4-Part E - RFP Instructions to Offerors Final.pdf

City of Alexandria Request for Proposals

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services RFP No.: 2017

Part E – Instructions to Offerors

1. General This Request for Proposals (“RFP”) is issued by the City of Alexandria, Virginia (the “City”) to solicit proposals from qualified and responsible Offerors in accordance with the Virginia Public Procurement Act (“VPPA”), using the competitive negotiation method of source selection.

Offerors are responsible for reviewing all parts of this Solicitation and submitting a complete and responsive Proposal in accordance with these Instructions.

2. Issuing Office and Point of Contact This RFP is issued by the City through the Issuing Office identified in Part A – Solicitation General Information.

All communications concerning this RFP shall be directed solely to the Point of Contact identified in Part A – Solicitation General Information.

Offerors shall not contact any other City employee regarding this RFP. Unauthorized contact may result in disqualification.

3. Questions and Clarifications Offerors must submit any questions regarding this RFP in accordance with the schedule set forth in Part A – Solicitation General Information.

Responses to questions and clarifications or Modifications to the RFP will be issued by a written Addendum. Only information provided by the Addendum is considered binding.

4. Addenda The City may issue Addenda to modify or clarify this RFP at any time prior to the Proposal Due Date. Addenda will be issued in accordance with the procedures specified in Part A

– Solicitation General Information.

Offerors are responsible for monitoring the Solicitation and acknowledging receipt of all Addenda in their Proposal.

5. Award The award will be made as provided in Part F. 1- Evaluation and Method of Award.

6. Contract Formation Submission of a Proposal does not create a binding contract. A contract shall not be formed until a written contract is fully executed by the City and the successful Offeror in accordance with applicable law.

7. Disqualification of Offerors The City reserves the right, in accordance with the VPPA, to reject or disqualify any Proposal that:

7.3.1. Fails to substantially comply with the requirements of this RFP;

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services

7.3.1. Contains materially false or misleading information;

7.3.1. Results from prohibited communications; or

7.3.1. Is submitted by an Offeror determined to be non-responsible

8. Evaluation and Negotiation Proposals will be evaluated in accordance with the criteria set forth in Part F – RFP Evaluation and Method of Award.

The City may conduct discussions and negotiations with Offerors determined to be fully qualified and reasonably susceptible of being selected for award. The City may request additional information, presentations, interviews, or best-and-final offers as part of the evaluation process.

9. Format for Proposal Response Proposals must be organized, complete, and clearly presented to facilitate evaluation by the City. Offerors are encouraged to provide concise, well-structured responses that directly address the requirements of this Solicitation. Proposals should follow the format outlined below, with each section clearly labeled and presented in the order listed.

9.1. Cover Letter

Provide a signed cover letter on firm letterhead that:

• Identifies the Offeror’s legal name, address, and primary point of contact

• States the Offeror’s interest in and understanding of the requested services

• Confirms the Offeror’s ability to perform the services as described

• Identifies any proposed subcontractors or teaming partners and their roles

• Is signed by an individual authorized to bind the Offeror

9.2. Contractor Experience, Qualifications, and Capacity (Limit: 5 pages, excluding attachments)

Including but not limited to:

• Year established and form of organization

• Office location(s) relevant to the performance of the work

• Description of core services and areas of expertise and organizational capacity to reliably deliver services

• Experience with projects of similar size, scope, and complexity, especially relevant experience implementing prepaid card management systems or financial transaction platforms

• Experience serving public sector organizations or multi-department programs

• Regulatory compliance experience (PCI, ADA, federal/state data privacy laws)

9.3. Staffing Plan, Roles, & Responsibilities, and Staff Experience (15 page limit)

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services

A narrative that describes the work responsibilities of all key staff critical for meeting and/or exceeding the RFP requirements and for producing the required outcomes and their roles and responsibilities. For each named person, please include:

• Resumes, certifications, credentials, and special competencies relevant to performing work under the contract. Resumes should be concise and limited to relevant experience.

• Role title, description, reporting relationships, weekly effort commitment, and availability of key staff for the duration of the project

• Experience on similar contracts. Please be sure to identify the contract administrator and customer service lead and a description of their experience with similar contracts, including public sector organizations.

• For all of the above, please indicate whether the person is an employee of the Proposer, another firm or organization, or an independent contractor.

If applicable, details should also be provided on subcontractors who will be performing Work under the Contract.

The Key Staff named in the Proposal shall remain responsible throughout the term of the Contract. No diversion or replacement may be made without the COTR’s approval.

Program Approach The following sections 9.4 to 9.7 should total no more than 5 pages, excluding attachments

9.4. Approach to Card Management Services & System Functionality The Approach to Card Management Services & System Functionality should elaborate on the following:

• Card issuance and management (prepaid, reloadable, network branded)

• Merchant and geographic restrictions

• Participant identification

• Fraud detection and monitoring

• Real-time balance verification

• Compliance with PCI DSS, ADA, and applicable regulations

• Role-based access and administrative controls Offeror shall provide a complete, version-controlled system architecture diagram documenting all data flows, integrations, storage locations, encryption boundaries, authentication flows, and hosting regions (including geographic jurisdiction of all cloud services).

9.5. Approach to Reporting Capabilities

The Approach to Reporting Capabilities should elaborate on the following:

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services

• Standard and customizable reporting

• Transaction-level reporting

• Participant and card activity tracking

• Exportable reports in common formats (Excel, CSV, PDF)

• Audit trails and access logs

• Fraud and dispute tracking

9.6. Approach to Implementation Plan & Project Management

The Approach to Implementation Plan & Project Management should elaborate the following:

• How the proposer will hold themselves accountable to meeting performance standards that address the card management services and system functionality requirements (entirety of Section C: Description/Specifications / Statement of Work).

• Provide your published uptime metric

• Provide load testing evidence demonstrating system performance at projected peak usage.

• Clear deployment timeline and milestones

• Risk management and contingency planning, including procedures for minimizing and recovering from downtime and minimizing data loss to ensure business continuity

• Training plan for City staff

• Ongoing support and maintenance strategy

9.7. Approach to Program Flexibility & Optional Features

The approach to Program Flexibility & Optional Features should elaborate the following:

• Support and flexibility for multiple departments and funding streams

• Configurable benefit structures

• Support for time-limited or recurring disbursements

• Other optional enhancements that improve usability, security, or participant experience

As a reminder, sections 9.4 to 9.7 should total no more than 5 pages, excluding attachments

9.8. IT and Data Security Compliance

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services

• Offeror shall provide evidence of compliance with PCI DSS v4.0, including the most recent PCI DSS v4.0 Report on Compliance and Attestation of Compliance (AOC) OR Self-Assessment Questionnaire (SAQ) as applicable.

• Offeror shall provide a SOC 2 Type II report (issued within the last 12 months)

• In case the above documents are not available, offeror shall complete the City of Alexandria-provided CACVAT questionnaire

Additional questions may be issued during evaluation to assess PCI compliance.

The City evaluates data-security compliance using a standardized risk-management process aligned with Administrative Regulation 10-03, including the requirements described in Sections 10-3.1 through 10-3.3. For solutions classified with High inherent risk, the City uses an automated security-assessment platform to review the vendor’s SOC 2 Type II report and other provided security documentation against the City’s internal security standard. The assessment engine analyzes the submitted materials, identifies any unanswered control requirements, and rates each control as Compliant, Acceptable, Not Compliant, or N/A based on weighted scoring. Unanswered items are returned to the vendor for completion. Residual risk (Low, Medium, or High) is determined by the overall score.

The overall score ranges are as follows:

0-5 = high risk *Offerors scoring as high risk will be disqualified 6-10 = medium 11-15 = low As supplemental insight, the City uses an external cybersecurity rating service that evaluates publicly available information, including external-facing system posture and relevant public disclosures, to generate a comparative security grade, which is factored into the residual-risk outcome. Final approval follows the City’s documented risk-acceptance thresholds, requiring acceptance by higher levels of leadership for Medium-risk solutions. As noted above, solutions scored as high-risk are automatically disqualified.

9.9. References

Provide 3-5 references for projects similar in scope and complexity on the Reference Sheet provided in Part G, Attachment D of this Solicitation.

9.10. Additional Information

Provide any additional information requested elsewhere in this Solicitation or that the Offeror believes will assist the City in evaluating the Proposal.

10. Governing Terms The Contract resulting from this RFP shall include the City’s Part C – Special Terms and Conditions and Part D – General Terms and Conditions, which govern contract performance, administration, acceptance, payment, and remedies.

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services

Capitalized terms not otherwise defined in this RFP shall have the meanings set forth in Part H – Definitions.

11. Late Proposals

Responses arriving after the specified time and date in Part A – Solicitation General Information will not be accepted. Please allow sufficient time for the preparation and delivery of your response.

12. Mistakes in Offers The City may permit clarification of Proposals in accordance with the Virginia Public Procurement Act.

13. Offer Submission Information and Instructions

13.1. All offers must be submitted electronically. Submit them through the City’s ERP system at https://alexandriava.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities Proposals sent by mail or by hand will not be accepted. All documents submitted must be in PDF format. If a document is not in PDF format, the City may determine that the Offeror’s submission is non-responsive.

13.2. Offerors are required to complete, including signatures, and return all Attachments included in the Solicitation Documents. Solicitation and Addenda that are not signed may be considered non-responsive and not accepted.

13.3. Offerors must review and comply with the requirements of the Solicitation and ensure that all required information is provided and required forms are executed and returned with its Solicitation response, including, but not limited to:

13.3.1 Attachments

13.3.2 Any applicable certifications and licenses.

14. Opening of Proposals As specified in Part A – Solicitation General Information

15. Proposal Signature Solicitation Responses must contain the original signature of an individual who is authorized to bind the Offeror. The original signature must be provided on all Solicitation Documents where a signature is required. Facsimile signatures, photographic reproductions of signatures, rubber stamps, etc., are not acceptable, except in cases where the Offeror submits its Solicitation Response through the City’s ERP system.

16. Proposal Submission Proposals shall be submitted in the form, manner, and by the deadline specified in Part A

– Solicitation General Information.

17. Proposal Submission and Presentation Costs https://alexandriava.bonfirehub.com/portal/?tab=openOpportunities

RFP: Transportation Stipend Card Management Services

The City must not be liable in any way for any costs incurred by any Offeror in the preparation or submission of its Proposal or its participation in any discussion, presentation, negotiation, or meeting regarding its Proposal or the Solicitation.

18. Proposal Validity Period Proposals shall remain valid for a period of not less than 180 Calendar Days from the Solicitation Due Date specified in Part A – Solicitation General Information, unless withdrawn by the Offeror prior to Award in accordance with these Instructions.

19. Public Inspection and Confidentiality Proposals submitted in response to this RFP are subject to the Virginia Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”). Offerors shall clearly identify any proprietary or confidential information contained in their Proposals.

The City will use reasonable efforts to protect properly designated proprietary information to the extent permitted by law; however, the City makes no representation or warranty that such information will be exempt from disclosure.

20. Vendor Registration If awarded a contract, offerors must complete the following registration to submit an Offeror electronically and to receive grant funding (if applicable).

20.1. Registered with City as an active vendor by completing the Vendor Self Service (VSS) registration on the City’s ERP system located at https://service.alexandriava.gov/MSS/Vendors/default.aspx.

20.2. If the Vendor is a Small-, Women-, or Minority-owned (SWaM) business and is registered with the Commonwealth of Virginia, provide the Vendor’s Virginia SWaM certification documentation with the registration on the City’s VSS. To register as a SWaM business with the Commonwealth of Virginia, go to the website for the Virginia Department of Small Business and Supplier Diversity, located at https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/.

21. Withdrawal or Modification of Proposals An Offeror may withdraw or modify its Proposal at any time prior to the Solicitation Due Date by submitting written notice to the Issuing Office in accordance with Part A – Solicitation General Information.

No Proposal may be withdrawn after the Proposal Due Date except as permitted by applicable law.

https://service.alexandriava.gov/MSS/Vendors/default.aspx https://www.sbsd.virginia.gov/

21. Withdrawal or Modification of Proposals