RFI 70US09RFIOCT2022 QA.pdf

REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS (Q&A)

70US09RFIOCT2022

1. Pertaining to the LRC will we utilize their booking tool or do we need to have one in place before the start date?

Answer: The product being used is SABER which is a standard industry product.

2. Also, in section 1.4.4 the backup reservation in Washington, D.C., is there open availability for remote services in case of a manmade or federally declared disaster?

Answer: Preferably due to sensitive protectee and employee information that the location be in an office setting whether it be in their office or USSS. However remote services would have to be approved through our SMD and LRC offices.

3. Is there an incumbent? If so, please provide the name, contract number, and contract value.

Answer: Yes, CW Government 70US0919F2GSA0116

4. Is the TMC required to present the fixed term pricing at this point, since its mainly an

RFI?

Answer: No, This RFI does not ask for the submission of pricing information.

5. If an RFP is released in the future, will a government credit card be provided for the settlement of the travels? Or will it be required from the TMC to pre-pay the travels and invoice the government afterwards? If so, what are the payment terms – 30 days?

Answer: With credit cards (CBA’s), expect TMC utilize provided cards to pay for the travels on our behalf.

6. SOW Section 1 states that “The TMC shall charge a fixed fee per month to cover operational costs to provide travel services for official Government travel. The operational fee will not fluctuate based on total ticket sales but remain fixed each month. The TMC shall provide an invoice to the Contracting Officer Representative (COR) by the 1st of each month regarding payment of the Management Fee.” Section 1.4.2 Billing states “Historical

Reference: USSS current billing cycle is on a bi-weekly basis.” Under this SOW, can the contractor bill on a biweekly basis?

Answer: The contractor can bill on a bi-weekly basis.

7. SOW Section 1.4.10 states “Hours of Operation: The TMC shall establish a centralized twenty-four-hour, seven day a week, 365 days a year dedicated reservation center with toll free telephone lines.” Previous SOWs required that this dedicated reservation center be

“located within a 10-mile radius of the USSS headquarters building currently located at

950 H Street, NW Washington, D.C., 20223-5902.” Is the Government removing the requirement that the dedicated reservation center be within 10 miles of USSS HQ? Yes

Also, please clarify what is meant by dedicated? For instance, can the reservation center be co-located with the contractor’s other reservation center(s) as long as the space for the

USSS has a separate entrance?

Answer: Entirely dedicated area only utilized by USSS approved travel agents

8. Will there be a requirement for onsite staffing at the USSS?

Answer: No

9. Must the CRC be located in the DC area or is (are) any US-based location(s) acceptable?

Answer: US-based location is acceptable as long as they are accessible to a USSS location to conduct administrative activities.

10. Third Party Services (Statement of Work Para 1.3) – How many 3rd party payment transactions are there per year and what is the cost of those transactions?

Answer: It varies depending on what we need them to do, there is no set amount

11. Ticketing (Statement of Work Para 1.3) - Will the USSS independent auditor be auditing all transactions or is there a criteria that will be used? Will the travel agents be required to input special remarks for this auditor, therefore taking more time with each reservation?

Answer: We are susceptible to an audit and usually then an audit sample is done. Criteria will be determined during the pre-audit.

12. Historical reference in this section speaks to prepaids (2%) and courier/express (3%).

ARC no longer allows for paper tickets as of June 1, 2018. Can you help us to understand what is being prepaid or couriered? (Statement of Work Para 1.3)

Answer: For ex. prepaid flight seats for protectee travel. We may have to prepay operational activities which may require third party courier assistance.

13. Charter Services (Statement of Work Para 1.3) – Does the USSS have a specific Charter

Service that they use for each service type or will the TMC be required to set this up?

Answer: We do not have our own. We expect TMC to 3 obtain quotes on our behalf and

LRC will make the final approval.

14. Conference/Meeting (Statement of Work Para 1.3) – How many meetings, conferences and seminars occur monthly/quarterly? What is the average number of attendees per meeting, conference or seminar?

Answer: This number varies from year to year depending on conference, personnel and funding availability. There is no current historical data due to the pandemic.

15. Accounting (Statement of Work Para 1.3) – What are the parameters for the interface with the USSS accounting system via designated electronic media?

Answer: We interface with Concur only. We have Invoice Processing Platform (IPP) for invoice payment. No interface with TMC accounting system at this time. We will provide the provide the parameters when interfacing is necessary. Any reporting is provided via

Microsoft Office tools.

16. Recurring Travel Data Interface (Statement of Work Para 1.3) – What is the travel data extract format for the USSS data warehouse?

Answer: Excel

17. Key Personnel (Statement of Work Para 1.4.14) – Does the 15 years of experience for the Operations and Program Manager have to be government TMC experience, or is corporate TMC experience (or a combination thereof) satisfactory?

Answer: Combination or either or