IFB-S000000013 Amended~1.pdf

STATE OF ARKANSAS

DEPARTMENT OF TRANSFORMATION AND SHARED SERVICES

OFFICE OF STATE PROCUREMENT

501 Woodlane St., Ste. 220

Little Rock, Arkansas 72201-1023

INVITATION FOR BID

SOLICITATION DOCUMENT

SOLICITATION INFORMATION

Solicitation Number:

S000000013 Solicitation Issued:

June 18, 2021

Description: Online Training Platform

Department: Arkansas Department of Public Safety

SUBMISSION DEADLINE AND DELIVERY OF RESPONSE DOCUMENTS

Bid Opening Date: July 15, 2021 Bid Opening Time: 2:00 PM, Central Time

Bid responses for this Invitation for Bid must be submitted through ARBuy, the State’s eProcurement system.

It can be accessed at https://arbuy.arkansas.gov. Bids received after the submission deadline may be rejected as untimely. See section 1.2 for information regarding Live Bid Openings.

TSS OFFICE OF STATE PROCUREMENT CONTACT INFORMATION

TSS OSP Buyer: Brandi Schroeder Buyer’s Direct Phone Number: 501-682-4169

Email Address: brandi.schroeder@arkansas.gov TSS OSP’s Main Number: 501-324-9316

TSS OSP

Website:

https://www.transform.ar.gov/procurement/ https://arbuy.arkansas.gov/

SECTION 1 – REQUIREMENTS

• Do not provide responses to items in this section unless specifically and expressly required.

1.1 INTRODUCTION

This Invitation for Bid (IFB) is issued by the TSS Office of State Procurement (TSS OSP) for the Arkansas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Arkansas Division of Emergency Management (ADEM) to obtain pricing and a contract for an Online Training Platform. Direct all questions, comments, or concerns you may have regarding this solicitation to the TSS Office of State Procurement, not ADEM.

1.2 OBJECTIVES

The Online Training Platform will allow ADEM administrators to create and manage training courses and records for up to 10,000 users across the State and will allow first responders to create and manage training accounts; register, revise, and drop Courses; and track and manage their training records through a single, easy-to-use platform.

ADEM is seeking a similar user interface used by the Texas Division of Emergency Management, which can be viewed by visiting https://www.preparingtexas.org/Index.aspx.

1.3 LIVE BID OPENING

Use the information below to view the bid opening online.

Zoom Meeting Link: https://arkansas-gov.zoom.us/j/82116478407?pwd=U1RsZG03K0lvZnE0OGhmRUhOVVFJZz09 Meeting ID: 821 1647 8407 Meeting Password: 917796 Dial-In Information: 877 853 5257 US Toll-free

888 475 4499 US Toll-free

1.4 CLARIFICATION OF SOLICITATION

A. Submit any questions requesting clarification of information contained in this Solicitation via the solicitation posting in ARBuy by midnight, Central Time on or before June 25, 2021.

1. Prospective Contractors must be registered in ARBuy in order to submit questions.

2. For each question submitted, Prospective Contractor should reference the specific solicitation item number to which the question refers.

3. Prospective Contractors’ written questions will be consolidated and answered by the State as deemed appropriate. The State’s consolidated written response is anticipated to be posted to the solicitation posting in ARBuy by the close of business on July 2, 2021. If Prospective Contractor questions are unclear or non-substantive in nature, the State may request clarification of a question(s) or decline to answer.

B. The Prospective Contractor should notify the TSS OSP buyer of any term, condition, etc., that precludes the Prospective Contractor from submitting a compliant, Responsive Bid. Prospective Contractors should note that it is the responsibility of the Prospective Contractor to seek resolution of all such issues, including those relating to the terms and conditions of the contract, prior to the submission of a bid.

C. Prospective Contractors may contact the TSS OSP buyer with non-substantive questions at any time prior to the bid opening.

D. An oral statement by TSS OSP will not be part of any contract resulting from this solicitation and may not reasonably be relied on by any Prospective Contractor as an aid to interpretation unless it is reduced to writing and expressly adopted by TSS OSP.

https://www.preparingtexas.org/Index.aspx https://arkansas-gov.zoom.us/j/82116478407?pwd=U1RsZG03K0lvZnE0OGhmRUhOVVFJZz09 https://arkansas-gov.zoom.us/j/82116478407?pwd=U1RsZG03K0lvZnE0OGhmRUhOVVFJZz09

1.5 DEFINITION OF TERMS

A. Unless otherwise defined herein, all terms defined in Arkansas Procurement Law have the same meaning herein.

B. “Business Days” refers to days Monday through Friday, during the hours of 8:00 am to 5:00 pm, Central Time, except for State holidays; see https://www.sos.arkansas.gov/uploads/Holidays_2021.pdf).

C. “Go-Live Date” refers to the date immediately following the Implementation Period whereby the Contractor shall have completed all activities required by this Solicitation to achieve full Platform implementation, anticipated to be December 31, 2021.

D. “Implementation Period” means the period of time beginning on the starting date of the contract, anticipated to be September 30, 2021 during which the Contractor shall perform all the start-up and implementation activities required to achieve full Platform implementation by the Go-Live Date.

E. The terms “Invitation for Bid,” “IFB,” and “Solicitation” are used synonymously in this document.

F. “Prospective Contractor” means a responsible bidder who submits a Responsive Bid in response to this Solicitation.

G. “Requirement” means something required.

H. “Responsive Bid” means a bid submitted in response to this Solicitation that conforms in all material respects to this IFB.

I. “Shall” and “Must” mean the imperative and are used to identify Requirements.

J. “Specification” means any technical or purchase description or other description of the physical or functional characteristics, or of the nature, of a commodity or service. “Specification” may include a description of any requirement for inspecting, testing, or preparing a commodity or service for delivery.

K. “State” means the State of Arkansas. When the term “State” is used herein to reference any obligation of the State under a contract that results from this Solicitation, that obligation is limited to the Department using such a contract.

1.6 MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

Prospective Contractors shall have implemented at least one (1) online training platform of similar size and scope as described in this IFB within the last five (5) years.

1.7 GENERAL REQUIREMENTS

A. The Contractor shall develop, host, maintain, and support an easy-to-navigate, user-friendly Online

Training Platform containing webpages pertaining to various aspects of training classes and exercises (from hereinafter referred to collectively as “Courses”).

1. At minimum, the Platform must include pages of interest including, but not limited to: Homepage, Training Schedule, Exercises, Account Information, Training Catalog, and Contact Information, along with user friendly menus linking to the related pages.

B. The Contractor shall lead, actualize, and execute Platform design, re-design, coding, and development.

C. The Platform must support the following:

1. Collection, access, retention, and maintenance of all Course and user data

2. Up to six hundred (600) Courses https://www.sos.arkansas.gov/uploads/Holidays_2021.pdf

3. Approximately 10,000 users across the State

4. Roles-based user access for State users

5. Full site search capabilities

6. Online Course catalog creation with filtering capabilities

7. Course scheduling and registration processing

8. Auto-generated student transcripts and certificates

9. Auto-generated, unique student identification numbers (without using Social Security Numbers)

10. Student repository

11. Repository of students who have not dropped Courses but have not attended (“No Shows”) with dates of No Shows

D. The Platform must include a Course training calendar that features filtering capabilities; ADEM will supply legends for different training providers and types of Courses.

1. Courses must be viewable in both calendar and list (agenda) views.

2. At minimum, Courses must be searchable by course title, description, and date of training. The Contractor shall create additional search criteria if directed by ADEM.

E. The Platform must include a content management tool that allows for downloadable PDF, Word, and Excel content within the Course descriptions pages.

F. The Platform must include automatically generated certificates of completions for Courses.

1. Certificates must include, at minimum, the student’s name, the Course title and date(s), and electronic signatures as specified by ADEM.

2. Certificates must be automatically added to the student's profile after administrator approval and must be printable in PDF format.

G. The Platform must include Course rosters, waitlists, sign-in sheets, and roster transfer as specified by ADEM.

1. Each roster must include Course title, date(s), instructor on each page.

2. Each roster must display students alphabetically and must include each student’s State and agency.

H. The Platform must include at least one (1) setup template for each of the following:

1. Student profile registration form

2. Open Course registration form

3. Student completion certificate

I. The features of the user interface are subject to ADEM approval and must include, at minimum, the following:

1. A custom URL that must be obtained by the Contractor and approved by ADEM prior to Platform development.

2. Header/footer graphics, color scheme, and home page design with State and agency seals and other media provided by ADEM.

3. Student profile page with student id, name and date of birth, email, phone number, type of employment, employment agency and specialized team.

4. Customizable Course page that describes the nature of the Course, intended audience, prerequisites, and special instructions relating to the Course.

1.8 USER ACCESS REQUIREMENTS

A. The Contractor shall provide user access to the Platform through a secure, web-based portal.

B. The Platform must be browser and operating system neutral for all user types and function accurately on common modern browsers including, but not limited to, Internet Explorer, Edge, Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.

C. The Platform must be accessible and function as designed from mobile devices such as tablets, smartphones, and chrome books. This must include, but is not limited to include, iPhones, iPads, and Android based phones and tablets.

D. The Platform must not require additional browser plug-ins, add-ons, or helper applications.

E. The Platform must provide user management functionality based on industry best practices that includes, at minimum, processes for user authentication, access management, role-based security architecture, security rules and restrictions, capacity for users to change their password at any time, and the capability to retrieve forgotten username and/or password information.

F. The Platform must allow various user access as defined below:

1. Level 1 Users—Up to 10,000 Students

a. Requires registration for Level 1 access

2. Level 2 Users—Approximately Thirty (30) Training Providers/Instructors

a. Requires access/authority by the Contractor

b. Limited access to Level 1 User data assigned to them

3. Level 3 Users—Up to Fifteen (15) Administrators

a. Users with access to the complete platform, all data, and full reporting functions

b. Requires approval by ADEM

c. Users with authority to add and/or remove Level 3 Users.

G. The Contractor shall add Level 3 Users as requested by ADEM’s designated administrator(s) during the Implementation Period.

1. ADEM will specify its designated administrator(s) after contract award.

H. The Platform must allow Level 1 Users to perform the following actions:

1. Register as a user

2. View available Course information, descriptions, dates, duration, locations, instructor information, prerequisites, gear lists (if applicable), and training coordinator contact information for each Course

3. View completed Course, training certificates, and current Course enrollment on personal user profile

4. Upload training certificates from past training courses or credentials to their user profiles for Administrator approval

5. Self-register and withdraw from training Course

6. Join waiting lists for Courses specified as “full”

I. The Platform must allow Level 2 Users to perform the following actions:

1. Register as a User

2. Add, modify, and delete Course information, descriptions, dates, duration, locations, instructor information, prerequisites, gear lists (if applicable), and training coordinator contact information for each of their Courses

3. View, export, download, and print rosters and waitlists

4. View students who have dropped their Courses

5. View No Shows

J. The Platform must allow Level 3 Users to perform the following actions:

1. Add, modify, and deactivate Level 1 and Level 2 Users

2. Approve/disapprove/modify all User accounts before the User is granted access to the Platform

3. Approve/disapprove user uploaded training certificates and credentials

4. Add, modify, delete Courses, Course details, and Course calendar at any time

5. Create closed and/or private Courses for specialized teams and/or when a certain level of expertise is needed to ensure safety and course objectives can be met

6. Create and send reminders and/or email special instructions to registered students

7. Generate rosters for each Course

8. Set pass/fail status for students completing a Course

9. Grant Level 2 Users ability to set pass/fail Course status for students

10. Assign Level 2 Users to individual course offerings

11. Grant limited access to Level 2 Users to view registrant info and create rosters

12. Manage student status, certificates, documents, posts, and announcements, transcripts, Course registration, and Course calendars

1.9 PLATFORM REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

A. At minimum, the Platform must track and provide reporting for the following data:

1. Number of law enforcement, fire service and emergency management personnel trained

2. Number of total personnel trained year-to-date

3. Number of training courses conducted year-to-date

4. Course fill rates and No Shows

B. At minimum, the Platform must be able to produce ad-hoc reports by student category (law enforcement, fire service, emergency management, etc.), by course, by date range, and by instructor.

C. At minimum, reports must be able to export to Microsoft Excel format.

1.10 IMPLEMENTATION REQUIREMENTS

A. Prospective Contractors shall include a proposed implementation plan with the Response Packet.

1. The proposed implementation plan must include, at minimum, each activity or task described in detail, the party responsible for each task, and the estimated start date, deadline, and estimated hours of effort for each task.

B. During the Implementation Period, the Contractor shall coordinate all implementation and testing activities with ADEM to ensure the Platform is fully functional and ready to use by the Go-Live Date.

1. The Contractor shall adhere to all implementation and testing activities and dates as specified by

ADEM.

C. Within ten (10) Business Days following contract award, the Contractor shall schedule and facilitate an initial kickoff meeting with ADEM, with ADEM having final approval of all meeting manner, dates, and times.

1. The initial kickoff meeting is anticipated to take place via video conference. ADEM may choose to hold subsequent meetings via conference call or video conference, and the Contractor shall attend all subsequent meetings requested by ADEM.

D. During the initial kickoff meeting, the Contractor shall present a final implementation plan for the development, configuration, implementation, and delivery of the Platform.

E. At minimum, the final implementation plan must include:

1. Recommended implementation timeline.

2. All implementation activities, including Contractor and ADEM staff responsibilities and estimated hours of effort for each.

3. A testing and acceptance plan with all testing activities and timeframes. (See Testing and Acceptance Requirements.)

4. A training plan with all training activities and timeframes. (See Training Requirements.)

5. Proposed templates for all reports. (See Reporting.)

F. At minimum, implementation activities must include:

1. Development and testing of all Platform functionality.

2. Testing, implementation, and training with ADEM.

3. All other activities needed to provide a fully functioning Platform that meets ADEM’s objectives.

G. Should ADEM request revisions to the final implementation plan, the Contractor shall make the requested revisions and resubmit a revised final implementation plan for ADEM’s review and approval within timeframes determined by ADEM.

1.11 TESTING AND ACCEPTANCE REQUIREMENTS

A. The Contractor shall submit a Testing Plan for ADEM’s review and approval within thirty (30) calendar days after contract award.

1. The Testing Plan must meet or exceed all requirements set forth in this section of the IFB.

B. The Testing Plan must address all forms of Platform testing activities including but not limited to:

1. Functional testing

2. User acceptance testing

3. Final acceptance testing

4. Process by which the Contactor will obtain ADEM’s approval of each stage of testing

5. Phase of ADEM acceptance testing prior to Go-Live whereby ADEM can confirm the Platform adheres to all contractual Requirements

C. During testing, the Platform must perform successfully under all normal operational conditions in accordance with the Requirements specified by this IFB, operating instructions, and the Contractor’s technical and user specifications independent of browser, operating system, and mobile platform.

1. During testing, the Platform must demonstrate Level 1, 2, and 3 user access and reporting capabilities specified by this IFB.

D. During the ADEM acceptance testing stage, should ADEM determine the Platform does not conform with IFB Requirements, ADEM may:

1. Grant the Contractor an opportunity to repair and/or modify the Platform and restart the testing, whereby the Contractor shall address all repairs and/or modifications specified by ADEM within the timeframes specified by ADEM.

2. Upon mutual agreement, perform additional acceptance tests until the Platform has operated within the specifications as stated in this IFB for thirty (30) consecutive days; or

3. Accept minor deviations from the specifications; or

4. Terminate the resulting contract in its entirety

E. The Contractor shall give a minimum of ten (10) Business Days of notice to ADEM prior to the commencement of testing.

F. The Contractor shall provide a test report to ADEM within fifteen (15) Business Days following the completion of each stage of testing.

1.12 TRAINING REQUIREMENTS

A. The Contractor shall submit a Training Plan for ADEM’s review and approval within thirty (30) calendar days after contract award.

1. The Training Plan must meet or exceed all requirements set forth in this section of the IFB.

B. The Contractor shall provide at least two (2) virtual training sessions for up to fifteen (15) Level 3 Users as requested by ADEM.

1. The Contractor shall provide all training sufficiently in advance to the Go-Live Date of the Platform that all specified Level 3 Users have had enough exposure to proficiently use the Platform.

a. The Contractor shall provide the same training annually throughout the aggregate term of the resulting contract as requested by ADEM.

2. Should ADEM request subsequent training sessions for additional users, the Contractor shall provide additional training sessions as requested by ADEM.

C. The Contractor shall provide, at minimum, the following electronic reference materials for ADEM use during the aggregate term of a resulting contract:

1. Platform user manual

2. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) file

3. Website location information for all additional online and printed resources

D. In the event that the Contractor makes any material alterations to the Platform, the Contractor shall update the training materials accordingly.

1. ADEM will determine what constitutes a “material alteration.”

2. The Contractor shall provide updated training materials at no additional cost to the State.

1.13 HOSTING, UPTIME & PERFORMANCE REQUIREMENTS

A. All servers and data associated with the Arkansas instance of the Contractor hosted Platform must reside in the continental United States.

B. The Contractor shall perform all work on the Platform from within the continental United States of America. The system must not be accessed from outside of the U.S.

C. The Contractor shall be responsible for the acquisition and operation of all hardware, software, and network support related to the hosting services being provided.

D. The Contractor shall provision all environments including, at minimum, development, testing, and production. The Platform must be available 99.9% of the time each month, excluding scheduled down-times.

E. The Platform must have an internal response time of less than two seconds from receiving a request and sending a response back through the webserver 99.99% of the time.

F. The Contractor shall provide a monthly System Usage and Performance Report which shall include, at minimum, data related to the Requirements set forth in this subsection of the IFB. The System Usage and Performance Report must be provided to ADEM’s designee in a format and within timeframes specified by ADEM.

1.14 MAINTENANCE AND UPDATING REQUIREMENTS

A. The Contractor shall submit a Maintenance Plan for ADEM’s review and approval within thirty (30) calendar days after contract award.

1. The Maintenance Plan must meet or exceed all requirements set forth in this section of the IFB.

B. The Contractor shall keep all hosting related software current and up to date.

1. The Contractor shall notify the State of all software and security upgrades within three (3) Business Days of upgrade availability.

2. The Contractor shall provide ADEM’s designee with a proposed implementation plan for approval with implementation timelines for all software and security upgrades within seven (7) Business Days of upgrade availability.

C. The Contractor shall perform all maintenance on the Platform to keep it fully functioning and up to date, including patches, security enhancements, upgrades, back-ups or other maintenance of server hardware or software on which the Platform is hosted.

1. Maintenance must be performed during "off hours" to limit disruption.

2. Maintenance also includes maintaining weekly application software and configuration data backups and maintaining associated licenses registrations and/or subscriptions (such as SSL certificates, URL registration, etc.).

D. At least thirty (30) calendar days prior to Go-Live, the Contractor shall submit to ADEM Quality Assurance Guidelines for testing new updates, patches, or upgrades to the Platform.

E. The Contractor shall ensure that changes or system upgrades to the Platform are accompanied by a System Upgrade Plan which includes a timeline, milestones, and adequate testing to be completed prior to implementation.

1. The Contractor shall notify and provide such plans to the ADEM designee upon request in the timeframe and manner specified by the Contract Administrator. All maintenance or updates to the Platform that require scheduled down-time must occur at scheduled times, with fourteen (14) calendar day written notice being provided to the Contract Administrator and must only commence after the Contract Administrator’s approval of the requested timeline in the System Upgrade Plan. Approval will not be unreasonably withheld from the Contractor.

F. The Contractor shall ensure that any updates and maintenance to the Platform will not compromise or negatively impact or interrupt any configurations or customizations made by the Contractor to the Platform.

1.15 USER AND TECHNICAL SUPPORT

A. The Contractor shall submit a User and Technical Support Plan for ADEM’s review and approval within thirty (30) calendar days after contract award.

1. The User and Technical Support Plan must meet or exceed all requirements set forth in this section of the IFB.

B. Throughout the Implementation Period, the Contractor shall provide implementation support to ADEM personnel on Business Days.

1. ADEM anticipates this support to be provided via telephone and email.

C. The Contractor shall provide customer service and technical support via email and/or toll-free telephone to ADEM staff on Business Days throughout the term(s) of a resulting contract.

1. Customer service and technical support staff shall be fluent English-speakers.

D. Should ADEM determine there is a serious flaw in the Platform programming, the Contractor shall perform whatever actions deemed necessary by ADEM to correct the flaw within the timeframes mutually agreed upon and approved by ADEM.

1.16 DATA SECURITY

A. The Contractor shall submit a Data Security Plan for ADEM’s review and approval within thirty (30) calendar days after contract award that must outline the process of reporting security violations, security breaches, or any attempts to gain access to the Platform.

1. The Data Security Plan must meet or exceed all requirements set forth in this section of the

IFB.

2. The Data Security Plan must include the name and contact information for an employee who shall serve as ADEM’s primary security contact and be available to assist ADEM twenty-four

(24) hours per day, seven (7) days per week as a contact in resolving obligations associated with a security breach. The security contact must be able to give a detailed explanation of the breach and the impact of the breach. The security contact must also provide a detailed resolution so that the breach will not be repeated.

3. The Contractor shall notify the State of a security breach as soon as practicable, but no later than four (4) hours after the event is identified and the Contractor becomes aware of it.

B. Any data located on servers must be physically and virtually secure from any unauthorized access using the strictest of accepted principles adhering to the International Information Systems Security Certification Consortium ((ISC)²) body of knowledge.

C. Third parties or personnel from the Contractor that are not directly involved with the development shall not be allowed information relating to statistics or demographics of the State of Arkansas. Only staff with a need to know shall have access to such data.

D. At the end of the contract period, or at any time a hard drive is removed from use within the scope of this contract, the Contractor shall erase, destroy, and render unrecoverable all data and certify in writing that these actions have been completed within thirty (30) days of the termination of this agreement or within 7 days of the request by ADEM, whichever comes first.

1. At a minimum, a “Clear” media sanitization must be performed according to the standards enumerated by the National Institute of Standards, Guidelines for Media Sanitization, SP800-88, Appendix A - see http://csrc.nist.gov/.

E. The Contractor’s Platform (software and hardware) must not store any personally identifiable Arkansas citizen’s information for any time longer than required by Arkansas State Law and the requirements of this IFB.

F. The Platform must meet or exceed applicable Federal and State privacy and security standards including the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

G. The Platform must include, at minimum, the following security controls:

1. Argon2id for user password storage with a minimum configuration of 15MiB of memory, an iteration count of two (2), and one (1) degree of parallelism

2. Twelve (12) character user passwords with at least one (1) uppercase letter, one (1) number, and one (1) special character

3. HTTPS transport protocols

4. SSL organizationally validated (OV) protection or higher

1.17 DISASTER RECOVERY

A. The Contractor shall submit a Disaster Recovery Plan for ADEM’s review and approval within thirty

(30) calendar days after contract award.

1. The Disaster Recovery Plan must meet or exceed all requirements set forth in this section of the

IFB.

B. The Contractor shall include backup and recovery procedures, that will allow recovery of the Platform and all data up to the moment of the disaster and successfully resume functioning within four (4) hours of any disaster.

C. The Contractor shall include, at minimum, plan objectives, situations and conditions covered by the plan, technical considerations, system fail-over plans, roles and responsibilities of Contractor staff, how and when to notify ADEM, recovery procedures, and procedures for deactivating the disaster recovery plan.

D. The Platform must frequently and automatically back up data. All backup servers and backup data associated with the Arkansas instance of the Contractor-hosted solution must reside in the continental United States.

E. The Platform must meet NIST (National Institute of Standards and Technology) standards for disaster recovery and contingency planning.

1.18 DATA OWNERSHIP AND END OF CONTRACT TRANSITION

A. The State shall retain sole ownership, right, title, and interest to all data stored in the Platform.

http://csrc.nist.gov/

1. The Contractor shall maintain the source code with an escrow agent and list the State as an authorized recipient of the source code for instances in which the Contractor is unable to maintain the Platform. These instances include, but are not limited to, business failure, contract default, disaster recovery, or a different contractor continuing Platform services after the termination or expiration of the resulting contract. These conditions shall be specified in the escrow agent contract, and this contract must meet the approval of ADEM prior to execution.

2. At the end of the contract the Contractor shall transfer 100% of State-owned data back to the State or to another Contractor at the request of the State.

3. At the end of the contract and after confirmed transfer of 100% of State-owned data, deliverables, and products the Contractor has created, developed, produced, and managed while performing the services outlined in this IFB back to the State or their designee, the Contractor shall destroy all copies of the State-owned data the Contractor possesses.

B. The Contractor shall ensure all data received as part of the Contract must be used solely for the purpose of this contract and not shared, reused, or disseminated to any other party or entity without the express written consent of the ADEM designated representative.

C. Upon termination or expiration, should any subsequent contract for this or a similar Platform be awarded to a provider other than the Contractor, the Contractor shall, to the greatest extent possible and reasonable, cooperate with ADEM in initiating a smooth and orderly transition to the next contractor.

SECTION 2 – GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS AND INFORMATION

• Do not provide responses to items in this section unless specifically and expressly required.

2.1 TYPE OF CONTRACT

A. As a result of this IFB, TSS OSP intends to award a contract to a single Contractor.

B. The anticipated starting date for any resulting contract is September 30, 2021, except that the actual contract start date may be adjusted unilaterally by the State for up to three (3) calendar months. By submitting a signed bid in response to the IFB, the Prospective Contractor represents and warrants that it will honor its bid as being held open as irrevocable for this period.

C. The initial term of a resulting contract will be for one (1) year. Upon mutual agreement by the Contractor and Department, the contract may be renewed by TSS OSP for up to six (6) additional one-year terms or portions thereof, not to exceed a total aggregate contract term of seven (7) consecutive years.

2.2 CONTRACTOR SELECTION

A. Award will be made to the lowest-bidding, responsible Prospective Contractor on an all or none basis.

2.3 RESPONSE DOCUMENTS

A. All bid responses must be submitted through ARBuy, the State’s eProcurement system. The system can be accessed at https://arbuy.arkansas.gov.

1. Prospective Contractors must be registered in ARBuy in order to submit bid responses.

B. Bid Response Packet

1. The following are bid submission requirements and must be submitted as part of a Prospective Contractor’s bid response.

a. Completed Bid Response Packet, which must be in the English language.

i. Signed Bid Signature Page. Signature may be ink or digital.

ii. Proposed Subcontractors Form. The utilization of any proposed subcontractor is subject to approval by the Department.

iii. Proposed Implementation Plan for the development, configuration, implementation, and delivery of the Platform. (See RFP Section 1.10 Implementation Requirements.)

iv. Exceptions Form.

b. Completed Pricing Response.

i. In the ARBuy line item pricing for Item 1, Prospective Contractors shall enter the seven-year, all-inclusive cost associated with provided all activities and tasks required to meet the Requirements specified in this IFB. This cost will be used for low-cost determination.

ii. On the Cost Breakdown Sheet, Prospective Contractors shall provide a cost breakdown for the ARBuy line item pricing for Item 1.

• The cost breakdown calculated on the Cost Breakdown Sheet must match the ARBuy line item pricing for Item 1.

• Additional instructions for providing the cost breakdown are found on the Instructions tab of the Cost Breakdown Sheet.

iii. Pricing must be proposed in U.S. dollars and cents.

https://arbuy.arkansas.gov/

2. The following items, which must be submitted prior to a contract award to the Prospective Contractor, may also be included with the Prospective Contractor’s bid response:

a. EO 98-04 Contract & Grant Disclosure Form.

b. Copy of Prospective Contractor’s Equal Opportunity Policy.

c. Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT), if applicable.

3. DO NOT include any other documents or ancillary information, such as a cover letter or promotional/marketing information.

2.4 ACCEPTANCE OF REQUIREMENTS

A. Unless a Prospective Contractor expressly and conspicuously identifies any exception or exceptions to any of the Requirements in the Requirements Section(s) of this IFB by listing them on the Exceptions Form (see Bid Response Packet), Prospective Contractor understands and agrees its submission of a bid to represent that its bid meets all such Requirements.

B. A Prospective Contractor’s bid may be rejected if the Prospective Contractor takes exception to any Requirements in the Requirements Section(s) of this IFB.

2.5 ADDITIONAL TERMS AND CONDITIONS

A. This IFB incorporates all of the Solicitation Terms and Conditions located on the TSS OSP website here (Agencies – Forms and Reporting – Solicitation Templates):

https://www.transform.ar.gov/procurement/agencies/forms-and-reporting/.

B. Any special terms and conditions included in this solicitation shall override the Solicitation Terms and Conditions.

C. Unless a Prospective Contractor expressly and conspicuously identifies any exception or exceptions to any of the terms in the Standard Commodities Contract by listing them on the Exceptions Form (See Bid Response Packet), Prospective Contractor agrees and shall adhere to all terms if selected as the successful Contractor. Items identified as non-negotiable may only be modified if the legal requirement is satisfied and approved by the State. The Standard Commodities Contract can be viewed on the TSS OSP website here (Agencies – Forms and Reporting – Solicitation Templates):

https://www.transform.ar.gov/procurement/agencies/forms-and-reporting/.

D. A Prospective Contractor’s bid may be rejected if a Prospective Contractor takes exception to any terms or conditions in the documents listed in 2.5.A and 2.5.C.

https://www.transform.ar.gov/procurement/agencies/forms-and-reporting/ https://www.transform.ar.gov/procurement/agencies/forms-and-reporting/