05 VRI RFB.pdf

REQUEST FOR BID

VIDEO REMOTE INTERPRETING (VRI) SERVICES FOR

AMERICAN SIGN LANGUAGE (ASL)

REQUEST FOR BID #28273-CN

Issued Date: June 4, 2018 Responses Due: July 10, 2018 at 2:00 PM CST

Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) Services for American Sign Language (ASL)

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Table of Contents

1 INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE

1.1 DEFINITIONS

1.2 PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THE REQUEST FOR BID

1.2.1 Overview of Procuring Agency, Background and Objectives

1.3 CONTRACT TERM

1.4 MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACT

1.5 ORDER OF PRECEDENCE

1.6 COOPERATIVE PURCHASING SERVICES

1.7 WISCONSIN eSUPPLIER PORTAL REGISTRATION

1.8 RESPONDING TO BID REQUIREMENTS

2 BIDDER QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

2.1 Qualification and Requirement - Years in Business

2.2 Qualification and Requirement - Services performed in United States

2.2.1 Services performed in the United States - Record Storage

2.3 Qualification and Requirement - VRI for ASL

2.4 Qualification and Requirement - ASL Qualified Interpreters and Proficiencies

2.5 Qualification and Requirement - Hours for VRI Services

3 GENERAL MANDATORY SPECIFICATIONS OF BID

3.1 General Mandatory Requirement - Multiple Billing Addresses

3.2 General Mandatory Requirement - Reporting Requirements

3.3 General Mandatory Requirement - Disaster Recovery Plan

3.4 General Mandatory Requirement - Data from Assignments

3.5 General Mandatory Requirement - Purchasing Methods

3.6 General Mandatory Requirement - Invoicing and Billing

3.7 General Mandatory Requirement - Requesting Services

3.8 General Mandatory Requirement - Cancellation Policy

4 TECHNICAL MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS

4.1 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Devices and Operating Systems

4.2 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Network Requirements

4.3 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Software Requirements

4.4 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Other Software/Hardware Requirements

4.5 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Recording

5 SPECIAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF BID

5.1 Special Terms and Conditions - VRI for Foreign Languages

5.2 Special Terms and Conditions - National Interpreter Certification for UW Campuses

5.3 Special Terms and Condtions - Agency Specific Glossary of Terms

5.4 Special Terms and Conditions - VRS Funds

5.5 Special Terms and Condtions - Payment Terms

5.5.1 Special Terms and Conditions - Purchasing Card

5.6 Special Terms and Conditions - Liquidated Damages

5.7 Special Terms and Condtions - Background Checks

5.8 Special Terms and Conditions - Sample Contract

6 PERFORMANCE AND SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS

6.1 Performance and Support Requirements - Guidelines

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6.2 Performance and Support Requirements - Failure to Appear

6.3 Performance and Support Requirements - Missed Assignments

7 FRATERNIZATION/AGENCY WORK RULES

8 BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AGREEMENT

9 CERTIFICATES OF INSURANCE

10 CONFIDENTIALITY AND ETHICS

11 CANCELLATION AND TERMINATION

12 METHOD OF BID

13 REQUESTING PRICE ADJUSTMENTS

14 BID PROCEDURE AND INSTRUCTIONS

14.1 CALENDAR OF EVENTS

14.2 CORRESPONDENCE, CLARIFICATIONS AND QUESTIONS

14.3 REASONABLE ACCOMMODATIONS

14.4 BIDDER CONFERENCE

14.5 SUBMITTING A BID

14.5.1 Electronic Bid Submittal (Strongly Preferred)

14.5.2 Hard Copy Bid Submittal

14.6 INCURRING COSTS

14.7 FORMAT OF BID RESPONSE

15 BID ACCEPTANCE AND AWARD

15.1 BID OPENING

16 BID REVIEW

16.1 BID ACCEPTANCE

16.2 METHOD OF AWARD

16.3 BIDDER REFERENCES/CLIENT LIST

16.4 USE OF SUBCONTRACTORS

17 SUPPLIER DIVERSITY

17.1 MINORITY-OWNED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE

17.2 VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESS

17.3 DISABLED VETERAN-OWNED BUSINESS

17.4 WOMAN-OWNED BUSINESS ENTERPRISE

18 PROHIBITION OF DISCRIMINATORY BOYCOTTS OF ISRAEL

19 DEBARMENT

20 AWARD NOTIFICATION

21 PROTEST AND APPEALS PROCESS

21.1 PROTESTS

21.2 APPEALS

22 REQUIRED FORMS

23 COST STRUCTURE AND COST SHEET INSTRUCTIONS

23.1 COST SHEET

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1 INTRODUCTION AND PURPOSE

State of Wisconsin agencies routinely conduct business with clients who are deaf, hard of hearing or Deaf-Blind who use American Sign Language (ASL) as their primary language or a client may have limited English proficiency (LEP). In order to meet the needs of their clients and comply with federal civil rights statues, specifically Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 (Title VI); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 504); and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (42 U.S.C. 12131) must provide Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) for ASL or foreign languages. Services are provided by the Contractor to locations throughout the State.

Clients of state agencies may include, but is not limited to mental health patients, children, families affected by domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, sexual assault victims, convicted and/or incarcerated offenders, the elderly, criminal witnesses and defendants, individuals with disabilities, students, customers and employees and individuals with different immigration statuses.

The duration of assignments may vary depending on the need of the agency. Some of the buying agencies provide emergency services to clients. In some cases, there is minimal advance notice and contractors may be asked to provide interpretation services on-demand.

At a minimum, Bidders must be able to provide VRI for ASL.

The State on occasion may need VRI services to interpret foreign languages, but it is not a requirement of this bid, nor will it be a basis for the award resulting from this bid.

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1.1 DEFINITIONS

For the purposes of this Request for Bid and resulting Contract(s), the following definitions of terms shall apply, unless otherwise indicated.

24/7/365 Services:

Services that are available around the clock, regardless of whether they are pre-scheduled or on-demand.

Agency:

an office, department, agency, institution of higher education, association, society or other body in state government created or authorized to be created by the constitution or any law, which is entitled to expend moneys appropriated by law, including the legislature and the courts, but not including an authority.

ASL: American Sign Language

Assignment: a single job identified by the buying agency

Authorized Users:

includes any State Agency, University of Wisconsin campus, or other state or local public body authorized to use Contracts, as established in §§ 16.70 (1b), (1e), (2),

(4) and (8), 16.73 and 66.0301 of the Wisconsin Statutes and § PRO-D-30 of the State Procurement Manual.

Bid:

a price quotation specifically given to a prospective purchaser by a prospective seller; a Bid is an offer to sell. For the purposes of this RFB, a Bid includes all requisite forms, response completed as instructed.

Bid Factor:

An element of the bid that does not appear in the RFB document, but the Bidder or Proposer must respond to. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents and included with the paper bid submission.

Bidder:

a person or firm that responds to this Request for Bid.

Calls: call placed to the contractor to provide

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Client:

In the case of VRI for ASL - a customer of the buying agency who is deaf, hard of hearing or deaf-blind and uses American Sign Language as their primary language.

In the case of VRI for foreign lanague - a non- English speaking customer of the buying agency

Commodity:

a tangible article of trade or item of merchandise; goods, products, materials, supplies, or finished products. A Commodity is not a Service for purposes of this RFB, but a Commodity may include incidental or related Services.

Conflict of Interest:

A situation in which a translator/interpreter is in a position that would affect their objectivity in the delivery of services. Examples of perceived conflict of interest could be the translator or interpreter interpreting on behalf of a family member, personal interest or relationship to the client; relationship with a victim; relationship with known members of the same ethnic community or ethnic conflicts between communities with shared language capacity; or other relationships which would preclude any possibility that the translator's/interpreter's objectivity could be jeopardized.

Contract:

the written agreement between the successful Bidder and the State covering the commodities and services to be performed pursuant to this RFB.

Contract Administrator:

the Agency employee responsible for oversight of the implementation, administration, and completion of the Contract.

Contractor: the person or entity that has been awarded the Contract as a result of this

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Bid, and who is required to provide equipment, materials, supplies, contractual services, or leasing real property to, the Procuring Agency.

Contract Manager:

the employee of an Agency responsible for

1) resolving contractual matters that cannot be resolved with the Contract Administrator; and 2) facilitating and/or completing all official actions under the Contract including but not limited to amendments, renewals and termination.

Core Languages:

Languages identified as most frequently used by buying agencies. For the purpose of this RFB the core languages are:

Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Bosnian, Burmese, Chin, Chinese/Cantonese, Chines/Mandarin (simplified), Croatian, Farsi (Persian), French, Hmong, Karen (Burmese), Khmer (Cambodian), Kinyarwanda/Kiswahili, Korean, Lao, Nepali, Polish, Rohingya, Russian, Serbian, Somali, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese.

CST: Central Standard Time

Disabled Veteran Owned Business (DVB):

a business that has been certified by the Department of Administration under §16.

283, Wis. Stats.

HIPAA:

The Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) Privacy, Security and Breach Notification Rules

Interpretation:

Involves the spoken or signed communication between two parties; translating the word of one person to the target language of a second person and back.

Interpreter: member of contractor's staff providing interpretation

Limited English Proficiency (LEP): Limited English proficiency means an

Page 7 RFB#28273-CN individual who does not speak English as their primary language and has limited ability to read, speak, write or understand English.

Liquidated Damages:

damages that are agreed upon by the State and Contractor, or stipulated to, the actual damages that will result from a breach of the contract. Liquidated damages prevent controversy between the State and Contractor on the amount of damages that have occured from the breach.

Minority Business Enterprise (MBE):

a business that has been certified by the Department of Administration under §16.

287, Wis. Stats.

Municipality:

any Wisconsin county, city, village, town, school district, board of school directors, sewer district, drainage district, vocational, technical and adult education district, or any other public body having the authority to award public Contracts (s. 16.70(8), Wis.Stats.).

Must:

Required that the bidder complies with this requirement. Can be used interchangeably with "shall".

National Interpreter Certification:

National Interpreter Certification aka NIC means the current certification given by the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RId) and National Association of the Deaf (NAD).

Non-Core Language (s):

a non-core language is one that the State of Wisconsin may or may not need but is a language which is included in the bid to allow agencies quick access to bidders that offer the non-core language.

Normal Business Hours:

For the purpose of this bid, normal business hours are considered to be 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM, Monday through Friday, excluding State of Wisconsin recognized holiday.

Notice of (Intent to) Award:

a writing issued by the Procuring Agency notifying all Bidders of the Procuring Agency's intent to award of a Commodity Contract to the successful Bidder(s), or in the case of Services, the Procuring Agency's intent to award a Contract to the

Page 8 RFB#28273-CN successful Bidder(s).

On-Demand Services: services that can be provided immediately, without prior scheduling.

Purchasing Card (p-card):

a charge card issued to an authorized state employee through the Department of Administration, State Bureau of Procurement's Purchasing Card Contract.

Procurement Specialist:

the individual responsible for overseeing and administering the procurement process for a Bid.

Procuring Agency: The State Agency conducting the purchasing transactions

Qualified Interpreter:

In the case of ASL interpretation, someone who holds a State of Wisconsin sign language interpreter license (renewable or restricted) and is able to interpret effectively, accurately and impartially both receptively and expressively, using any necessary specialized vocabulary. Other certifications or licenses may be required if requested by the buying agency or campus.

In the case of foreign language interpretation, someone who is able to provide the following: demonstrated proficiency in English and a second language; demonstrated knowledge in both languages of relevant specialized terms and concepts; and demonstration of completion of training on the skills and ethics of interpretation.

RFB: Request for Bid

Recognized Holidays:

The State of Wisconsin recognized holidays are:

• New Year's Day

• Martin Luther King, Jr. Day

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• Memorial Day

• Independence Day

• Labor Day

• Thanksgiving Day

• Christmas Eve Day

• Christmas Day

• New Year's Eve Day

Relationship: a personal association between an interpreter and individual receiving interpreting services.

SBOP: State Bureau of Procurement

Shall:

Required that the bidder complies with this requirement. Can be used interchangeably with "must".

State: The State of Wisconsin

Contractual Services or Services:

An intangible product, including actions, recommendations, plans, research, customizations, modifications, documentation, and maintenance and support, including all related material necessary to fulfill that which the successful Bidder is obligated to accomplish or to provide under this RFB.

Specification:

a descriptive statement of the physical, functional and performance characteristics of the commodity or service required by the Procuring Agency. A Specification may be a description of the physical or functional characteristics, or of the nature of a supply. It may include a description of any requirement for inspecting, testing or preparing a supply item for delivery, or the necessary performance criteria. When used throughout this RFB, this term is used interchangeably with the term "requirement".

Target Language: the non-English language requiring translation/interpretation.

Target Language Identification Assistance: service provided by the contractor to correctly

Page 10 RFB#28273-CN identify which target language interpretation is required.

Trauma:

means a disordered psychic or behavioral state resulting from severe mental, emotional stress or physical injury which would affect an interpreter's ability to interpret an assignment.

Work Site: location where VRI services are required.

VRI:

Video Remote Interpretation. Video interpretation services for the deaf, hard-of-hearing, speech-impared or LEP client using an offsite interpreter and technology, such as web cameras, videophones, computers, tablets, etc.

1.2 PURPOSE AND SCOPE OF THE REQUEST FOR BID

The Department of Administration (DOA), State Bureau of Procurement (SBOP) requests Bids for the purchase of Video Remote Interpreting (VRI) Services and intends to use the results of this process to award a Contract. The State does not guarantee it will purchase any specific quantity or dollar amount. Bids that require a minimum number of commodities or services be ordered will be rejected. There will be no guarantee to purchase any specific quantity, or pay any minimum contract price during the term of the Contract.

The contract(s) that will result from the RFB will be mandatory for all State agencies and optional for UW system and campuses. Cooperative groups (e.g. municipalities, school districts, tribal governments, etc.) may also utilize this contract. Collectively referred to "Authorized Users". Authorized Users are located throughout the State of Wisconsin.

The buying agency will be responsible for any equipment or software needed at the location to establish the video conference link to the contractor. The buying agency's IT or AV staff may be needed on hand to complete set up or trouble shoot during the conference. The technology usually involves installing software provided by the contractor onto a computer or other device and the video is streamed over the internet. Set up time is required prior to the event to establish and test a connection.

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1.2.1 Overview of Procuring Agency, Background and Objectives

This Request for Bid (RFB) is issued by the Department of Administration, State Bureau of Procurement which is the sole point of contact for the State of Wisconsin during the selection process. The person responsible for managing the procurement process is:

Cathy Neidner, Procurement Specialist-Senior Wisconsin Department of Administration State Bureau of Procurement 101 East Wilson Street, 6th Floor P.O. Box 7867 Madison, WI 53707-7867 email: catherine.neidner@wisconsin.gov

The contract resulting from this RFB will be administered by the Wisconsin Department of Administration.

1.3 CONTRACT TERM

This Contract will run for an initial two (2) year period. The State and the Contractor, upon written mutual agreement, may renew the Contract for up to an additional two (2) two (2) year periods. The Contract shall be effective on the date it is executed. If no formal Contract is executed, the effective date of the Contract is the date of the purchase order.

The RFB documents, the awarded Bidder's response as accepted by the State and any purchase order related to this RFB shall become the Contract between the parties unless a separate Contract is executed.

1.4 MODIFICATIONS OF CONTRACT

The Contract shall not be used for purchasing commodities or services outside of the general scope and intent of the original Request for Bid. Any modifications made to the Contract shall fall within the scope of the Bid and be rendered in writing and signed by both parties or they will be void.

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1.5 ORDER OF PRECEDENCE

In the event of Contract award, the contents of this RFB (including all attachments), RFB addenda and revisions, the Bid response from the successful Bidder as accepted by the State, and any additional terms agreed to in writing by the parties shall be incorporated into the Contract. Failure of the successful Bidder to accept these elements into the Contract will result in the cancellation of the Contract award.

In the event of conflict with the incorporated elements of the Contract, the following order of precedence will prevail:

• Final Signed Contract with clarifications included

• Bid Response as accepted by the State of Wisconsin

• Request for Bid

If the Official Purchase Order serves as the final Contract, in the event of a conflict with the incorporated elements of the Contract, the following order of precedence will prevail:

• Official Purchase Order

• Bid Response as accepted by the State of Wisconsin

• Request for Bid

1.6 COOPERATIVE PURCHASING SERVICES

Commodities and services may be made available to Municipalities upon agreement of the Contractor. Where requested by the State, and agreed to by the Contractor(s), Municipalities shall be able to obtain the commodities and services procured under the Contract at the same rates agreed to by the State and the Contractor. The Contractor shall be responsible for confirming the status of potential Municipalities with the State and providing appropriate documentation and support and reporting Contract usage by Municipalities.

Bidder must complete Section 5: Wisconsin's Cooperative Purchasing Service on APPENDIX A:

BIDDER REQUIRED FORM (DOA-3832) which is included in the Supporting Documents.

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1.7 WISCONSIN eSUPPLIER PORTAL REGISTRATION

Only Bidders registered with the State of Wisconsin's eSupplier Portal (the State's electronic purchasing information system) will receive future official notice for this service/commodity. The State of Wisconsin purchasing information and Bidder notification service is available to all businesses and organizations that want to sell to the State. Anyone may access the Wisconsin eSupplier Portal at https:\\esupplier.wi.gov to get information on state purchasing practices and policies, goods and services that the State buys, and tips on selling to the State. Bidders may use the same Web site address for inclusion on the Bidders list for goods and services that the organization wants to sell to the State. A subscription with notification guarantees the organization will receive an e-mail message each time a State agency, including any campus of the University of Wisconsin System, posts a request for bid or a request for proposal in their designated commodity/service area(s) with an estimated value over $50,000.

Organizations without internet access receive paper copies in the mail. Increasingly, State agencies also are using Wisconsin eSupplier Portal to post simplified bids valued at $50,000 or less. Bidders also may receive e-mail notices of these simplified bid opportunities.

1.8 RESPONDING TO BID REQUIREMENTS

Mandatory Bidder qualifications and/or requirements in this RFB document must be minimally met without exception; failure to meet such will disqualify your Bid. Before the award of any Contract, the Procuring Agency shall be satisfied that the Bidder has sufficient qualified resources available for performing the work described in this Bid. It is the Bidder's responsibility to acquaint the Procuring Agency with these qualifications by submitting appropriate or supporting documentation.

Certain qualifications/Specifications will be presented by the State as itemized questions that require an affirmative response from you that you can meet them (i.e.

"yes/no" prompt; drop down menu; required attachment). Other requirements may be presented in a grouped manner (e.g. "Does your company meet requirements 2.1-2.8").

For any (itemized or grouped) requirements that you cannot meet, you must check "no" and provide a supplemental document as an attachment to explain.

Failure to meet a qualification will disqualify your Bid. However, in the event that no Bidder is able to meet an individual mandatory requirement, the State reserves the right to continue the review of Bids and to select the Bid that most closely meets the requirements specified in this RFB.

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2 BIDDER QUALIFICATIONS AND REQUIREMENTS

All Bidder qualifications in this section are mandatory and shall be met at no additional cost above the pricing provided in the Bid.

Failure to meet a qualification will disqualify your Bid. However, the State reserves the right to waiver any qualification if no Bidder is able to satisfy the qualification.

Before the award of any contract, the State shall be satisfied that the Bidder has sufficient qualified resources available for performing the work described in this bid. It is the Bidder's responsibility to acquaint the Department with these qualifications by submitting appropriate or supporting documentation.

2.1 Qualification and Requirement - Years in Business

Bidder must be in the business of performing VRI interpretation services for ASL for the past three (3) years.

Please note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents and included with your paper bid submission.

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2.2 Qualification and Requirement - Services performed in United States Pursuant to Wisconsin State Statute 16.705, all services provided under this contract must be performed in the United States.

All interpreters must be physically located in the United States. Calls may not be routed to call centers or individuals outside of the United States.

Any bidder that cannot guarantee that they meet this requirement will be disqualified.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If

2.2.1 Services performed in the United States - Record Storage If VRI services are cloud based, the cloud storage must be in the United States. Each buying agency's data must be stored separately. Destruction of files may be subject to a RDA (Records Retention/Disposition Authorization).

2.3 Qualification and Requirement - VRI for ASL

Bidder must provide VRI for American Sign Language.

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2.4 Qualification and Requirement - ASL Qualified Interpreters and Proficiencies All interpreters provided under this contract must be qualified, competent interpreters. A qualified interpreter is someone who holds a State of Wisconsin sign language interpreter license (renewal or restricted) and is able to interpret effectively, accurately and impartially both receptively and expressively, using any necessary specialized vocabulary.

Information regarding State of Wisconsin Sign Language Interpreter license information can be found at:

https://dsps.wi.gov/pages/professions/signlanguageinterpreter/default.aspx

To ensure this requirement is met, the VRI product must either have the ability to route ASL sessions only to WI licensed interpreters, or all ASL interpreters used by the Contractor must hold a Wisconsin license. The protocol for all VRI accounts based on this contract must require that the ASL interpreter introduces themselves with their interpreter ID and their Wisconsin license number. That license number must also appear on the invoice for those services.

Interpreters must be licensed in the State of Wisconsin, but do not physically need to be located in the State of Wisconsin.

Other certifications or licenses may be required if requested by the buying agency or campus.

Bidder must specify, in the Bid Factors for this section, if they are able to accurately interpret general, medical/HIPAA compliant, scientific, educational and legal terminology when necessary. To be considered as having these specialized skills, the interpreter must have completed formal training in them, either from an educational institution or from the Contracting Agency. Agencies that require those specialized skills will select a Contractor with the appropriate proficiences.

The State reserves the right to request resumes, proof of certifications or request a demonstration of skill for any interpreter provided by the Contractor.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If https://dsps.wi.gov/pages/professions/signlanguageinterpreter/default.aspx

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2.5 Qualification and Requirement - Hours for VRI Services

The majority of VRI assignments will be scheduled during normal business hours, Monday through Friday, between the hours of 6:00 AM and 6:00 PM CST. While not a requirement for bidding, it is expected the contractors receiving award will take into consideration that multiple agencies will use this contract and staff appropriately during these hours.

A lesser percentage of assignments may be outside of normal business hours, including nights, weekends, and holidays. Bidders must be capable of providing services on-demand, 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year. A Wisconsin licensed interpreter must answer the call within 2 minutes.

Pre-scheduled calls must have a Wisconsin licensed interpreter answer the call immediately at the scheduled time.

Bidders that require a minimum number of minutes per assignment, may be disqualified.

Please Note: There are Bid Factor that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If

3 GENERAL MANDATORY SPECIFICATIONS OF BID

Conditions of this Bid that include the word "must" and "Shall" describe a mandatory requirement. Failure to meet a mandatory requirement shall disqualify the Bid. The State reserves the right to delete any specification or condition in the RFB if no Bidder is able to comply with the given specification or condition of the RFB.

The requirements in this section are mandatory and the Bidder must satisfy them. If the Bidder cannot meet ALL the mandatory requirements, the Bid will be removed from further consideration. In the event there is an individual mandatory requirement that no Bidder is able to meet, the State reserves the right to eliminate that individual mandatory requirement; in such case, the State shall continue the evaluation of Bids.

All mandatory requirements are minimums unless otherwise stated. Failure to meet these mandatory requirements may result in disqualification of the bid.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this section. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents and included with your paper bid submission.

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3.1 General Mandatory Requirement - Multiple Billing Addresses

Bidder must be able to accommodate multiple billing addresses for each buying agency and have the ability to accommodate unlimited agency account numbers and/or billing addresses.

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3.2 General Mandatory Requirement - Reporting Requirements

The State requires that reports be provided in Microsoft Excel editable format and delivered via email to the DOA Contract Manager and/or the requesting agency. Reports shall be due no later than 15 business days following the end of the calendar quarter. A report is required even if the Contractor experiences zero sales during a quarter.

Using the report template provided as APPENDIX C: REPORT TEMPLATE, Contractor must report of activities and expenditures after the end of each quarter of the calendar year (March 31, June 30, September 30 and December 31) for the duration of the contract. This report must include all State activities and expenditure performed in the scope of this contract.

The following fields, at a minimum, shall be reported:

• Purchase Order Number, if applicable

• Agency

• Vendor Name

• The dates, start and end times for the assignment

• The name of the Interpreter

• Number of minutes being billed

• The rate charged per minute

An annual summary report of activities and expenditures must be submitted at the end of each calendar year (December 31) to the DOA Contract Manager. This report must include all of the fields specified above rolled up into an annual summary of the corresponding, four quarterly summary reports.

Contractor must also furnish a quarterly MBE participation report that must include the following information, at a minimum:

• MBE Name

• MBE address

• FEIN of the MBE

• Commodities/Services Provided

• Total Spend

At time of contract award and/or implementation, Contractor shall provide the DOA Contract Manager with detailed information on their reporting capabilities including reportable data elements and sample reports, if requested.

The State reserves the right, at no additional cost, to request customized reports upon request.

The Contractor shall use commercially reasonable efforts to provide such reports in a reasonable time frame but no later than 10 business days from the time the request was submitted.

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3.3 General Mandatory Requirement - Disaster Recovery Plan

Bidder must have a disaster recovery plan in place. If requested by any buying agency, Bidder must submit a copy of the plan at any time during the contract.

3.4 General Mandatory Requirement - Data from Assignments

Contractor must document the identity of the interpreter, as well as the buying agency staff contact for each assignment, but that identifying data must take a non-personal form (e.g. a reference number) if shown on billing or routine paperwork, as it may be considered confidential information.

3.5 General Mandatory Requirement - Purchasing Methods

Bidder must be able to accept all of the following purchasing methods.

• Specific Purchase order placed for one-time services.

• Blanket-type purchase orders issued for the State's fiscal year time (July 1 - June 30) to allow departmental personnel to call or fax for product or service as needed.

• Direct Payment - the Contractor will bill directly for individual services as performed without issuance of a purchase order.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If

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3.6 General Mandatory Requirement - Invoicing and Billing

State agencies must meet a statutory mandate to pay or reject invoices within 30 days of receipt. Before payment is made, the ordering agency must verify that all invoice charges are correct and financial conditions are in compliance with the contract. Only properly submitted invoices will be officially received for payment. Prompt payment requires that invoices be clear, complete and in compliance with the conditions of the Request for Bid and subsequent purchase orders

Bidder will only invoice for the time that VRI service is provided. Billing starts when the interpreter begins interpreting. The interpretation period is ended when the interpreter has been disconnected from both the customer and the client. Setup time and/or connection time is not chargeable.

Billing shall be made in increments of one minute. If any period of time falls between 31 and 59 seconds, Bidder will round up to the next minute.

Invoices will be prepared at the end of every calendar month and delivered to the agency no later than the 15th day of the calendar month immediately following the month being invoiced for. Buying agencies may require invoices to be submitted electronically, via e-mail.

Contractors must accomodate any such requests.

The original invoice must be sent to the bill-to address shown on the Purchase Order. All invoices must be itemized, at a minimum with the following information:

• Purchase Order number (if applicable)

• Vendor Name

• Remit to address

• Complete description of the service provided

• Interpreter (non-personal form, i.e., reference number or such)

• Buying agency staff contact

• The dates, start and end times for the assignment

• The name and WI license number of the interpreter

• The number of minutes being billed

• The rate per minute

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3.7 General Mandatory Requirement - Requesting Services

VRI services shall be available on-demand 24 hours per day, 7 days per week, 365 days per year.

Some agencies may chose to pre-schedule VRI Services.

When the buying agency identifies the need for services they will call the selected contractor. If unable to meet the agency's need, the Contractor must decline the assignment immediately to allow the buying agency to contact another contractor.

3.8 General Mandatory Requirement - Cancellation Policy

The State acknowledges that Contractors may incur costs for arranging to provide a service that is then cancelled by the State. Although Contractors may have different policies regarding cancellations, the State will incur no additional cancellation fees.

4 TECHNICAL MANDATORY REQUIREMENTS

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this section. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents and included with your paper bid submission.

4.1 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Devices and Operating Systems

Using the Bid Factors associated with this Section, upload a complete list of the devices supported and operating system versions.

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4.2 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Network Requirements

The Buying agency will be responsible for the network at the location where VRI services will be needed. Using the Bid Factor associated with this section, indicate the bandwidth required for a single client session.

4.3 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Software Requirements

The software needed to obtain VRI services is incidental to the service. The Buying Agency may not be charged for the client software needed to use VRI products/services.

4.4 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Other Software/Hardware Requirements

List in the Bid Factor attached to this section any/all other hardware or software required.

4.5 Technical Mandatory Requirement - Recording

No recording of any session will be done without prior authorization of the buying agency. If recording is requested by the buying agency, all recordings shall be encrypted and if stored, will be stored in the United States.

Using the bid factors associated with this section, please provide the information as requested.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents.

5 SPECIAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF BID

The State reserves the right to negotiate special terms and conditions when it is in the best interest of the State to do so. The Bidder shall not submit its own contract document as a substitute for the State's Special Terms and Conditions.

Bidders shall accept all terms and conditions or submit point-by-point exceptions along with proposed alternative language for each point. The State may or may not consider any of the Bidder's suggested revisions. Any changes or amendment to any of the terms and conditions will occur only if the change is in the best interest of the State.

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5.1 Special Terms and Conditions - VRI for Foreign Languages

As stated in the Bidder Qualifications and Requirements (Section 2.0) , Bidder must be able to provide, at a minimum, VRI for American Sign Language (ASL), however, there is the ocassional need for VRI for Foreign Languages and the Bidder must be able to provide VRI for Foreign Languages.

Languages identified as most frequently used by buying agencies are known as Core Languages. For the purpose of this RFB the Core Languages are:

Albanian, Amharic, Arabic, Bosnian, Burmese, Chin, Chinese/Cantonese, Chines/Mandarin (simplified), Croatian, Farsi (Persian), French, Hmong, Karen (Burmese), Khmer (Cambodian), Kinyarwanda/Kiswahili, Korean, Lao, Nepali, Polish, Rohingya, Russian, Serbian, Somali, Spanish, Thai, Vietnamese. Other languages may be needed at any time.

Bidder must specify if they are able to accurately interpret general, medical/HIPAA compliant, scientific, educational and legal terminology when necessary. To be considered as having any of these specialized skills, the interpreters must have completed formal training in them, either in from an educational institution or from the contracting agency.

5.2 Special Terms and Conditions - National Interpreter Certification for UW Campuses Some UW Campuses may require both the State of Wisconsin License and National Interpreter Certification (NIC).

5.3 Special Terms and Condtions - Agency Specific Glossary of Terms The buying agency may supply the contractor with a glossary of terms specific to the agency and subject matter most often involved in interpretations. The Contractor shall make any glossary readily accessible for reference by all interpreter staff who may be assigned to interpret at that agency. If such a glossary exists, it will be specified by the buying agency on the In- Person Service Request Form or will be provided upon arrival at the assignment. It is the interpreter's responsibility to utilize the glossary.

APPENDIX D: SAMPLE GLOSSARY OF TERMS has been provided for reference purposes only and exemplifies what an agency specific glossary might look like.

5.4 Special Terms and Conditions - VRS Funds

Bidders that provide services for the Video Relay System (VRS) may not use any resources funded by the Federal Government system to provide VRI services under this contract.

5.5 Special Terms and Condtions - Payment Terms

Payment will not be made until the service is determined to meet all Specifications, requirements and deliverables and has been accepted by the Procuring Agency.

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5.5.1 Special Terms and Conditions - Purchasing Card

Some agencies may request to use the State's Purchasing Card (P-Card) for payment of services. The Bidder is not required to accept P-Cards, however it is strongly preferred. If the Bidder accepts a P-Card, no markup is allowed.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents and included with your paper bid submission.

5.6 Special Terms and Conditions - Liquidated Damages

The State may suffer damages due to Bidder's lack of performance of certain terms and conditions of the resulting contract. Since it is impractical and extremely difficult to fix the actual damages sustained in the event of any such non- performance, the State will impose the following liquidated damages for the performance failures listed below.

• If a Contractor is more than fifteen (15) minutes late in providing a pre-scheduled service, the Contractor will be charged liquidated damages equal to the Contractor's bid price per minute, in quarter hour increments, for the amount of time the interpreter was late.

• If a Contractor accepts a pre-scheduled assignment and fails to appear without notice or is considered a "No Show", Contractor will be charged liquidated damages of $500.00.

The buying agency, at it's option, may deduct liquidated damages from any money payable to the Contractor or may bill the Contractor as a separate item.

The Contractor shall agree and understand that all assessments of liquidated damages shall be within the discretion of the State and shall be in addition to, not in lieu of, the rights of the State of Wisconsin to pursue other appropriate remedies.

Disputes regarding liquidated damages will be communicated to and resolved by the buying agency. If liquidated damages cannot be resolved by the Contractor and buying agency, the DOA Contract Manager shall be notified to aid in the resolution.

5.7 Special Terms and Condtions - Background Checks

Due to the nature of this solicitation, the Procuring Agency reserves the right to conduct background checks on the organization, its officers and employees, and subcontractors, if applicable in order to determine whether any conviction exists that is substantially related to the solicited commodity or service, or if such conviction may otherwise adversely affect the Bidder's ability to perform under the resulting Contract. The State is the sole determinant of whether the results of a background check(s) will negatively impact the Contractor's ability to meet contractual obligations and requirements.

The State reserves the right to, at any time, request the results of any background checks or criminal history investigations for any interpreter who has been assigned to perform services under this contract.

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5.8 Special Terms and Conditions - Sample Contract

The intended result of the RFB is to enter into a contractual agreement with the selected Bidder(s). A Sample Contract has been provided as APPENDIX E: SAMPLE CONTRACT. The contract specifically incorporates by reference all the mandatory requirements and Specifications of the Bid Sections including:

• Mandatory Bid Requirements

• Conditions specific to this Bid

• Pricing structure

If DOA, in its sole discretion, determines that it is in the best interests of the State to do so, it may agree with the selected Bidder to negotiate some of the contract terms or the special conditions of the Bid. However, such negotiations may not affect the method of award, disadvantage another Bidder or affect the scope of the Bid.

As with any contract, once executed, both parties will be expected to meet and perform all of its respective contract obligations. Failure to do so will subject that non-performing party to various contract remedies.

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6 PERFORMANCE AND SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS

Contractor performance affects the buying agency's ability to meet their client's needs. If necessary to transfer an interpreted session to a new interpreter the parties will not be placed on hold for more than one minute.

The following is a list of unacceptable performance that may be grounds for barring an individual interpreter from providing services under this contract:

• Any single offense of breach of confidentiality.

The following is a list of unacceptable performance and may be grounds for a corrective action plan and may or may not result in the termination of the contract:

• If in a period of a month the Contractor has four (4) or more instances of a "Failure to Appear" or missed assignment.

• Contractors that are reported to have egergious billing errors, such as but not limited to, charging incorrect account, repeatedly sending invoices to an incorrect location, failure to credit payments to a billing account properly, etc.

six (6) or more times within a six (6) month period.

• Any two (2) offenses of breach of confidentiality.

• Failure to keep the contract information up to date with the DOA Contract

Manger.

Buying agencies that have unresolved or recurring issues with contractors will report those issues to DOA Contract Manager using DOA-3686 Complaint Report on Vendor/Contractor Performance. The DOA Contract Manager will notify Contractor of performance issues.

As part of their bid, the Bidder shall provide escalation process information, including contact names, titles, email addresses, phone number and path of escalation.

Please Note: There are Bid Factors that relate to this requirement. Bid Factors can be seen and responded to in the eSupplier Portal if submitting a bid electronically. If submitting a paper bid, Bid Factors can be downloaded from the Supporting Documents.

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6.1 Performance and Support Requirements - Guidelines

The following are expectations of any Interpreter providing services under this contract.

• Must be available to start the call immediately or at the scheduled time, if pre-scheduled.

• Provide a plain or professional backdrop to not cause distraction from the interpretation.

• Be properly attired to provide VRI, i.e., Black Shirt or clothing.

• Be respectful of the individual(s) they serve

• Always render source neither omitting or adding anything.

Failure to adhere to these expectations could result in interpreter being barred from providing services under this contract.

6.2 Performance and Support Requirements - Failure to Appear

Failure to Appear occurs when an interpreter does not report for a pre-scheduled assignment, and failed to notify the buying agency and/or no substitute interpreter is provided by the Contractor within 30 minutes of scheduled start time.

The State is not obligated to pay for the service and liquidated damages shall apply.

If an interpreter, fails to appear on more than two (2) separate assignments over a six (6) month period, the interpreter shall be barred from providing services under this contract.

If a Contractor fails to appear on more than four (4) times during a twelve (12) month period, the buying agency will notify DOA Contract Manager and corrective action will be taken.

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6.3 Performance and Support Requirements - Missed Assignments

A missed assignment is any of the following:

• Interpreter(s) did not provide a professional backdrop

• Interpreter(s) where not properly attired.

• Interpreter(s) did not have valid ID or valid certification.

If the Contractor has missed more than five (5) assignments over a three (3) month period the buying agency will notify the DOA Contract Manager and appropriate action will be taken.

7 FRATERNIZATION/AGENCY WORK RULES

Contractor agrees to have a written policy on fraternization that prohibits the forming of improper relationships between Contractor's employees and customers or clients.

Engaging in personal relationships with customers or clients is prohibited under this contract. Personal relationships include, but are not limited to any sexual, social or physical contact. This does not include any contact that is necessary to perform an effective interpreter service or translation.

State of Wisconsin agencies may require a separate agency specific fraternization agreement with vendors based on the type of public service provided to their clients or customers.

Contracted vendors will be required to conform to the requirements of the buying agency's agreement when engaging with that agency's customers or clients.

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8 BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AGREEMENT

At the discretion of the buying agency, a Business Associate Agreement may be required. The Contractor agrees to sign this agreement if requested by the Procuring Agency. It is the intention of the Contract to comply with the federal regulations implementing the Health Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) concerning privacy, security and transaction standards related to Protected Health Information (PHI).

The terms of those agreements apply only to services performed for those respective buying agencies, and not to this contract.

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9 CERTIFICATES OF INSURANCE

At the time that the Notice of Intent to Award is issued, the winning Contractor will be required to provide copies of applicable insurance certificates. The Agency will evaluate all insurance certificates for compliance. Should the Contractor not provide the appropriate Certificates of Insurance within five (5) days of the State's issuance of the Notice of Intent to Award, the Contractor shall be given an additional seven (7) days to comply.