This interagency agreement with the Region III U.S. Public Health Service, Division of Federal Occupational Health (DFOH) is intended to provide the Safety and Health Office, Office of Polar Programs (SHO/OPP) technical support in a variety of occupational and environmental health disciplines. This Interagency Agreement provides SHO/OPP flexibility in obtaining technical expertise in a variety of disciplines on short notice, without going through protracted procurement efforts for individual tasks, since the DFOH already has established similar contractual arrangements with qualified contractors. By utilizing similar contract mechanisms in other government agencies charged with providing similar services, OPP/NSF is able to optimize the government's efficiency in obtaining contract technical services while minimizing impacts on OPP and Division of Contracts, Policy and Oversight (CPO) staff work load. Since it is impossible at this time to assign all specific task (because of the rapidly changing nature of OPP's research programs), it is essential that flexibility in assigning new tasks is maintained as programmatic needs change; the DFOH Interagency Agreement provides that flexibility. As the Interagency Agreement is established, OPP/NSF funds will be committed and obligated to DFOH for the projected total level of effort for the agreement. Once those funds are obligated, specific tasks can be submitted, with the obligated account balance drawn down as each task is completed. In this way, individual modifications to the Interagency Agreement will not be necessary each time a new task is assigned. Specific tasks will be developed by the SHO/OPP and forwarded to DFOH for the development of a project plan and budget. DFOH will provide that plan/budget for each task to OPP and NSF/Division of Contract Policy and Oversight (CPO) for review and concurrence. When agreement is reached, a notice to proceed will be given to DFOH. Periodic billin g summaries will be provided to OPP and CPO by DFOH. The SHO/OPP Technical Liaison is responsible for ensuring that the total obligated amount for the Interagency Agreement is not exceeded as tasks are assigned. The Region III Division of Federal Occupational Health utilizes in-house staff and contract support to complete the various tasks. DFOH will oversee the work of their contractors, coordinate those activities with the DFOH staff assigned to the particular task, and be responsible for the overall technical product Tasking will be developed by SHO/OPP and provided to DFOH for the development of a project plan, schedule, and budget. Tasking letters will typically include a clear statement of the task required, sufficient background information on the issue to be addressed, a statement of deliverables, and a proposed schedule. An independent cost estimate to complete each task will be developed by SHO but not communicated to DFOH. When the DFOH project plan and proposed budget is submitted, it will be reviewed by SHO and CPO, and when agreement is reached, CPO will notify DFOH to proceed. Any capital equipment purchased to complete an assigned task (e.g., monitoring equipment specific to contaminant sampling in remote sites) will remain the property of OPP at the termination of the task. The process described above was developed during discussions involving Mr. Jay Terra (USPHS/DFOH), Mr. Steve Strength (NSF/DCPO), and Ms Gwen Adams (NSF/OPP) and myself.
