PAM Solicitation Qs and As.pdf

Questions and Answers Solicitation 15JPSS25R00000069

Private Counsel Debt Collection – Middle District of Pennsylvania

(1) How are fees currently being billed by any incumbent(s), by category, and at what rates?

Answer: The incumbent contractor uses the same pricing model provided within the solicitation and their rates cannot be disclosed. Incumbent billing consists of contract approved cost-reimbursements, flat-fees for work completed, and any hourly compensation for hours that were requested and approved in advance of the work being completed.

(2) What estimated or actual dollars were paid last year, last month, or last quarter to any incumbent(s)?

Answer: This information is not readily available. PCs working secured debts will receive payments based upon activity listed in question one, and any contingency fees for collections on unsecured debts.

(3) To what extent are these accounts owed by private consumers versus commercial businesses?

Answer: The majority of these accounts are private consumers whose debts arise out of federal loan programs.

(4) Will accounts be primary placements, not having been serviced by any other outside collection agency, and/or will you also be referring secondary placements? If so, should bidders provide proposed fees for secondary placements also?

Answer: Offerors need only propose rates as indicated in the solicitation’s pricing table.

(5) What collection attempts are performed or will be performed internally prior to placement?

Answer: Federal agencies exhaust their own collection protocol, including referral to the Bureau of the Fiscal Service at the Department of the Treasury prior to referring a case to the DOJ’s Nationwide Central Intake Facility (NCIF). The DOJ NCIF sends a demand letter to each debtor as the cases are assigned to a DOJ Private Counsel for litigation and collection. That letter contains the outstanding debt amount and the DOJ Private Counsel contact information.

(6) What is the total number of accounts available for placement now by category, including any backlog?

Answer: Please refer to the combined synopsis/solicitation notice. It includes the caseload information.

(7) What is the average balance of accounts by category?

Answer: Please refer to the combined synopsis/solicitation notice. It includes the caseload information.

(8) What is the average age of accounts at placement (at time of award and/or on a going-forward basis), by category?

Answer: Please refer to the combined synopsis/solicitation notice. It includes the caseload information. We cannot predict the volume of intake of additional accounts to the existing caseload.

(9) What is the monthly or quarterly number of accounts expected to be placed with the vendor(s) by category?

Answer: Please refer to the combined synopsis/solicitation notice. It includes the caseload information. We cannot predict the volume of intake of additional accounts to the existing caseload.

(10) What is the monthly or quarterly dollar value of accounts expected to be placed with the vendor(s) by category?

Answer: Please refer to the combined synopsis/solicitation notice. It includes the caseload information. We cannot predict the volume of intake of additional accounts to the existing caseload.

(11) What has been the historical rate of return or liquidation rate provided by any incumbent(s), and/or what is anticipated or expected as a result of this procurement?

Answer: We do not track the rate of return or liquidation rates on these accounts. The combined synopsis/solicitation notice includes the caseload information. We cannot predict future rates for these accounts.

(12) What billing servicer do you utilize?

Answer: Contractors utilize the Department’s Consolidated Debt Collection System (CDCS) and the Unified Financial Management System (UFMS) to invoice and receive payment for their services on these accounts.

(13) Have all cases been fully adjudicated by the time of placement?

Answer: No, most unsecured and secured debt accounts will require litigation to obtain judgment and liens or foreclosures. The bulk of the existing unsecured debts (student loans, specifically) have judgments. Most future unsecured future referrals will require litigation to obtain judgments and liens.

(14) If applicable, will accounts held by any incumbent(s) or any backlog be moved to any new vendor(s) as a one-time placement at contract start up?

Answer: Yes, debt accounts will be transitioned to a new vendor if the incumbent is determined to be an unsuccessful offeror.

(15) What is your case management/accounting software system of record?

Answer: Contractors utilize the Department’s Consolidated Debt Collection System (CDCS) to manage the cases and the Unified Financial Management System (UFMS) to invoice and receive payment for their services on these accounts.

(16) Who is your electronic payment/credit card processing vendor?

Answer: For incoming electronic payments from debt accounts Pay.gov is utilized.

(17) Can you please indicate what inbound and outbound contact methods, beyond phone calls or letters (such as email and text), would be permitted by the scope of work?

Answer: All contractors must work in strict compliance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) which provides guidance on how communications in debt collection must be conducted with consumers. Only communications done within the scope of the FDCPA are permissible.

(18) Please reconfirm the due date for this procurement by providing it in response to answers to questions.

Answer: Proposals are due no later than September 12, 2025 at 4:30 p.m. ET.

(19) When is the anticipated award date?

Answer: The anticipated award date is December 1, 2025.

(20) Can you please provide greater details regarding your bid bond and/or performance bond requirements related to this contract? For example, what is required with the proposal, and what is required to comply during the term of the contract?

Answer: There are no bid bond and/or performance bond requirements.

(21) Are bidders permitted to deviate in any way from any manner of quoting fees you may be expecting? For example, if there is a pricing page in the RFP, can bidders submit an alternate fee structure? If there is no pricing page in the RFP, do you have any preference for how bidders should quote fees or can bidders create their own pricing categories?

Answer: Offerors shall not deviate from the requirements of the solicitation. All offerors must insert the fixed unit rates for the specified line items utilizing the file entitled, “Price Proposal Template” associated with this solicitation.

(22) Please describe your level of satisfaction with your current or recent vendor(s) for the same purchasing activity, if applicable.

Answer: The Department is satisfied with the contractor’s performance.

(23) We would like to know if this is a brand new contract or if there is (was) an incumbent performing these services. If not brand new, could you please provide the current / previous contract number?

Answer: The services are currently being performed by KML Law Group PC. The contract number is 15JPSS20C00000296.