The changes keep on coming—GSA has announced advanced notice of Multiple Award Schedule (MAS) Solicitation Refresh #13. On June 30, 2022, GSA will release Refresh #13, which includes a number of significant changes to the MAS Solicitation. As we saw in MAS Refresh #12, GSA gave notice of retiring certain Special Item Numbers (SINs), and in Refresh #13, they plan to officially eliminate these SINs. Unlike Refresh #12, Refresh #13 will be accompanied by a Mass Modification. This means once the Refresh is released, contractors will have 90 days to review and accept the modification.
Since this Refresh includes clause changes, eliminates certain SINs, and establishes new ordering procedures, it’s important for contractors to understand how the Refresh will affect their GSA Schedule contract. Here’s a break down of all the significant updates and what you need to know.
Overall Changes to the Multiple Award Schedule Solicitation
First, GSA has announced 3 clause changes that will affect all GSA contractors regardless of your Large Category or SIN.
1. The following note will be added to Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 52.223-3 HAZARDOUS MATERIAL IDENTIFICATION AND MATERIAL SAFETY DATA:NOTE: Safety Data Sheets, hazardous material labels and other relevant data should not be submitted to the MAS Contracting Officer. This information should be provided directly to the ordering activity in accordance with this clause.
2. Effective June 30, 2022, GSA contractors will be allowed to take an exception to FAR Clause 52.223-99 (October 2021 Deviation), Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors.
This clause requires contractors to be fully vaccinated (with exceptions), and to adhere to any CDC protocol related to COVID-19. With this change, contractors can take an exception while any orders prohibiting enforcement or inclusion remain in effect. This change was made so contractors could incorporate any other pending terms and conditions into their contracts.
3. Updates have also been made to clauses/provisions as necessary. You can view the full list of clauses on GSA’s Interact Post.
How MAS Solicitation Refresh #13 Will Affect Certain Large Categories and SINs
GSA is making specific changes to Large Categories within the GSA MAS program. While GSA gave notice of retiring certain Special Item Numbers (SINs) in the last Refresh, they plan to fully retire SINs in Refresh #13.
Facilities (Large Category B)
GSA will retire SIN 561210FS Facilities Support Services on June 30, 2022. Here’s what the timeline looks like:
- June 1: SIN is scheduled to be closed to all new offers and Add SIN Modifications.
- June 15: SIN is hidden in GSA eBuy to prevent new Requests for Quotes (RFQs) from being issued.
- June 30: Mass Mod will be issued to delete SIN 561210FS using the Cancellation clause. After June 30, 2022, eOffer will not allow the award of any new offers or modifications for this SIN.
It’s important to note that if this SIN affects you, you are required to submit an updated GSA pricelist and associated catalog file to GSA Advantage! no later than July 31, 2022. All existing GSA contractors under the SIN 561210FS Facilities Support Services will need to submit a modification to add the 561210FAC Facilities Maintenance and Management SIN.
Information Technology (Large Category F)
Under Large Category F, GSA will retire SIN 541519CDM Continuous Diagnostics and Mitigation (CDM). The timeline for this SIN will be:
- June 1: SIN is scheduled to be closed to all new offers and Add SIN Modifications.
- June 15: SIN is hidden in GSA eBuy to prevent new Requests for Quotes (RFQs) from being issued.
- June 30: Mass Mod will be issued to delete SIN 541519CDM. After June 30, 2022, eOffer will not allow the award of any new offers or modifications for this SIN.
As with the facilities SIN above, any contractor with this SIN is required to submit an updated GSA pricelist and associated catalog file to GSA Advantage! no later than July 31, 2022. To make the transition smoother for contractors, a special CDM logo will be made available to all applicable IT SINs. This logo will distinguish approved CISA products from non-approved CISA products.
GSA contractors with the CDM SIN can add their items to SIN 33411 Purchasing of New Electronic Equipment, SIN 511210 Software Licenses SIN, or other SINs with similar scope of your offerings.
GSA is also establishing special ordering procedures for buying cloud computing services within SIN 518210C Cloud Computing and Cloud Related IT Professional Services. GSA is making revisions to the IT Category attachment in Refresh #13. This will not replace or restrict existing practices for acquiring cloud computing services, but rather will introduce procedures that may be used when an agency wants to procure cloud computing on a consumption basis.
One of the main changes is deviating from the Price Reductions Clause, making this clause inapplicable to cloud computing services on a consumption basis. Why all these changes? GSA wants to add flexibility to purchase cloud computing services and these revisions are better aligned with commercial practices. This will encourage new MAS offerors to offer their solutions through a GSA Schedule because it will inevitably increase sales for SIN 518210C.
Accepting the Mass Modification
Even though some of the Refresh #13 changes may not apply to you, ALL GSA contractors must accept the Mass Modification in the Mass Mod System. Once the Solicitation Refresh is released and the accompanying Mass Mod is sent out, contractors will have 90 days to accept it.
It’s important to note that only authorized negotiators with a valid GSA FAS ID will be able to accept the Mass Mod. To add someone to your list of authorized negotiators, you can submit a modification in the eMod system.
If you want to stay up to date on future GSA Solicitation Refreshes, check out our blog and our monthly newsletter. If you have questions about your GSA Schedule or accepting Mass Modifications, one of our consultants would be happy to help you.
