II_01_Attachment-Questions Recieved_Amendment 003.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 22 KB Posted
- Solicitation number
- 2032H8-24-R-00023
About this file
This file is a Questions and Answers (Q&A) document for the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) Electronic Research Services (ERS) Tax Research Services solicitation. The procurement is for an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) contract to provide tax research services for approximately 15,000 IRS employees, with potential user range between 10,000-35,000. The current incumbent is Bloomberg, with the existing contract number 2032H8-20-D-00002, and the total current option year spend from 10/03/2024 to 06/30/2025 is $1,905,777.78.
Key details include a proposal submission deadline of April 30, 2025, with proposals to be emailed to Brian Carter at brian.j.carter@irs.gov. The solicitation is a full and open competition under NAICS code 519290 for Web Search Portals and Information Services. Offerors must provide comprehensive tax research databases, temporary evaluation accounts, past performance references, and comply with specific technical requirements including Section 508 accessibility, cybersecurity controls, and detailed technical approach documentation. The government indicates it will also release a separate "Comprehensive" research services solicitation within 90 days, and FedRAMP authorization will be required prior to award.
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Sheet1
| Questions | Section Reference / Page | Answers | |
| 1 | Would remote work be considered such as at a person's residence or IRS place of work? | Remote work would include an IRS employee's residence or the taxpayer's location. | |
| 2 | Is there any incumbent/recompete or this is a brand-new project? If yes, could you please provide us with their award number or even if the customer bought similar services in the past. | Yes there is an incumbent Bloomberg and the contract number is 2032H8-20-D-00002, this is considered a recompete and similar services have been procured in the past. | |
| 3 | Is the government open to an enterprise-wide package? | ERS Tax Law RFP, Proposal Instruction, p 101 of 111 | Yes. |
| 4 | May vendors include references from the commercial or private sectors? | ERS Tax Law RFP, 4.4.3 Factor 3 - Past Performance, p 104 of 111 | Yes, vendors may include references from the commercial or private sectors. |
| 5 | Section C.6.3 references an Implementation and Operation (I/O) plan for each of the |
following categories:
• Customer Service Support
• Training Support
• Marketing Support
• Enterprise Access Solution
• Contract Reviews and Reports
| Will the government please permit these I/O plans be submitted separately from the technical response? | Attachment 1: PWS ERS Tax LAW, C.6.3, p 3 of 10 | No |
| 6 | All of the security controls cited in the RFP assume that the contractor will be handling Sensitive but Unclassified data, have access to IRS facilities, and/or have staff-like access. Given the requirements of the PWS (namely, a commercial tax research solution where information is flowing from the contractor to the government and not the other way around), there does not appear to be access to IRS information (much less SBU information), information systems or facilities that would bring any of those clauses within scope. As a result, compliance with such provisions is unduly burdensome and will increase the cost of any proposed solutions. Will the government remove the following provisions accordingly? |
• Information System and Information Security Control Standards and Guidelines Applicability (Apr 2024)
• FISMA Cybersecurity Requirements Language
• MANDATORY IRS SECURITY TRAINING FOR INFORMATION SYSTEMS, INFORMATION PROTECTION AND FACILITIES PHYSICAL ACCESS (APR 2024)
• INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND INFORMATION SECURITY CONTROLS FOR CONTRACTING ACTIONS SUBJECT TO INTERNAL REVENUE MANUAL (IRM)10.8 SERIES (APR 2024) NFORMATION SYSTEMS AND INFORMATION SECURITY CONTROLS FOR CONTRACTING ACTIONS SUBJECT TO IRS PUBLICATION 4812 (APR 2024)
• SAFEGUARDS AGAINST UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION (Apr 2024) ERS Tax Law RFP, Section III Clauses and Provisions No Clause must remain. It is unclear what if any of the information exchanged will be stored in the contractor's systems for future reference.
Although the contractor will not have direct access to IRS data, they will be:
- receiving PII from the user during system login
- receiving research parameters that will influence the generation of the commercial tax data
- providing commercial tax data back to the user 7 The security controls reference clauses that do not appear to be in existence or publicly available. For example, https://www.irs.gov/irm/part10 does not show the existence of at least clause 10.5.1 or 10.8.1, and other standards, such as Publication 4812, are not readily available (this publication was recently removed from the IRS web site). Accordingly, and in light of the nature of the requirements, where information will flow from the vendor to the IRS without accessing SBU or IRS systems, will the government remove the following provisions?
• Information System and Information Security Control Standards and Guidelines Applicability (Apr 2024)
• FISMA Cybersecurity Requirements Language
• MANDATORY IRS SECURITY TRAINING FOR INFORMATION SYSTEMS, INFORMATION PROTECTION AND FACILITIES PHYSICAL ACCESS (APR 2024)
• INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND INFORMATION SECURITY CONTROLS FOR CONTRACTING ACTIONS SUBJECT TO INTERNAL REVENUE MANUAL (IRM) 10.8 SERIES (APR 2024)
• INFORMATION SYSTEMS AND INFORMATION SECURITY CONTROLS FOR CONTRACTING ACTIONS SUBJECT TO IRS PUBLICATION 4812 (APR 2024)
| • SAFEGUARDS AGAINST UNAUTHORIZED DISCLOSURE OF SENSITIVE BUT UNCLASSIFIED INFORMATION (Apr 2024) | ERS Tax Law RFP, Section III Clauses and Provisions | Publication 4812 was pulled down by Treasury for an audit. It has since then been restored and is available for downloading. | |
| 8 | It is our understanding that Bloomberg, L.P. is the current provider of Tax Research Services for the IRS. What is the total contract spend for the current option year (7/1/2024-6/30/2025)? | The total spend from 07/01/2024 to 06/30/2025 will be $2,456,250.00. |
The Current Option year spend is from 10/03/2024 - 06/30/2025 $1,905,777.78
9 The RFP includes FAR 52.209-11 Representation by Corporations Regarding Delinquent Tax Liability or a Felony Conviction under any Federal Law (Feb 2016).
a) Are offerors expected to complete and submit this representation as part of their proposal response?
b) If so, can the IRS please confirm that it does not count against the Factor 1 page limit? Section III Clauses and Provisions, 52.209-11, p 16 a) Yes.
b) This doesn't count towards the page limit.
10 The RFP includes FAR 52.212.3 Offerors Representations and Certifications – Commercial Items.
a) If an offeror maintains its annual Representations and Certifications on the SAM site, is it required to submit the Offeror Representations and Certifications as part of its response?
b) If so, can the IRS please confirm that it does not count against the Factor 1 page limit? Section III Clauses and Provisions, 52.212-3, p 21 a) An offeror is not required to submit "Representations and Certifications" as part of its response.
b) N/A 11 Page 39 within the Clauses and Provisions provides that “a pre-proposal conference will be held” to “provide a briefing to prospective offerors”. However, no information was provided regarding the date, time, and location of a pre-proposal conference. Can the IRS please provide more details regarding the intent to hold a pre-proposal conference? Section III Clauses and Provisions, Pre Proposal Conference, p 39 This section has been removed in its entity. Please see Amendment 002 to RFP.
| 12 | Section C of this clause states that the IRS Cybersecurity may determine that a higher or lower security level may be warranted for a contractor. Is it possible for a contractor to request classification under a different or lower security level? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Information System and Information Security Control Standards and Guidelines Applicability, p 40-41 | No. |
| 13 | This offeror respectfully requests that this clause be deleted in its entirety, as it is not applicable to the solutions being offered under this solicitation. Will the IRS please remove this clause from the RFP? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Clauses Incorporated by Reference, FAR 52.224-1 Privacy Act Notification , p 42 | No. |
| 14 | This offeror respectfully requests that this clause be deleted in its entirety, as it is not applicable to the solutions being offered under this solicitation. Will the IRS please remove this clause from the RFP? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Clauses Incorporated by Reference, FAR 52.224-2 Privacy Act, p 42 | No. |
| 15 | This offeror respectfully requests that this clause be deleted in its entirety, as it is not applicable to the solutions being offered under this solicitation. Will the IRS please remove this clause from the RFP? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Clauses Incorporated by Reference, FAR 52.227-2 Notice and Assistance Regarding Patent and Copyright Infringement , p 42 | No. |
| 16 | This offeror respectfully requests that this clause be deleted in its entirety, as it is not applicable to the solutions being offered under this solicitation. Will the IRS please remove this clause from the RFP? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Clauses Incorporated by Reference, FAR 52.203-13 Contractor Code of Business Ethics and Conduct, p 44 | No. |
| 17 | This offeror respectfully requests that this clause be deleted in its entirety, as it is not applicable to the solutions being offered under this solicitation. Will the IRS please remove this clause from the RFP? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Clauses Incorporated by Reference, FAR 52.204-15 Service Contract Reporting Requirements , p 44 | No. |
| 18 | This offeror respectfully requests that this clause be deleted in its entirety, as it is not applicable to the solutions being offered under this solicitation. Will the IRS please remove this clause from the RFP? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Clauses Incorporated by Reference, FAR 52.219-16 Liquidated Damages – Subcontracting Plan, p 46 | This section has been removed in its entity. Please see Amendment 002 to RFP. |
| 19 | The RFP includes this section regarding the IPP. |
a) Are offerors expected to complete and submit this document as part of their proposal response?
| b) | If so, can the IRS please confirm that it does not count against the Factor 1 page limit? | Section III Clauses and Provisions, Electronic Invoicing and Payment Requirements for the Invoice Processing Platform (IPP), p 70 | Yes, this needs to be submitted as part of the proposal response. No, it doesn't count towards the page count. |
| 20 | The RFP includes this section regarding Section 508. |
a) Is it a correct understanding that the offeror must include Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPAT) for all products offered in response to this solicitation?
b) If so, under what volume should the VPAT be included?
c) If the VPAT is to be included in the Technical Approach volume, can you please confirm that the required VPAT(s) do not count against any page limits imposed by the solicitation (as a fully completed VPAT can exceed 20 pages in length)? Section III Clauses and Provisions Section 508 Information, Documentation, and Support, p 76-78 a) Yes.
b) Technical.
c) The VPAT will not count towards page count this can be submited an attachment.
21 The solicitation requests that the contractor provide minimum security controls to protect Federal information and information systems in accordance with the Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) Part 10.8 series and the current version of the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Special Publication (SP) 800-53, Security Privacy Controls for Information Systems and Organizations. Can the IRS please clarify the specific personnel controls that are applicable to multi-tenant SaaS solutions? Section III Clauses and Provisions – FISMA Cybersecurity Requirements Language (Page 82-83) Refer to the PS Controls within Publication 4812 for guidance.
PS-2 Position Risk Designation PS-3 Personnel Screening PS-3 Eligibility PS-3 Suitability PS-4 Personnel Termination
| 22 | Regarding the Federated Authentication Services Technology (FAST)/Homeland Security Presidential Directive 12 (HSPD-12) Compliant Authentication: if the proposed solution requires no backend access by IRS personnel, can this requirement be removed as inapplicable? | Section III Clauses and Provisions – FISMA Cybersecurity Requirements Language, Section 5 (Page 83) | Yes, this requirment can be considered inapplicable. |
| 23 | This section states that the IRS FIPS 199 baseline is a moderate. Is it the contractor’s responsibility to complete the FIPS 199 data classification level, or will the IRS complete it and subsequently define the security requirements? | Section III Clauses and Provisions – FISMA Cybersecurity Requirements Language, Section 18 (Page 88) | The Contract should outline the Risk level, additional security requirements, and adherence to Publication 4812 Contractor Security & Privacy Controls |
| 24 | The contract action described in Section B is subject to IRM Part 10.8 and IRM 10.5. Will the IRS please clarify which sections of these manuals are applicable to contractors versus IRS end users? | Section III Clauses and Provisions – Information Systems and Information Security Controls for Contracting Actions Subject to Internal Revenue Manual (IRM) 10.8 Series (Page 91-92) | All sections are applicable is defined by the "audience" within the manual. |
| 25 | Section 3 of this clause indicates that contractors shall adhere to the general guidance and specific privacy and security control requirements contained in Publication 4812. |
a) If the proposed solution only requires the input of query data (i.e., no personally identifiable information), does that change the applicable control requirements?
b) What specific requirements from Publication 4812 (Personnel background checks, access management, and training) are applicable to contractors versus the IRS end users? Section III Clauses and Provisions – Safeguards Against Unauthorized Disclosure of Sensitive but Unclassified Information (Page 94-95) a) No.
b) Refer to Publication 4812 outlines for training requirements.
AT-2 Security Awareness Training AT-3 Role Based Training
26 The Proposal volume matrix on Page 101 offers a page limit of 100 double-spaced pages for Factor 1 – Technical Approach within Volume I – Technical Proposal. A high level of detail is required to be responsive to the Performance Work Statement offerors need to be able to provide IRS with sufficient detail, e.g.:
• IRS has stated that simple YES or NO answers with regards to compliance will be considered unacceptable (page 103)
• IRS specifically requires a “complete and thorough description of how the proposed application satisfies the specification” (page 103)
• Section 5.1.1 Technical Approach Evaluation Factors (page 106) instructs that proposals “will be evaluated on their ability to demonstrate a clear understanding of the PWS” and “the degree and the method with which the offeror’s proposed solution will meet the program requirements set for in the PWS”.
Given the extensive level of detail required and to ensure that proposals are thorough, offering sufficient detail for evaluators, as well as easy to read and evaluate, we respectfully request the following:
a) IRS consider eliminating the page limit and replacing it with a general requirement that proposals be prepared simply and concisely, clearly organized, and easy to read. Will IRS eliminate the page limit?
b) If the IRS is not able to eliminate the page limit, will the IRS please increase the page limit to at least 150 pages and confirm which required details/documents (e.g., representations and certifications) do not count against the page limit?
c) IRS consider eliminating the requirement for double-spacing and replacing it with a general requirement that proposals be clear, legible, and easy to read. Will IRS eliminate the requirement for double-spacing? Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.1 Proposal Instructions (Page 101) a) No.
b) The 100 page limit applies only to the Performance Work Statement - Attachment 1. The limitation is not applicable to replying to solication clauses.
c) No.
| 27 | The deadline for submitting questions is only 6 business days prior to the deadline for submitting proposals. Given the complexity of the RFP, the number of questions asked, and to ensure that offerors have an adequate opportunity to review the answers to questions and prepare their most cost-effective quote for the IRS, this offeror respectfully requests that the agency extend the deadline for submitting bids to at least 20 business days after written answers to all submitted questions have been provided to offerors. Will the IRS consider extending the submission deadline? | Section IV Proposal Instructions - 4.3 Due Date (Page 101) | Proposal due date has been changed April 30, 2025 via Amendment 001. |
| 28 | The solicitation states that “Magazine formatting (two columns per page) is not permissible”. We understand that IRS does not want entire proposals submitted using magazine formatting. Would IRS allow for occasional use of two-column formatting two allow offerors to better present lists of information (e.g., two-column table)? | Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.4.1 Factor 1 Technical Approach, Format (Page 102) | Yes. |
| 29 | The solicitation indicates that proposals should provide one-inch margins. Can the margins be used for page element information such as page numbers and other header/footer information? | Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.4.1 Factor 1 Technical Approach, Format (Page 102) | Yes. |
| 30 | The solicitation indicates that the “page font shall be no smaller than 12-point”. May offerors present non-essential page information (e.g., headers, footers, tables) in a font size less than 12-point font, but no smaller than 9-point font? | Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.4.1 Factor 1 Technical Approach, Format (Page 102) | No. |
| 31 | The solicitation states “Each offeror will be required to provide temporary accounts to the Government so that the Government can subjectively evaluate the ease of online features during the evaluation process.” |
a) For trial access, how many evaluation passwords are required?
b) Do we need to provide trial passwords at the time of proposal submission, or will IRS request trial passwords after proposal submission? Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.4.2 Factor 2 Management Approach (Page 104) a) Four
b) The IRS will request passwords after the proposal submission.
| 32 | The RFP requires offerors to provide three (3) past performance references as well as a Past Performance Questionnaire. We respectfully request that the deadline for submission of the Past Performance Questionnaires be extended. Given the instances of significant employee changes in the federal government, key reference contacts (e.g., Contracting Officers, Program Officers) are extremely busy or contacts may have recently changed. It would be helpful to give these agencies a more reasonable turn-around time to review the Questionnaire and respond. Will the IRS consider extending the Past Performance Questionnaire submission deadline to at least five business days past the submission deadline for offerors? | Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.4.3 Factor 3 Past Performance (Page 105) | No, the IRS will not provided an additional five business days past proposal due date for offerors to submit PPQ's. The proposal due date has been changed April 30, 2025 via Amendment 001. |
| 33 | The submission instructions indicate that proposals should be provided in two volumes – Technical and Price – with Technical Volume Sections/Factors broken out in Section 4.4. On Page 105, “Price” appears to be included as part of Section 4.4 Technical where it is numbered 4.4.4. Can the IRS please confirm that all pricing information should be captured in a separate volume and/or clarify the intent of Factor 4.4.4? | Section IV Proposal Instructions – 4.4.4 Factor 4 Price (Page 105) | Please see Amendment 002 to the RFP. Offerors are required to submit two volumes. Volume I Technical, which should consist of Factors 1 though 3 (Technical Approach, Management Approach, and Past Performance), and Volume II Price. |
| 34 | With previous solicitations for Electronic Research Services, IRS has requested offerors to conduct an Operational Capabilities Demonstration, or presentation. We’d respectfully suggest that offerors be given an opportunity to present/demo their offers to the members of the Evaluation Committee. Such a presentation will not only allow offerors the opportunity to present/demonstrate what products/services they are offering in response to the requirements, it also gives members of the evaluation committee the opportunity to ask clarification questions about the offeror’s proposed products/services. Does IRS plan to invite offerors to demonstrate/present their offers as part of the evaluation process? | Section V Evaluation Method (Page 106) | No, the IRS does not intend to invite offerors to provided demonstrations as part of the evaluation process. |
| 35 | The solicitation states “the evaluated price of this IDIQ shall include the base, all future options years and an option to extend services. . . ” |
a) How will price be evaluated given the numerous optional quantities required by the solicitation?
b) Is there a specific band that IRS will evaluate against (e.g., 15,000 users)? Section V Evaluation Method – 5.1.4 Factor 4 Price (Page 107) a) This will be a Best Value Trade Off acquisition wherein the government is more concerned with obtaining superior technical performance or reduced risk than making award at the lowest price. Price will be the least important of all the evaulation factors.
b) No
| 36 | Section C.1 states that the IRS anticipates approximately 15,000 IRS employees will use the Tax Research Service. However, Section II of the RFP (Contract Line Items) seeks pricing for a range between 10,000-35,000 employees. What is the current number of IRS employees and the current number of Treasury employees using Tax Research Services under the current Tax Research Services contract? | Attachment 1 – C. 1 Executive Summary (Page 1) | Currectly there are about 15,000 IRS subcribers and no Treasury subcribers. Multiple numbers/CLIN entries are included in the event the number of users changes. |
| 37 | The solicitation indicates that “contractors shall list and describe all offered databases, sources, and products.” This request may result in a list of tens of thousands of databases spanning hundreds of pages. |
a) Given the page limit currently imposed for the Technical Volume, will it suffice for contractors to provide IRS with a listing and description of the included libraries that respond to the Performance Work Statement?
b) If IRS requires a comprehensive listing of offered databases, sources, and products, can contractors provide this information within the Technical Volume without these pages counting against the imposed page limit? Attachment 1 - C.4 Description of Award Group (Page 3) a) We require a comprehensive listing of all databases.
b) The list of offered databases is not subject to the 100-page limitation.
| 38 | Tax Law Pricing (Tab 1 ERS Tax Law CLIN)—The excel document includes CLINs for each user band (10,000-35,000 users), as well as CLINs for per-user pricing exceeding each user band. This appears to be in line with what is presented in the RFP Section II – Contract Line Items (Page 4), except that Exhibit B includes an additional line for each ordering year for a “total” amount. The CLINs provided represent separate options depending on the number of users and would not add up to an accurate “total” for the ordering year. Will the IRS please remove the “total” line from Exhibit B and/or provide clarification regarding the intent for this addition? | Exhibit B | Please see "II_01_Exhibit B - ERS Tax Law Pricing Amendment 002" as amended. | |
| 39 | 1. | Given the complexity of the RFP, we respectfully request a due date extension of two weeks from the date Q&A is released, or to April 15, whichever is later. This additional time will allow offerors to fully evaluate the RFP, Q&A, and any amendments that may alter the technical requirements. | Proposal due date has been changed April 30, 2025 via Amendment 001. | |
| 40 | Price states that: “For purpose of evaluation, the evaluated price of this IDIQ shall include…an option to extend services for a period not to exceed 6 months as specified in FAR 52.217-8.” Exhibit B-ERS Tax Law Pricing spreadsheet does not include a separate period for the optional 6-month extension. Should offerors alter the Exhibit B spreadsheet to add a 6-month extension period? Or, will the Government release an amended version of Exhibit B to include this period? | RFP Section 5.1.4 Factor 4 | Please see "II_01_Exhibit B - ERS Tax Law Pricing_Amendment 002" as amended. | |
| 41 | Does the Government anticipate issuing a separate solicitation for the Comprehensive Research Services contract? If so, what is the estimated time frame for releasing that solicitation? | Yes, the Government's intent is to release a separate solicitation for "Comprehensive" research services within the next 90 days. | ||
| 42 | What is the expected timeline for offerors to have FedRAMP authorization? | Offerors would need to have the FedRAMP authorization prior to award. | ||
| 43 | Management Approach states that offerors will provide temporary accounts to the Government for evaluation purposes. How long will the Government require trial IDs for temporary access? | RFP section 4.4.2 Factor 2 | The trail IDs are required until the techical evaluation team completes its analysis. This period could range from weeks to months. | |
| 44 | RFP section 1.1.1 states that the solicitation overview includes “robust electronic research services to meet the agency’s unique…business [research needs].” Should offerors include business research content in their proposal to meet this need? | RFP section 1.1.1 | This is a tax research contract; accordingly, we are not asking for company financial information. Content relevant to determining the tax liability of a business is requested. Offerors may include any content they believe will effectively meet the IRS requirements. | |
| 45 | Are offerors permitted to provide supplemental video demonstrations as supporting documentation that they meet the Section 3 Mandatory Specifications, as well as any Section 4 Highly Desirable Content and Section 5 Highly Desirable Features requirements? | No. | ||
| 46 | PWS section C.6.6.1 references the IRS’ e-learning strategy. Does the IRS currently have a specific e-learning platform that offerors must utilize the training support as required in section C.6.6? Or, if the IRS does not currently utilize a specific e-learning platform, are there any technical requirements that offerors must meet to comply in order to provide e-learning sessions? | PWS section C.6.6.1 | Vendors should provide detail on their proposal to meet IRS training needs and any ways they are prepared to meet the requirements. We do not envision housing e-learning content on IRS systems. Our preference is to access this content on platforms provided by the offeror. | |
| 47 | Are offerors permitted to use single-spacing for tables in addition to the table of contents? | Yes. | ||
| 48 | RFP section 4.4(b) Volume I-Technical references Volume I, Offer and Other Documents. However, there appears to be no further instructions or mentions of Volume I, Offer and Other Documents. Please confirm whether offerors are only to submit two volumes: Volume I-Technical and Volume II-Price. | RFP section 4.4(b) Volume I-Technical | Please see Amendment 002 to RFP. |
Yes, offerors are required to submit two volumes. Volume I Technical, which should consist of Factors 1 though 3 (Technical Approach, Management Approach, and Past Performance), and Volume II Price.
| 49 | Please confirm that offerors’ past performance references should submit their completed Exhibit A-PPQ form by email to Brian Carter at brian.j.carter@irs.gov. | Yes, PPQs shall be submit via email to brian.j.carter@irs.gov. |
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