Mike Nartker
WC Monitor
4/18/2014
The Department of Energy is seeking industry comment as to whether an employee benefits test should be added to the planned Request for Proposals for the new contract to perform analysis and testing services at Hanford’s 222-S Laboratory. According to a notice issued this week, DOE is considering adding a requirement to the RFP to have bidders “prepare a preliminary detailed Non-Discrimination Test as defined in IRS code section 410 (b) minimum coverage testing.” Such a test is intended to determine whether those employees deemed as “highly compensated” are benefitting substantially more from a benefits plan than other employees. The notice says, “The Test would be submitted as part of the Offerors proposal package. The purpose of including the Test in the proposal package is to demonstrate that benefit levels being proposed will not impact the Hanford Site plans or the Offeror’s current plans negatively.” Comments can be sent via email to [email protected] and are due by April 30.
DOE is considering adding the test requirement to ensure that bidders on the new contract, which is being set-aside for small businesses, are familiar with employee benefit issues, according to a Department official. “DOE contractor benefit plans are required to meet the requirements under the IRS code regarding non-discriminatory coverage of contractor employees. DOE is seeking feedback from industry on the feasibility of DOE’s potential inclusion of a requirement for Offerors to submit a preliminary detailed Non-Discrimination Test, which is one of the factors the IRS uses to evaluate benefit plans,” the Department official said, adding, “DOE wants to ensure offerors are familiar with benefits issues and are prepared to ensure that the benefit plans the offerors factor into the costs of their respective proposals will not create unnecessary plan qualification issues.”
Earlier this spring, DOE issued a draft RFP for the new 222-S Laboratory contract, which is envisioned to run for five years consisting of a two-year base period and three one-year options. The proposed new contract would cover an estimated 15,000 to 25,000 laboratory analyses each year. DOE is considering making the new contract a hybrid that would have both cost-reimbursable and fixed-price elements. The current 222-S Laboratory contract, held by Advanced Technologies and Laboratories, is all cost-reimbursable. ATL is in the final year of its contract, and the Department currently expects to award the new contract in 2015.
