36C25626Q0988_RFI.pdf

Sources Sought Notice

*= Required Field Sources Sought Notice

SUBJECT* RFI: VISN16 Court Reporting and Transcription Service

GENERAL INFORMATION

CONTRACTING OFFICE’S ZIP CODE* 77056-5643

SOLICITATION NUMBER* 36C25626Q0988

RESPONSE DATE/TIME/ZONE 07-13-2026 1:00pm CENTRAL TIME, CHICAGO, USA

ARCHIVE 1 DAYS AFTER THE RESPONSE DATE

RECOVERY ACT FUNDS N

SET-ASIDE

PRODUCT SERVICE CODE* R606

NAICS CODE* 561492

CONTRACTING OFFICE ADDRESS Department of Veterans Affairs

Network Contracting Office 16 Galleria Financial Center 5075 Westheimer Road, Suite 750 Houston TX 77056-5643

POINT OF CONTACT*

Contracting Officer Shasta Britt shasta.britt@va.gov

PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

ADDRESS Department of Veterans Affairs Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center

MEDVAMC

2002 Holcombe Blvd.

Houston Texas

POSTAL CODE 77030-4211

COUNTRY USA

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

AGENCY’S URL https://www.va.gov URL DESCRIPTION Department of Veterans Affairs AGENCY CONTACT’S EMAIL ADDRESS shasta.britt@va.gov EMAIL DESCRIPTION 36C25626Q0988 - RFI Response_Vendor Name mailto:shasta.britt@va.gov https://www.va.gov/

DESCRIPTION

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI)

VISN-Wide Indefinite-Delivery Contract (IDC)

Court Reporting and Transcription Services

NAICS: 561492

PSC: R606

Date Published: June 29, 2026

Response Due: July 13, 2026, at 1:00 PM Central Time (CT)

1. Purpose:

The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Networking Contract Officer (NCO) 16, is issuing this

Request for Information (RFI) to identify qualified and capable contractors who can provide

Court Reporting and Transcription Services throughout the VISN. This notice is issued strictly for market research and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation. No contract will be awarded from this RFI.

The intent is to better understand industry capability and determine the viability of establishing a

VISN-wide Indefinite-Delivery Contract (IDC) for these services.

2. Description of Requirement:

The VA anticipates requiring recurring and as-needed court reporting, deposition support, and verbatim transcription services. Examples of the required services may include:

• Real-time and traditional court reporting,

• On-site or remote deposition support,

• Verbatim transcription of hearings, testimony, interviews, and administrative proceedings,

• Secure electronic delivery and storage of transcripts, and

• Compliance with all VA privacy, confidentiality, and data-security requirements.

A draft PWS will be provided at a later stage under any future solicitation.

3. Requested Information:

Interested vendors are requested to submit a capability statement addressing:

1. Company information,

2. Business size and socioeconomic category under NAICS 561492,

3. Demonstrated experience providing regional or multi-site court reporting/transcription services,

4. Geographic coverage capabilities across the entire VISN,

5. Feedback on the feasibility and structure of a VISN-wide IDC, and

6. Additional considerations, questions, or recommendations to the Government.

4. Submission Instructions

Responses shall be submitted electronically in PDF or Word format to:

Contracting Officer: Shasta Britt

Email Address: shasta.britt@va.gov

Email Subject Line: 36C25626Q0988 – RFI Response – Vendor Name

Responses are due no later than July 13, 2026, at 1:00 PM Central Time (CT).

Late submissions may not be reviewed.

5. Disclaimer

This notice is not a solicitation as defined by FAR 2.101, therefore it shall not be construed as a commitment by the government to enter into a contract, nor does it restrict the government to an acquisition approach. All information contained in this Request for Information (RFI) is preliminary as well as subject to amendment and is in no way binding on the government.

Information submitted in response to this notice is voluntary; the government will not pay for information requested nor will it compensate any respondent for any cost incurred in developing information provided to the government. The government is requesting that restrictive or proprietary markings not be used in response to this notice. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized in the Federal Contract Opportunities website or General Services Administration

(GSA). It is the responsibility of the interested parties to monitor these sites for additional information pertaining to this RFI. No reimbursement will be made for any costs incurred responding to this RFI.

See attached Draft PWS…

A.1 DRAFT Performance Work Statement (PWS)

Transcription/Court Reporting Services

1. Scope: The contractor shall provide all personnel, supervision, equipment, and services necessary to deliver accurate and timely court reporting and transcription services for all VA facilities within VISN 16. Performance shall meet or exceed the accuracy, timeliness, security, and quality standards defined in this PWS.

a. Based on VA facility listings and VISN 16 coverage, the following are major VA

Medical Centers in the NCO 16 network:

i. Michael E. DeBakey VA Medical Center, Houston, Texas

ii. Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System, New Orleans, Louisiana

iii. Alexandria Veterans Health Care System, Pineville, Louisiana

iv. Overton Brooks VA Medical Center, Shreveport, Louisiana

v. Central Arkansas Veterans Healthcare System, Little Rock, Arkansas

vi. Veterans Health Care System of the Ozarks, Fayetteville, Arkansas

vii. G.V. (Sonny) Montgomery VA Medical Center, Jackson, Mississippi

viii. Gulf Coast Veterans Health Care System, Biloxi, Mississippi

2. Acronyms:

a. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC)

b. Equal Employment Opportunity program (EEO)

c. Contracting Officer (CO)

d. Contracting Officer's Representative (COR)

e. Administrative Investigation Boards (AIB)

f. Human Resource Management Service (HRMS)

g. Merit System Protection Board (MSPB)

h. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA)

i. VA may be used interchangeably to refer all VA facility listings for VISN 16 coverage listed above.

3. Dictation Subjects: The contractor shall support all VA-required hearing types including but not limited to AIBs, MSPB hearings, EEOC hearings, and depositions.

The contractor shall ensure personnel and systems can support these proceedings in accordance with all performance requirements.

4. Definitions:

a. Character: Printable ASCII characters, including a single space, <CR><LF>. A space between words is counted as one ASCII character.

Carriage returns to create blank lines are excluded.

b. Turnaround Time Standard: Standard transcripts shall be delivered within 10 business days, and urgent requests shall be delivered within 48 hours when identified by the VA.

c. Variations: Material is dictated by many personnel, which will require the contractor and his/her equipment to adapt to variations on dialect, speech, tone, voice volume, speed, delivery, pronunciation, and enunciation.

5. Destination of transcribed documents: The transcribed documents will be delivered to the VA HRMS or EEO offices.

a. The contractor shall deliver transcripts in the electronic formats specified by the VA at the time of task order issuance. All deliverables must meet accuracy, completeness, and confidentiality requirements but the contractor may determine internal tools, software, and workflow methods.

b. Contractor must provide his/her own communications software.

c. STAT reports, meaning "immediately" or "without delay" are not typically required under this contract; however, if an emergency arises, will request a STAT report from the contractor telephonic electronically, along with any special instructions to the contractor regarding a special delivery location.

6. Format of Documents: Contractor shall be able to formulate types of documents in accordance with the needs of the VA.

a. General Format: The length of each report will vary according to the type of court report required. The reports will be created and saved as ASCII text -only printable characters, single spaces, and <CR><LF>. The text is double spaced with double space between paragraphs. No report shall include any text other than what was dictated. Documents that appear to be incomplete or the dictation was cut off should be notated as INCOMPLETE DICTATION. An effort to locate a new dictation and/or continuation of the incomplete dictation must be made by the contractor so that the report can be completed as one document. Typed comments or questions other than a statement of INCOMPLETE DICTATION should not be in the transcribed report. If there are questions, a phone call to the contact person must be made to have the question answered.

b. Header and Footer Format: Specific formats for report types and headers for uploaded reports will be furnished at time of contract award prior to commencement of work. VA will provide formats for new report types as needed. It is the contractor's responsibility to assure all header, and footer information complies with sample header and footer information as furnished by VA technical staff.

c. Lines: Lines are to be defined as 65-characters per line. Special formatting (underline, bold, etc.) should not be used. Vertical spaces (between lines, between paragraphs, or between text) and footers and headers are not billable. Headers and footers are not to be included in the line length.

d. Scope of Work -Human Resource Management Service HRMS reports are transcribed using dictation equipment.

e. Scope of Work -Equal Employment Opportunity Program EEO reports are transcribed using dictation equipment.

f. Turnaround Time (TAT): The contractor shall meet turnaround times as follows.

i. Standard: 10 business days

ii. Urgent: 48 hours from request

iii. The VA will identify urgent requests at the time of order.

g. Completed Documents: Documents shall be in final form and in accordance with the quality standards called for under the contract.

h. Completed documents shall be transmitted with appropriate document header to facilitate receipt of document by VA computer system.

7. Applicable Laws, Regulations, and Standards.

a. In accordance with 36 CFR 1222.32, Contractor shall maintain all records created for Government use or created in the course of performing the contract and/or delivered to, or under the legal control of the Government and must be managed in accordance with Federal law. Electronic records and associated metadata must be accompanied by sufficient technical documentation to permit understanding and use of the records and data.

b. Contractor shall comply with all applicable records management laws and regulations, as well as National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) records policies, including but not limited to the Federal Records Act (44 U.S.C. Chs. 21, 29, 31, 33), NARA regulations at 36 CFR Chapter XII Subchapter B, and those policies associated with the safeguarding of records covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a). These policies include the preservation of all records, regardless of form or characteristics, mode of transmission, or state of completion.

c. In accordance with 36 CFR 1222.32, all data created for Government use and delivered to, or falling under the legal control of, the Government are Federal records subject to the provisions of 44 U.S.C. chapters 21, 29, 31, and 33, the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) (5 U.S.C. 552), as amended, and the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 552a), as amended and must be managed and scheduled for disposition only as permitted by statute or regulation.

8. Quality Control: The contractor shall maintain a Quality Control (QC) plan ensuring compliance with all performance requirements. Errors identified by the Government shall be corrected at no additional cost.

a. The Contractor shall implement and maintain a quality control (QC) system that results in correction of potential and actual problems throughout the entire scope of contract performance. The QC system shall contain a mechanism for corrective actions without dependence upon government direction. Records of all Contractor QC activities shall be maintained during the life of the contract.

b. The contractor shall maintain a minimum transcript accuracy of 98 percent. Accuracy includes the correct capture of dictated material, correct spelling, correct speaker identification, and correct punctuation sufficient to maintain meaning. Percentage is based on ratio of errors to lines.

(Example: 1000 lines produced, 20 errors: 20/1000=0.02 or 2% errors.

Accuracy is 98%.) Errors are considered to be:

i. Omitted material that is legible or intelligible

ii. Misspelled words

iii. Transposed letters

iv. Transcription that is not reflective of dictation, including material that is not dictated or entering material that is not part of the report such as dictator's directions to the transcriptionist.

v. Punctuation or spelling which changes the meaning of the sentence.

vi. Unauthorized abbreviations (VA will provide a list of approved abbreviations), blank lines or ...@@@" for dictation that is clearly intelligible.

c. Each single-page report which contains one or more errors that change the meaning of the report shall be at no cost to the VA. Multiple-page reports containing two (2) or more errors shall be at no cost to the VA.

d. No more than four (4) errors per 20 reports which do not change the meaning of the report, including, but not limited to, grammar, punctuation, spelling, or transposed letters.

e. The Contractor shall be responsible for correct spelling, including unfamiliar words, checking medical dictionaries and references when needed to distinguish between similar-sounding terms. All material shall be transcribed in the tense dictated. Only terms approved by the VA shall be used.

f. The Contractor shall be required to exercise professional judgment to recognize errors of omission, which are technical in nature (e.g., inability to transcribe due to poor dictation quality). Such errors shall be referred to by the COTR for clarification or correction.

g. Reports lost or damaged by the Contractor shall be redone at no additional charge to the Government. The Contractor shall send a letter to the COTR and EEO/HRMS representatives stating that the dictation was lost and give the reason.

h. Reports that do not meet the timeliness deadline due to errors or omissions on the part of the VA and which are not correctable by the contractor are not counted against the contractor's performance.

i. The contractor shall correct errors identified by the Government at no additional cost within the timeline specified in Section 8.

9. Quality Assurance: The contractor shall ensure all transcripts are complete, accurate, and free of material errors prior to delivery. The contractor shall return corrected documents within four (4) hours when notified by the VA.

a. Proof reading: Contractor shall proofread all reports for compliance with established format for each work type and corrections made at that time.

For any words or phrases that cannot be transcribed due to difficulties in hearing the dictator’s voice, the transcriptionist shall type "'@@@* for unintelligible words.

b. Spell Check: Contractor shall use a spell checker on each document and perform corrections for spelling and grammar.

c. Corrections: Any report(s) returned to the contractor for correction for reasons stated herein, shall be corrected within four hours of receipt at no additional expense to VA.

d. The contractor shall retain recordings and final transcripts for 12 months unless otherwise directed by the VA.

10. Retention of Voice and Documents: The contractor shall have the capacity to maintain backup media of voice dictation and transcribed material for a period of 12 months. Voice dictation may be kept for a period of less than 12 months ONLY if certified by COTR that documents can be disposed.

11. Records Storage and Ownership: The Contractor shall not create or maintain any records containing any non-public VA information that are not specifically tied to or authorized by the contract. At the conclusion of the first year of the contract and at least once per year thereafter, Contractor shall erase all media containing VA reports that are aged more than 12 months. At each erasure, certify to the VA that the information has been destroyed. The VA owns the rights to all data and records produced as part of this contract. All deliverables under the contract are the property of the U.S. Government for which VA shall have unlimited rights to use, dispose of, or disclose such data contained therein as it determines to be in the public interest.

Any Contractor rights in the data or deliverables must be identified as required by FAR 52.227-11 through FAR 52.227-20.

a. Requirements follow for VA sensitive information:

b. Prohibition of authorized disclosure Data breach notification

c. Requirement to pay liquidated damages in event of data breach

Requirement for annual security/privacy awareness training Required signature of VA’s Rules of Behavior

12. Equipment: The Contractor shall have the capability to store digitally dictated voice recordings for a period of not less than twelve (12) months, allowing VA to review dictated reports during that period on an as-needed basis. Recordings shall be easily accessible.

13. Privacy Act: The contractor shall comply with the provisions of the Privacy Act of 1974, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act and all applicable VA laws and regulations. Additional information to identify the employee and type of document will be provided by the VA as needed. The Contractor shall not maintain, in any form, any sensitive or patient identified information. The Contractor shall comply with the Privacy Act and HIPAA as it pertains to general patient information, HIV, Drug and Alcohol Abuse, and Sickle Cell Anemia. The Contractor shall have plant security and ADP security necessary to safeguard court reports.

14. The Contractor shall be required to complete a VA Business Associate Agreement.

15. Security and Privacy Requirements: Contract employees performing on this contract shall be required to undergo the appropriate background screen. Contract employees shall complete a Special Agreement Check (SAC), which includes completing and submitting the Optional Form (OF) 306 and undergoing a fingerprint screen. Fingerprinting can be accomplished at the medical center badging offices.

Employees determined to have an unsatisfactory SAC adjudication are prohibited from performing on this contract. The contractor will not have access to protected Patient Health Information (PHI) and they will/nor will they have the capability of accessing patient information during the services provided to the VA and if removal of equipment from the VA is required, any memory storage devices, such as hard drives, solid state drives and non-volatile memory units will remain in VA control and will not be removed from VA custody. All research data available for Contractor analyses are de-identified. VA and its contractors are responsible for preventing the alienation or unauthorized destruction of records, including all forms of mutilation.

Records may not be removed from the legal custody of VA or destroyed except for in accordance with the provisions of the agency records schedules and with the written concurrence of the Head of the Contracting Activity. Willful and unlawful destruction, damage or alienation of Federal records is subject to the fines and penalties imposed by 18 U.S.C. 2701. In the event of any unlawful or accidental removal, defacing, alteration, or destruction of records, Contractor must report to VA. The agency must report promptly to NARA in accordance with 36 CFR 1230.

16. The contractor will not have access to VA Desktop computers, and they will not have access to online resources belonging to the government while conducting services.

If removal of equipment from the VA is required, any memory storage devices, such as hard drives, solid state drives and non-volatile memory units will remain in VA control and will not be removed from VA custody

17. The Contractor shall immediately notify the appropriate COR and CO upon discovery of any inadvertent or unauthorized disclosures of information, data, documentary materials, records or equipment. Disclosure of non-public information is limited to authorized personnel with a need-to-know as described in the [contract vehicle]. The Contractor shall ensure that the appropriate personnel, administrative, technical, and physical safeguards are established to ensure the security and confidentiality of this information, data, documentary material, records and/or equipment are properly protected. The Contractor shall not remove material from Government facilities or systems, or facilities or systems operated or maintained on the Government's behalf, without the express written permission of the Head of the Contracting Activity. When information, data, documentary material, records and/or equipment are no longer required, it shall be returned to VA control, or the Contractor must hold it until otherwise directed. Items returned to the Government shall be hand-carried, mailed, emailed, or securely electronically transmitted to the Contracting Officer or address prescribed in the [contract vehicle]. Destruction of records is EXPRESSLY PROHIBITED unless in accordance with Paragraph (4).

18. Contract Administration: Monthly invoices shall be submitted in arrears through the designated electronic invoice system. Contractor personnel must maintain compliance with all training and reporting requirements throughout contract performance. Invoices shall provide sufficient details to enable comparisons of billed units to the typed reports.

19. Contractor’s Training and Quality Assurance Plans: All Contractor employees assigned to this contract who create, process, manage records are required to take -provided records management training. The Contractor is responsible for confirming training has been completed according to agency policies, including initial training and any annual or refresher training. The Contractor shall not retain, use, sell, or disseminate copies of any deliverable that contains information covered by the Privacy Act of 1974 or that which is generally protected from public disclosure by an exemption to the Freedom of Information Act.

20. Workload Fluctuation: The contractor shall have a plan to address periodic fluctuations in VA workload.

21. Information Technology: The Contractor shall only use Government IT equipment for purposes specifically tied to or authorized by the contract and in accordance with VA policy.

22. Contingency Services: Contractor shall maintain adequate resources necessary to ensure that transcription services for the VA are uninterrupted regardless of contingency or circumstance.

23. Contractor may set any schedule of work hours for its employees performing work at its own facility under this contract providing the VA's STAT requirements will be met.

However, the contract price stated on the price/cost schedule is considered payment in full for all services rendered under this contract.

24. The CO reserves the right to reject any of the contractor's personnel and refuse them permission to perform work under the contract.

25. The Contractor is required to obtain the CO's approval prior to engaging in any contractual relationship (sub-contractor) in support of this contract requiring the disclosure of information, documentary material and/or records generated under, or relating to, contracts. The Contractor (and any sub-contractor) is required to abide by Government and VA guidance for protecting sensitive, proprietary information, classified, and controlled unclassified information.

26. Government Quality Assurance Surveillance: The Government will conduct performance monitoring through random sampling, timeliness reviews, and customer feedback in accordance with the Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP).

27. Performance Requirements Summary (PRS)

Performance Requirement

Performance Standard AQL Surveillance Method

Remedy

Accuracy ≥ 98% accuracy 98% Random sampling Correct at no cost

Timeliness 10 days / 48 hours urgent 100% Invoice & log review

Correct at no cost

Availability Coverage for all VISN 16 facilities 100% COR monitoring Corrective action

(End of Draft SOW)