B-45731 WIOA Q and A.docx

Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity Request for Proposal Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act Technical Assistance RFP

26-420DCEO-STRTC -B-45731

Amendment # 8 Q&A – Published 04/23/2025 *** Bids are due no later than 4/29/2025 at 10:00 am CDT.***

Q.) Given that this contract may be funded with both federal and state dollars, \why doesn’t the contract evaluation criteria align to federal guidelines, such as those listed below…

· 2025 US Department of Labor small business contracting goals published in February by the US Small Business Administration – 5% SDB, 5% WOSB, 5% VOSB, 3% HZ (vs. the RFP’s lack of BEP goal for this solicitation)?

· EO 14151 which bars DEI or DEIA performance requirements (vs. the RFP’s page 19, categories 3, 4 and 5 which measures a vendor’s engagement in DEI)?

· EO 14173 which eliminates use of workplace balancing/diversity requirements (vs. the RFP’s page 19, category 6 which evaluates contractors on diversity of their staff)?

A.) This is not a small business contract and therefore the small business contracting goals do not apply.

B.) The RFP complies with all applicable federal law. The federal government has represented its position in court filings that the operative aspects of EO 14151 and EO 14173 are directed only at illegal discrimination and unlawful conduct – in particular, conduct violating existing federal anti-discrimination law. The RFP complies with federal anti-discrimination law and other federal law, as well as the Illinois Procurement Code.

Q.) If the RFP’s “Commitment to Diversity” evaluation criteria remain as is, it seems the federal government could potentially withhold funding for Illinois WIOA work because it’s not in compliance. If this contract were solely funded by the State of Illinois, use of the Administration’s new guidance would not be an issue, but federal funding could play an important role in enabling the State’s WIOA efforts. The federal government is scanning contracts and grants for the mere mention of DEI and then eliminating them. We need to be intentional regarding our approach for the benefit of Illinois workers.

A.) As explained in the prior answer, the RFP complies with federal law, including federal anti-discrimination law, and any resulting grant terms will also comply with federal anti-discrimination law. The RFP also complies with the Illinois Procurement Code which mandates that it include a scored diversity component equal to 20% of the technical score. The master contract that DCEO utilizes once a procurement is complete does not contain provisions relating to DEI. Regardless, DCEO is not aware of any lawful basis for the federal government to eliminate contracts and grants for mentioning DEI.

As explained in the prior answers, the RFP complies with federal law, including federal anti-discrimination law, and any resulting grant terms will also comply with federal anti- discrimination law. DCEO is not aware of any federal law requiring companies to certify that they are not committed to diversity. In any event, the certification language referenced in the question is not part of the RFP and has not been incorporated into any applicable grant terms.

Q.) It seems that in order for the RFP’s “Commitment to Diversity” evaluation criteria to align with federal guidelines, should there be a higher point value assigned to meeting federal/state contracting objectives with small and minority businesses (categories 1 and 2 200 pts), and lesser or no point value assigned to DEI-specific initiatives (categories 3, 4, 5 and 6 – 0 points), the latter of which is barred by the President’s recent EOs?

A.) As explained in the prior answers, the RFP complies with federal law, including federal anti-discrimination law, and any resulting grant terms will also comply with federal anti-discrimination law.

Q.) The prior procurements for WIOA Technical Assistance in June 2023 and December 2024 had 26% BEP goals. Why is it that the new RFP does not have a similar goal?

A.) The Business Enterprise Program (BEP) goals may be adjusted for a number of reasons. The current RFP does not contain a BEP goal.

Q.) Could a large management consulting firm in Illinois with a CPA practice and relevant experience meet the mandatory requirement as “as a CPA firm”?

A.) The RFP lists a Certified CPA firm as a mandatory requirement to be the contract holder. A certified CPA firm, per the Illinois Department of Financial Professional Regulation is defined as: “A CPA firm (Certified Public Accountant firm) is a business that provides accounting, auditing, tax, and consulting services to individuals and businesses. These firms are licensed and regulated by state boards of accountancy and must have at least one CPA (Certified Public Accountant) on staff.”

Q.) Under NIGP Code 946-31 CPA Services, the Bid Solicitation Notice indicates a “quantity of 2750.0” will be required. Does this mean a total of 2750 staff hours will be required per year or across all years?

Since this quantity is listed under 946-31, is this quantity exclusively CPA hours?

The RFP lists only one NIGP Code for this procurement, i.e. 946-31 CPA Services, but “CPA Services” appear to describe activities only under one task (“D.2.1 Financial Controls”). Other tasks as described and summarized below appear to tie to NIGP 918 consulting codes. Why didn’t the RFP also list 918 NIGP codes for this procurement? There are over 500 Illinois BEP vendors in the 918 NIGP categories.

91804 Accounting/Auditing/Budget/Consulting

D.2.2.2

D.2.2.3

Conduct management studies of high-risk grantees Assist local area grantees with monitoring of subrecipients

91812 Analytical Studies

91883 Organizational Development Consulting

91875 Management Consulting

91838 Education and Training Consulting

A.) 2,750 hours is the estimated number of hours per year for all work under a contract resulting from this RFP. As stated in the response above, the RFP lists a Certified CPA firm as a mandatory requirement to be the contract holder. A certified CPA firm, per the Illinois Department of Financial Professional Regulation is defined as: “A CPA firm (Certified Public Accountant firm) is a business that provides accounting, auditing, tax, and consulting services to individuals and businesses. These firms are licensed and regulated by state boards of accountancy and must have at least one CPA (Certified Public Accountant) on staff.”

WIOA Q&A – 2