSD) invoices the agency for the funds obligated to LC and LC/C&L issues official delivery orders/authorizations to the Vendors listed on the IAG in the amounts specified on the IAG. Upon receipt of the delivery order/authorization the Vendor may initiate service for the member. Members may request amendments to their IAGs during the year (until a cutoff date specified by FEDLINK), and thus may add or delete services and/or change funding levels. LC/C&L shall issues delivery order modifications accordingly. G.2.4. Copy of BOA. Upon written request of the member or the member's authorized representative, the Vendor shall provide a member who uses the Vendor's services with at least one copy of the Vendor's current LC/FEDLINK BOA. BOA copies supplied shall be identical to the signed original. G.2.5. Service Options. (a) Transfer Pay. Under the transfer pay option, a member transfers both FEDLINK administrative fees and estimated annual service dollars to LC via the signed IAG. On behalf of the member LC/C&L issues a delivery order to the Vendor in the amount specified on the IAG. After receiving the delivery order, the Vendor provides service to the member and submits the member's invoices to FEDLINK. FEDLINK reviews the invoices, rejects improper ones, and pays acceptable ones from the member's account. FEDLINK sends the member copies of rejected invoices, copies of all paid invoices, and a regular account statement. The member reviews the invoices and reports any irregularities to FEDLINK, who resolves them with the Vendor. Transfer pay processes are described in detail below. (b) Direct Pay. Under the direct pay option, a member transfers FEDLINK administrative fees to LC and receives authorization to use an LC/FEDLINK BOA, but does not transfer service dollars to LC. Instead, all orders up to $100,000 shall be sent directly to the Vendor. For orders exceeding $100,000, the member generates a local purchase order made out to the Vendor and returns both the signed IAG and the purchase order to LC. When the signed IAG and purchase order are received, LC/C&L generates an authorization to provide service under the LC/FEDLINK BOA and forwards the authorization and the member's purchase order to the Vendor. The Vendor provides service and invoices the member directly against the local purchase order. Copies of purchase order modifications must also be forwarded to the Vendor through LC/C&L. Direct pay processes are described in detail below in Section G.4. (c) Vendor Option. The Vendor is required to offer the transfer pay option to FEDLINK members. The Vendor is not required to make services available under the direct pay option. G.3. TRANSFER PAY ACCOUNTS. G.3.1. Initiating Transfer Pay Service. (a) Delivery Order. LC/C&L issues a delivery order to the Vendor for each FEDLINK member using the Vendor's service in the transfer pay mode under the LC/FEDLINK BOA. LC/C&L may also issue delivery order modifications that reflect amendments to members' IAGs - to change services or adjust funding levels, for example. Upon receipt of the official LC delivery order the Vendor may begin service for the member under the terms of the current BOA. The Vendor shall not begin, renew, cancel, or convert to the LC/FEDLINK BOA any service for any FEDLINK member until a delivery order for that member for that service for the current fiscal year has been received. The Vendor shall not provide services to the member in excess of the "not to exceed" (NTE) dollar amount indicated on the original delivery order or as amended by any delivery order modification. The Government is not liable for services or products provided which exceed the NTE dollar amount. Authority to provide service under an LC delivery order expires on September 30, 1999 and each subsequent September 30 for each option year exercised. (b) Order Acceptance and Notification. Within ten working days of receipt of delivery order from LC/C&L, the Vendor shall inform FEDLINK Fiscal Operations (FFO) in writing of any account identification or user identification the Vendor has assigned to the member. This notification indicates acceptance of the order. Upon accepting the order, the Vendor shall contact the member immediately to begin service. If the Vendor refuses to accept an order, the refusal shall be noted on the delivery order and the delivery order returned to LC/C&L within ten days. Send member identification to the following address: FEDLINK Fiscal Operations ATTN: Vendor Services Coordinator The Library of Congress 101 Independence Ave., SE Washington, DC 20540-4935 (c) Member Identification. FEDLINK assigns a unique four-character FEDLINK ID to each member. After receiving the delivery order, all Vendor correspondence and oral communications with FEDLINK regarding members shall identify the member by the FEDLINK ID and delivery order number for the member as indicated on the delivery order. The Vendor may also assign its own account numbers, user IDs or other identifiers to members, but may not use these identifications instead of the FEDLINK ID. G.3.2. Pre-Order Competition. Vendors shall be required to provide price quotes, indicating level of service available, to registered FEDLINK users for purposes of evaluation before the appropriate Vendor(s) is (are) selected and firm orders placed. (a) Request for Quotation. When federal libraries and offices register for serials subscription services under the FEDLINK program, they will submit renewal lists and brief descriptions of administrative and optional services required for price quotes from the companies with established FEDLINK serials BOAs. RFQ's for renewal lists expected to exceed the small purchase limitation must be initiated by Library of Congress Contracts and Logistics Service for transfer pay customers, or by the designated contracting official for direct pay customers. (b) Vendor Quotation. Price quotes will indicate publisher's list price, service fee, and any volume discount applied as three separate prices. While publisher's price must be indicated, service fee and volume discount may be shown as a single percent and a single volume discount for the entire renewal list, with the total for the quote supplied. When estimated price orders are subsequently accepted, fee and discount percent quoted must be met or bettered, but it is understood that the publisher's list price may change between the time the quote is made and the order is placed. (c) Vendor Selection. The agency's account will subsequently be awarded to that Vendor able to provide the required services and titles for the lowest overall price while meeting the agency's requirements for service. Cost to the government resulting from a change of Vendor shall be considered in the evaluation in addition to past performance, fulfillment rate and other factors related to the agency's special requirements. (d) Option Years for Agency Orders. If the Library exercises option years for the overall FEDLINK BOA, transfer pay Agencies may exercise option years with their previously selected Vendors. Direct Pay agencies are invited to exercise option years for their orders, but must abide by their local procurement policy in so doing. (e) Multiple Vendors. Agencies may reserve the right to establish accounts with multiple Vendors. However, in such cases lists submitted in RFQs must indicate the intention to select multiple Vendors. One list cannot be submitted for quotations and then divided for business, because the Vendor(s) may not then be able to honor the service fees quoted. If multiple accounts are intended and the aggregate of business authorized across Vendors would exceed the small purchase limit, RFQs shall be used to select Vendors, by LC/C&L for transfer pay or by the designated contracting official for direct pay accounts. G.3.3. General Invoice Instructions. FEDLINK's transfer pay accounting service is intended to help FEDLINK members manage the Government funds entrusted to them legally, efficiently, and effectively. FEDLINK simplifies processing and achieves economies of scale for both members and Vendors. But with centralized, third party processing there can be delay in reporting to the customer. Therefore, it is important that the Vendor cooperate with FFO to ensure that invoices, usage reports, credits, and refunds are submitted promptly, are complete and accurate. An invoice is the Vendor's bill or written request for payment under the delivery order for supplies delivered or services performed. The Vendor shall prepare invoices and submit them to FFO for review and processing. FFO will forward approved invoices to LC/FSD for payment. All proper invoices (except summary invoices) and all detailed usage reports shall include the information specified below and be formatted as specified below. Invoices that do not meet these specifications are defective. FFO will reject them and return them to the Vendor without payment. Invoices for products/services that exceed the funding level authorized on the delivery order will be rejected for insufficient funds and returned to the Vendor without payment. FEDLINK will not make partial payments to accommodate member funding levels. Rejected invoices will be accompanied by a form indicating the reason for rejection. The Vendor shall promptly resubmit the invoice when the condition(s) causing the rejection have been corrected. G.3.4. Invoice Information. The Vendor shall supply the following information on all invoices: (a) Invoice Data Elements. (1) Vendor identification: Two-character FEDLINK Service ID assigned to the Vendor. Name and address of the Vendor. Vendor official to whom payment is issued. Contact information for person to be notified in event of defective invoice. (2) Member identification: FEDLINK ID Name and address of agency using service. (3) Order information: Invoice number. Invoice date in mm/dd/yy format. Order date or period of performance in mm/dd/yy format. Contract line item number, where practicable, or descriptive information sufficient to identify Schedule B item which corresponds to invoiced item. For serials, include title and ISSN. Description, quantity, unit or, for titles, subscription period, unit price (Publishers price for subscription period), and extended price of titles (including service fee and volume discount), supplies delivered or services performed. Discount applicable to individual FEDLINK members, either by line item or against the invoice total, as appropriate. Any prompt payment discount. Any other information or documentation required by other specific requirements elsewhere in the BOA (such as evidence of shipment) or as agreed upon for individual customer Agencies, e.g. local information lines as described in C.2.5.a.(11). (b) Invoice Number. Individual invoices shall have unique numbers. Any invoice (including credit invoices) with a number which duplicates another invoice's number is defective and will be rejected. (c) Fiscal Year of the Invoice. An invoice reflects individual items/services ordered by the customer in accordance with an authorized delivery order. The fiscal year to which an invoice must be charged is governed by the date of the delivery order, not by the Vendor's invoice date. Thus, items ordered on September 30th against a current delivery order will be charged to the current fiscal year, even though they may not be delivered and invoiced until after the next fiscal year has begun. It is therefore extremely important that the order date be clearly identified on the invoice and that it correctly reflect the fiscal year with which the particular item orders are associated. Invoices for electronic subscriptions shall be clearly distinguishable from reports of usage under the subscription (for which no additional payment is due.) The Vendor shall not combine charges from separate fiscal years on a single invoice. (d) Discounts. Discounts earned by individual customers shall be calculated on the individual invoice or institution detail for the FEDLINK member. FFO is not responsible for any recalculations to distribute discounts due individual customers. Prompt payment discount options approved in the BOA shall be specified on invoices. The option to take a prompt payment discount shall be exercised at the Government's option. G.3.5. Invoice Types. (a) Individual Invoices. The Vendor shall supply a separate invoice for each FEDLINK customer as represented by a FEDLINK ID. The Vendor shall clearly distinguish between an invoice for a subscription for which payment is due from a report of usage under the subscription (for which no payment is due.) (b) Summary Invoices. The Vendor may submit a summary invoice with line items for each FEDLINK customer. Summary invoices must be supported by customer-specific detail that enables FFO to review the charges and confirm the amount due from each customer and enables the customer to confirm that goods/services have been received and that the charges are accurate. (c) Usage Detail. The Vendor shall provide detailed information that allows the customer to track use of the Vendor's system. Such data enables the customer to charge back to agency units for whom access is being administered centrally, to monitor activity levels under a subscription pricing arrangement, or otherwise to promote effective use of the Vendor's products/services. This data shall be provided in computer-readable form as described in Section C.2.1.(d), or in print form, as appropriate. Computer-readable usage data supplements, but does not replace, invoice information. FEDLINK is working towards electronic invoicing, with its attendant security requirements, as described below. The Vendor may provide computer-readable usage data on diskette or, preferably, through Internet file transfer protocol. (d) Refunds, Credits or Other Adjustments. All invoice adjustments for transfer pay customers shall be processed through FFO. FFO shall determine whether a credit to the member's account is acceptable or whether a refund is required. Where credits are acceptable, the Vendor shall issue separate credit invoices for all accrued credit on an individual member's account and shall indicate on the credit the information specified above, plus the following: reference to the original invoice number, original order date, description of credit, credit total. Invoice adjustments shall have a unique invoice number; the invoice number of the original invoice being adjusted shall not be re- used. Where refunds are required, the Vendor shall promptly remit amounts due. (e) Duplicate Invoices. The Vendor shall certify that it has not already received payment for duplicate invoices submitted as replacements for original invoices as follows: Duplicate Original Payment Not Received Signed ______________________ Date _______________________ (f) Resubmitted Invoices. The Vendor shall promptly resubmit a rejected invoice when the condition(s) causing the rejection have been corrected. The Vendor shall resubmit the original invoice and shall clearly identify that the invoice is a re-submission for payment. (g) Electronic Invoicing. As FEDLINK expands the capabilities of its automated accounting system, it may be possible to accept invoice data electronically, on diskette or via Internet file transfer. If the Vendor wishes to provide invoice data in computer-readable formats, it should supply FEDLINK with a sample file for evaluation. G.3.6. Invoice Submission. (a) Promptness. The Vendor shall invoice FEDLINK promptly after providing authorized service to the member. Receiving prompt, current financial data to help them manage the information services they provide their agencies is very important to FEDLINK members. Withholding invoices for authorized users (especially at the beginning of the fiscal year) is not acceptable. (b) Frequency. The Vendor shall invoice FEDLINK on a regular cycle. (c) Sort Order. The Vendor shall deliver invoices sorted first by fiscal year, then alphabetically by FEDLINK ID. Mixing invoices for different fiscal years, sorting by invoice number, user ID, or other data element slows FFO processing and is not acceptable. (d) Number of Copies. For each FEDLINK transfer pay customer, the Vendor shall provide FFO not less than one original and one copy of each invoice and not less than one original and one copy of each detailed usage report (in support of the invoice). (e) Physical Format. Individual invoice sets shall be attached so that all copies and/or pages of the original invoice remain contiguous. If the Vendor supplies photocopies of any pages (e.g., to supplement a multi-part invoice), then all invoice photocopies shall be attached to the original invoice. Invoices printed on continuous paper sets shall be stripped of letter edge perforation guides. Invoices shall be stripped of any interleaved carbon inserts. (f) Invoice Address. The Vendor shall submit invoices to the following address: FEDLINK Fiscal Operations ATTN: Invoice Processing The Library of Congress 101 Independence Ave. SE Washington, DC 20540-4935 G.3.7. Invoice Review and Payment. For purposes of this clause, "invoice payment" means a Government disbursement of monies to a Vendor under a contract or other authorization for supplies or services accepted by the Government. This includes payments for partial deliveries that have been accepted by the Government and final costs or fee payments where amounts owed have been settled between the Government and the Vendor. Payment shall be considered as being made on the day a check is dated or an electronic funds transfer is made. All days referred to in this clause are calendar days. The designated billing office for transfer pay accounts is LC/FEDLINK. (a) Certification of Order Placement. The Vendor shall certify on all invoices that it has placed the subscription order with the publisher. Invoices without this certification will be considered inproper and will be rejected, see below. (b) Return of Improper Invoices. If the invoice does not comply with requirements herein, then the Vendor shall be notified of the defect within 15 days after receipt of the invoice at the designated billing office. Untimely notification by the Government shall be taken into account in the computation of any interest penalty owed the Vendor in the manner described in subparagraph G.3.8. Rejected invoices shall be accompanied by a form indicating the reason for the rejection and may be resubmitted when the condition(s) causing the rejection is corrected. (c) Invoice Adjustments. The Government may adjust invoices to remove charges not valid and not payable under this BOA, such as line items for excluded services, sales tax, freight charges, and prior month billing. FEDLINK will not make partial payments to accommodate member funding levels. (d) Payment Due Date. The due date for making invoice payments shall be the later of the following two events: (1) The 30th calendar day after the designated billing office has received a proper invoice from the Vendor. If the payment due date falls on a weekend or holiday, payment will be made on the following business day. (2) The 30th day after Government acceptance of supplies delivered or services performed by the Vendor. On a final invoice where the payment amount is subject to contract settlement actions, acceptance shall be deemed to have occurred on the effective date of the contract settlement. However, if the designated billing office fails to annotate the invoice with the actual date of receipt, the invoice payment due date shall be deemed to be the 30th day after the date the Vendor's invoice is dated, provided a proper invoice is received and there is no disagreement over quantity, quality, or Vendor compliance with contract requirements. (e) Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) (FAR 52.232-33, AUG 1996). In accordance with the Debt Collection Improvement Act, all FEDLINK payment to Vendors shall be made via electronic funds transfer (EFT). The Vendor shall complete the "Vendor Survey Form" obtained from LC C&L to provide the information necessary to transmit payments to the Vendor's financial institution. Payment shall be considered as being made on the effective date of the EFT. (f) Remittance Advice. FFO shall provide the Vendor contact identified in this BOA with a remittance advice that details the invoices for which payment covered by LC/FEDLINK payments. Currently, FFO faxes the remittance advice to the Vendor's Accounts Receivable contact a few days before the EFT payment is completed. The Vendor should use the remittance advice to update its accounts receivable records. G.3.8. Interest Penalty Payments. (a) Conditions for Interest Payment. An interest penalty shall be paid automatically by the designated payment office, without request from the Vendor, if payment is not made by the due date and the conditions listed in this clause are met, if applicable. An interest penalty shall not be paid on agreements issued to foreign Vendors outside the United States for work performed outside the United States. Conditions for interest payments are: (1) A proper invoice was received by the designated billing office. (2) A receiving report or other Government documentation authorizing payment was processed and there was no disagreement over quantity, quality, or Vendor compliance with any contract term or condition. (3) In the case of final invoice for any balance of funds due the Vendor for supplies delivered or services performed, the amount was not subject to further contract settlement actions between the Government and the Vendor. (b) Interest Rate. The interest penalty shall be at the rate established by the Secretary of the Treasury under section 12 of the Contract Disputes Act of 1978 (41 USC 611) that is in effect on the day after the due date, except where the interest penalty is prescribed by other governmental authority. This rate is referred to as the "Renegotiation Board Interest Rate," and is published in the Federal Register semiannually on or about January 1 and July 1. The interest penalty shall accrue daily on the invoice principal payment amount approved by the Government and shall be compounded in 30-day increments through the payment date, with the first 30-day period beginning the first day after the due date. That is, interest accrued at the end of any 30-day period shall be added to the approved invoice principal payment amount and be subject to interest penalties if not paid in the succeeding 30-day period. If the designated billing office failed to notify the Vendor of a defective invoice within the periods prescribed above, then the due date on the corrected invoice shall be adjusted by subtracting from that date the number of days taken beyond the prescribed notification of defects period, as set out below. Any interest penalty owed the Vendor shall be based on the adjusted due date. Adjustments shall be made by the designated payment office for errors in calculating interest penalties, if requested by the Vendor. (c) Acceptance for Interest Purposes. For the sole purpose of computing an interest penalty that might be due the Vendor, Government acceptance shall be deemed to have occurred constructively on the 15th day (unless otherwise specified in the agreement) after the Vendor delivered the supplies or performed the services in accordance with the terms and conditions of the agreement, unless there is a disagreement over quantity, quality, or Vendor compliance with a contract provision. In the event that actual acceptance occurs within the constructive acceptance period, the determination of an interest penalty shall be based on the actual date of acceptance. The constructive acceptance requirement does not, however, compel Government officials to accept supplies or services, perform contract administration functions, or make payment prior to fulfilling their responsibilities. (d) Periods Not Subject to Interest. The following periods of time shall not be included in the determination of an interest penalty: (1) The period taken to notify the Vendor of defects in invoices submitted to the Government, but this shall not exceed 15 days. (2) The period between the defects notice and resubmission of the corrected invoice by the Vendor. (3) For incorrect EFT information, in accordance with the EFT clause of this agreement. (4) Interest penalties shall not continue to accrue after the filing of a claim for such penalties under the FAR clause at 52.233-1, Disputes, or for more than one year. Interest penalties of less than $1.00 need not be paid. (5) Interest penalties are not required on payment delays due to disagreement between the Government and Vendor over the payment amount or other issues involving contract compliance or the amounts temporarily withheld or retained in accordance with the terms of the contract. Claims involving disputes, and any interest that may be payable, shall be resolved in accordance with the FAR clause at 52.233-1, Disputes, as amended by the Library. (e) Interest or Discounts Taken Improperly. An interest penalty shall also be paid automatically by the designated payment office without request from the Vendor, if a discount for prompt payment is taken improperly. The interest penalty shall be calculated as described above on the amount of discount taken for the period beginning with the first day after the end of the discount period through the date when payment is made to the Vendor, if the underpayment is not corrected within 15 days of the expiration of the discount period. G.3.9. Contract Financing Payments. (a) For purposes of this clause, "contract financing payment" means a Government disbursement of monies to a Vendor under contract clause or other authorization prior to acceptance of supplies or services by the Government. (b) For contracts that provide for contract financing, requests for payment shall be submitted to the designated billing office as specified in this contract or as directed by the contracting officer. Contract financing payments shall be made on the 30th day after receipt of a proper contract financing request by the designated billing office. In the event that an audit or other review of a specific financing request is required to ensure compliance with the terms and conditions of the contract, the designated payment office is not compelled to make payment on this date. (c) For advance payments, loans, or other arrangements that do not involve recurrent submissions of contract financing requirements, payment shall be made in accordance with the corresponding contract terms or as directed by the contracting officer. (d) Contract financing payments shall not be assessed an interest penalty for payment delays. G.4. DIRECT PAY ACCOUNTS. G.4.1. Initiating Direct Pay Service. (a) Authorization. LC/C&L shall issue to the Vendor an authorization for each FEDLINK member using the Vendor's service in the direct pay mode under the LC/FEDLINK BOA. The authorization indicates that the member is authorized to use the LC/FEDLINK BOA during the current fiscal year. (b) Purchase Order from Member. Members shall issue a local purchase order through LC/C&L to the Vendor for all orders over $100,000. All orders up to $100,000 shall be sent directly to the Vendor. The purchase order shall reference the LC/FEDLINK BOA number and the member's FEDLINK ID and shall indicate purchase order funding level. For all orders over $100,000, LC/C&L will forward the member's purchase order to the Vendor through FFO by LC/C&L concurrent with the issuance of the LC/FEDLINK authorization. For orders under $100,000, members shall send purchase orders directly to the Vendor after the LC/FEDLINK authorization is issued. Orders sent directly to the Vendor shall not exceed $100,000. Purchase order modifications shall also be forwarded to the Vendor through LC/C&L. (c) Beginning Service. The Vendor shall not begin, renew, or convert to the LC/FEDLINK BOA any service for any FEDLINK member until an LC authorization and local purchase order for that member for that service for the current fiscal year have been received. The Vendor shall contact the member to begin service immediately upon receiving and accepting the member's purchase order and LC authorization. Subsequently, the Vendor shall invoice the member directly against the local purchase order. (d) Member Identification. After receiving the LC authorization and local purchase order, all Vendor correspondence with FEDLINK regarding the member shall identify the member by the FEDLINK ID and control number as indicated on LC authorization. G.4.2. Pre-Order Competition. Vendors shall be required to provide price quotes, indicating level of service available, to registered FEDLINK users for purposes of evaluation before the appropriate Vendor(s) is (are) chosen and firm orders placed. (a) Request for Quotation (RFQ). When federal libraries and offices register for serials subscription services under the FEDLINK program, they will submit renewal lists and brief descriptions of administrative and optional services required for price quotation from the companies with established FEDLINK serials BOAs. RFQs for renewal lists expected to exceed the small purchase limitation must be initiated by Library of Congress Contracts and Logistics Service for transfer pay customers, or by the designated contracting official for direct pay customers. (b) Vendor Quotation. Price quotations will indicate publisher's list price, service fee, and any volume discount applied as three separate prices. While publisher's price must be indicated, service fee and volume discount may be shown as a single percent and a single volume discount for the entire renewal list, with the total for the quote supplied. When estimated price orders are subsequently accepted, fee and discount percent quoted must be met or bettered, but it is understood that the publisher's list price may change between the time the quote is made and the order is placed. (c) Vendor Selection. The agency's account will subsequently be awarded to that Vendor able to provide the required services and titles for the lowest overall price while meeting the agency's requirements for service. Cost to the government resulting from a change of Vendor shall be considered in the evaluation in addition to past performance, fulfillment rate and other factors related to the agency's special requirements. (d) Option Years. If later option years are exercised for the overall FEDLINK BOA, the transfer pay agencies may exercise option years with its previously selected Vendor. Direct Pay agencies are invited to exercise option years but must abide by their local procurement policy. (e) Multiple Vendors. Customer agencies may reserve the right to establish accounts with multiple vendors. However, in such cases lists submitted in RFQs must indicate the intention to select multiple Vendors. One list cannot be submitted for quotations and subsequently divided for business, because the Vendor(s) may not then be able to honor the service fees quoted. If multiple accounts are intended and the aggregate of business authorized across Vendors would exceed the small purchase limit, RFQs shall be used to select Vendors, by the designated contracting official for direct pay accounts. G.4.3. Invoice Payment for Direct Pay Customers. The Vendor shall invoice members directly against their local purchase orders. LC/FEDLINK shall not process invoices for Direct Pay customers. Direct Pay customers will be responsible for payment in accordance with applicable laws and regulations, such as FAR 52.232-25 Prompt Payment. G.5. FEDLINK SERVICES TO VENDORS. G.5.1. Publicity. LC/FEDLINK shall inform FEDLINK members about the services available under the program. Currently, the FLICC/FEDLINK World Wide Web site has a section devoted to services available to FEDLINK that includes brief descriptions of the products and services offered by FEDLINK Vendors, Vendor contact information, and active links to Vendor e-mail and websites. The Vendor is invited to submit its contact and link information for inclusion in this web-based FEDLINK services catalog. G.5.2. Mailing Lists. A mailing list of FEDLINK members can be provided to the Vendor upon written request to the address below. The Vendor shall pay for costs associated with providing the FEDLINK mailing list. The Library of Congress Chief, Office Systems Services Madison Bldg, Rm 612 101 Independence Ave., SE Washington, DC 20540-9440 SECTION H SPECIAL CONTRACT REQUIREMENTS H.1. CONDUCT OF WORK. A Contracting Officer's Technical Representative (COTR) may be designated to represent the Contracting Officer for the purpose of coordinating with the Vendor in administering the technical aspects of performance for a particular user's account. The COTR may issue written or oral instructions to fill in details in the scope of work set forth in this BOA via the contracting officer. The COTR is not authorized, however, to make any changes which affect the contract amount, terms and conditions. The Contracting Officer is the only party authorized to bind the Library of Congress. H.2. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. H.2.1. Quarterly Summary of All User Activity. (a) Report. The Vendor shall submit quarterly the agency name and total dollars obligated for the services provided under this BOA. The Vendor may use the FEDLINK Quarterly Summary Report Form as attached (Section J.2.) or develop a computerized report as long as it provides the information identified below. Reports in machine-readable form are encouraged. To facilitate FEDLINK reporting of usage, the report shall be sorted according to payment option (direct and transfer) customer and shall provide the following information: (1) Reporting period - fiscal year, months (2) Agency name (3) IAG number (4) FEDLINK ID (5) Current quarterly dollars expended for each customer (6) Fiscal year cumulative dollars expended (7) Payment option - transfer or direct (b) Deadline. This report shall be received in the Contracts and Logistics Office within thirty (30) calendar days after the end of the particular reporting fiscal year quarter. (c) Failure to Provide Report. Failure on the part of the Vendor to comply with this reporting requirement shall constitute an "incomplete package" for invoicing purposes and no payment shall be made until the report is received. H.3. USE OF LIBRARY OF CONGRESS NAME OR CONTRACTUAL RELATIONSHIP IN ADVERTISING. The Vendor agrees not to refer to awards from or contracts with the Library in commercial advertising in such a manner as to state or imply that the product or service provided is endorsed or preferred by the Library or is superior to other products or services. The Vendor also agrees not to distribute or release any information which states or implies that the Library endorses, uses, or distributes the Vendor's product or service. H.4. NEWS RELEASES. News releases pertaining to this BOA shall not be made without Library approval, as appropriate, and then only upon written approval received from the contracting officer. H.5. OPTIONS. See section F.2. H.6. TECHNOLOGY REFRESHMENT. Technology improvements during the life of the BOA may be incorporated to take advantage of new technology and to keep the product line refreshed for the users. H.6.1. After award of the BOA, the Government may solicit, and the contractor is encouraged to propose independently, technology improvements to the specifications or other requirements of the contract. These changes may be proposed to save money, to improve performance, to save energy, to satisfy increased data processing requirements, or for any other purpose which presents a technological advantage to the Government. If the proposed changes are acceptable to both parties, the contractor shall submit a proposal to the LC contracting officer for evaluation within 30 days unless an alternative time is mutually agreed to by both parties. Those proposed technology improvements that are acceptable to the Government will be processed as modifications to the contract, subject to the availability of funds. H.6.2. This clause applies only to those proposed changes identified by the contractor, as a proposal submitted pursuant to the provisions of this clause. As a minimum, the following information shall be submitted by the contractor with each proposal: (a) A description of the difference between the existing BOA requirements and the proposed change, and the comparative advantages and disadvantages of each; a complete description of any new services proposed and a copy of the contractors commercial rates for those services. (b) Itemized requirements of the BOA which must be changed if the proposal is adopted, and the proposed revision to the contract for each such changes; (c) An estimate of the changes in performance and cost, if any, that will result from adoption of the proposal; and (d) A statement of the time by which the contract modification adopting the proposal must be issued so as to obtain the maximum benefits of the changes during the remainder of the BOA. Also, any effect on the contract completion time or delivery schedule shall be identified. H.6.3. Technology refreshment proposals submitted to the LC contracting officer shall be processed expeditiously. The Government shall not be liable for proposal preparation costs or any delay in acting upon any proposal submitted pursuant to this clause. The contractor has the right to withdraw, in whole or in part, any proposal not accepted by the Government within the period specified in the proposal. The decision of the contracting officer as to the acceptance of any such proposal under this contract shall be final and shall not be subject to the "Disputes" clause of this contract. H.6.4. The contracting officer may accept any technology refreshment proposal submitted pursuant to this clause by giving the contractor written notice thereof. This written notice shall be given by issuance of a modification to this BOA. Unless and until a modification is executed to incorporate a technology refreshment proposal under this BOA, the contractor shall remain obligated to perform in accordance with the terms of the existing contract. H.6.5. The contractor is requested to identify specifically any information contained in the technology refreshment proposal which the contractor considers confidential and/or proprietary and which the contractor prefers not be disclosed to the public. The identification of information as confidential and/or proprietary is for information purposes only and shall not be binding on the Government to prevent disclosure of such information. Offerors are advised that such information may be subject to release upon request pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (5 USC 552). SECTION I CONTRACT CLAUSES I.1. NOTICE: The following solicitation provisions and/or contract clauses pertinent to this section are hereby incorporated by reference: FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION (48 CFR CHAPTER 1) NUMBER DATE TITLE 52.202-1 OCT 1995 DEFINITIONS 52.203-3 APR 1984 GRATUITIES 52.203-5 APR 1984 COVENANT AGAINST CONTINGENT FEES 52.203-6 JULY 1995 RESTRICTIONS ON SUBCONTRACTOR SALES TO THE GOVERNMENT 52.203-7 JULY 1995 ANTI-KICKBACK PROCEDURES 52.203-8 JAN 1997 CANCELLATION, RESCISSION, AND RECOVERY OF FUNDS FOR ILLEGAL OR IMPROPER ACTIVITY. 52.203-10 JAN 1997 PRICE OR FEE ADJUSTMENT FOR ILLEGAL OR IMPROPER ACTIVITY 52.203-12 JUN 1997 LIMITATION ON PAYMENTS TO INFLUENCE CERTAIN FEDERAL TRANSACTIONS. 52.204-4 JUN 1996 PRINTING/COPYING DOUBLE-SIDED ON RECYCLED PAPER. 52.204-5 OCT 1995 WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESS 52.209-6 JULY 1995 PROTECTING THE GOVERNMENT'S INTEREST WHEN SUBCONTRACTING WITH CONTRACTORS DEBARRED, SUSPENDED, OR PROPOSED FOR DEBARMENT. 52.213-2 APR 1984 INVOICES 52.214-34 APR 1991 SUBMISSION OF OFFERS IN THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 52.214-35 APR 1991 SUBMISSION OF OFFERS IN U.S. CURRENCY. 52.215-1 OCT 1997 INSTRUCTIONS TO OFFERORS-COMPETITIVE 52.215-8 OCT 1997 ORDER OF PRECEDENCE - UNIFORM CONTRACT FORMAT. 52.215-14 OCT 1997 INTEGRITY OF UNIT PRICES 52.215-19 OCT 1997 NOTIFICATION OF OWNERSHIP CHANGES. 52.217-8 AUG 1989 OPTION TO EXTEND SERVICES 52.219-8 JUN 1997 UTILIZATION OF SMALL, SMALL DISADVANTAGED AND WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS 52.222-1 FEB 1997 NOTICE TO THE GOVERNMENT OF LABOR DISPUTES 52.222-4 JULY 1995 CONTRACT WORK HOURS & SAFETY STANDARDS ACT-OVERTIME COMPENSATION 52.222-20 DEC 1996 WALSH-HEALEY PUBLIC CONTRACTS ACT 52.222-26 APR 1984 EQUAL OPPORTUNITY 52.222-35 APR 1998 AFFIRMATIVE ACTION FOR SPECIAL DISABLED AND VIETNAM ERA VETERANS 52.222-36 APR 1984 AFFIRMATIVE ACTION FOR HANDICAPPED WORKERS 52.222-37 APR 1998 EMPLOYMENT REPORTS ON DISABLED VETERANS AND VETERANS OF THE VIETNAM ERA. 52.223-2 JAN 1984 CLEAN AIR AND WATER 52.223-5 APR 1998 POLLUTION PREVENTION AND RIGHT-TO-KNOW INFORMATION. 52.223-6 JAN 1997 DRUG-FREE WORKPLACE 52.223-14 OCT 1996 TOXIC CHEMICAL RELEASE REPORTING. 52.227-1 JUL 1995 AUTHORIZATION AND CONSENT 52.227-2 AUG 1996 NOTICE AND ASSISTANCE REGARDING PATENT AND COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT 52.229-3 JAN 1991 FEDERAL, STATE, AND LOCAL TAXES 52.229-5 APR 1984 TAXES -- CONTRACTS PERFORMED IN U.S. POSSESSIONS OR PUERTO RICO 52.230-2 APR 1998 COST ACCOUNTING STANDARDS 52.232-1 APR 1984 PAYMENTS 52.232-8 MAY 1997 DISCOUNTS FOR PROMPT PAYMENT 52.232-11 APR 1984 EXTRAS 52.232-17 JUN 1996 INTEREST 52.232-18 APR 1984 AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS 52.232-23 JAN 1986 ASSIGNMENT OF CLAIMS 52.232-33 AUG 1996 MANDATORY INFORMATION FOR ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER PAYMENT 52.232-34 AUG 1996 OPTIONAL INFORMATION FOR ELECTRONIC FUNDS TRANSFER PAYMENT 52.233-3 AUG 1996 PROTEST AFTER AWARD 52.237-3 JAN 1991 CONTINUITY OF SERVICES 52.242-13 JUL 1995 BANKRUPTCY 52.243-1 AUG 1987 CHANGES -- FIXED-PRICE 52.244-5 DEC 1996 COMPETITION IN SUBCONTRACTING 52.245-2 DEC 1989 GOVERNMENT PROPERTY 52.249-4 APR 1984 TERMINATION FOR CONVENIENCE OF THE GOVERNMENT (SERVICES)(SHORT FORM) 52.249-8 APR 1984 DEFAULT (FIXED-PRICE SUPPLY AND SERVICE) 52.249-14 APR 1984 EXCUSABLE DELAYS 52.253-1 JAN 1991 COMPUTER GENERATED FORMS I.2. 52.215-2 AUDIT AND RECORDS--NEGOTIATION. (AUG 1996)-- As Modified by the Library of Congress (SEP 1996) (a) Definition. As used in this clause, records includes books, documents, accounting procedures and practices, and other data, regardless of type and regardless of whether such items are in written form, in the form of computer data, or in any other form. (b) Examination of Costs. If this is a cost-reimbursement, incentive, time-and-materials, labor-hour, or price redeterminable contract, or any combination of these, the Contractor shall maintain and the Contracting Officer, or an authorized representative of the Contracting Officer, shall have the right to examine and audit all records and other evidence sufficient to reflect properly all costs claimed to have been incurred or anticipated to be incurred directly or indirectly in performance of this contract. This right of examination shall include inspection at all reasonable times of the Contractor's plants, or parts of them, engaged in performing the contract. (c) Cost or Pricing Data. If the Contractor has been required to submit cost or pricing data in connection with any pricing action relating to this contract, the Contracting Officer, or an authorized representative of the Contracting Officer, in order to evaluate the accuracy, completeness, and currency of the cost or pricing data, shall have the right to examine and audit all of the Contractor's records, including computations and projections, related to-- (1) The proposal for the contract, subcontract, or modification; (2) The discussions conducted on the proposal(s), including those related to negotiating; (3) Pricing of the contract, subcontract, or modification; or (4) Performance of the contract, subcontract or modification. (d) The Librarian of Congress, and the Comptroller General-- (1) The Librarian of Congress, or an authorized representative of the Librarian of Congress and the Comptroller General of the United States, or an authorized representative of the Comptroller General, shall have access to and the right to examine any of the Contractor's directly pertinent records involving transactions related to this contract or a subcontract hereunder. (2) This paragraph may not be construed to require the Contractor or subcontractor to create or maintain any record that the Contractor or subcontractor does not maintain in the ordinary course of business or pursuant to a provision of law. (e) Reports. If the Contractor is required to furnish cost, funding, or performance reports, the Contracting Officer or an authorized representative of the Contracting Officer shall have the right to examine and audit the supporting records and materials, for the purpose of evaluating (1) the effectiveness of the Contractor's policies and procedures to produce data compatible with the objectives of these reports and (2) the data reported. (f) Availability. The Contractor shall make available at its office at all reasonable times the records, materials, and other evidence described in paragraphs (a), (b), (c), (d), and (e) of this clause, for examination, audit, or reproduction, until 3 years after final payment under this contract or for any shorter period specified in Subpart 4.7, Contractor Records Retention, of the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR), or for any longer period required by statute or by other clauses of this contract. In addition-- (1) If this contract is completely or partially terminated, the records relating to the work terminated shall be made available for 3 years after any resulting final termination settlement; and (2) Records relating to appeals under the Disputes clause or to litigation or the settlement of claims arising under or relating to this contract shall be made available until such appeals, litigation, or claims are finally resolved. (g) The Contractor shall insert a clause containing all the terms of this clause, including this paragraph (a), in all subcontracts under this contract that exceed the simplified acquisition threshold in FAR Part 13, and-- (1) That are cost-reimbursement, incentive, time-and-materials, labor-hour, or price-redeterminable type or any combination of these; (2) For which cost or pricing data are required; or (3) That require the subcontractor to furnish reports as discussed in paragraph (e) of this clause. The clause may be altered only as necessary to identify properly the contracting parties and the Contracting Officer under the Government prime contract. I.3. (FAR 52.222-3) CONVICT LABOR (AUG 1996)--As Modified by the Library of Congress (AUG 1996). The Contractor agrees not to employ any person undergoing sentence of imprisonment in performing this contract. I.4. (FAR 52.233-1) DISPUTES (OCT 1995)--As Modified by the Library of Congress (JAN 1996) (a) This contract is not subject to the Contract Disputes Act of 1978, as amended (41 U.S.C. 601-613). (b) All disputes arising under or relating to this contract shall be resolved under this clause. (c) "Claim," as used in this clause, means a written demand or written assertion by one of the contracting parties seeking, as a matter of right, the payment of money in a sum certain, the adjustment or interpretation of contract terms, or other relief arising under or relating to this contract. A claim arising under a contract, unlike a claim relating to that contract, is a claim that can be resolved under a contract clause that provides for the relief sought by the claimant. However, a written demand or written assertion by the Contractor seeking the payment of money exceeding $100,000 is not a claim under this clause until certified as required by subparagraph (d)(2) below. A voucher, invoice, or other routine request for payment that is not in dispute when submitted is not a claim under this clause. The submission may be converted to a claim under this clause if it is disputed either as to liability or amount, or is not acted upon in a reasonable time, by complying with the submission and certification requirements of this clause. (d) (1) A claim by the Contractor shall be made in writing and unless otherwise stated in this contract submitted within 6 years after accrual of the claim to the Contracting Officer for a written decision. A claim by the Government against the Contractor shall be subject to a written decision by the Contracting Officer. (2)(i) Contractors shall provide the certification specified in subparagraph (d)(2)(iii) of this clause when submitting any claim - (A) Exceeding $100,000; or (B) Regardless of the amount claimed, when using - (1) Arbitration conducted pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 575-580; or (2) Any other alternative means of dispute resolution (ADR) technique that the agency elects to handle in accordance with the Administrative Dispute Resolution Act (ADRA). (ii) The certification requirement does not apply to issues in controversy that have not been submitted as all or part of a claim. (iii) The certification shall state as follows: "I certify that the claim is made in good faith; that the supporting data are accurate and complete to the best of my knowledge and belief; that the amount requested accurately reflects the contract adjustment for which the Contractor believes the Government is liable; and that I am duly authorized to certify the claim on behalf of the Contractor." (3) The certification may be executed by any person duly authorized to bind the Contractor with respect to the claim. (e) For Contractor claims of $100,000 or less, the Contracting Officer must, if requested in writing by the Contractor, render a decision within 60 days of the request. For Contractor-certified claims over $100,000, the Contracting Officer must, within 60 days, decide the claim or notify the Contractor of the date by which the decision will be made. (f) The Contracting Officer's decision shall be final unless the Contractor appeals to the Chief of the Contracts and Logistics Services who will serve as the Hearing Officer to review the decision. (g) If the claim by the Contractor is submitted to the Contracting Officer or a claim by the Government is presented to the Contractor, the parties, by mutual consent, may agree to use ADR. If the Contractor refuses an offer for alternative dispute resolution, the Contractor shall inform the Contracting Officer, in writing, of the Contractors specific reasons for rejecting the request. When using arbitration pursuant to 5 U.S.C. 575-580, or when using any other ADR technique that the agency elects to handle in accordance with the ADRA, any claim, regardless of amount, shall be accompanied by the certification described in subparagraph (d)(2)(iii) of this clause, and executed in accordance with subparagraph (d)(3) of this clause. (h) The Government shall pay interest on the amount found due and unpaid from (1) the date the Contracting Officer receives the claim (certified, if required); or (2) the date that payment otherwise would be due, if that date is later, until the date of payment. With regard to claims having defective certifications, as defined in (FAR) 48 CFR 33.201, interest shall be paid from the date that the Contracting Officer initially receives the claim. Simple interest on claims shall be paid at the rate, fixed by the Secretary of the Treasury as provided in the Act, which is applicable to the period during which the Contracting Officer receives the claim and then at the rate applicable for each 6-month period as fixed by the Treasury Secretary during the pendency of the claim. (i) The Contractor shall proceed diligently with performance of this contract, pending final resolution of any request for relief, claim, appeal, or action arising under the contract, and comply with any decision of the Contracting Officer. I.5. (FAR 52.214-35) SUBMISSION OF OFFERS IN U.S. CURRENCY (APR 1991). Offers submitted in response to this solicitation shall be in terms of U.S. dollars. Offers received in other than U.S. dollars shall be rejected. I.6. (FAR 52.252-2) CLAUSES INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE (FEB 1998). This contract incorporates one or more clauses by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. Also, the full text of a clause may be accessed electronically at this address: http://www.arnet.gov/far SECTION J - LIST ATTACHMENTS J.1. Attachment 1 as referenced in Section C.2.5. BASIC LC/FEDLINK LICENSING AGREEMENT FOR ELECTRONIC PUBLICATIONS THIS AGREEMENT is between __________________________________________ "Licensee", a member of the Library of Congress (LC) FEDLINK program, and _______________________________________________ "Licensor", a firm incorporated in the state/country of ______________________ operating at the following address for the purposes of this agreement: ________________________________________________. IN CONSIDERATION OF the mutual promises set forth below, Licensor and Licenses agree as follows: 1. Definitions. a. "Authorized site" means Licensee's work site, and includes remote locations. b. "Authorized user" means all full and part-time employees of Licensee, including those at remote locations, contractors working within the scope of their employment for Licensee, and Licensee's agents, students, patrons, and the following: ________________________________________________________. c. The "licensed database" means the licensed electronic publication/information service including, if applicable, accompanying software. The database is named: ____________________________________________________________. 2. License. Licensor hereby grants to Licensee the right to use the database in accordance with the terms and conditions of this Agreement. Licensor represents and warrants that it has the right to grant this license and that use of the database in accordance with the terms of this agreement will not infringe the intellectual property or other rights of any third party. The copyright and other proprietary rights in the database remain the sole and exclusive property of the Licensor or third-party owner, as appropriate. The licensed database is intended and authorized for use only at the authorized site and only by authorized users. Licensee shall use reasonable efforts to protect the database from being copied and from any other use that is not permitted under this agreement. No part of this database may be duplicated in hardcopy or machine-readable form without prior written authorization from Licensor, except as provided below. a. Redistribution and Interlibrary Loan. Licensee is granted permission to reproduce limited portions of the database and to redistribute the results of searches among the permitted class of users, and to perform interlibrary loan of materials from the database in accordance with U.S. copyright law and the Commission on New Technical Uses (CONTU) guidelines, which shall apply to both analog and digital copying and redistribution. b. Updates. Licensee will receive whatever updates to the database that are issued during the one-year period of this agreement and thereafter, if the agreement is extended. Upon receipt of updated material, Licensee shall cease use of the outdated material and promptly return it to the Licensor or destroy it, as agreed. Licensee will not transfer superceded databases to any other party. If Licensee fails to return or destroy material as required, Licensee may be denied any and all future updates, in addition to having imposed by Licensor limitations on any other rights hereunder. c. Disposition of Data and Software. Within ten (10) days after the termination of this agreement, whether by expiration of its term or pursuant to a specific provision, Licensee shall erase the Licensor's data and software from all tapes, disk files and computer memory and shall destroy all copies in Licensee's possession or return them to Licensor, except as provided below under Archival Copy. d. Archival Copy. Upon termination of this agreement, Licensor may retain one copy of any CD-ROM, diskette or other fixed media database for archival purposes. This archival copy of the database does not entitle the Licensee to any updates of the material. e. Specific Performance. In the event of a breach of either of the preceding two provisions, Licensor shall be entitled to specific performance of those provisions, in addition to any other rights and remedies to which it is entitled. f. Additional Rights/Restrictions. In addition to the above, authorized users may/may not: ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________. 3. Warranties. a. Online System. Licensor shall use reasonable efforts to provide continuous availability of the online publication subject to periodic unavailability due to maintenance of the server(s), the installation or testing of software, the loading of data and downtime related to equipment or services outside of control of the Licensor. b. Fixed Media. Additionally, Licensor shall promptly replace at no cost to the Licensee all or part of the database which is defective or does not conform with this agreement, provided that the Licensee gives the Licensor written notice of the nonconformity, defect, or damage within sixty (60) days after Licensee's receipt of the copy. Without such notice, Licensor shall make replacement at the Licensor's replacement cost. c. DISCLAIMER. EXCEPT FOR THE EXPRESS WARRANTIES STATED IN THIS AGREEMENT, THE DATABASE IS PROVIDED ON AN AS IS BASIS AND LICENSOR DISCLAIMS ANY AND ALL OTHER WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EXPRESSES OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY OR FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. 4. Federal Acquisition Regulation. All of the terms and conditions set forth in this agreement are governed by the language of the following Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) clauses: FAR 52.233-1, Disputes; FAR 52.249-2, Termination for the Convenience of the Government (Fixed-Price); and FAR 52.249-8, Default (Fixed Price Supply and Service). In the event any language in this agreement conflicts with the FAR clause provisions, the FAR provisions shall govern. 5. Term. This license shall begin on the date of the last signature on this agreement or ______________________ and shall be valid until ______________________. 6. Termination. Unless provided otherwise in the FAR clauses in this agreement, In the event that either party believes the other has materially breached any obligations under this agreement, that party shall so notify the breaching party in writing. The breaching party shall have sixty (60) days from receipt of this notice to cure the alleged breach and to notify the non-breaching party in writing that cure has been effected. If the breach is not cured within the sixty (60) day period, the non-breaching party shall have the right to terminate this agreement without further notice. 7. Payments and Interest. Payments and interest will be in accordance with the terms and conditions of the Basic Ordering Agreement (BOA) and applicable federal law. 8. Miscellaneous. a. Entire Agreement. This agreement contains the entire agreement of the parties as to herein licensed use of the database and supercedes any and all written or oral prior agreements and understandings. This agreement may only be amended or modified by a writing signed by the parties. b. Governing Laws. This agreement shall be governed and construed in accordance with the laws of the United States and the state of _____________________. The federal or state courts of the United States located in _____________________ shall have jurisdiction to hear any dispute under this agreement. c. Assignment. This agreement may not be assigned by either party without the prior written consent of the other. d. Notices. Any notice provided in this agreement shall be sent by personal delivery or by certified mail, postage prepaid, to the other party at its address set forth herein or such other address as shall have been communicated in writing to the other, and shall be effective as of its personal delivery or mailing date, as the case may be. The party sending such notices shall also provide a copy to the LC Contracts and Logistics Services, FEDLINK Contracting Officer, at 1701 Brightseat Road, Landover, MD 20785-3799. IN WITNESS WHEREOF, Licensor and Licensee have caused this Agreement to be executed by their duly authorized representatives as of the date set forth below. Licensee: __________________________________ (Signature) __________________________________ (Name) __________________________________ (Title) __________________________________ (Date) Licensor: __________________________________ (Signature) __________________________________ (Name) __________________________________ (Title) __________________________________ (Date) J.2. Attachment 2 as referenced in Section H.2.1. FEDLINK QUARTERLY SUMMARY REPORT Vendor's Name: ____________________________________ Library of Congress BOA # _____________________ Address: _____________________________________ Period of Performance: ________________________________ _____________________________________ _____________________________________ INTERAGENCY CURRENT FISCAL YEAR TRANSFER (T) AGREEMENT FEDLINK QUARTERLY CUMULATIVE OR NAME OF AGENCY NUMBER I.D. TOTAL TOTAL DIRECT (D) ___________________________________ __________________ _________ _________________ ____________________ ___________________________________ __________________ _________ _________________ ____________________ ___________________________________ __________________ _________ _________________ ____________________ ___________________________________ __________________ _________ _________________ ____________________ ___________________________________ __________________ _________ _________________ ____________________ ___________________________________ __________________ _________ _________________ ____________________ Prepared by: __________________________________ Date:_________________ Title: __________________________________ SECTION K REPRESENTATIONS, CERTIFICATIONS AND OTHER STATEMENTS OF OFFERORS K.1. (FAR 52.203-2) CERTIFICATE OF INDEPENDENT PRICE DETERMINATION (APR 1985) (a) The offeror certifies that-- (1) The prices in this offer have been arrived at independently, without, for the purpose of restricting competition, any consultation, communication, or agreement with any other offeror or competitor relating to (i) those prices, (ii) the intention to submit an offer, or (iii) the methods or factors used to calculate the prices offered; (2) The prices in this offer have not been and will not be knowingly disclosed by the offeror, directly or indirectly, to any other offeror or competitor before bid opening (in the case of a sealed bid solicitation) or contract award (in the case of a negotiated solicitation) unless otherwise required by law; and (3) No attempt has been made or will be made by the offeror to induce any other concern to submit or not to submit an offer for the purpose of restricting competition. (b) Each signature on the offer is considered to be a certification by the signatory that the signatory-- (1) Is the person in the offeror's organization responsible for determining the prices being offered in this bid or proposal, and that the signatory has not participated and will not participate in any action contrary to subparagraphs (a)(1) through (a)(3) above, or (2) (i) Has been authorized, in writing, to act as agent for the following principals in certifying that those principals have not participated, and will not participate in any action contrary to subparagraphs K.1.1.1. through K.1.1.3. above ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ [Insert full name of person(s) in the offeror's organization responsible for determining the prices offered in the bid or proposal, and the title of his or her position in the offeror's organization]; (ii) As an authorized agent, does certify that the principals named in subdivision K.1.2.2.(a) above have not participated, and will not participate, in any action contrary to subparagraphs K.1.1.1. through K.1.1.3. above; and (iii) As an agent, has not personally participated, and will not participate, in any action contrary to subparagraphs K.1.1.1. through K.1.1.3. above. (c) If the offeror deletes or modifies subparagraph K.1.2.2 above, the offeror must furnish with its offer a signed statement setting forth in detail the circumstances of the disclosure. K.2. (FAR 52.203.8) CANCELLATION, RESCISSION, AND RECOVERY OF FUNDS FOR ILLEGAL OR IMPROPER ACTIVITY. (JAN 1997) (a) If the Government receives information that a contractor or a person has engaged in conduct constituting a violation of subsection (a), (b), (c), or (d) of Section 27 of the Office of Federal Procurement Policy Act (41 U.S.C. 423) (the Act), as amended by section 4304 of the National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 1996 (Pub. L. 104-106), the Government may-- (1) Cancel the solicitation, if the contract has not yet been awarded or issued; or (2) Rescind the contract with respect to which-- (i) The Contractor or someone acting for the Contractor has been convicted for an offense where the conduct constitutes a violation of subsection 27 (a) or (b) of the Act for the purpose of either-- (A) Exchanging the information covered by such subsections for anything of value; or (B) Obtaining or giving anyone a competitive advantage in the award of a Federal agency procurement contract; or (ii) The head of the contracting activity has determined, based upon a preponderance of the evidence, that the Contractor or someone acting for the Contractor has engaged in conduct constituting an offense punishable under subsection 27(e)(1) of the Act. (b) If the Government rescinds the contract under paragraph (a) of this clause, the Government is entitled to recover, in addition to any penalty prescribed by law, the amount expended under the contract. (c) The rights and remedies of the Government specified herein are not exclusive, and are in addition to any other rights and remedies provided by law, regulation, or under this contract. K.3. (FAR 52.203-22) CERTIFICATION AND DISCLOSURE REGARDING PAYMENTS TO INFLUENCE CERTAIN FEDERAL TRANSACTIONS (APR 1991) (a) The definitions and prohibitions contained in the clause, at FAR 52.203-12, Limitation on Payments to Influence Certain Federal Transactions, included in this solicitation, are hereby incorporated by reference in paragraph (b) of this certification. (b) The offeror, by signing its offer, hereby certifies to the best of his or her knowledge and belief that on or after December 23, 1989-- (1) No Federal appropriated funds have been paid or will be paid to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress on his or her behalf in connection with the awarding of any Federal contract, the making of any Federal grant, the making of any Federal loan, the entering into of any cooperative agreement, and the extension, continuation, renewal, amendment or modification of any Federal contract, grant, loan, or cooperative agreement; (2) If any funds other than Federal appropriated funds (including profit or fee received under a covered Federal transaction) have been paid, or will be paid, to any person for influencing or attempting to influence an officer or employee of any agency, a Member of Congress, an officer or employee of Congress, or an employee of a Member of Congress on his or her behalf in connection with this solicitation, the offeror shall complete and submit, with its offer, OMB standard form LLL, Disclosure of Lobbying Activities, to the Contracting Officer; and (3) He or she will include the language of this certification in all subcontract awards at any tier and require that all recipients of subcontract awards in excess of $100,000 shall certify and disclose accordingly. (c) Submission of this certification and disclosure is a prerequisite for making or entering into this contract imposed by section 1352, title 31, United States Code. Any person who makes an expenditure prohibited under this provision or who fails to file or amend the disclosure form to be filed or amended by this provision, shall be subject to a civil penalty of not less than $10,000, and not more than $100,000, for each such failure. K.4. (FAR 52.204-3) TAXPAYER IDENTIFICATION (JUN 1997) (a) Definitions "Common parent," as used in this solicitation provision, means that corporate entity that owns or controls an affiliated group of corporations that files its Federal income tax returns on a consolidated basis, and of which the offeror is a member. "Corporate status," as used in this solicitation provision, means a designation as to whether the offeror is a corporate entity, an unincorporated entity (e.g., sole proprietorship or partnership), or a corporation providing medical and health care services. "Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)," as used in this solicitation provision, means the number required by the IRS to be used by the offeror in reporting income tax and other returns. (b) All offerors are required to submit the information required in paragraphs (c) through (e) of this solicitation provision in order to comply with reporting requirements of 26 U.S.C. 6041, 6041A, and 6050M and implementing regulations issued by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). If the resulting contract is subject to the reporting requirements described in FAR 4.903, the failure or refusal by the offeror to furnish the information may result in a 31 percent reduction of payments otherwise due under the contract. (c) Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN). ( ) TIN:_____________________. ( ) TIN has been applied for. ( ) TIN is not required because: ( ) Offeror is a nonresident alien, foreign corporation, or foreign partnership that does not have income effectively connected with the conduct of a trade or business in the U.S. and does not have an office or place of business or a fiscal paying agent in the U.S.; ( ) Offeror is an agency or instrumentality of a foreign government; ( ) Offeror is an agency or instrumentality of a Federal, state, or local government; ( ) Other. State basis.______________________ (d) Corporate Status. ( ) Corporation providing medical and health care services, or engaged in the billing and collecting of payments for such services; ( ) Other corporate entity; ( ) Not a corporate entity: ( ) Sole proprietorship ( ) Partnership ( ) Hospital or extended care facility described in 26 CFR 501(c)(3) that is exempt from taxation under 26 CFR 501(a). (e) Common Parent. ( ) Offeror is not owned or controlled by a common parent as defined in paragraph (a) of this provision. ( ) Name and TIN of common parent: Name_______________________________ TIN________________________________ K.5. (FAR 52-204-5) WOMEN-OWNED BUSINESS (OCT 1995) (a) Representation. The offeror represents that it [ ] is, [ ] is not a women-owned business concern. (b) Definition. "Women-owned business concern," as used in this provision, means a concern which is at least 51 percent owned by one or more women; or in the case of any publicly owned business, at least 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more women; and whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more women. K.6. (FAR 52.204-6) DATA UNIVERSAL NUMBERING SYSTEM (DUNS) NUMBER (APR 1998) (a) The offeror shall enter, in the block with its name and address on the cover page of its offer, the annotation "DUNS" followed by the DUNS number that identifies the offeror's name and address exactly as stated in the offer. The DUNS number is a nine-digit number assigned by Dun and Bradstreet Information Services. (b) If the offeror does not have a DUNS number, it should contact Dun and Bradstreet directly to obtain one. A DUNS number will be provided immediately by telephone at no charge to the offeror. For information on obtaining a DUNS number, the offeror, if located within the United States, should call Dun and Bradstreet at 1-800-333-0505. The offeror should be prepared to provide the following information: (1) Company name . (2) Company address. . (3) Company telephone number. . (4) Line of business. . (5) Chief executive officer/key manager. . (6) Date the company was started. . (7) Number of people employed by the company. . (8) Company affiliation. . (c) Offerors located outside the United States may obtain the location and phone number of the local Dun and Bradstreet Information Services office from the Internet home page at www.dnb.com. If an offeror is unable to locate a local service center, it may send an e-mail to Dun and Bradstreet at globalinfo@mail.dnb.com. K.7. (FAR 209-5) CERTIFICATION REGARDING DEBARMENT, SUSPENSION, PROPOSED DEBARMENT, AND OTHER RESPONSIBILITY MATTERS (MAR 1996) (a) (1) The Offeror certifies, to the best of its knowledge and belief, that-- (i) The Offeror and/or any of its Principals-- (A) Are [ ] are not [ ] presently debarred, suspended, proposed for debarment, or declared ineligible for the award of contracts by any Federal agency; (B) Have [ ] have not [ ], within a three-year period preceding this offer, been convicted of or had a civil judgment rendered against them for: commission of fraud or a criminal offense in connection with obtaining, attempting to obtain, or performing a public (Federal, state, or local) contract or subcontract; violation of Federal or state antitrust statutes relating to the submission of offers; or commission of embezzlement, theft, forgery, bribery, falsification or destruction of records, making false statements, tax evasion, or receiving stolen property; and (C) Are [ ] are not [ ] presently indicted for, or otherwise criminally or civilly charged by a governmental entity with, commission of any of the offenses enumerated in subdivision (a)(1)(i)(B) of this provision. (ii) The Offeror has [ ] has not [ ], within a three-year period preceding this offer, had one or more contracts terminated for default by any Federal agency. (2) "Principals," for the purposes of this certification, means officers; directors; owners; partners; and, persons having primary management or supervisory responsibilities within a business entity (e.g., general manager; plant manager; head of a subsidiary, division, or business segment, and similar positions). This Certification Concerns a Matter Within the Jurisdiction of an Agency of the United States and the Making of a False, Fictitious, or Fraudulent Certification May Render the Maker Subject to Prosecution Under Section 1001, Title 18, United States Code. (b) The Offeror shall provide immediate written notice to the Contracting Officer if, at any time prior to contract award, the Offeror learns that its certification was erroneous when submitted or has become erroneous by reason of changed circumstances. (c) A certification that any of the items in paragraph (a) of this provision exists will not necessarily result in withholding of an award under this solicitation. However, the certification will be considered in connection with a determination of the Offeror's responsibility. Failure of the Offeror to furnish a certification or provide such additional information as requested by the Contracting Officer may render the Offeror nonresponsible. (d) Nothing contained in the foregoing shall be construed to require establishment of a system of records in order to render, in good faith, the certification required by paragraph (a) of this provision. The knowledge and information of an Offeror is not required to exceed that which is normally possessed by a prudent person in the ordinary course of business dealings. (e) The certification in paragraph (a) of this provision is a material representation of fact upon which reliance was placed when making award. If it is later determined that the Offeror knowingly rendered an erroneous certification, in addition to other remedies available to the Government, the Contracting Officer may terminate the contract resulting from this solicitation for default. K.8. (FAR 215-4) TYPE OF BUSINESS ORGANIZATION (OCT 1997) . The offeror or respondent, by checking the applicable box, represents that-- (a) It operates as [ ] an individual, [ ] a partnership, [ ] a nonprofit organization, [ ] a joint venture, or [ ] a corporation incorporated under the laws of the State of _____________. (b) If the offeror or respondent is a foreign entity, it operates as [ ] an individual, [ ] a partnership, [ ] a nonprofit organization, [ ] a joint venture, or [ ] a corporation, registered for business in __________________________(country). K.10. (FAR 52.215-6) PLACE OF PERFORMANCE (OCT 1997) (a) The offeror or respondent, in the performance of any contract resulting from this solicitation, [ ] intends, [ ] does not intend to use one or more plants or facilities located at a different address from the address of the offeror or respondent as indicated in this proposal or response to request for information. (b) If the offeror or respondent checks "intends" in paragraph (a) of this provision, it shall insert in the following spaces the required information: Place of Performance Name and Address of Owner (Street Address, City, County, and Operator of the Plant State, Zip Code) or Facility if Other than Offeror or Quoter ______________________________ _______________________________ ______________________________ _______________________________ ______________________________ _______________________________ ______________________________ _______________________________ K.9. (FAR 52.219-1) SMALL BUSINESS PROGRAM REPRESENTATIONS. (FEB 1998) (a) (1) The standard industrial classification (SIC) code for this acquisition is _________________________ [insert SIC code]. (2) The small business size standard is _____________ [insert size standard]. (3) The small business size standard for a concern which submits an offer in its own name, other than on a construction or service contract, but which proposes to furnish a product which it did not itself manufacture, is 500 employees. (b) Representations. (1) The offeror represents as part of its offer that it [ ] is, [ ] is not a small business concern. (2) (Complete only if offeror represented itself as a small business concern in paragraph (b)(1) of this provision.) The offeror represents as part of its offer that it [ ] is, [ ] is not a small disadvantaged business concern. (3) (Complete only if offeror represented itself as a small business concern in paragraph (b)(1) of this provision.) The offeror represents as part of its offer that it [ ] is, [ ] is not a women-owned small business concern. (c) Definitions. "Joint venture," for purposes of a small disadvantaged business (SDB) set-aside or price evaluation preference (as prescribed at 13 CFR 124.321), is a concern that is owned and controlled by one or more socially and economically disadvantaged individuals entering into a joint venture agreement with one or more business concerns and is considered to be affiliated for size purposes with such other concern(s). The combined annual receipts or employees of the concerns entering into the joint venture must meet the applicable size standard corresponding to the SIC code designated for the contract. The majority of the venture's earnings must accrue directly to the socially and economically disadvantaged individuals in the SDB concern(s) in the joint venture. The percentage of the ownership involvement in a joint venture by disadvantaged individuals must be at least 51 percent. "Small business concern," as used in this provision, means a concern, including its affiliates, that is independently owned and operated, not dominant in the field of operation in which it is bidding on Government contracts, and qualified as a small business under the criteria in 13 CFR Part 121 and the size standard in paragraph (a) of this provision. "Small disadvantaged business concern," as used in this provision, means a small business concern that (1) is at least 51 percent unconditionally owned by one or more individuals who are both socially and economically disadvantaged, or a publicly owned business having at least 51 percent of its stock unconditionally owned by one or more socially and economically disadvantaged individuals, and (2) has its management and daily business controlled by one or more such individuals. This term also means a small business concern that is at least 51 percent unconditionally owned by an economically disadvantaged Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian Organization, or a publicly owned business having at least 51 percent of its stock unconditionally owned by one or more of these entities, which has its management and daily business controlled by members of an economically disadvantaged Indian tribe or Native Hawaiian Organization, and which meets the requirements of 13 CFR Part 124. "Woman-owned small business concern," as used in this provision, means a small business concern-- (1) Which is at least 51 percent owned by one or more women or, in the case of any publicly owned business, at least 51 percent of the stock of which is owned by one or more women; and (2) Whose management and daily business operations are controlled by one or more women. (d) Notice. (1) If this solicitation is for supplies and has been set aside, in whole or in part, for small business concerns, then the clause in this solicitation providing notice of the set-aside contains restrictions on the source of the end items to be furnished. (2) Under 15 U.S.C. 645(d), any person who misrepresents a firm's status as a small or small disadvantaged business concern in order to obtain a contract to be awarded under the preference programs established pursuant to section 8(a), 8(d), 9, or 15 of the Small Business Act or any other provision of Federal law that specifically references section 8(d) for a definition of program eligibility, shall-- (i) Be punished by imposition of fine, imprisonment, or both; (ii) Be subject to administrative remedies, including suspension and debarment; and (iii) Be ineligible for participation in programs conducted under the authority of the Act. K.10. (FAR 52.222-21) CERTIFICATION OF NONSEGREGATED FACILITIES (APR 1984) (a) "Segregated facilities," as used in this provision, means any waiting rooms, work areas, rest rooms and wash rooms, restaurants and other eating areas, time clocks, locker rooms and other storage or dressing areas, parking lots, drinking fountains, recreation or entertainment areas, transportation, and housing facilities provided for employees, that are segregated by explicit directive or are in fact segregated on the basis of race, color, religion, or national origin because of habit, local custom, or otherwise. (b) By the submission of this offer, the offeror certifies that it does not and will not maintain or provide for its employees any segregated facilities at any of its establishments, and that it does not and will not permit its employees to perform their services at any location under its control where segregated facilities are maintained. The offeror agrees that a breach of this certification is a violation of the Equal Opportunity clause in the contract. (c) The offeror further agrees that (except where it has obtained identical certifications from proposed subcontractors for specific time periods) it will-- (1) Obtain identical certifications from proposed subcontractors before the award of subcontracts under which the subcontractor will be subject to the Equal Opportunity clause; (2) Retain the certifications in the files; and (3) Forward the following notice to the proposed subcontractors (except if the proposed subcontractors have submitted identical certifications for specific time periods): NOTICE TO PROSPECTIVE SUBCONTRACTORS OF REQUIREMENT FOR CERTIFICATIONS OF NONSEGREGATED FACILITIES A Certification of Nonsegregated Facilities must be submitted before the award of a subcontract under which the subcontractor will be subject to the Equal Opportunity clause. The certification may be submitted either for each subcontractor for all subcontracts during a period (i.e., quarterly, semiannually, or annually). NOTE: The penalty for making false statements in offers is prescribed in 18 U.S.C. 1001. K.11. (FAR 52.222-22) PREVIOUS CONTRACTS AND COMPLIANCE REPORTS (APR 1984). The offeror represents that-- (a) It [ ] has, [ ] has not participated in a previous contract or subcontract subject either to the Equal Opportunity clause of this solicitation, the clause originally contained in Section 310 of Executive Order No. 10925, or the clause contained in Section 201 of Executive Order No. 11114; (b) It [ ] has, [ ] has not filed all required compliance reports; and (c) Representations indicating submission of required compliance reports, signed by proposed subcontractors, will be obtained before subcontract awards. K.12. (FAR 52.222-25) AFFIRMATIVE ACTION COMPLIANCE (APR 1984). The offeror represents that-- (a) It [ ] has developed and has on file, [ ] has not developed and does not have on file, at each establishment, affirmative action programs required by the rules and regulations of the Secretary of Labor (41 CFR 60-1 and 60-2), or (b) It [ ] has not previously had contracts subject to the written affirmative action programs requirement of the rules and regulations of the Secretary of Labor. K.13. (FAR 52.223-1) CLEAN AIR AND WATER CERTIFICATION (APR 1984) . The Offeror certifies that-- (a) Any facility to be used in the performance of this proposed contract is [ ] is not [ ] listed on the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) List of Violating Facilities; (b) The Offeror will immediately notify the Contracting Officer, before award, of the receipt of any communication from the Administrator, or a designee, of the EPA, indicating that any facility that the Offeror proposes to use for the performance of the contract is under consideration to be listed on the EPA List of Violating Facilities; and (c) The Offeror will include a certification substantially the same as this certification, including this paragraph (c), in every nonexempt subcontract. K.14. (FAR 52.223-13) CERTIFICATION OF TOXIC CHEMICAL RELEASE REPORTING (OCT 1996) (a) Submission of this certification is a prerequisite for making or entering into this contract imposed by Executive Order 12969, August 8, 1995. (b) By signing this offer, the offeror certifies that-- (1) As the owner or operator of facilities that will be used in the performance of this contract that are subject to the filing and reporting requirements described in section 313 of the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act of 1986 (EPCRA) (42 U.S.C. 11023) and section 6607 of the Pollution Prevention Act of 1990 (PPA) (42 U.S.C. 13106), the offeror will file and continue to file for such facilities for the life of the contract the Toxic Chemical Release Inventory Form (Form R) as described in sections 313(a) and (g) of EPCRA and section 6607 of PPA; or (2) None of its owned or operated facilities to be used in the performance of this contract is subject to the Form R filing and reporting requirements because each such facility is exempt for at least one of the following reasons: [Check each block that is applicable.] [ ] (i) The facility does not manufacture, process, or otherwise use any toxic chemicals listed under section 313(c) of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. 11023(c); [ ] (ii) The facility does not have 10 or more full-time employees as specified in section 313(b)(1)(A) of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C.11023(b)(1)(A); [ ] (iii) The facility does not meet the reporting thresholds of toxic chemicals established under section 313(f) of EPCRA, 42 U.S.C. 11023(f) (including the alternate thresholds at 40 CFR 372.27, provided an appropriate certification form has been filed with EPA); [ ] (iv) The facility does not fall within Standard Industrial Classification Code (SIC) designations 20 through 39 as set forth in section 19.102 of the Federal Acquisition Regulation; or [ ] (v) The facility is not located within any State of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the United States Virgin Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, or any other territory or possession over which the United States has jurisdiction. K.15. PARENT COMPANY AND IDENTIFYING DATA (a) A "parent" company, for the purpose of this provision, is one that owns or controls the activities and basic business policies of the bidder. To own the bidding company means that the parent company must own more than 50 percent of the voting rights in that company. A company may control a bidder as a parent even though not meeting the requirement for such ownership if the parent company is able to formulate, determine, or veto basic policy decisions of the offeror through the use of dominant minority voting rights, use of proxy voting, or otherwise. (b) The bidder [ ] is, [ ] is not [check applicable box] owned or controlled by a parent company. (c) If the bidder checked "is" in paragraph (b) above, it shall provide the following information: Name and Main Office Address of Parent Company's Employer's Parent Company (Include ZIP Code) Identification Number __________________________________ ______________________________ ___________________________________ ______________________________ ___________________________________ ______________________________ (d) If the bidder checked "is not" in paragraph (b) above, it shall insert its own Employer's Identification Number on the following line _________________________________________________________. K.16. PERIOD FOR ACCEPTANCE OF OFFER . In compliance with the solicitation, the offeror agrees, if this offer is accepted within ___calendar days (90 calendar days unless a different period is inserted by the offeror) from the date specified in the solicitation for receipt of offerors, to furnish any or all items on which prices are offered at the price set opposite each item, delivered at the designated point(s), within the time specified in the Schedule. K.17. AUTHORIZED NEGOTIATORS. The offeror or quoter represents that the following persons are authorized to negotiate on its behalf with the Government in connection with this request for proposals or quotations: [list names, titles, and telephone numbers of the authorized negotiators]. ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________ K.18. ADDRESS TO WHICH PAYMENT SHOULD BE MAILED. In the space provided below, the Contractor is requested to indicate the name and address to which payment should be mailed. _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ _________________________________________________________________________________ K.19. MOST FAVORED CUSTOMER PRICE. The Offeror warrants and agrees that the prices charged FEDLINK users under this agreement will not exceed the prices charged by the Vendor to its most favored customer for the same item or services in like or comparable quantities; and further agrees, that any payments received for charges made in excess of prices paid by such most favored customers will be returned to the Government. K.20. FACSIMILE NUMBER. The offeror shall indicate below the telephone number (if applicable) to which the Government may send written communications electronically. Fax Number: K.21. E-MAIL ADDRESS. The offeror shall indicate below the e-mail address (if applicable) to which the Government may send communications electronically. E-mail Address: I HEREBY CERTIFY THAT THE RESPONSES TO THE ABOVE REPRESENTATIONS, CERTIFICATIONS AND OTHER STATEMENTS ARE ACCURATE AND COMPLETE. SIGNATURE: _________________________________________________________________ TITLE: _________________________________________________________________ DATE: _________________________________________________________________ SECTION L - INSTRUCTIONS, CONDITIONS AND NOTICES TO OFFERORS Abbreviations used in this section: BOA Basic Ordering Agreement C&L LC Contracts & Logistics CFR Code of Federal Regulations CLIN Contract Line Item Number COTR Contract Officer's Technical Representative FAR Federal Acquisition Regulation FFO FEDLINK Fiscal Operations FNO FEDLINK Network Operations LC Library of Congress RFP Request for Proposal SOW Statement of Work TRP Technical Review Panel L.1. FAR PROVISIONS. L.1.1. Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference (FAR 52.252-1 FEB 1998). This solicitation incorporates one or more solicitation provisions by reference, with the same force and effect as if they were given in full text. Upon request, the Contracting Officer will make their full text available. The offeror is cautioned that the listed provisions may include blocks that must be completed by the offeror and submitted with its quotation or offer. In lieu of submitting the full text of those provisions, the offeror may identify the provision by paragraph identifier and provide the appropriate information with its quotation or offer. Also, the full text of a solicitation provision may be accessed electronically at this address: www.arnet.gov/far L.1.2. NOTICE: The following solicitation provisions and/or contract clauses pertinent to this section are hereby incorporated by reference: FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION (48 CFR CHAPTER 1) NUMBER DATE TITLE 52.204-6 APR 1998 Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) Number. 52.215-1 OCT 1997 Instructions to Offerors - Competitive L.1.2. Type of contract (FAR 52.216-1 APR 1984). The Government contemplates award of a Basic Ordering Agreement resulting from this solicitation and reserves the right to make multiple awards. L.1.3. Service of Protest (FAR 52.233-2 AUG 1996). (a) Protests, as defined in Section 33.101 of the Federal Acquisition Regulations, that are filed directly with an agency, and copies of any protests that are filed with the General Accounting Office (GAO), shall be served on the Contracting Officer (addressed as follows) by obtaining written and dated acknowledgment of receipt from: Contracting Officer: Joan M. McCoy Hand-Carried Address: The Library of Congress Contracts and Logistics Service 1701 Brightseat Road Landover, MD 20785 Mailing Address: The Library of Congress Contracts and Logistics Service 1701 Brightseat Road Landover, MD 20785-3799 (b) The copy of any protest shall be received in the office designated above within one day of filing a protest with the GAO. L.2. INTRODUCTION. L.2.1. Basic Requirements. Your proposal shall contain a response to each of the items identified below. The proposal shall be complete, sufficiently detailed, and specific to enable LC to arrive at a sound determination of whether you have demonstrated a thorough understanding of the LC/FEDLINK requirements for serials subscription services and will be able to provide services to FEDLINK members in accordance with the requirements of the RFP and resulting BOA. General statements that you understand, can, or will comply with the requirements of the RFP, or paraphrasing of the RFP SOW will not be sufficient. L.2.2. Data From Previous Contracts. Data previously submitted or presumed to be known by LC/FEDLINK (e.g., from previous contracts or projects performed) will not be considered as part of this proposal. Do not incorporate such data into the proposal by reference. L.2.3. Proposal Quality. Of utmost importance is a complete and clear proposal written in a practical, concise, coherent, and logical manner, containing related material directly applicable to this RFP. The quality of your proposal will be considered to be representative of the quality of your products and services. "Brochuremanship," elaborate art work, expensive paper, expensive binders, and other costly presentation aids beyond what is sufficient to present a complete and effective proposal are neither necessary nor desired. L.2.4. Physical Requirements of Written Submission. Submit each proposal volume in a separately bound standard three (3)-ring binder. Format each volume as follows: Include a cover with: volume number and title, proposal title, RFP number, company name, address, telephone number, date submitted. Include a table of contents for each volume. Number pages. Make margins 1" all around. Make text no smaller than 12 point type. Double space printing. Do not include classified material. Identify any commercial material (catalogs, brochures, documentation, training materials, etc.) with "RFP #S-LC99015 " and your company name. L.3. VOLUME 1 - COSTS AND CERTIFICATIONS. At a minimum, the response to Volume 1 - Costs and Certifications shall include the material listed below, in the order given below. The RFP sections listed below will be incorporated into an award resulting from this solicitation. There is no length limitation on Volume 1. Submit three print copies. L.3.1. Section A - Solicitation, Offer and Award. Complete sections 15, 16, 17 and 18 of the Standard Form 33 that is the cover page of the solicitation. L.3.2. Section B - Supplies or Services and Prices/Costs. (a) Certification of Exclusions. Sign the certification that no products/services listed as exclusions in the SOW will be provided under the award from this solicitation. (b) Contract Line Item Numbers (CLINs). Pricing shall conform to the contract line item numbers (CLINs) identified in Section B. As required in the SOW, provide a narrative description of any pricing scheme based on units other than those established in Section B as part of the Technical response. It is important that pricing formulas be clear and easy for members to apply. Provide your most recent financial statement or other evidence of financial capability (i.e., letter of credit from a bank.) (c) Discount from Commercial Pricing. Include with each price an indication of the percent discount from commercial rates represented by the offer to LC/FEDLINK. If possible, provide the overall discount off commercial rates represented by the offer to LC/FEDLINK. Include copies of commercial price lists as supplemental information in order to demonstrate that your pricing structure is fair and reasonable. (d) Electronic Access to Prices. Describe how FEDLINK customers will get electronic access to your FEDLINK pricing. (details described in section C) L.3.3. Section C - Statement of Work. Review Section C and initial your concurrence at the bottom right corner of page C-1. L.3.4. Section F - Deliveries or Performance. Review Section F and initial your concurrence at the bottom right corner of page F-1. L.3.5. Section G - Contract Administration Data. Review Section G and initial your concurrence at the bottom right corner of page G-1. L.3.6. Section H - Special Contract Requirements. Review Section H and initial your concurrence at the bottom right corner of page H-1. L.3.7. Section I - Contract Clauses. Complete all Section I certifications. L.3.8. Section K - Representations, Certifications, and Other Statements of Offerors. Complete all Section K certifications and provide necessary signatures. Provide additional documents and certifications required by Section K. L.3.9. Corporate Financial Statement. Provide the company's latest corporate financial statement. L.4. VOLUME 2 - TECHNICAL. The Technical response shall demonstrate your understanding of the Serials Subscription Services described in the SOW and your capability to provide these products and services to FEDLINK members. The Technical response shall address the subjects listed below, in the order given below. Submit four print copies of the Technical response. The maximum length of this volume is 30 pages, plus sample copies of reports. You have the option of reinforcing some of this technical information through samples of standard literature of the type provided to prospective and current customers. L.4.1. Technical Description. Follow the outline of the SOW to describe the serials subscription services. You may submit standard commercial materials to describe your products/services, and supplement them as necessary by narrative specific to the SOW. Cross references from your narrative response to your commercial materials will assist the evaluators. Products or services, or terms and conditions in your commercial materials that are out of scope of this RFP or that conflict with any of the provisions herein will not be considered part of your proposal and will not become part of the agreement resulting from this RFP. The proposal shall demonstrate: (a) Comprehensiveness of technical approach, based on an adequate description and justification for the overall methodology for services as described in Section C. (b) Understanding of the requirements and problems which are associated with the operation of a subscription service for federal libraries nationwide, including working with publishers, the differing needs of various agencies, how serials management is affected by federal procurement and fiscal practices, and how specific provisions such as account representative and hours of service available will support federal libraries nationwide. (c) Past performance, assessed on the basis of evidence of competent and successful experience in procurement of the same or similar nature. The offeror shall provide evidence of substantial recent experience in managing subscription services, addressing both clients and publishers. The offeror shall provide a list of (a) all government contracts exceeding $100,000, (b) the number of non-government accounts over $100,000, and (c) selected current contracts under $100,000; with points of contact and phone numbers for at least 5 (five) customers from each category (a-c) to serve as references. The offeror shall also provide a similar reference list for the 4 (four) publishers providing the largest dollar volume of subscriptions, plus 3 (three) association publishers. L.4.2. Year 2000 Compliance. Provide information regarding how your company is undertaking Year 2000 Compliance as described in Section C.2.4. L.4.3. License Agreements. Indicate which of the following options you prefer: 1) not to require customers to sign a license at all; 2) to adopt the LC/FEDLINK model; 3) to incorporate some of the terms or language from the model into your standard license agreement; or, 4) to use your standard license agreement for federal customers. Provide copies of any license agreements you propose to use for FEDLINK customers. Describe how your license(s) will meet the needs of FEDLINK customers as discussed in Section C.2.5. For areas where your license(s) differ from the LC/FEDLINK model license, explain why the language of the model is unacceptable and describe how the terms you propose instead will meet the needs of FEDLINK customers. L.4.4. Prices and Discounts. Do not include the prices themselves in the Technical response. L.5. VOLUME 3 - MANAGEMENT. The Management response shall demonstrate your approach to working with the FEDLINK program and your ability to provide the required services to FEDLINK members. The Management response shall address the subjects listed below, in the order given below. Submit four print copies of the Management response. The maximum length of this volume is 12 pages. Do not include prices in the Management response. L.5.1. Chapter 1 - Management. (a) Working with Members. Describe your approach for working with the federal libraries, information centers and other offices that acquire serials subscription services through FEDLINK. (b) Working with LC/FEDLINK. Describe your approach for working with LC/FEDLINK, particularly regarding: BOA modification, establishing services under Lot 3 (as appropriate), IAGs, transfer pay and direct pay service, delivery orders and purchase orders, and invoicing. Identify your organization structure showing where your FEDLINK point-of-contact fits. (c) Resolving Problems. Describe your methods for resolving management or technical problems with LC/FEDLINK or with customers, including liaison to senior personnel who can assist in problem resolution. (d) Management Tools and Controls. Describe the management tools and controls within your organization, including methods for controlling quality, scheduling timely delivery, tracking charges, and reporting. (e) Subcontracting. If you anticipate subcontracts, describe how you will control the subcontract and identify subcontractor by name and services proposed. Subcontractors must be approved by the Contracting Officer. (f) Samples. Provide a sample invoice that shows the required elements described in Section G. Provide a sample of the summary activity report described in Section H. L.5.2. Chapter 2 - Corporate Experience. Describe your corporate history and experience with specific emphasis on your experience in the field of serials subscription services, your experience in managing contracts similar to the FEDLINK program, and your experience in handling Government contracts. (a) Examples of Similar Experience. Provide examples of related corporate experience over the past five years. Examples shall include: company or federal agency name, customer, customer contact and phone number, contract number, contracting officer and phone number, description of service provided, and approximate dollar value of contract. (b) Past Performance. Your past performance will be assessed on the basis of evidence of competent and successful experience in a procurement of the same or similar nature. L.5.3. Chapter 3 - Personnel. Providing services through FEDLINK will require liaison with FEDLINK members, LC/FEDLINK staff and LC/C&L personnel. Complete the Vendor ID and Contact Form at L.9. to identify the personnel who will be key in providing your services through FEDLINK. Identify and describe the experience of the individual(s) who will serve in the following roles: (a) FEDLINK Member Contact - particularly for matters concerning sales, start-up, support, and problem resolution. (b) FNO/COTR Contact - particularly for matters concerning the types of services offered and special requirements of individual customers. (c) FFO Contact - particularly for matters concerning registrations, IAGs, accounts, invoices, payments, and reconciliation. (d) LC/C&L Contact - particularly for matters concerning the terms and conditions of the BOA, delivery orders, and direct pay customers. (e) General Personnel - for production and delivery of the serials subscription publications and services offered under this proposal. L.5.4. Chapter 4 - Facilities. The proposal shall demonstrate that you have the facilities required to provide adequate support for the services proposed. L.5.5. License Agreements. If your technical and management understanding and approach are acceptable, the panel will inform you whether further discussion focusing on the license agreements for your products/services will be necessary. L.6. FORMS. The following forms are provided to assist you in your proposal. L.6.1. Checklist for Proposal Submission. L.6.1. Vendor ID and Contact Form. Complete this form and submit it with Volume 3 - Management. CHECKLIST FOR PROPOSAL SUBMISSION 1 - Costs and Certifications (3 Copies) ____ Section A ____ Section B and commercial price list ____ Section C ____ Section F ____ Section G ____ Section K and attachments ____ Section I ____ Latest corporate financial statement 2 - Technical (4 copies) ____ Technical response ____ Samples ____ Commercial material as appropriate 3 - Management (4 copies) ____ Management description with sample invoice and summary activity report ____ Corporate experience description with examples of similar experience ____ Personnel description ____ Facilities description ____ Vendor ID and Contact Form Vendor ID AND CONTACT FORM Vendor ID: Company:_____________________________________________________________________ Address:_____________________________________________________________________ City:________________________ State: ______ Zip: _______________ Phone:__________________________ E-Mail: ___________________________ Fax:__________________________ www: ___________________________ 800 Number:__________________________ LC/C&L CONTACT FOR NEGOTIATION: Name, Title: _____________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________________ E-Mail: ___________________________ Fax:__________________________ LC/C&L CONTACT FOR CONTRACT ADMINISTRATION: Name, Title: _____________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________________ E-Mail: ___________________________ Fax:__________________________ FFO CONTACT: Name, Title: _____________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________________ E-Mail: ___________________________ Fax:__________________________ FNO/COTR CONTACT: Name, Title: _____________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________________ E-Mail: ___________________________ Fax:__________________________ MEMBER CONTACT: Name, Title: _____________________________________________________________________ Phone:__________________________ E-Mail: ___________________________ Fax:__________________________ SECTION M -- Evaluation Factors for Award M.1. EVALUATION CRITERIA M.1.1. Contractor selection will be based on evaluation of proposals in accordance with the responses received to the criteria outlined in Section L, Instructions, Conditions, and Notices to Offerors and the Schedule of Prices. Award will be made to that offeror whose combination of technical and price proposals represents the best value to the Government and is most advantageous, price and other factors considered, and which is within the availability of Library of Congress resources. The technical factors are weighted more heavily than cost. However, the degree of importance of cost could become greater depending upon the similarity of services offered in the technical responses. M.1.2. The Library of Congress also reserves the right to reject any or all proposals received and/or request for clarification or modification of proposals. The Library reserves the right to determine a competitive range for negotiation based upon the technical and cost acceptability of proposals. In addition, the Library reserves the right to award a contract without discussions. M.1.3. Technical evaluators will not have access to cost data until such time as they present to the Contracting Officer a final technical ranking of all proposals. A merger of the two evaluations, cost and technical, will then be conducted to select the optimum proposal or proposals on which further negotiations will be conducted. M.1.4. Cost evaluation will include an analysis of the total cost and cost elements (if applicable) to perform the required work. The total costs supplied by the offeror shall be submitted on a copy of Section B in the spaces provided and shall constitute the total firm- fixed unit price for that service or deliverable. M.1.5. Proposals that are unrealistic in terms of technical commitment or unreasonably low or high in cost or price will be deemed reflective of an inherent lack of technical competence or indicative of failure to comprehend the complexity and risk involved in the contract requirements and may be grounds for rejection of the proposal. Evaluation factors for award are listed below in descending order of importance; however, the first three under technical are of equal imp M.2. EVALUATION FACTORS M.2.1. Technical Factors (a) Comprehensive of Technical Approach. The offeror's responses must be based on an adequate description and justification for the overall methodology for services as described in Section C. (b) Understanding. The offeror must understand the requirements and problems associated with the operation of a subscription service for federal libraries and information centers nationwide, including differing needs of various agencies, as well as, other requirements needed to support federal libraries and information centers nationwide as specifically outlined in Section L.4.1. (c) Past Performance. Offeror's response must address the quality, soundness, completeness and feasibility of the offeror's project approach, including quality of staff, utilization of staff, and plan for continuity. The offeror shall provide evidence of substantial recent experience in managing subscription services, addressing both clients and publishers. (d) Management. The offeror's response must indicate evidence that their firm employs a substantial personnel capable of handling all phases of service as required by Section C - Statement of Work. (e) Sample Reports and Invoices. The offeror should provide samples of all required reports and include all pertinent information required by the government. M.2.2. Cost Factors. See M.1.1. and M1.2., above. (a) Cost Reasonableness. The Government may reject an offer if it is materially unbalanced as to prices for the basic requirement and the option quantities. An offer is unbalanced when it is based on prices significantly less than cost for some work and prices which are significantly overstated for other work. M.3. 52.217-5 EVALUATION OF OPTIONS. (JUL 1990). Except when it is determined in accordance with FAR 17.206(b) not to be in the Government's best interests, the Government will evaluate offers for award purposes by adding the total price for all options to the total price for the basic requirement. Evaluation of options will not obligate the Government to exercise the option(s).