47QRAB25R0002-CSO Solicitation-GSA Commercial Payments Solutions Pilot - 2025.06.30.pdf

General Services Administration (GSA)

47QRAB25R0002

Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) Solicitation for

Commercial Payment Solutions in support of:

GSA’s Internal Purchase, Travel, and Fleet Services

Issued by:

U.S General Services Administration (GSA)

Federal Acquisition Service (FAS) June 30, 2025

Controlled by : Nichole Ammon, Contracting Officer ( nichole.ammon@gsa.gov )

Solicitation #47QRAB25R0002 mailto:nichole.ammon@gsa.gov

1.0 General Information

1.1 Authority

This is a procurement action using the Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) procedures authorized by Section 880 of the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) and as amended by Section 7227 of the FY23 NDAA. This procurement is subject to the limitations outlined in the General Services Acquisition Manual (GSAM) Part 571 and the associated CSO Guide. This procurement method is used to competitively procure innovative commercial products and commercial services to include innovative technologies and solutions using the commercial solutions opening.

1.2 CSO Pilot Program Benefits

The General Services Administration (GSA) developed this program to be implemented outside the normal Federal Acquisition Regulations (FAR) requirements to engage traditional and non-traditional government contractors, including start-up companies. This pilot program for GSA is intended to promote competition with a streamlined approach to acquire innovative commercial products and commercial services. This pilot program offers the following benefits:

● Streamlined solicitation requiring only minimal corporate and technical information.

● Fast track vendor selection timelines.

● Simplified contract administration procedures and requirements.

● Preference for the vendor retaining core intellectual property.

1.3 Project Overview and Goals

GSA is seeking a partner(s) to support a pilot project to assess the feasibility of an innovative, end-to-end commercial payments platform with associated products, services, and systems.

Selected partner(s) will be required to provide all associated services for charge card and commercial payments management for a subset of GSA’s internal purchase, travel, and fleet business lines including, but not limited to, issuance, commercial payment systems, fraud analytics, data mining, and information security.

This pilot will not encompass the entire GSA SmartPay program. Rather, GSA will require the contractor(s) to establish accounts and/or payment solutions for a subset of GSA’s own internal agency purchase, travel, and fleet transactions. GSA will apply a statistical sample of its FY25 accounts (as shown in the tables of Section 1.4 Current Environment below) at a 95% confidence interval. The accounts used for the pilot will be determined by GSA and provided to the contractor(s) after award.

The goal of this project – through the CSO authority cited in Section 1.1 Authority – is to explore solutions for a more competitive, flexible, and innovative environment in order to help inform the future of the GSA SmartPay® program requirements, and to help ensure the program remains effective and adaptable to evolving government needs. This includes considering commercially available solutions from innovative offerors who may not already do business with the government.

Solicitation #47QRAB25R0002 https://smartpay.gsa.gov/

1.4 Current Environment

The GSA SmartPay 3 master contracts are held by two commercial issuing banks, enabling current customers to access commercial charge card and payment solutions through task orders issued off a multi-agency, multiple award indefinite delivery-indefinite quantity contract structure. While payment solutions and services available under the GSA SmartPay 3 master contract have supported customer missions, GSA believes there is more innovation available in the marketplace today that is not currently available in the government payment space, such as:

● Unified platform access

● Real-time automated spend management

● Automatic expense categorization

● Advanced machine learning algorithms

● Real-time insights and reporting

● Hands-free expense reconciliation

● Advanced spend analytics (e.g., artificial intelligence-driven)

For historical reference, spend and transaction volume specifically for GSA’s transactions for the last two fiscal years by business line are below. Spend behavior may be impacted by the agency’s compliance with Executive Order 14158, Implementing the President’s “Department of Government Efficiency” Cost Efficiency Initiative .

GSA Purchase

Spend Transactions Accounts

FY 2023 $35,918,085 31,614 679

FY 2024 $30,891,875 26,794 652

FY 2025 YTD $9,128,106 8,137 604

GSA Travel

Spend Transactions Accounts

FY 2023 $16,368,483 118,187 8,894

FY 2024 $16,948,778 117,291 9,741

FY 2025 YTD $5,032,569 34,902 9,027

GSA Internal Fleet

Spend Transactions Accounts

FY 2023 $2,810,157 39,690 615

Solicitation #47QRAB25R0002 https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/implementing-the-presidents-department-of-government-efficiency-cost-efficiency-initiative/ https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/2025/02/implementing-the-presidents-department-of-government-efficiency-cost-efficiency-initiative/

FY 2024 $2,813,830 36,336 615

FY 2025 YTD $1,485,472 18,164 615

1.5 Project and Performance Objectives

The objective of this pilot project is to obtain innovative solutions that provide products, services, and systems for a subset of GSA’s purchase, travel, and fleet transactions only. The awarded contract(s) will not support government-wide GSA SmartPay program requirements.

The commercial products, services, and systems solutions submitted in response to this solicitation are expected to leverage innovation of approach, integrated technology such as artificial intelligence for process efficiency and business intelligence, positive user experience and financial controls to help detect and prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of payment solutions.

Solution submission requirements are described in Section 4.0 CSO Solicitation - Phase I and related subsections.

Solutions may include existing commercial technologies or procedures not currently in use by the government that would enhance or streamline GSA’s internal operational needs and capabilities. Solutions provided must meet GSA internal operational needs and consider the following:

● Historical spend and transaction volume

● Payment solutions management

● Spend controls

● Training

● Communication

● Quality assurance and risk mitigation

● Data management, transaction support, and reporting

● Security compliance

● Business intelligence enhancements

● Customer and user experience

● Integration with existing GSA systems

Offerors awarded a contract from this solicitation will be expected to achieve performance objectives, based upon the selected offeror’s solution, such as:

● Ensuring the platform handles expected load and identifies patterns over time.

● Achieving interoperability with minimal friction.

● Ensuring full lifecycle management of purchase, travel, and fleet payments.

● Preventing unauthorized use and enforcing policy compliance.

● Ensuring users understand how to use the system effectively.

● Providing consistency, reducing error rates, and managing financial risk.

● Ensuring data is accurate, timely, and useful.

● Meeting federal and industry standards for security requirements.

Solicitation #47QRAB25R0002

● Improving strategic decision-making.

● Delivering a seamless, intuitive experience.

In addition, the contractor will be expected to meet the requirements outlined in Section 7.0 Contract Award and Performance Requirements . The specific contract and performance requirements will be negotiated with the offerors who are invited to participate in Phase II of the solicitation as described in Section 5.0 CSO Phase II - Final Contract Solution .

2.0 Contract Award Information

2.1 Government Obligation and Liability

The government reserves the right to cancel this solicitation, either before or after the closing date, without obligation or liability. In the event the government cancels this solicitation, the government has no obligation to reimburse an offeror for any cost. Funds are not available for this effort. The government will not pay the contractor directly for any services rendered under this contract.

2.2 Potential Contract Award

The government anticipates award of one solution per business line for a subset of GSA’s internal agency purchase, travel, and fleet transactions, but reserves the right to award all, some, one, or none of the solutions submitted under this CSO. Submission of a Written Solution Brief and/or Final Contract Solution does not guarantee that an offeror will receive an award. The government intends to award solutions at no cost to the government for the entire period of performance of the resulting contract(s).

2.3 Contractor Responsibility Determination

An offeror must be determined to be responsible by the contracting officer and must not be suspended or debarred from award by the government nor be prohibited by Presidential Executive Order and/or law from receiving award.

2.4 Procurement Integrity and Ethical Standards

The government will assess all submissions for the existence of a conflict of interest (COI) or the appearance of a COI. It is incumbent upon the offeror to disclose all relevant facts related to the existence of or potential existence of a COI early in the process.

2.4 North American Industry Classification System (NAICS)

The applicable NAICS codes for this solicitation is 522320 Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities and 522110 Commercial Banking .

3.0 CSO Solicitation Overview

3.1 CSO Solicitation Process

Consistent with CSO goals, this acquisition will use a competitive solicitation methodology to provide a streamlined approach for acquiring new, innovative commercial solutions. GSA intends to make an award using a two-phase process:

1. Phase I will require the offeror to first submit a Written Solution Brief in accordance with the requirements of this solicitation. Phase I may also, at the agency’s discretion, require the offeror to participate in a Live Capabilities Demonstration and/or submit additional information regarding its solution brief.

2. Offerors that are invited to participate in Phase II will be required to submit a Final Contract Solution .

3.2 Solution Evaluation Panels

Evaluations will be conducted by a Peer Review Advisory Group consisting of U.S. federal government employees with scientific, technological, or other relevant subject matter expertise.

The Peer Review Advisory Group will evaluate the Written Solution Briefs, Live Capabilities Demonstration, Final Contract Solution, and other supplemental information, as applicable, submitted in response to this solicitation or related invitations described herein.

3.3 Award Notification and Technical Feedback

Award notifications to offerors will be in writing and provided to the offeror by the contracting officer. An offeror not selected for an award may request technical feedback regarding the review of their Written Solution Brief, Live Capabilities Demonstration, or Final Contract Solution within three (3) business days of notification of non-selection .

4.0 CSO Solicitation - Phase I

4.1 Phase I - Written Solution Brief

For Phase I, the offeror shall submit a Written Solution Brief that provides written responses to questions relative to the offeror’s solution in meeting project objectives described in this solicitation.

4.1.1 Phase I - Written Solution Brief Submission Requirements Phase I Written Solution Briefs shall be received by email submission no later than 08 Aug 2025 , 7:00PM Eastern Standard Time to nichole.ammon@gsa.gov AND spcard@gsa.gov with “ GSA Commercial Payments CSO Phase I Written Solution Brief - 47QRAB25R0002” included in the subject line along with your company name. Any solution briefs submitted after this date and time will not be evaluated by the government .

The Written Solution Brief shall be no more than 40 pages, submitted in electronic form (e.g., PDF), and adhering to the following:

● Letter size (8.5” x 11”)

● Single spaced, 12 point font

● One (1) inch side margins and one and a half (1.5) inch header and footers

● Numbered sequentially

● Solicitation number must be printed on each page

● Charts, graphics, and tables must not have any embedded videos, files, or additional external links

Any pages submitted beyond page limitations will be removed and not evaluated.

4.1.1.1 References to Company Name or Identifying Information The offeror’s company name and relevant company information shall be included only on the title page of the Written Solution Brief. The offeror shall not include its name or any references to its name or identifying company information (to include logos) anywhere else in the Written Solution Brief. The offeror shall substitute direct references to its name with generic terms (e.g., “the company,” or “we”). Failure to comply with this requirement may result in the offeror’s solution not being evaluated by the government.

4.1.1.2 Additional Information

At the discretion of the government, additional information may be requested. The cost of preparing Phase I responses and materials, or any additional information, is not considered a direct charge to any resulting CSO award or any other contract and is not recoverable.

4.1.1.3 Proprietary Markings

Offerors shall mark any pages of Written Solution Briefs that contain business plans, technical information, pricing or other business sensitive information as proprietary information, which the government agrees to safeguard.

To ensure that sensitive data is appropriately marked, the offeror must include the following sentences on the cover page:

“This solution brief includes data that shall not be disclosed outside the government, except to non-government personnel for evaluation purposes, and shall not be duplicated, used, or disclosed -- in whole or in part -- for any purpose other than to evaluate this submission. If, however, an agreement is awarded to this Company as a result of - - or in connection with -- the submission of this data, the government shall have the right to duplicate, use, or disclose the data to the extent agreed upon by both parties in the resulting agreement. The data subject to this restriction are contained in sheets (offeror shall insert numbers or other identification of sheets)”.

4.1.1.4 Exceptions

The requirements of this section will not apply to any information that (i) is or becomes publicly available without breach of this agreement; (ii) can be shown by documentation to have been known to government prior to its receipt from offeror; (iii) is rightfully received from a third party who did not acquire or disclose such information by a wrongful or tortuous act; or (iv) can be shown by documentation to have been developed by government without reference to any confidential information.

If the government becomes legally obligated to disclose confidential information by any other governmental entity with jurisdiction over it, the government will give the offeror prompt written notice to allow the offeror to seek a protective order or other appropriate remedy. Such notice must include, without limitation, identification of the information to be so disclosed and a copy of the order. The government will disclose only such information as is legally required and will use its reasonable best efforts to obtain confidential treatment for any confidential information that is so disclosed.

Each restricted data sheet shall be marked as follows: “Use or disclosure of data contained on this sheet is subject to the restriction on the title page of this solution brief.” A failure to properly mark each sheet with the disclaimer statement shall result in the government not being held to the non-disclosure obligation.

4.1.2 Phase I - Written Solution Brief Contents

The Written Solution Brief shall address the questions and requests below. The Written Solution Brief shall clearly identify the business line for which it is proposed. Offerors are not required to propose on all business lines and can choose to propose multiple business or single business lines. Offerors shall submit one solution brief total, regardless of the number of business lines addressed. Throughout the written solution brief, the offeror shall:

● Refrain from referencing its company name or other identifying company information.

● Substitute direct references to the offeror’s company name with generic terms (e.g., “the company,” or “we”).

● Not include logos or references to the offeror’s company name in any materials or systems.

● Exclude any content that promotes any brand, marketing differentiators, or generic capabilities.

● Provide contact information for technical experts who are able to directly answer questions and explain capabilities in detail.

● Not include functionality outside of capabilities described in the Written Solution Brief.

Do not include the following in the Written Solution Brief:

● Statements of work or performance work statements.

● Marketing materials or information not pertinent to Section 1.5 Project and Performance

Objectives .

4.1.2.1 General

1) Company and Overview

a) Describe your company. Include an overview of corporate structure and when the company was founded or formed.

b) Is your company owned domestically or by a foreign entity?

c) How is your company funded?

i) List the sources of funding and as applicable, the level of funding your company has received. Indicate if the sources are public or private.

ii) Is any of the funding your company receives from foreign entities?

iii) Is your company publicly held or traded?

d) Based on the project description in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives , what is your company’s staffing approach for this specific pilot project?

i) What is the estimated staffing level you anticipate to support the project?

ii) Type of employees anticipated to support the project (e.g., developers, customer support, account managers, project managers)?

iii) Where will the personnel be located (e.g., countries)?

e) Describe the management team anticipated to support this specific pilot project and the types of roles potentially involved.

i) What is the background and history (e.g., previous startups, roles in public service, previous federal government involvement) of individuals that will be on your management team?

ii) Where will the personnel be located (e.g., countries)?

f) Identify any potential conflicts of interest that your company may have, as defined in Code of Federal Regulations Subpart 9.5—Organizational and Consultant Conflicts of Interest . This may apply to any employees that could provide support under a potential award or any employees that participated in the preparation of this response or interacted with GSA specifically for this pilot project (e.g., RFI response, product demonstrations).

2) Solution, Technology, and Approach

a) Describe your solution, technology, and approach, and the relevance to the project objectives as described in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives .

b) How is your commercial product or service innovative, specifically for the federal government or GSA application? Explain using technical language rather than marketing or sales language.

c) What intellectual property does your company plan to use or create for this project?

i) How does your company anticipate handling rights to intellectual property?

ii) Please provide a statement acknowledging all data used or transmitted for this pilot project is the sole property of GSA and the United States federal government and any use of the data outside of this specific pilot project requires explicit written permission from those authorities.

iii) How will your company comply with federal records retention requirements , specifically maintaining access to all transactional data for six years and three months? This includes retaining data after the end of the contract period of performance.

3) Customer Service, Training, and Transition

a) Describe your company’s approach to customer service, training, and transition, specifically for the following:

Solicitation #47QRAB25R0002 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-48/chapter-1/subchapter-B/part-9/subpart-9.5 https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-48/chapter-1/subchapter-B/part-9/subpart-9.5 https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/policy https://www.archives.gov/records-mgmt/policy

i) 24 hour global customer service and technical support.

ii) User training.

iii) Transitioning from the legacy contractor bank(s).

4) Previous Experience

a) Describe any federal or commercial contracts, subcontracts, or partnerships awarded to your company that were similar in size, scope, and purpose to the objectives of this effort, as detailed in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives .

4.1.2.2 Overall Products and Services

1) Solution Overview

a) Describe your company’s integration process with an agency’s enterprise resource planning system or financial system.

i) Does your solution rely on the use of application programming interface (API) or related processes?

(1) If so, describe how your API will interact or interface with government financial, human resources, or other relevant systems.

ii) Describe the role of using mobile devices for your solution.

(1) Are mobile devices required to use your solution?

(2) If so, please describe alternatives should GSA employees be unable to use mobile devices for this pilot project.

iii) Describe the transaction reconciliation process for your solution.

b) Describe your approach for paying individuals and businesses who are outside of the government (i.e., non-government employees), that does not utilize convenience checks or prepaid solutions.

2) Issuance

a) Describe your company’s current ability and willingness to work with traditional and experienced issuers, such as previous GSA SmartPay contractor banks or similar.

b) What is your plan for making cards and accounts identifiable, at the point of sale, as being issued to the federal government and GSA specifically? Currently, under the GSA SmartPay 3 master contract, the government requires unique bank identification numbers (BIN) to ensure only authorized users are able to access GSA strategically sourced services (e.g., City Pair rates, FedRoom rates, point of sale discounts, state sales tax exemption, GSA Advantage!).

Note, some government cards may be identifiable through card art, however BIN prefixes are currently the most reliable way for government systems and merchants/vendors to confirm government issuance.

3) Spend Management

a) Describe your solution’s end-to-end spend management workflow.

i) Are your solutions and tools accessible through a single platform? This includes functions such as – but not limited to – the following:

(1) Pre-approval

(2) Approval

(3) Transaction monitoring

(4) Reconciliation

(5) Data mining

(6) Transaction close out

b) Describe your solution’s approach and process – including mobile application – to dynamic real time spend controls that can be adjusted based on usage or rules. Are authorized users able to directly adjust those controls without the need for customer service staff involvement (e.g., self service)? For example, controls may include:

i) Merchant category code (MCC) blocks and unblocks

ii) Merchant blocks

iii) Spend amount limits

iv) Location limits

4) Account and Transaction Management

a) Describe your solution’s approach to supporting multiple government hierarchies

(e.g., Level 1 to Level 7). Are users able to directly make account updates without the need for customer service staff involvement (e.g., self service)?

i) Please describe how your company’s solution allows authorized users to directly create approval hierarchy levels, which may include the approver’s name and email address.

ii) How long does it take for new hierarchy levels and associated changes (i.e., approver’s name and email address) to be reflected in the system?

iii) How will users be notified of these changes (e.g., email)?

b) Describe your solution’s capability for bulk actions (e.g., hierarchy changes, maintenance). Are users able to directly make bulk changes without the need for customer service staff involvement (e.g., self service)?

c) Describe your solutions ability to support automated workflows. For example:

i) Uploading receipts that automatically populate system entries.

ii) Sending automatic reminders (e.g., email, text messages) when required documentation has not been received.

iii) Assigning accounting codes.

d) Does your solution offer authorized users the ability to suspend or cancel accounts, request card replacements, and dispute transactions? Are users able to perform these actions without the need for customer service staff involvement (e.g., self service)?

5) Mitigating Fraud, Abuse, and Misuse

a) Describe your approach to preventing or mitigating fraud, abuse, and misuse

(e.g., out of policy expenditures) including any technology (e.g., artificial intelligence) used and how that technology is integrated with your solution.

b) Are your customers financially responsible for fraudulent transactions and associated spend?

c) Describe your solution’s approach for notification for new card accounts, lost/stolen, suspected fraud, misuse, disputes, and delinquency alerts that are routed to authorized users.

6) Data and Reporting

a) Where is data housed (e.g., inside the U.S., other countries)?

b) Describe how your solution enables customized reporting through dashboards that are configurable by hierarchy or role.

c) Do you pass real time data and how do you define what is “real time?”

d) What types of reporting is your solution capable of generating (e.g., spend trend analysis, small business reporting, exception report, predictive analysis)? Is reporting customizable by the user?

e) Describe data elements that any data mining tools flag (e.g., high risk MCCs, keywords). Are there limitations to what the data mining tool can flag (e.g., limited number of MCCs, keywords, limited number of keyword characters)?

f) Describe the role of artificial intelligence in your solution for data analysis and reporting.

g) Describe how your solution will provide key performance indicators such as card utilization rates, refunds earned, and card usage compliance rates.

4.1.2.3 Security

1) Compliance

a) Provide information about whether your company currently is required to comply with or currently complies with as best practice, the following technology security standards, laws, or protocols:

i) Commercial such as, but not limited to:

(1) Payment Card Industry-Data Security Standard

(2) System and Organization Controls 2

ii) Federal government such as, but not limited to:

(1) National Institutes of Science and Technology

(2) Federal Information Security Management Act

(3) Zero-trust Architecture

b) Describe how your company will comply with Section 7.3 Data and Information Security .

c) How does your company plan to implement applicable National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) 800-53 controls , as specified in the revision 9 (or later) of Section 2.3 of the Attachment 2 - IT Security Procedural Guide:

Security and Privacy Requirements for IT Acquisition Efforts CIO-IT Security-09-4 8 .

2) Authority to Operate (ATO)

a) Is your company Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program

(FedRAMP) certified? If yes, provide the following:

i) Documentation of the FedRAMP authorization.

ii) Readiness Assessment Report, if your company is currently pursuing

Solicitation #47QRAB25R0002 https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/53/r5/upd1/final https://csrc.nist.gov/pubs/sp/800/53/r5/upd1/final https://www.gsa.gov/technology/government-it-initiatives/fedramp

FedRAMP certification.

4.1.2.4 Purchase Business Line

1) Capabilities

a) Describe your approach to providing an end-to-end expense management system that includes functionality such as, but not limited to, the following:

i) Approval to purchase

ii) Virtual or single use account generation

iii) Standard card issuance

iv) Reconciliation

v) Reporting capabilities

b) Describe your approach for implementing alternatives to the issuance of convenience checks that takes into account individuals and businesses that do not accept carded solutions or are under-banked.

c) Describe how your solution identifies state sales taxes paid and the notification process to cardholders to reclaim improperly paid taxes.

d) Describe your solution’s capability to integrate with human resource systems to automatically close or suspend accounts upon employee termination.

e) Describe how your solution can support uploading support documentation into a central repository, such as:

i) Pre-authorization

ii) Invoice or receipt

iii) As applicable, independent verification of receipt and acceptance of goods over $1,500

f) Describe how your solution will interface with the GSA financial system to automatically upload support documents (above) directly into the GSA financial system.

g) Describe how your solution automatically creates a transaction log once the transaction is recorded in the agency financial system.

h) Can your solution accommodate including authorized user email addresses in program management and transaction reports (e.g. approvers, cardholders)?

4.1.2.5 Travel Business Line

1) Individual liability Accounts Alternatives

a) Many GSA travel charge cards and accounts are issued to individuals based on personal credit worthiness assessment, and employees are fully responsible and liable for paying their bills. The government does not have any liability for paying for transactions on these cards and accounts.

i) Can your company support this type of account type?

ii) Do you have any alternative solutions to replace this type of account that limits direct government payment liability?

iii) What is your company's specific plan to transition GSA from individually billed travel cards?

2) Travel Management System Integration

a) Describe how your solution will integrate with a travel and expense solution.

Please provide a list of travel and expense providers you currently have a working relationship with at this time and how the integration works.

b) Is your proposed solution API enabled?

c) Describe your solution’s capability to integrate with human resource systems to automatically close or suspend accounts upon employee termination.

3) Mitigating Fraud, Abuse, and Misuse

a) Describe your solution’s approach to mitigating fraud, waste, and abuse specifically for travel (e.g., plug-ins for browsers that guide users to preferred vendors, sending alerts for policy violation or suspicious activity, geofencing).

4.1.2.5.1 Travel Expense Management

1) How will your solution handle recognition of government charge card payment (e.g., government BINs) for accessing GSA rates or state sales tax exemption?

2) Describe your approach for triggering GSA financial systems to make an automatic reimbursement or payment when vouchers are approved.

a) Does your system have built-in reminder capabilities to voucher within 5 days of a user’s return from official travel?

3) Describe your proposed solution’s process for integrating with travel management companies and associated services.

4) Describe the travel expense management reporting capabilities available through your solution.

4.1.2.6 Fleet Business Line

1) GSA’s fleet program currently operates with cards and/or accounts issued to vehicles, as opposed to individual drivers. Describe how your solution is able to accommodate and preserve this current operation, especially the issuance of plastic cards.

2) Describe your approach for increasing and maintaining merchant acceptance both within and outside of the United States.

3) Describe your approach for supporting road side assistance and stranded drivers 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.

4) Describe your solution’s ability to support the following:

a) Create automatic clearing house payments

b) Pay for tolls

c) Pay for vehicle and state inspections

d) Electric vehicle charging solution at multiple charging providers

e) Reclaim eligible taxes on behalf of the government

f) Store a series of generic "fleet expense" cards for miscellaneous transactions related to vehicles no longer in inventory and do not have an active fleet card

g) Interacting with external web-based fleet maintenance and repair management systems

h) Product coding or description infrastructure

i) Incorporating user defined functions

j) One to one vehicle to card PINs, automated custom preassigned PINs by GSA assignments

k) Leverage the use of telematics to authorize payment based on business rules

l) Automated card actions (e.g., different authorization profile assignments based on type of vehicle)

m) Automated suspension and termination triggers

n) Mobile payments

5) What type of transaction data is integrated with telematics to detect fraud and misuse (e.g., poor fuel efficiency, excessive idling, maintenance alerts, and collision alerts)?

6) Are there any automated protections in place for suspected fraud, abuse, and misuse? If so, what are the metrics? For example:

a) Skimming activity

b) Fuel theft

c) Fuel purchases exceeding tank capacity

d) Vendor fraud

e) Real-time alerts

f) Online disputes

4.1.3 Phase I - Written Solution Brief Evaluation and Criteria GSA may, at its discretion, invite offerors to submit additional information to supplement the Written Solution Brief. Further, although the government may, in its discretion, consider information provided by the offeror during the market research phase, the offeror has the responsibility to provide a Written Solution Brief that fully addresses Section 4.1.2 Phase I - Written Solution Brief Contents .

Both the Written Solution Brief, including any supplemental information, if applicable, will be evaluated against the criteria listed below. All criteria listed below are of equal importance. The solution briefs may or may not be evaluated against other solution briefs.

a) Criterion I Solution : Will assess how the technology/solution is innovative and meets the objectives in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives . Will consider the responsiveness and relevance of the Written Solution Brief.

b) Criterion II Transition : The offeror’s approach to transitioning cards and accounts to its solution, to include establishing new accounts, integrating with GSA systems, and providing user training. The assessment will determine the likelihood that the offeror will be able to successfully implement its solutions and transition cards and accounts effectively.

c) Criterion III Capabilities and Related Experience : The offeror’s prior experience (both government and non-government) in similar efforts will be assessed to determine if the offeror clearly demonstrates an ability to deliver commercial products and commercial services that meet the objectives in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives .

4.2 Phase I - Live Capabilities Demonstration

4.2.1 Phase I - Live Capabilities Demonstration Invitation

Following an initial evaluation of Written Solution Briefs, GSA may invite offerors to participate in a Live Capabilities Demonstration. GSA intends to invite up to three (3) offerors per business line to provide a Live Capabilities Demonstration, but reserves the right to invite more or fewer offerors in its discretion.

1) If an invited offeror elects not to provide a Live Capabilities Demonstration, the offeror’s solution will not be considered further and the offeror will not be invited to participate in Phase II.

2) Offerors that are not invited to provide a Live Capabilities Demonstration will be notified that their solution will not be considered further, and they will not be invited to participate in Phase II.

4.2.2 Phase I - Live Capabilities Demonstration

At the discretion of the government, the offeror may be invited to provide a live demonstration of the capabilities of the commercial products, services, and systems proposed to meet the goals in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives and the offeror’s responses to Section

4.1.2. Phase I - Written Solution Brief Contents . Offerors shall demonstrate their proposed solutions, as described in their submitted Written Solution Briefs.

4.2.3 Phase I - Live Capabilities Demonstration Contents

Offerors invited to provide a virtual Live Capabilities Demonstration shall provide scenario-based demonstrations as a condition of evaluation. Offerors shall demonstrate their proposed solutions, as described in their submitted Written Solution Briefs. The virtual demonstration shall be no more than 20 minutes in duration per business line (i.e., purchase, travel, fleet). Demonstrations must adequately reflect the actual capabilities and configuration of their proposed solution and shall not use the live demonstration to conduct a marketing or vendor sales presentation.

The government may ask clarifying questions and/or request demonstrations of specific and relevant functionality. Should those functionalities not be available in the demonstrated system, the offeror shall provide information about how it has provided a similar or alternative function for current customers or how it plans to accomplish the specific functionality for the government.

The offerors shall:

● Refrain from referencing their company name, or other identifying company information, either verbally or in writing.

● For example, personnel presenting the live capabilities demonstration shall not mention their affiliated company name or wear badges/clothing with company logos.

● Substitute direct references to the offeror’s company name with generic terms (e.g., “the company,”or “we”).

● Not include logos and references to the offeror’s company name in any materials or systems. The offeror shall make every effort to mask all logos and references presented.

● Exclude any content that promotes any brand, marketing differentiators, or generic capabilities.

● Provide technical experts who are able to directly answer questions and explain capabilities in detail.

● Not include functionality outside of the capabilities described in the Written Solution Brief.

The government reserves the right to request supplemental or clarifying information, including written information, if applicable, from offerors as needed to assist the government’s evaluation.

Additionally, the government reserves the right to end or reschedule a demonstration if it becomes nonfunctional or misaligned with the solution brief. The government also reserves the right to record the demonstrations.

4.2.4 Phase I - Live Capabilities Demonstration Evaluation

The Live Capabilities Demonstration, including any supplemental or clarifying information, if applicable, will be evaluated against the criteria listed below. All criteria are of equal importance.

The demonstrations may or may not be evaluated against other demonstrations.

a) Criterion I Solution : How the technology and solution is innovative and meets the objectives in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives . Includes the relevance of the Live Capabilities Demonstration to the Written Solution Brief and the pilot project.

b) Criterion II Transition : The offeror’s approach to transitioning cards and accounts to its solution, to include establishing new accounts, integrating with GSA systems, and providing user training. The assessment will determine the likelihood that the offeror will be able to successfully implement solutions and can be transitioned effectively.

c) Criterion III Capabilities and Related Experience : The offeror’s prior experience (both government and non-government) in similar efforts will be assessed to determine if the offeror clearly demonstrates an ability to deliver commercial products and commercial services that meet the objectives as described in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives and Section 7.0 Contract Award and Performance Requirements .

5.0 CSO Phase II - Final Contract Solution

5.1 Phase II - Final Contract Solution Invitation

After evaluating the offerors’ Written Solution Briefs and Live Capabilities Demonstrations, GSA intends to notify no more than two (2) offerors per business line in writing:

a) If an offeror is invited to participate in Phase II, or;

b) If an offeror is not invited to participate in Phase II.

The government reserves the right to not select any solution briefs for invitation to Phase II and/or to increase or decrease the number of invitations to Phase II by business line based on the government’s discretion and/or quality of solution briefs received.

5.2 Phase II - Final Contract Solution Submission and Contents If an offeror is invited to participate in Phase II, the offeror will be required to submit a Final Contract Solution. Additional instructions for the Final Contract Solution will be provided in the invitation to submit. Each submitted Final Contract Solution will be required to consist of two sections:

a) Section 1: Commercial Solution

b) Section 2: Cost and/or Price Information

The cost of preparing Phase II responses and materials is not considered a direct charge to any resulting CSO award or any other contract and is not recoverable.

5.2.1 Phase II - Commercial Solution

The offeror will be required to submit a Commercial Solution as part of the Final Contract Solution. The Commercial Solution will be required to include the following sections and subsections:

a) Technical requirements : This section shall include a detailed work plan indicating how each aspect of the objectives will be accomplished. The commercial solution should be in as much detail as the offeror considers necessary to fully explain its proposed technical approach or method, including all assumptions utilized to develop its proposed solution and associated costs. The commercial solution should reflect a clear understanding of the nature of the work being undertaken. The commercial solution must include information on how the project will be organized, staffed, and managed.

Information should be provided that demonstrates the offeror’s understanding and management of important events or tasks.

b) Deliverables : The offeror shall provide a deliverable schedule to the government for evaluation, which includes detailed descriptions of actions and timelines. The deliverable schedule shall include, at a minimum, the following:

i) Performance and Quality Management Plan : Details how implementation and delivery of pilot project services will be delivered, including proposed performance metrics, service levels, surveillance methodology, frequency of surveillance, and proposed service levels to ensure low risk implementation and execution.

ii) Project Schedule : Detailed timeline that outlines the various phases of work to be accomplished within the proposed period of performance.

c) Terms and conditions : Provide a list of any exceptions taken to the contract terms and conditions provided in Attachment 1 - COMMERCIAL CONTRACT TERMS AND CONDITIONS and/or any proposed commercial terms and conditions applicable to the solution being provided (e.g., Service License Agreements (SLA) and/or User License Agreements (ULA), etc.). Companies should note that there are certain terms and conditions the government may be unable to accept. However, projects awarded through the CSO may provide flexibility to adopt customary industry standards where it is otherwise legal and meets the government’s general public responsibility.

d) Proprietary information : The offeror shall identify any proprietary information or associated intellectual property proposed within the final contract solution, including data rights associated.

The government reserves the right to request supplemental or clarifying information from one or more offerors, as needed, to assist the government’s evaluation.

5.2.2 Phase II - Cost and/or Price Information

The current charge card and commercial payment solutions provided to GSA are at no cost with the ability to earn refunds based on spend volume. GSA’s expectation is that this model will continue under the pilot program. However, GSA will consider alternative innovative cost and/or price approaches that result in no cost directly paid to the contractor by the government.

The offeror shall clearly explain the process or methodology behind the cost/price approach included in its solution. The cost and/or price information shall outline any subscription or platform fees, the proposed refund structure, and other fees or pricing information relevant to the offeror’s solution. Any costs or fees should be incorporated into the offeror’s cost and/or price approach considering the government will not pay the contractor directly for any services rendered under this contract. The cost and/or price information shall include sufficient data and supporting information, including any assumptions upon which the cost and/or price is based.

The government reserves the right to request any additional cost and/or price data or supplemental information the government deems necessary to assist the government’s evaluation.

5.3 Phase II - Final Contract Solution Evaluation

The government will review each Final Contract Solution and select the offeror for each business line that has the greatest potential to meet the needs of GSA’s requirements based on the objectives stated in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives and Section 7.0 Contract Award and Performance Requirements .

The two sections of the Final Contract Solution, including any supplemental information, if applicable, will be evaluated against the criteria listed below. All criteria listed below are of equal importance. The offeror’s Final Contract Solutions may or may not be evaluated against other Final Contract Solutions.

1. Section 1 Commercial Solution:

a) Criterion I Solution : How the technology and solution is innovative and meets the objectives in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives and 5.2.1 Commercial Solution . Will assess the offeror’s work plan and deliverables to determine the offeror’s understanding of the nature of the work being undertaken, management of important events and tasks, and ability to accomplish the requirements within the proposed period of performance.

b) Criterion II Transition : The offeror’s approach to transitioning cards and accounts to its solution, to include establishing new accounts, integrating with GSA systems, and providing user training. This shall include the performance and quality management plan and schedule, as described in Section 5.2.1 Phase II - Commercial Solution . The assessment will determine the likelihood that the offeror will be able to successfully implement solutions and can be transitioned effectively.

c) Criterion III Capabilities and Related Experience : The offeror’s prior experience (both government and non-government) in similar efforts will be assessed to determine if the offeror clearly demonstrates an ability to deliver commercial products and commercial services that meet the objectives as described in Section 1.5 Project and Performance Objectives and Section 7.0 Contract Award and Performance Requirements .

2. Section 2 Cost and/or Price Information:

a) Proposed cost/pricing approach: The offeror’s cost and/or pricing information will be evaluated based on the feasibility, advantages, and/or disadvantages associated with the offeror’s cost/pricing approach and/or other cost/price information such as fees, refund structure and supporting data or assumptions, as described in Section 5.2.2 Phase II Cost and/or Price Information .

b) Proposed pricing (e.g., fees) will be considered to the extent appropriate, and at a minimum, to determine that the price is fair and reasonable.

During the Phase II evaluation, the government may require further negotiations with the offeror. Negotiations will be coordinated with the offeror and may require the offeror to resubmit a revised Final Contract Solution. Only the assigned government contracting officer has the authority to conduct formal negotiations with the offeror.

Following the evaluation of Phase II Final Contract Solution, the government will select the offeror for each business line that has the greatest potential to meet the needs of GSA’s requirements, considering the importance to agency programs and priorities and the objectives outlined in this solicitation.

6.0 Protests To GSA

An offeror may file a protest to the agency in accordance with the procedures in GSAM 533.103.

7.0 Contract Award and Performance Requirements

Offerors notified for selection of a contract award must satisfy all of the following top-level requirements prior to award, start of contract performance, and/or shortly after award:

7.1 SAM Registration

Companies selected for award that are not already registered in the SAM will be required to register in the SAM prior to contract award. Information regarding SAM registration is available at https://sam.gov/ . To remain registered in the SAM database after the initial registration, the contractor is required to review and update on an annual basis from the date of initial registration and through subsequent updates, as needed, its information in the SAM database to ensure it is current, accurate and complete.

The contractor is responsible for the duration of contract performance and through final payment for the accuracy and completeness of the data within the SAM database, and for any liability resulting from the government’s reliance on inaccurate or incomplete data the contractor has provided in the SAM database. The contractor shall not change the name or address for EFT payments or manual payments, as appropriate, in the SAM record to reflect an assignee for the purpose of assignment of claims. Assignees shall be separately registered in the SAM database.

7.2 Background Investigations

The interests of national security require that all persons privileged to be employed in the departments and agencies of the government shall be reliable, trustworthy, of good conduct and character, and of complete and unswerving loyalty to the United States.