Sand Route Improvements and Restoration

This is a combined synopsis/solicitation for commercial items prepared in accordance with the format in FAR Part 12.  This announcement constitutes the only solicitation.  Offers are being requested and a separate written solicitation will not be issued. 

Solicitation number 1240BE26Q0048 is issued as a Request for Quotation (RFQ) for Sand Route Improvements and Restoration. The purpose of this contract is to restore safe standards to off road routes in the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.  The project will widen trails to standard width, improve drainage, and aid emergency access.

The work will require heavy equipment operation on sand dunes.  The main objectives are to widen trails to 16’ width, restore existing drainage structures, add drainage dips where possible, and raise/lower several sections of the route.  Some routes are as little as 6’ wide and will require significant effort to clear trees and sand. 

All work is to be done in the north and south riding areas of the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area.  See attached map for highlighted routes.   Performance period will be October 05, 2026 – December 15, 2026.  There are significant safety hazards to operating in the main season.

This acquisition  is set-aside for small business concerns.  The applicable North American Industry Classification Standard Code is 115310 Support Activities for Forestry.  The small business size standard is $11.5 million  This acquisition is a Total Small Business Set-Aside.  All responsible sources may submit a quotation which will be considered by the agency. 

Attachment Number  

1. Schedule of Items and Statement of Objectives

2. Wage rates

3. 23.23 Exhibit 01 Design Parameters for four-wheel drive vehicles

4. Project Area Maps                                     

Solicitation Information

Award Type

It is anticipated that a FIRM FIXED PRICED contract will be awarded.

The Government intends to make one award from this solicitation.  Therefore, to be considered responsive, contractors must submit pricing for all items.

Evaluation and Basis for Award

The provision at FAR 52.212-2, Evaluation—Commercial Products and Commercial Services

is not applicable to this solicitation.  In lieu of this provision, quotes will be evaluated in accordance with FAR 12.203 based on the criteria listed below.  The award will be made to the offeror whose offer conforming to the solicitation will be most advantageous to the Government, price and other factors considered.

1. Price:

The offeror shall provide pricing as requested in the Schedule of Items. Failure to propose pricing for all individual line items may result in a quotation being excluded from further consideration.  The offeror’s quotation will be evaluated in accordance with FAR 12.204, to determine if it is fair and reasonable.

2. Relevant Past Performance History:

Provide a listing of your projects for the past three-years that most closely relate to this type of work. Include the dates of performance, the company name, the name of contact point of contact, and point of contact telephone number and email.  Also include any contract that was terminated (convenience and or cause) or cancelled and address why the contract was terminated or cancelled.

The Government may utilize any references provided by the Contractor, along with information available from past contracts/orders with the USDA and any information found using sources such as Federal Government sources or the Contractor Performance Assessment Reporting System (CPARS) to determine if the Contractor has acceptable or neutral Past Performance. Past Performance will be evaluated using the following rating system:

a) Acceptable: The contractor shows a demonstrated ability to meet contract requirements in prior or current contracts, including quality of work, timeliness, cost control, business relations, and adherence to contract terms. 

b) Neutral: Offeror does not have a past performance record.

c) Unacceptable: The contractor has a documented history of failing to meet contract requirements, including poor quality, missed deadlines, cost overruns, lack of responsiveness, or unethical behavior.

3. Technical Approach:

The technical approach will evaluate the ability of the offeror to provide a sound and compliant approach that meets all requirements and shows a thorough understanding of them.  It is the contractor's responsibility to ensure their quotation clearly demonstrates their capability to meet these requirements.  All offerors must provide the following minimum information and documentation with their quotations to be considered responsive and have their offers evaluated:

a) Ability of the offeror to meet the schedule requirements listed in the Statement of Objectives (SOO).

b) Provided specifications of all equipment intended use for this project.

c) List of personnel that will be working on this project.  At a minimum, demonstrate that the individual meets the educational and experience qualifications specified in the SOO.

Evaluation Method:

All quotations will be evaluated to identify the offeror presenting the most technically advantageous solution based on the stated evaluation criteria.  Once the highest technically rated offeror is identified, their price will be evaluated to determine whether it is fair and reasonable.  Past performance will also be assessed to ensure it is acceptable or neutral.

52.252-1          Solicitation Provisions Incorporated by Reference                       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/these address(es): https://www.acquisition.gov/far-overhaul/far-part-deviation-guide/far-overhaul-part-52

52.212-1          Instructions to Offerors - Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Nov                             2025)

FAR 52.212-1 is amended as follows:

Period for acceptance of offers. 

The Offeror agrees to hold the prices in its offer firm for 60 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of offers.

Questions

Questions shall be submitted via email to Jared.Machgna@usda.gov and are due no later than April 16, 2026, at 12:00 PM Pacific Time.  This will ensure enough time to respond before the solicitation period ends.  Please include the solicitation name and number as the subject line of the email.

Vendors are to be submitted their offers to Jared Machgan via email jared.machgan@usda.gov no later than April 20, 2026 1700 PT. Offers are to include at a minimum three separate documents; First document, Schedule of items, second document, Past Performance and third document, Technical Approach.

Instructions to Offerors—Commercial Products and Commercial Services (Aug 2025)

(a) Submission of offers. Submit signed and dated offers to the office specified in this solicitation at or before the exact time specified in this solicitation. As a minimum, offers shall include—

(1) The solicitation number;

(2) The name, address, telephone number of the Offeror;

(3) The Offeror’s Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and, if applicable, Electronic Funds Transfer (EFT) indicator;

(4) Information necessary to evaluate the factors contained in the provision at 52.212-2 or as described in the solicitation;

(5) Responses to provisions that require Offeror completion of information, representations, and certifications (other than those collected via the System for Award Management (SAM)); and

(6) A statement specifying the extent of agreement with all terms, conditions, and provisions included in the solicitation and any solicitation amendments.

(b) Period for acceptance of offers. The Offeror agrees to hold the prices in its offer firm for 60 calendar days from the date specified for receipt of offers, unless another time period is specified in an addendum to the solicitation.

(c) Late submissions, modifications, revisions, and withdrawals of offers.

(1) Offerors are responsible for submitting offers and any modifications or revisions to the Government office designated in the solicitation by the time specified in the solicitation.

(2) Any offer, modification, or revision received after the time specified for receipt of offers is “late” and will not be considered unless it is received before award is made and the Contracting Officer determines that accepting the late offer would not unduly delay the acquisition. However, a late modification of an otherwise successful offer that makes its terms more favorable to the Government will be considered at any time it is received and may be accepted.

(3) If an emergency or unanticipated event interrupts normal Government processes so that offers cannot be received at the Government office designated for receipt of offers by the exact time specified in the solicitation, and urgent Government requirements preclude amendment of the solicitation or other notice of an extension of the closing date, the time specified for receipt of offers will be deemed to be extended to the same time of day specified in the solicitation on the first work day on which normal Government processes resume.

(4) Offerors may withdraw their offers by written notice to the Government received at any time before award.

(d) Contract award (not applicable to Invitation for Bids). The Government intends to evaluate offers and award a contract without discussions with Offerors. Therefore, the Offeror’s initial offer should contain the Offeror’s best terms. However, the Government reserves the right to conduct discussions, if necessary. The Government may reject any or all offers if such action is in the public interest, accept other than the lowest offer, and waive informalities and minor irregularities in offers received.

(e) Debriefings. If a post award debriefing is given to requesting Offerors, the Government will disclose the following information, if applicable:

(1) The agency’s evaluation of the significant weak or deficient factors in the debriefed Offeror’s offer.

(2) The overall evaluated cost or price and technical rating of the successful Offeror and the debriefed Offeror and past performance information on the debriefed Offeror.

(3) The overall ranking of all Offerors when any ranking was developed by the agency during source selection.

(4) A summary of the rationale for award.

(5) For acquisitions of commercial products, the make and model of the product to be delivered by the successful Offeror.

(6) Reasonable responses to relevant questions posed by the debriefed Offeror as to whether the agency followed source-selection procedures set forth in the solicitation, applicable regulations, and other applicable authorities.

(End of provision)

52.203-18        Prohibition on Contracting with Entities that Require Certain Internal Confidentiality

                        Agreements or Statements-Representation (Jan 2017)

52.204-7          System for Award Management—Registration (Nov 2025)

52.209-2          Prohibition on Contracting with Inverted Domestic Corporations - Representation                                     (Sep 2025)

52.209-11        Representation by Corporations Regarding Delinquent Tax Liability or a Felony                           Conviction under any Federal Law (Sep 2025)

52.240-90        Security Prohibitions and Exclusions Representations and Certifications (Nov 2025)

Other Applicable FAR Provisions

AGAR Provisions

452.203-70      Anti-Discrimination and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Certification (Dec 2025)

(a) By submission of its offer, the offeror certifies that:

1. It is compliant with all applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws and the Equal Protection principles of the U.S. Constitution.
2. Neither it nor any proposed subcontractor or teaming partner operates or funds any program, policy, or initiative that promotes DEI in a manner that violates any applicable Federal anti-discrimination laws, including but not limited to Title VI and VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, or the Equal Protection principles of the U.S. Constitution.

(b) If the offeror participates in, facilitates, or funds programs that implicate Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972, as amended, including but not limited to grants to or for schools, colleges, universities, 4-H programs, non-governmental organization (NGO) programs, sports programs, and education-related grants to prisons or other detention facilities, by submission of its offer, the offeror certifies that it is compliant with those laws, including the requirements set forth in Executive Order 14168, Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government, and Executive Order 14173, Ending Illegal Discrimination and Restoring Merit-Based Opportunity.

(c) The offeror affirms that the above requirements are conditions of payment that go to the essence of the contract and are therefore material terms of the contract.  Payments under the contract are predicated on compliance with the above requirements, and therefore the offeror will not be eligible for funding under the contract or to retain any funding under the contract absent compliance with the

above requirements.

(d) This certification reflects a change in the Government’s position regarding the materiality of the foregoing requirements and therefore any prior payment of similar claims does not reflect the materiality of the foregoing requirements to this contract.

(e) Submission of a knowing false statement relating to offeror’s compliance with the above requirements and/or eligibility for the contract may subject the offeror to liability under the False Claims Act, 31 U.S.C. § 3729, and/or criminal liability, including under 18 U.S.C. §§ 287 and 1001.

(f) Failure on the part of the offeror or its subcontractors to comply with the terms of this clause may be grounds for the Contracting Officer to terminate the contract for default.

(End of Provision)

NOTICE FOR FILING AGENCY PROTESTS

United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Ombudsman Program

The USDA is committed to issuing solicitations and awarding contracts in a fair and prompt manner.  The Ombudsman Program for Agency Protests (OPAP) was established to address protest issues within the agency, providing an alternative to costly and time-consuming litigation.  Operating independently, OPAP offers relief comparable to that granted by the Government Accountability Office (GAO).  Interested parties are encouraged to resolve concerns through USDA’s internal Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) process before pursuing external forums such as the GAO.  Concerns may be addressed informally or through a formal agency protest filed with either the Contracting Officer or the Ombudsman.

Informal Forum with the Ombudsman

1. Initial Point of Contact: Interested parties who believe a specific USDA procurement is unfair or otherwise defective should first direct their concerns to the applicable Contracting Officer.
2. Escalation: If the Contracting Officer is unable to address their concerns, interested parties are encouraged to contact the USDA Ombudsman for Agency Protests.  Under this informal process, the agency is not required to suspend contract award performance.  Utilization of the informal forum does not suspend any time requirement for filing a formal protest with the agency or other forums.
3. Required Information: To ensure a timely response, interested parties should provide the following information to the Ombudsman: solicitation/contract number, contracting office, Contracting Officer, and solicitation closing date (if applicable).

Formal Agency Protest with the Ombudsman

1. Effort to Resolve: Prior to submitting a formal agency protest, protesters must first use their best efforts to resolve their concerns with the Contracting Officer through open and frank discussions.
2. Independent Review: If the protester’s concerns remain unresolved, an Independent Review is available by the Ombudsman.  The protester may file a formal agency protest with either the Contracting Officer or, alternatively, with the Ombudsman under the OPAP program.  Contract awards or performance will be suspended during the protest period unless justified in writing for urgent and compelling reasons or determined in writing to be in the best interest of the Government.
3. Resolution Timeline: The agency’s goal is to resolve protests within 35 calendar days from the date of filing.
4. Required Information: Protests shall include the information set forth in FAR 33.104(a)(3).  Failure to submit the required information may result in a delay or dismissal of the protest.
5. Timeliness: Protests must be filed within the timeframes specified in FAR 33.104.
6. Submission: Formal protests under the OPAP program should be submitted electronically to SPE.inquiry@usda.gov and the Contracting Officer. 

Election of Forum.  By initiating a protest with the USDA, the protester agrees not to pursue the same matter with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) or any other external forum while the agency protest is pending.  If a protest is filed externally, the agency protest will be dismissed.