ESBD_502646_1774977389980_RFO 304-26-1181KG Articulate 360 Teams w AI Assistant.pdf

RFO # 304-26-1181KG Articulate 360 Teams Software with AI Assistant Page 1 of 46 Rev. 6/27/23

Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Request for Offers

Articulate 360 Teams Software with AI Assistant

RFO No. 304-26-1181KG

March 31, 2026

Anticipated Schedule of Events

March 31, 2026 Issuance of RFO

April 3, 2026 Deadline for Submission of Questions (2:00 p.m., CT)

April 9, 2026 Release of Official Responses to Questions

(or as soon thereafter as practical)

April 15, 2026 Deadline for Submission of Offers (2:00 p.m. CT)

Late Offers will not be considered

April 23, 2026 Services Commencement Date

(or as soon thereafter as practical)

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Table of Contents

I. Summary

II. Specifications

A. Introduction

B. Background

C. Definitions and Acronyms

D. Scope of Services

E. Contract Resulting From This Solicitation; Order of Priority

F. Warranty of Performance

G. Security Incident Notification

H. Insurance and Bonds

I. Criminal Background Investigation

J. Contract Term

K. Invoice Acceptance Criteria

L. Payments

M. Discounts

N. PO Addition and Deletion

O. VetHUB Subcontracting Plan Information

P. Respondent Documents

Q. Respondent Exceptions

R. Respondent’s Past Performance

III. Offer Submission Requirements

A. Delivery of Offer

B. Offer Content and Format

IV. Mandatory Price Sheet

V. Standard Terms and Conditions

VI. Execution of Offer

VII. Conflict of Interest/Disclosure Statement

VIII. Nondisclosure Agreement

IX. Confidential Treatment of Information Acknowledgment

X. Certification Regarding Public Nature of the Offer

XI. Respondent Exceptions Response Template

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I. Summary

1. Type of Solicitation: Request for Offers (RFO)

2. Issuing Office: Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (CPA)

Procurement Section

Room 300, Attn: RFO No. 304-26-1181KG

111 E. 17th Street

Austin, Texas 78774

OR Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts

Procurement Section

Attn: RFO No. 304-26-1181KG

P.O. Box 12050

Austin, Texas 78711-2050

3. Additional Requirements/Qualifications: N/A

4. Responses to RFO: Sealed Competitive Offers

5. Deadline for Offers: In Issuing Office No Later Than:

April 15, 2026; 2:00 p.m., Central Time (CT)

6. Initial Contract Term: April 23, 2026 through April 22, 2027

7. CPA Optional Contract Terms: April 23, 2027 through April 22, 2028 and

April 23, 2028 through April 22, 2029

8. CPA Contact Person for this RFO: Kristy Guevara, CTPM, CTCD

Email: bidcpa@cpa.texas.gov

9. Offers Submitted by Email: Required; See Section III, Part A

10. Offers Submitted by Fax: Not Accepted

11. Pre-Offer Conference: N/A

12. Pre-Offer Inspection: N/A

13. Letters of Intent to Submit an Offer: N/A

14. RFO Addenda: Notices of changes to items directly impacting the original RFO or solicitation process will be posted on the Electronic State Business Daily

(ESBD) located at: http://www.txsmartbuy.com/esbd. CPA will post any amendment to this solicitation on the ESBD as an RFO Addendum. It is the responsibility of an interested party to check the ESBD for updates to this RFO before submitting an Offer. Each Respondent is solely responsible for verifying CPA’s receipt of its questions, if applicable, and its Offer by the deadlines specified in this RFO.

15. Questions and Answers: Questions regarding this RFO must be in writing and must be submitted to the CPA Contact Person specified in Part 8, no later than April 3, 2026; 2:00 p.m. CT. Telephone inquiries will not be accepted.

Questions may be submitted by email to the email address specified in

Part 8. CPA intends to post answers to the questions received on the

ESBD on April 9, 2026, or as soon thereafter as practical.

16. Respondent Presentations: N/A mailto:bidcpa@cpa.texas.gov http://www.txsmartbuy.com/esbd

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17. Evaluation of Offers. Offers will be evaluated under the Best Value Standard (Section 2157.003 of the Texas

Government Code):

Criteria Weight

Respondent’s Past Performance, Qualifications & Experience 20%

Compliance with CPA Specifications 40%

Cost 40%

Total: 100%

As applicable, the factors listed in Sections 2155.074, 2155.075, 2156.007, and 2157.003 of the Texas Government Code shall also be considered in making an award.

18. Electronic Offers Only. Due to changed building access restrictions, Respondents will not be permitted to hand deliver

Offers to the Issuing Office. Respondents are required to submit Offers electronically via email in accordance with Section

III, Part A.

19. Contact with CPA Staff: Upon issuance of this RFO, employees and representatives of CPA, other than the CPA Contact

Person identified in Part 8, will not discuss the contents of this RFO with any Respondent or its representatives. Failure of a Respondent or any of its representatives to observe this restriction may result in disqualification of any related

Offer. This restriction does not preclude discussions between the parties to conduct business unrelated to this procurement or to obtain assistance completing Veteran Heroes United in Business (VetHUB) forms required by this RFO.

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II. Specifications

A. Introduction

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts (“CPA” or “Comptroller”), an agency of the State of Texas, issues this Request for Offers (RFO) to solicit Offers from qualified vendors for Articulate 360 Teams Software with AI Assistant, as described in this Section II and in this RFO (“Services”). CPA’s objective is to obtain the Services that represent the best value for

CPA and the State of Texas, according to the terms and conditions of this RFO.

CPA anticipates making a contract award to one (1) Successful Respondent for the Services. CPA reserves the right not to award a Contract for the performance of all or part of the Services. This RFO is not exclusive and CPA reserves the right to issue additional solicitations regarding the Services or similar services at any time. All

Respondents are encouraged to offer their best pricing at all times.

All costs associated with the Services must be included in the Respondent’s Offer. Offers that do not meet all of the requirements or contain all of the required documentation specified in this RFO may be rejected as non-responsive.

CPA understands that the requested items in this RFO may be proprietary to one vendor under Section 2155.067 of the

Texas Government Code; however, CPA strongly encourages Offers from all qualified Respondents that may be able to provide the Services.

B. Background

The Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts has a subscription to Articulate 360 Teams. Articulate 360 Teams is a software subscription for a modern e-learning training development tool. Multiple divisions within CPA use this software for their training development needs, including but not limited to Statewide Procurement, Property Tax, Information Security, Enforcement, and Fiscal Management. CPA is looking to rebid the existing licenses for Articulate 360 Teams. The tables in Section II (Mandatory Price Sheet) of the RFO itemize the Services that CPA requires for the Articulate 360 Teams software subscription used by CPA.

C. Definitions and Acronyms

• Affiliates. A state agency or other entity designated by law or regulation to be under the authority or control of CPA.

• Award or Effective Date. The Award or Effective Date is the earlier of the date an authorized representative of CPA

(1) issues a Purchase Order (PO) or (2) signs a formal, written agreement.

• Cloud Service Provider (CSP). An entity that provides to its customers internet-hosted services such as Software as a Service, Infrastructure as a Service, or Platform as a Service.

• Contract. The agreement, if any, described in Section II, Part E (Contract Resulting from this Solicitation/Order of

Priority).

• CPA. Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts.

• CT. Central Time.

• E-Learning. A learning system based on formalized teaching but with the help of electronic resources.

• Error Correction. The correction of software malfunctions due to development, coding, or configuration issues that prevent the software from operating as designed.

• FEDRAMP. The Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program is a federal government program that provides a standardized approach to security assessment, authorization, and continuous monitoring for cloud products and services.

• Fiscal Year. The State of Texas and CPA’s fiscal year that begins on September 1 and ends on August 31.

• IP Rights. All intellectual property rights, including copyrights, patents, trade secrets, trademarks, and other proprietary rights that are embedded in or used in connection with Licensed Software and the Licensed Software

Documentation.

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• Licensed Software. The version of the software application(s) provided under a contract resulting from this RFO in

Object Code form, any released Software Upgrades, Software Updates, Software Enhancements/Releases, Software

Patches/Fixes, Error Corrections, and Customizations of such version.

• Object Code. The machine code that can be directly executed by a computer’s central processing unit.

• Offer. A response to this RFO.

• Respondent. Any person or entity that submits an Offer.

• Software as a Service (“SaaS”): A cloud computing model where customers access the Licensed Software in the cloud on a subscription basis, and the Cloud Service Provider manages the software application(s), infrastructure, and platform(s).

• Software Enhancement/Release. A change to a software application, intended to increase functionality, productivity, compatibility, and/or improve the user interface.

• Software Maintenance and Related Services (“Services”). All the Licensed Software, Software Maintenance and

Technical Support, Licensed Software Documentation, and other items listed in this Section and the RFO. The term includes, but is not limited to, fees, shipping, freight handling, and any other services associated with Successful

Respondent’s performance under any contract resulting from this RFO.

• Software Patch/Fix. Addition to a piece of code, usually as an immediate remedy to an existing software application error or defect. A software patch or fix is usually a temporary measure until a more permanent solution is implemented with a Software Enhancement, Software Release, and/or version update.

• Software Update. Any (a) commercially available versions of the Licensed Software with a version number designated to the right of the decimal point such as 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc., and (b) any subsequent variation of the Licensed

Software which provides essentially the same functionality and accomplished substantially the same tasks as the

Licensed Software but which the software publisher releases under a different name or label.

• Software Upgrade. A commercially available new version of the Licensed Software typically designated by the number to the left of the decimal point such as 1.0, 2.0, 3.0, etc.

• SSH File Transfer Protocol, or Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP). A network protocol that provides file access, file transfer, and file management over any reliable data stream.

• State RAMP. State RAMP is a registered 501(c)(6) nonprofit membership organization comprised of service providers offering IaaS, PaaS, and/or SaaS solutions, third party assessment organizations, and government officials and is modeled after FedRAMP.

• Subscription Services and Related Services (Services). All the Licensed Software, subscription services, Maintenance and Technical Support, updates, upgrades, enhancements, patches, fixes, documentation, and other items listed in this Section and the RFO. These Services must include, but not be limited to, shipping charges, freight charges, and any other costs associated with Successful Respondent’s performance under any PO resulting from this

RFO.

• Successful Respondent. The Respondent awarded a Contract, if any.

• TX-RAMP. The Texas Risk and Authorization Management Program is a program that provides a standardized approach for security assessment, authorization and continuous monitoring of third-party vendors that process the data of the state agency or public higher education institution in the State of Texas (Agencies). The Texas Department of

Information Resources (DIR) developed and manages the program in compliance with Senate Bill 475.

D. Scope of Services

D.1 General.

a. Successful Respondent shall provide subscription to Articulate 360 Teams software licenses with AI Assistant as listed in Price Schedule 1 of the Mandatory Price Sheet located in Section II of this RFO. All costs associated with Licensed

Software, including, without limitation, costs for Software Maintenance and Technical Support and hosting applicable components of the Licensed Software in a cloud environment, must be included in Price Schedule 1.

b. CPA shall, in accordance with CPA policies and procedures, provide Successful Respondent reasonable access to the

Licensed Software to perform Software Maintenance and Technical Support.

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c. Successful Respondent shall provide to CPA the Optional Features, Products or Services, if any, listed in Price

Schedule 2, Section IV (Mandatory Price Sheet) that are accepted by CPA.

D.2 Licensed Software and Software Maintenance and Technical Support Services

a. License Grant.

i. Successful Respondent acknowledges that CPA is an agency of the State of Texas and CPA’s business operations include any activities consistent with its statutory authority.

ii. Under the Contract, Successful Respondent grants CPA a non-exclusive, irrevocable, universal license to the IP Rights for the purposes of (1) using, displaying and performing the Licensed Software in connection with CPA’s network;

and (2) using, displaying and performing the Licensed Software in connection with backup and disaster recovery procedures in the event of destruction or corruption of the Licensed Software or disasters or emergencies which require CPA or any of its Affiliates to initiate disaster recovery procedures; CPA shall not permit any Licensed

Software to be used by any other person, except for employees, agents, consultants, outsourcing companies and contractors who need to use the Licensed Software in the performance of their duties for CPA and who are authorized and enabled by CPA, under CPA’s written agreement, to access and utilize the Licensed Software.

b. Licensed Software Documentation.

Successful Respondent shall provide to CPA at least one (1) copy of the Licensed Software Documentation via online or hardcopy for each of the Licensed Software provided. Successful Respondent shall provide CPA either (1) written approval which authorizes CPA to make additional copies of the documentation at no charge or (2) access to additional copies of the documentation at no charge. CPA will restrict distribution of the Licensed Software Documentation to those users with a “Need to Know” classification. CPA shall not remove, deface, or otherwise obscure any copyright, patent, trademark, service mark, or other proprietary legend (Proprietary Legends) on the Licensed Software or the documentation. Furthermore, CPA shall include such Proprietary Legends in any reproductions of either the Licensed

Software or the Licensed Software Documentation that CPA is permitted to make.

c. Software Maintenance and Technical Support.

i. In its Offer, Respondent shall describe the Software Maintenance and Technical Support services that meet the requirements of this RFO.

ii. Software Maintenance and Technical Support Services must include, but are not limited to, the following: telephone and on-line support, Error Corrections, Software Updates, Software Upgrades, Software Patches, Software Fixes, Software Enhancements, Software Releases, latest features, performance improvements, Licensed Software

Documentation, unlimited support contacts, and unlimited annual incidents.

iii. Successful Respondent shall provide qualified personnel to be available to CPA by telephone, email, or website for the reporting of problems or issues with the Licensed Software or Software Maintenance and Technical Support

Services. All such Software Maintenance and Technical Support Services must be unlimited during the term of any contract resulting from this RFO.

iv. Successful Respondent shall provide a help-desk toll-free telephone number, email, or website for the reporting of problems or issues with the Licensed Software. Successful Respondent shall provide support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year.

v. Response Times: Successful Respondent shall respond to service requests in accordance with the priority and within the maximum response times listed in Table 1 (“Maximum Response Times”). Response Time is defined as the period between Successful Respondent’s receipt of a service call from CPA and the time until Successful

Respondent’s service technician responds with repair efforts underway. “Repair Time” is defined as the timeframe for Successful Respondent to complete the Software Maintenance and Technical Support Services required to return the affected systems to normal operations. CPA, in its sole discretion, will determine the service priority reporting of problems or issues with the Licensed Software.

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Table 1 - Maximum Response Times

PRIORITY LEVEL DESCRIPTION

MAX

RESPONSE

TIME

S1: System Outage;

Production System

Outage

This includes the following scenarios:

• Product in production environment is unusable and is severely impacting other critical business functions, and no workaround is available.

• Outage of Successful Respondent’s Cloud Offerings is leading to service interruptions to production versions of APIs exposed on the platform.

2 Hours

S2: Key

Functionality

Impaired; No

Workaround

The reported issue affects key functionality and/or causes some performance degradation, and no workaround is available. Other product features are still functional.

4 Business

Hours

S3: Moderate

Impact with

Workaround

Issue has moderate or minor impact on usage, and product remains functional. This category may include provisioning/change management requests, enhancement requests, common how-to questions, and any product issues with a viable workaround.

8 Business

Hours

S4: Minor Impact

Includes minor, cosmetic, or documentation-related issues, and enhancement requests that are not time-sensitive. There is no impact on the product’s existing features.

8 Business

Hours.

vi. Escalation Protocol: In its Offer, Respondent must propose for CPA’s consideration an escalation protocol for collaboratively resolving issues encountered during the term of any contract resulting from this RFO. The proposed escalation process protocol must explain how issues or complaints are prioritized and resolved. This protocol shall include

(1) an organization chart addressing topics such as specific steps to be taken on top priority issues or disputes arising due to untimely response to system down or critical malfunction remedial repair requests and (2) any other top priority service requirements of a contract resulting from this RFO which are not met.

D.3 CPA Data Security Terms.

D.3.1 CPA Data Safeguard Standards.

a. Defined Terms. The term “CPA Data” refers to CPA’s information as well as other entity information in the possession of CPA that is processed, stored, or transmitted by a computer. CPA Data includes all data that is generated by

Successful Respondent in performance of a contract with CPA. The term “CPA Information System” refers to those devices, software, networks and related infrastructure that CPA owns, operates or has obtained for use to conduct CPA business. Devices include, but are not limited to, CPA-owned or managed storage, processing, and communications devices, as well as personally owned devices.

b. Access to CPA Data. Successful Respondent represents and warrants that it will implement, maintain, and use appropriate administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to preserve the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of CPA Data. Successful Respondent will not collect, access, use, disclose, or retain CPA Data other than as necessary to perform the services specified in a contract resulting from this solicitation or as otherwise authorized in writing by

CPA. Successful Respondent will restrict access to CPA Data to only those personnel who must have the information on a “need to know” basis. Successful Respondent will not use CPA Data, or any information derived from CPA Data, RFO # 304-26-1181KG Articulate 360 Teams Software with AI Assistant Page 9 of 46 for its own benefit or the benefit of any other person or entity. Successful Respondent will not share CPA Data with its parent company or other affiliate without CPA’s express written consent. If communications with Contractor necessitate the access or use of confidential Comptroller information, upon Comptroller’s written consent, Contractor shall require each individual who will require access to or may be exposed to Comptroller’s confidential information to sign the Confidential Treatment of Information Acknowledgment (CTIA) form (Attachment I).

c. Web-Based Remote Access to CPA Information Systems. Successful Respondent may use third-party web-based remote access connections to CPA Information Systems to provide support services under the following conditions:

1. CPA shall affirmatively initiate and accept Successful Respondent’s connections to CPA Information Systems.

2. CPA shall monitor Successful Respondent’s connections to CPA Information Systems for the duration of the

Services.

3. CPA shall terminate Successful Respondent’s connections to CPA Information Systems upon completion of the

Services.

d. Reserved

e. Reserved

f. Location of CPA Data. Successful Respondent shall ensure that CPA Data (i.e., primary and backup) remains, at all times, within the continental United States. Successful Respondent shall receive, process, transmit, and store all CPA

Data within the continental United States. Successful Respondent’s point of access to CPA Data shall be within the continental United States.

g. Encryption Standards.

1. Successful Respondent shall encrypt CPA Data in transit and at rest. Data in transit means data is moving via email, in applications, or through browsers and other web connections. Data at rest (including data backups) means data is stored in databases, the cloud, removable media, or mobile devices.

2. Successful Respondent shall utilize encryption standards that are FIPS 140-2 compliant or, upon the written approval of CPA’s Chief Information Security Officer, shall meet the intent of the standards as described in FIPS

140-2.

3. The minimum cryptographic algorithm used by Successful Respondent must be Advanced Encryption Standard

(AES) 128 or higher (256 AES is preferred).

4. Successful Respondent shall encrypt CPA Data transmitted over a public or private network. CPA approved data encryption transmission protocols include the following: (1) SFTP (FTP over SSH), (2) FTPS (FTP over TLS),

(3) HTTPS (HTTP over TLS), and (4) virtual private network.

h. Reserved

i. Auditable Information Security Framework. Successful Respondent shall secure its own third-party service providers’ systems (e.g., IT service provider, Cloud Service Provider) in a manner consistent with an auditable information security framework e.g., National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), International Organization for

Standardization (ISO) 27001. In its response to this solicitation, Successful Respondent shall disclose its adopted information security framework.

j. Defects and Vulnerabilities. Upon Contract award and during the term of the Contract, Successful Respondent shall provide CPA with prompt, written notice upon Successful Respondent’s discovery of any product defects and vulnerabilities of the proposed Licensed Software that allow an attacker to violate an explicit (or implicit) security policy to achieve some impact or consequence. Examples of vulnerabilities include defects that allow intruders to gain increased levels of access or interfere with the normal operations of information systems. Vulnerabilities caused by insecure configurations, design choices, and changing environmental conditions are additional examples.

k. Supply Chain Risk Management. Successful Respondent shall provide CPA’s Contract Manager a description of how it manages supply chain risks. Specifically, Successful Respondent shall describe its established agreements and procedures with entities involved in the supply chain for the notification of supply chain risks, compromises, and the result of assessments or audits. During the term of the contract, Successful Respondent shall provide CPA’s Contract

Manager prompt, written notice of supply chain risks that impact the delivery of the products and services of the

Contract. Examples of supply chain risks include supplier financial failure, production control/product quality, market supply and demand, labor disputes/shortages, cybersecurity threats, natural disasters. Successful Respondent shall notify CPA of a supply chain compromise and potential compromise in accordance with the Section G,Security

Incident Notification.

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l. Independent Information Security Assessment. If Successful Respondent has access to a CPA Information System or receives, processes, transmits, or stores CPA Data, then Successful Respondent shall provide CPA’s Contract Manager with its most recent information security assessment conducted by an independent third-party (e.g., SSAE-18 SOC 2

Type II, ISO 27002) upon Contract award and annually thirty (30) days prior to the anniversary of the Contract award date thereafter. CPA, in its sole discretion, may conduct a security assessment of any information system holding CPA

Data or connected to a CPA Information System. CPA’s security assessment may consist of a review of the following:

(i) independent third-party assessment(s) contracted by Successful Respondent (e.g., SSAE-18 SOC 2 Type II, ISO

27002) and (ii) Successful Respondent’s System Security Plan.

m. Media Sanitization. Successful Respondent shall sanitize information system media, both digital and non-digital, in accordance with NIST Special Publication 800-88 (Guidelines for Media Sanitization) when CPA Data in the custody of Successful Respondent is no longer required to be retained by contract with CPA. Successful Respondent must maintain a record documenting each sanitization procedure that, at a minimum, includes the following information:

(i) date sanitization completed, (ii) description of the item(s), serial number(s), inventory control number(s), if applicable, and (iii) sanitization method used. No later than sixty (60) calendar days from contract expiration or termination or as otherwise specified in the Contract, Successful Respondent must either (i) complete the sanitization and submit via email to the CPA Contract Manager all sanitization documentation or (ii) submit a written statement via email to the CPA Contract Manager explaining the reason that destruction of CPA Data by Successful Respondent is technically impossible or impractical. Successful Respondent’s obligations set forth in this clause survive the termination or expiration of the contract as long as Successful Respondent retains CPA Data.

n. Third-Party Service Providers. It is Successful Respondent’s sole responsibility to ensure that its access and the access

Successful Respondent grants to its service providers to CPA Data or CPA Information Systems does not result in unauthorized access to CPA Data or CPA Information Systems.

o. Reserved

p. Reserved

q. Reserved

r. Prohibited Technology. Successful Respondent shall not use covered applications or prohibited technologies in its technology solutions or services provided to Comptroller. In addition, Successful Respondent represents and warrants that its system, software, components, and services do not use the covered applications or prohibited technologies listed on the Department of Information Resources (DIR) Covered Applications and Prohibited Technologies website.

s. Use of Artificial Intelligence. Successful Respondent shall comply with all federal and state laws and regulations for artificial intelligence. Successful Respondent shall implement and maintain the following.

1. Transparency. Disclose the artificial intelligence (AI) that Successful Respondent embeds in its technology products and services and provide detailed information on the purpose of the AI, the specific

AI model(s) in use, if the AI uses CPA data to train AI model(s), the configuration settings and options to disable or opt out of using the AI.

2. Artificial Intelligence Inventory. Successful Respondent shall implement and maintain an inventory of the AI used in Successful Respondent’s solution, software, system components, and services provided to Comptroller. Comptroller is required to report an inventory of artificial intelligence in biennial statutorily required reports and Successful Respondent shall support Comptroller’s compliance by providing the inventory information upon Comptroller’s written request.

3. Monitoring. Successful Respondent shall monitor AI for query attacks, malicious inputs, and perturbations for model manipulation, theft, data poisoning, and data drift. Successful Respondent shall establish model integrity validation checks and data poisoning detection capabilities. Successful

Respondent shall implement processes for detecting personally identifying information (PII) in the model and removing PII from the model, as appropriate to ensure the AI cannot provide PII to Successful

Respondent’s other customers or outside the boundaries of the Comptroller’s systems.

4. Disclosure Notice. Successful Respondent shall disclose to the public prior to system use, the use of AI in systems that interact with the public and receive, process, transmit, or store CPA data.

5. Data Ownership. Successful Respondent shall acknowledge that Comptroller owns CPA data. If

Successful Respondent uses generative AI to provide services to customers of a CPA system, Successful

Respondent shall ensure that the AI cannot provide CPA data to Successful Respondent’s other customers or outside the boundaries of the Comptroller’s systems.

https://dir.texas.gov/information-security/covered-applications-and-prohibited-technologies

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t. State Authorization and Risk Management Program (TX-RAMP). Successful Respondent shall obtain TX-RAMP certification in accordance with the Department of Information Resources (DIR) Program Manual. CPA requires the following TX-RAMP certification based-on Agency criteria:

1. _X_ None. Product is out of scope/low impact in accordance with the DIR TX-RAMP Manual.

2. __ Level 1 Certification. The product will administer Agency public data.

3. __ Level 2 Certification. The product will administer Agency sensitive, confidential, and/or regulated data.

Upon Contract award, Successful Respondent shall maintain compliance with the immediately preceding TX-RAMP program requirements and certification throughout the term of the contract. Successful Respondent shall notify the

CPA Contract Manager immediately if such TX-RAMP certification is revoked or otherwise removed.

If Successful Respondent uses a cloud service provider to host (i.e., Infrastructure as a Service or IaaS) or build (i.e., Platform-as-a-Service or PaaS) a custom-developed CPA system or application, Successful Respondent shall ensure its cloud service provider obtains TX-RAMP certification in accordance with the Department of Information

Resources (DIR) Program Manual. If applicable, CPA requires the following TX-RAMP certification based-on

Agency criteria:

4. _X_ None. Product is out of scope/low impact in accordance with the DIR TX-RAMP Manual.

5. __ Level 1 Certification. The product will administer Agency public data.

6. __ Level 2 Certification. The product will administer Agency sensitive, confidential, and/or regulated data.

Upon Contract award, Successful Respondent shall ensure its cloud service provider used to host or build a custom-developed CPA system or application maintains compliance with the immediately preceding TX-RAMP program requirements and certification throughout the term of the contract. Successful Respondent shall notify the CPA

Contract Manager immediately if such TX-RAMP certification is revoked or otherwise removed.

u. Reserved

v. Reserved

w. Service Provider, Outsourced, and Cloud Computing. Regardless of TX-RAMP certification, the following requirements apply if Successful Respondent is a Service Provider or cloud service provider (CSP) or contracts with a CSP or other Data Center to receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data.

1. Security Control Verification. Upon Contract award and annually thereafter, Successful Respondent shall provide to CPA evidence that it has implemented security controls correctly, the controls are operating as intended, and the controls are producing the desired outcome with respect to meeting security requirements for the information system. Acceptable documentation includes:

• SSAE-18 SOC 2 Type II Report (or the updated, equivalent report);

• FedRAMP certification (CPA preferred option for CSP);

• Level Two: Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) Security, Trust & Assurance Registry (STAR) Attestation;

• Level Two: CSA STAR Certification;

• Level One: CSA STAR Self-Assessment;

• Completed CSA Cloud Controls Matrix (CCM) and CSA Consensus Assessment Initiative Questionnaire;

• CSA CCM;

• Successful Respondent information security plan; and

• Successful Respondent information security policies and procedures.

2. Department of Information Resources Security Control Standards Catalog. At a minimum, Successful Respondent shall comply with the control baselines established by the Security Control Standards Catalog, all CPA specific security requirements, and any other applicable federal or statutory requirements.

3. Penetration Test. Successful Respondent shall ensure that information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data undergo an independent third-party annual penetration test with a scope that reasonably reflects the key components and conditions of the production environment relevant to the protection of CPA Data.

Successful Respondent shall provide a summary of the penetration test results to CPA annually thirty (30) days prior to the anniversary of the Contract award date. Successful Respondent shall coordinate with CPA to schedule the initial penetration test and subsequent annual penetration tests during the term of the Contract.

4. Information System(s) Architecture. For information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data, Successful Respondent shall provide a CPA instance that isolates CPA data and system from Contractor’s other customers. Successful Respondent shall develop and maintain a comprehensive architectural diagram that identifies the information system (s) components and environment, including ports, protocols, and services.

Successful Respondent shall protect the architectural diagram from unauthorized access, disclosure, modification, and /or destruction. Successful Respondent shall provide the diagram to CPA annually.

https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdir.texas.gov%2Fresource-library-item%2Ftexas-risk-and-authorization-management-program-manual-30&data=05%7C02%7CJason.Frizzell%40cpa.texas.gov%7C9b22e092447c41d9816108dd30f4dbc3%7C2055feba299d4d0daa5a73b8b42fef08%7C0%7C0%7C638720550387877709%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=dFBcq3mGLKSAe5BKAYCH%2FFcMW6eaImJiVx85PviOPho%3D&reserved=0 https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdir.texas.gov%2Fresource-library-item%2Ftexas-risk-and-authorization-management-program-manual-30&data=05%7C02%7CJason.Frizzell%40cpa.texas.gov%7C9b22e092447c41d9816108dd30f4dbc3%7C2055feba299d4d0daa5a73b8b42fef08%7C0%7C0%7C638720550387877709%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=dFBcq3mGLKSAe5BKAYCH%2FFcMW6eaImJiVx85PviOPho%3D&reserved=0 https://gcc02.safelinks.protection.outlook.com/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fdir.texas.gov%2Fresource-library-item%2Ftexas-risk-and-authorization-management-program-manual-30&data=05%7C02%7CJason.Frizzell%40cpa.texas.gov%7C9b22e092447c41d9816108dd30f4dbc3%7C2055feba299d4d0daa5a73b8b42fef08%7C0%7C0%7C638720550387877709%7CUnknown%7CTWFpbGZsb3d8eyJFbXB0eU1hcGkiOnRydWUsIlYiOiIwLjAuMDAwMCIsIlAiOiJXaW4zMiIsIkFOIjoiTWFpbCIsIldUIjoyfQ%3D%3D%7C0%7C%7C%7C&sdata=dFBcq3mGLKSAe5BKAYCH%2FFcMW6eaImJiVx85PviOPho%3D&reserved=0 https://dir.texas.gov/sites/default/files/2023-06/Security%20Control%20Standards%20Catalog%202.1%20for%20Web%20-%20UPDATED%206.21.23.pdf

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5. Configuration Minimum Requirements.

a. Successful Respondent shall implement (SAML) an XML-based standard (CPA preferred) or OpenID

Connect (OIDC) for exchanging authentication and authorization data for identity management of CPA internal users. If Successful Respondent is technically incapable of integrating with CPA’s identity services provider, Successful Respondent shall ensure identifier and authenticator controls are consistent with CPA standards.

b. Account Management. Successful Respondent shall administer accounts as follows.

i. Remove root access, where feasible, to information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store

CPA Data.

ii. Prohibit Privileged User access to CPA data on information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA data.

iii. Employ multifactor authentication for its Users, Privileged Users, and Subcontractors who support information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data when accessing CPA

Information System(s). Multifactor authentication shall be consistent with the current version of the

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Digital Identity Guidelines Identity

Authentication Level 2 (IAL2) and Authentication Assurance Level 2 (AAL2).

iv. Require multifactor authentication for CPA customers who access an information system(s) that receive, process, or store CPA data. Multifactor authentication shall be consistent with NIST Digital

Identity Guidelines IAL2 and AALs.

v. Require passwords to be a minimum of 15 characters and PINs to be a minimum of 8 characters.

Successful Respondent shall allow Users to select random numbers, letters, and symbols, including blank spaces to create passwords and pins. Successful Respondent shall not impose specific complexity requirements, such as at least one capital letter, one number, and one symbol. Successful

Respondent shall provide all Users password education that helps Users create strong passwords using passphrases and/or password strength meter tools.

vi. Use automated controls to deactivate/disable inactive accounts to ensure only authorized users access Comptroller’s system. Contractor shall establish account reactivation procedures that are consistent with NIST Digital Identity Guidelines Identity Assurance Level 2 and authentication must be consistent with NIST Digital Identify Guidelines Authentication Assurance Level 2.

c. Pursuant to Section 2063.104 of the Texas Government Code, Privileged Users that have access to a CPA

Information System shall complete the CPA-Required Security Awareness Training, if applicable.

d. Secure Baseline Configuration. Successful Respondent shall develop secure baseline configurations for information system(s), components, or services that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data in accordance with industry best practices (e.g., U.S. Government Configuration Baseline (USGCB), Center for

Internet Security (CIS) Benchmarks). In the absence of an industry defined secure configuration, Successful

Respondent shall develop a baseline for information system(s), components, or services in collaboration with

CPA.

e. Audit Information. For information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data, Successful

Respondent shall enable information system(s) auditing to the greatest extent necessary to capture access, modification, and deletion of data by each unique user and Privileged User system access and actions. Audit controls shall ensure the movement of sensitive, confidential, and regulated data is traceable throughout the data lifecycle. Audit records shall contain date, time, type, source, and outcome of system event, the user account involved, service account, service, or process responsible for initiating the system event, and other information that facilitates reconstruction of events. Successful Respondent shall protect audit information from unauthorized access and modification. Successful Respondent shall share audit information with CPA upon request.

f. Successful Respondent shall configure information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA

Data to deny local network mapping and prevent copy and paste from the information system(s) to unapproved workstations, laptops, or terminals.

6. Configuration Management Plan. Successful Respondent shall develop a Configuration Management Plan for information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data. The Configuration Management Plan must include a comprehensive description of the roles, responsibilities, policies, and procedures that apply when managing the configuration of products and systems. The Configuration Management Plan may be an all-inclusive, stand-alone document or may be comprised of more broadly defined configuration management procedures contained in multiple documents. CPA shall review and approve the Configuration Management Plan annually during the Contract Term. Successful Respondent shall treat the Configuration Management Plan as confidential CPA information and protect the Configuration Management Plan from unauthorized disclosure and modification.

7. Data Center Resiliency, Environmental Protections, and Physical Security. Successful Respondent shall provide multiple geographic regions and availability zones to ensure resiliency in the event of natural disasters, common

RFO # 304-26-1181KG Articulate 360 Teams Software with AI Assistant Page 13 of 46 equipment failures, or information system failures. The data center(s) shall ensure electrical power systems are fully redundant and maintainable without interruption to continuous operations. Data center(s) shall provide backup power through various mechanisms including, but not limited to, UPS batteries. Data center(s) backup power shall supply consistently reliable power protection during utility brownouts, blackouts, over voltage, under voltage, and out-of-tolerance frequency conditions. The data center(s) shall use generators to provide power to critical equipment and customer loads. Trained security personnel shall staff the data center(s) twenty-four (24) hours a day, seven (7) days a week. Data center(s) shall use a security organization responsible for physical security functions to monitor its data center(s). The data center(s) shall have state-of-the-art electronic surveillance and multi-factor access control systems. Successful Respondent and/or CSP shall authorize physical access to its data center(s) strictly on a least privilege basis and access control systems shall log unauthorized activity and failed access attempts.

8. Roles and Responsibilities. Successful Respondent and CPA shall define and document CPA oversight and user roles and responsibilities with regard to the outsourced and/or CSP information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data.

9. Vulnerability Assessment and Continuous Monitoring. For information system(s) that receive, process, transmit, or store CPA Data, Successful Respondent shall employ vulnerability scanning tools and techniques to identify information system(s) flaws, improper configurations, and vulnerabilities. Successful Respondent shall conduct information system(s) scans at least monthly and remediate and mitigate vulnerabilities in accordance with the

National Institute of Standards and Technology National Vulnerability Database Common Vulnerability Scoring

System (CVSS). Successful Respondent shall report vulnerability assessment results and remediation efforts to

CPA on a monthly basis.

10. Security Control Testing and Plan of Action and Milestones. Successful Respondent shall coordinate with

Comptroller information Security analysts to observe or conduct manual or automated testing of the controls

Successful Respondent implements on Comptroller’s system. The end goal of coordination between Successful

Respondent and Comptroller Information Security analysts is to produce a System Security Plan for Comptroller’s system that validates cybersecurity controls are implemented correctly and operating as intended, and to document system findings and track remediation in a Plan of Action and Milestones throughout the term of the contract.

11. Cybersecurity Controls. Successful Respondent shall implement and maintain appropriate preventive, deterrent, detective, corrective, compensating, and directive cybersecurity controls to protect Comptroller’s system and data from malicious actors and security incidents. The cybersecurity controls of this Section apply to the Successful

Respondent’s cloud service providers and subcontractors who have access to Comptroller’s system and the environment in which Comptroller’s system is hosted. Successful Respondent shall provide a detailed description of the preventive, deterrent, detective, corrective, compensating, and directive cybersecurity controls that it will implement and maintain to protect Comptroller’s system. Successful Respondent shall structure the description as follows:

a. Preventive Controls. Successful Respondent shall ensure it employs appropriate preventive controls to protect

Comptroller’s system’s infrastructure and application(s) from threats and attacks. Preventative controls include but are not limited to system and application hardening, firewalls, an intrusion prevention system, antivirus software, regular software updates, and account management policies, and a security and privacy awareness training program.

b. Deterrent Controls. Successful Respondent shall ensure it employs appropriate deterrent controls to reduce the likelihood of attacks and ensure staff practice good cyber hygiene. Deterrent controls include but are not limited to warning signs, login banners, security guards, lighting, and security policies.

c. Detective Controls. Successful Respondent shall ensure it employs appropriate detective controls to identify when an event has occurred that impacts Comptroller’s system. Detective controls include but are not limited to security incident event management tools (SIEM), intrusion detection system, motion detectors, and video surveillance cameras.

d. Corrective Controls. Successful Respondent shall ensure it employs appropriate corrective controls to reverse damage caused by a security incident to Comptroller’s system and return the system to normal operations as soon as possible. Corrective controls include but are not limited to antivirus software, restoration from backups, password resets, incident response plans and playbooks, and security training that includes regular tabletop exercises, and post incident root cause analysis.

e. Compensation Controls. Successful Respondent shall ensure it employs appropriate compensating controls when primary controls do not provide adequate protection for Comptroller’s system. Compensating controls include but are not limited to employing strict access controls, conducting more frequent security audits to monitor user activity, using data loss prevention solutions, and providing robust employee security and privacy awareness training.

f. Directive Controls. Successful Respondent shall ensure it employs appropriate directive controls to influence and direct user behavior and ensure user actions do not compromise Comptroller’s system. Directive controls

RFO # 304-26-1181KG Articulate 360 Teams Software with AI Assistant Page 14 of 46 include but are not limited to a written Acceptable Use Policy, security and privacy awareness training, an

Incident Response Plan, a Continuity of Operations Plan, and a system Disaster Recovery Plan.

12. Court and Administrative Orders. Except as otherwise required by law, the Successful Respondent and/or CSP shall promptly notify CPA of any subpoena, judicial, or administrative order that it receives and that relates to

CPA Data held by the CSP or other data center.

13. Transition of CPA Data. Following termination of the Services, Successful Respondent shall, for no additional compensation, aid in the timely and secure transition of CPA Data to CPA or CPA’s designated service provider in a secure agreed file format usable without the outsourced information system or cloud service.

D.3.2 Information and Cybersecurity Requirements

Respondent shall include the following information in its Proposal:

a. Compliance with CPA Data Safeguard Standards. Respondent shall describe its approach and methodology for meeting the requirements in Section 15.42 (CPA Data Safeguard Standards) (a) through (w). Respondent must address each item; if an item is required after the Effective Date, Respondent must verify that it will comply within the timeframe indicated for that item.

b. Data Security Breach History. Respondent shall disclose any data security breach incidents and ransomware security incidents,…