Final QA Vendor Questions.docx

Division of Child Support Services (DCSS), Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) Child Support Automation and Innovation for Modernization (CS AIM) Quality Assurance

2021-55-062/20-478HFS-CHSUP-B-16414

Questions and Answers Addendum 1 The Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) is issuing this Addendum to amend the original Request for Proposal for the above referenced project as issued by this office on August 6, 2020.

This addendum is to be acknowledged in accordance with the RFP, Section C.2 of the Offer to the State of Illinois, Addenda. Offerors are instructed to read this entire package before attempting to complete the information required therein. All other terms and conditions of the RFP shall remain in full force and effect, unchanged except as amended hereby.

1. Section D.2.2 - Do the audiences for weekly status reports and monthly status reports differ? Who is the primary audience for each?

A. Weekly status reports are submitted to the HFS project management team. Monthly status reports may be provided to the HFS project management team but also to an expanded group of project stakeholders.

2. Section D.2.5 - Since the QA provider will not be providing system solutions containing PII, will all requirements in section D.2.5. apply? For example, will the QA provider be required to allow the State of Illinois Technical Safeguards Unit the ability to perform vulnerability scans as described in D.2.5.12?

A. See updated section D.2.5 in RFP

3. Section D.2.5 - The requirements of section D.2.5 appear to be standard content for IL. How will the duties of the QA provider relative to D.2.1.2.3, D.1.2.1.4, D.2.1.2.5 relate to and/or differ from the responsibilities of the State of Illinois Technical Safeguards Unit?

A. See updated section D.2.5 in RFP.

4. Section D.8.2 and D.8.3 -How are these two requirements to be reconciled? Can an Offeror propose a combination of onsite and offsite services as described in D.8.3 and still be responsive to D.8.2?

A. See new language in D. 8. 2. Offeror’s proposals should NOT contain a combination of onsite and offsite services.

5. Section D.8 - What COVID-19 protocols are used by DHF? How are they expected to impact the requirements of D.8.2?

A. Attached are the Restore Illinois Phase 3 guidelines and protocols currently used at HFS. The state can’t predict whether COVID will still be an issue. The impact of COVID on the requirements of D.8.2 will be addressed as needed and is explained further in new language added to D.8.2 which allows offeror’s the ability to request off-site work.

6. Section H.1.18 - Does the State perceive a conflict of interest in having a single vendor perform the work under this RFP and RFP 2021-55-061 / BidBuy #20-478HFS-CHSUP-B-16182, which provides the State with independent verification and validation (IV&V) services for Child Support Automation and Innovation for Modernization for the State.

A. Yes, see section B.7

7. Section A.10 - Please confirm that the State requires online proposal submission only.

A. Correct. The State shall only accept electronic submissions through BidBuy. Please see the instructions for submitting electronic proposals.

8. Section D2, D3, and D4 - Are the 'Mandatory' sections scored on a numeric scale or are these responses pass/fail?

A. Pass/Fail

9. Section D.2.1.2.4-Please clarify the requirement for creating and submitting a QA System Security Plan in accordance with NIST SP 800-18 Guide for Developing Security Plans for Federal Information Systems. As the QA vendor, we will not be implementing a system.

1. The requirement is to create and submit an independent and objective System Security Plan Report for the new system as an audit of the application security as well as the infrastructure security.

10. Section D.2.5-Please clarify these system application security requirements. Since we are providing services and not a system, are D.2.5.1 through D.2.5.22 applicable?

A. Yes, these requirements are applicable. The services to be provided are a Risk Assessment Report, a System Security Plan, and a System Security Assessment Audit Report.

11. For Section D.2.7 and similar sections requiring proposers to affirm their compliance with Mandatory Requirements, is it acceptable to copy or recreate the question into our proposal rather than inserting the full page of the RFP into our proposal response?

A. It is acceptable to copy the question into the proposal response and provide a Yes/No response.

12. Desirable 12- Would the State like to see resumes (actual or representative) as part of our staffing plan?

A. No

13. Section E.1.4 -The section says that the 10% holdback will be held until “… no further duties are to be performed under the contract.” This holdback period could be up to ten years if all option years are exercised. Would the State consider payment of the outstanding withhold annually if the vendor is performing satisfactorily?

A. No

14. Section E.6 -This section contains several references in red entitled “Click here to enter text.” Please clarify whether proposers are expected to enter text or only numeric values here. If more than numeric values are requested, what other pricing narrative is anticipated in this section?

A. Based on the charts in Section E.1.3, the Offeror should provide the total price for the Initial term in E.6.1.

15. Section E.6.2.1-This section states that the hourly rates for this contract will not change for up to ten (10) years. Vendor costs increase each year for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is so that we can keep excellent staff working on important projects like this one. The natural consequence of the State holding cost constant for this long a period is that Vendors will have to inflate their hourly rates in the short term to protect themselves in the long term. Hence the State will be paying more on the front end of the project than if would if it allowed vendors to increase hourly rates periodically throughout the contract based on underlying cost increases. Would the State consider amending the pricing model to allow for periodic hourly rate increases?

A. Please see revised RFP Section E.6.2.

16. Section F.1.1 - Does the State have an anticipated timeframe for awarding and executing a contract?

A. Yes, contract award and execution is expected for spring of 2021.

17. Attachment 1 - If a vendor is submitting a proposal for both the CS AIM IV&V RFP and the QA RFP, would the State consider allowing vendors to submit the same reference for both proposal responses? We respect our clients' time and would like to minimize the impact on clients from having to respond to the same questions twice.

A. Yes

18. Section E.1.4 states that "All billings will incur a 10% holdback provision until no further duties are to be performed under the contract." Would the State consider releasing the holdback amount on an annual basis, given that the value of the QA services is received as the QA deliverables are produced and approved?

A. No

19. Part D.2.5 includes several mandatory requirements which are not typical for Quality Assurance contracts; i.e., the requirements for SSAE-18 and SOC certifications defined in D.2.5.8, and system development-related security requirements as described in D.2.5.9 through D.2.5.16, D.2.5.19, and D.2.5.20. Since the QA statement of work does not include system development activities, would the State consider removing or modifying these requirements to reflect the nature of the QA services?

A. Yes, we have modified D.2.5.

20. Section E.1.4. calls for the 10% holdback to be distributed after project closeout, which will be at least 5 years, and up to 10. Would the HFS consider distributing the 10% holdback on an annual basis instead?

A. No

21. If a vendor submits proposals for both the IVV and QA opportunities and is awarded one of the opportunities, assuming a vendor could not be awarded both opportunities, would the selected vendor be able to withdraw their proposal for the other?

A. Per Section 1.2038a of the General Services Standard Procurement Rules, “withdrawal of the bid must be made before the bid due date and time” .

22. Please confirm vendor must submit offers in BidBuy only for 21-478HFS-CHSUP-B-16414 and 21-478HFS-DIREC-B-16664.

A. Correct. The State shall only accept electronic submissions through BidBuy.

23. What is the tentative date HFS will respond to submitted questions?

A. ASAP