Interpretation and Translation RFQ_01.10.22.docx

COMMONWEALTH OF MASSACHUSETTS

DEPARTMENT OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES (DCF)

PRF75 Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services

Interpretation and Translation Request for Quote (RFQ)

This order is placed under Statewide Contract PRF75. All of the terms and conditions of the Statewide Contract PRF75 are incorporated herein and made a part hereof. Conflicting or additional terms, conditions or agreements shall be considered to be superseded and void. Only vendors that have been awarded the PRF75 contract by Operational Services Division (OSD) are eligible to respond to this Request for Quotes and may only respond to the categories for which they have been awarded a contract by OSD under PRF75.

1. Description and Purpose

The Department of Children and Families (“DCF” or “the Department”) is seeking Interpretation and Translation vendors to provide services across the Commonwealth. DCF works in partnership with families and communities to keep children safe from abuse and neglect. In most cases, DCF is able to provide supports and services to keep children safe with their parents or family members. When necessary, DCF provides foster care placement for children. In the event children are unable to be reunified with their parent(s) DCF makes concerted efforts to achieve permanency for children through placement with kin, a legal guardianship or adoption.

DCF is comprised of 29 Area Offices which provide direct services to children and families, 5 Regional Offices that oversee and support the activities of the Area Offices and the Central Office in Boston which oversees Area and Regional work throughout the Commonwealth, as well as houses certain specialty units including the Foster Care Review, Fair Hearing and the Continuous Quality Improvement Unit. At the end of fiscal year 2020, over 24,000 families were being served by DCF; these cases contained over 86,000 children and adults. Among those service recipients, approximately 7% of children and 15% of young adults and adults were identified as having a primary language other than English during fiscal year 2021.

DCF’s core values are anchors that ground our practice. DCF is committed to engaging in practices and utilizing services that reflect these values. By strengthening access and connections between the Department, and the children, youth, families, and communities it serves, DCF will move closer to service delivery systems that reflect the core values listed below:

· Child Driven

· Family Centered

· Community Focused

· Strength Based

· Committed to Diversity and Cultural Humility

· Committed to Continuous Learning and Continuous Quality Improvement

DCF believes that issues of equity, inclusion and diversity are central to children’s welfare. The Department’s diversity commitment vision goes beyond workforce demographics to encompass our interactions with and services for families, communities, and providers. The uniquely personal and sensitive nature of our mission requires DCF to create working relationships where children and families feel safe and supported in a context that is responsive to and respects their cultural background or linguistic capabilities.

It is DCF’s mission to strive to protect children from abuse or neglect and, in partnership with families and communities, ensure children are able to grow and thrive in a safe and nurturing environment. Effective communication is essential for social workers and DCF staff at all levels. Social workers rely on accurate, timely and comprehensive communications to assess and respond to the safety needs of children, to work with families to identify and deploy needed services, and to understand the quality and effectiveness of services.

Interpretation and Translation Services are vital services necessary for DCF to accomplish its mission and deliver accessible and culturally and linguistically responsive services to families statewide and throughout the service process from intake, information and referral, and including assessment, action planning, service delivery and coordination and to case resolution.

Typical circumstances when Interpretation and Translations may be used include but are not limited to:

· when a family is involved with DCF due to a receipt of a report alleging abuse and/or neglect, which entails a home visit and interviews as part of the investigation

· when an individual is applying to become foster parent for youth in DCF care or custody

· for case meetings or administrative hearings in open DCF cases

· for home visits in open DCF cases when there is a home visit by the social worker

· when a family member or other person involved in a case needs to read an important document in his or her own language, including the action plan that the DCF worker develops with the family

In addition, the Continuous Quality Improvement Unit at Central Office conducts in depth Child and Family Service Reviews (CFSRs) to assess the DCF’s ability to achieve child safety, permanency, and overall well-being for children involved with the Department. An important component of the CFSR process is to obtain the family voice. As a result, Interpretation and Translation Services may be utilized to schedule and conduct interviews with family members and/or family resource providers in the event there is a language difference between the reviewer and the family member.

2. Performance and Business Specifications

Interpreting and translating is far more than replacing one word with another. The interpreter or translator must also convey the style, tone and intent of the words, while taking into account differences of culture and dialect. For translation, the finished document should read as if it had originally been written in the target language for the target audience.

Selected vendors must ensure all interpreters and translators have:

· Proficiency and accuracy in and ability to communicate information accurately in both English and the language being interpreted;

· Knowledge and fluency in both languages of child welfare and related social work and legal terminology;

· An understanding of the need for and compliance with confidentiality of the information being interpreted or translated so that the privacy of the individual with limited English proficiency is protected;

· The ability to remain impartial at all times during interpretation without deviating from the role of interpreter;

· The ability to provide services in a timely manner.

Bidders must explain:

a. The process by which interpreters are selected for hire

b. The amount of experience interpreters are required to have before working for the bidder

c. What and how much initial and ongoing training and professional development is provided to interpreters and/or translators

d. Whether interpreters and/or translators are certified or licensed and, if so, by which organizations.

e. How bidder ensures interpreters have advanced level of interpreting proficiency and are subject-matter experts.

Bidder must explain what quality assurances measures are utilized by your agency to ensure your interpreters are appropriately performing their duties. Please specifically address:

a. How you verify access is truly available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week within the required timeframes

b. How you verify your list of languages available for interpretation is accurate at all times

c. How you verify that all interpreters are utilizing appropriate technological to support all telephonic/video remote interpretation calls without disruption in service.

d. How you verify interpreters are communicating information accurately in both English and the language being interpreted

All services must comply with all rules and regulations pertaining to statewide contract PRF75. Vendors shall comply with all Federal and State wiretapping and recording statues, including MGL Chapter 272, Section 99 by not directly or indirectly monitoring, taping, intercepting, or recording conversations without explicit consent. Prior to beginning the interpretation, the vendor shall confirm with all participants on the call that they are aware that the call is being recorded for quality assurance purposes and that all parties consent to the recording.

Selected vendors through this RFQ will sign the Statement of Work (SOW) under which DCF offices will be able to make referrals to selected vendors on an as needed basis. Vendors will only be paid for services rendered as a result of referrals and requests made by DCF. DCF makes no guarantee that any services will be purchased from a vendor as a result of a signed SOW. DCF will make referrals to vendors based on need, cost, the preferences of individuals to be served, and satisfaction with services.

Once the SOW is signed, referrals may begin.

A. Interpretation Services

i. Oral face to face Interpretation (in-person)

Each selected vendor will provide DCF with a dedicated toll-free phone number. DCF staff will utilize the number from the vendor of their choosing when in need of oral face to face interpretation. The vendor must respond to the request and confirm availability within 60 minutes of the call being placed by DCF staff. The vendor must provide an interpreter within 24 hours after DCF places the request. Vendors must provide detailed information on their hours of availability. Interpreters must be available, at a minimum, Monday-Friday, 9 am-5pm; Vendors who are able to provide services on weekends, evenings and nights may receive preferential usage. Due to the emergency nature of DCF’s work and the critical importance of having interpreters available quickly, Vendors must provide detailed information on vendor’s emergency response capacity and timeframes (e.g. ability to provide an in-person interpreter within 1 hour, 3 hours, 6 hours, or 12 hours); vendors who are able to provide an emergency response may receive preferential usage.

Selected vendors are required to arrive at least fifteen (15) minutes prior to the scheduled time of on-site scheduled appointment in order to receive any instructions from DCF. Vendor is responsible for taking all necessary actions to obtain adequate transportation, accurate times, locations, directions, telephone numbers, contact person(s) and any other information or actions to ensure that that they are present at the proper location at the time specified. Vendors may be penalized for being late.

Interpretation Services are to be billed at an hourly rate with a minimum time of no greater than one hour. Time beyond this minimum will be billed in 15-minute increments.

DCF is looking to engage with multiple qualified contractors for these oral face to face interpretation services.

ii. Telephonic Interpretation Services

Each selected vendor will provide DCF with a dedicated toll-free phone number. DCF staff will utilize the number from the vendor of their choosing when in need of Interpretation Services. These Interpretation Services are to be available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day and must comply with all rules and regulations pertaining to the Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services, known to the statewide contract PRF75. The vendor must respond to incoming calls/requests for services within an average of 15 seconds (for a live agent) or 5 seconds (for an automated voice response system). The vendor must maintain an average monthly successful connection (to interpreter) time, for all languages provided, of 30 seconds or less.

Selected vendors must be able to provide cost-effective services in multiple languages through their toll-free phone number and provide training on the use of their system for DCF staff which includes clear step-by-step instructions provided to staff regarding how to access the telephonic interpreter. DCF requires that selected vendors establish a mechanism that ensures only calls requested by DCF staff or pre-approved designees are billed. The developed mechanisms must include an assigned identifying number for each DCF office/unit that will utilize these services, and a set of standardized questions that links each request for services to the specific DCF staff that make the request. Questions must include: assigned office/unit ID number, date and time of call, requested language, name of the DCF staff member making the request, iFamilyNet case ID # (if available), and purpose of call.

Vendors must disclose any recording processes and how DCF may opt-out of such recording at the agency or office/unit level or, if possible, on a per-call basis.

DCF is looking to engage with a single qualified contractor for telephonic interpretation services.

iii. Video Remote Interpretation (VRI)

Each selected vendor will provide DCF with a dedicated toll-free phone number. DCF staff will utilize the number from the vendor of their choosing when in need of Interpretation Services. These Interpretation Services are to be available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day and must comply with all rules and regulations pertaining to the Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services, known to the statewide contract PRF75. The vendor must respond to incoming video calls/requests for services within an average of 15 seconds (for a live agent) or 5 seconds (for an automated voice response system). The vendor must maintain an average monthly successful connection (to interpreter) time, for all languages provided, of 30 seconds or less.

Selected vendors must be able to provide cost-effective services in multiple languages through their toll-free phone number and provide training on the use of their system for DCF staff which includes clear step-by-step instructions provided to staff regarding how to access the video remote interpreter. DCF requires that selected vendors establish a mechanism that ensures only calls requested by DCF staff or pre-approved designees are billed. The developed mechanisms must include an assigned identifying number for each DCF office/unit that will utilize these services, and a set of standardized questions that links each request for services to the specific DCF staff that make the request. Questions must include: assigned office/unit ID number, date and time of call, requested language, name of the DCF staff member making the request, iFamilyNet case ID # (if available), and purpose of call.

Vendors must disclose any recording processes and how DCF may opt-out of such recording at the agency or office/unit level or, if possible, on a per-call basis.

DCF is looking to engage with multiple qualified contractors for video remote interpretation.

B. Translation Services

Translate written word

Each selected vendor will provide DCF with a dedicated email address. DCF staff will utilize the email address of the vendor of their choosing when in need of translation service. The vendor shall provide training for DCF staff which includes clear step-by-step instructions provided to staff on how to request the translation of documents. The vendor shall be capable of receiving Source Language documents by facsimile, e-mail or other electronic means (i.e. Microsoft Word, PDF or flat files, etc.), U.S. postal service or courier delivery. The typical delivery is expected to be by e-mail or other electronic means. From the Source Language to the Target Language, the written text of the Target Language will be determined by the specific engagement. The vendor shall provide all language translation services for languages or dialects at the per word rates of the Source Language as provided within the Cost Table/Price Sheet.

Translation documents must be delivered in both Word and PDF format unless instructed differently by DCF for a specific engagement. In some situations, DCF will determine how the written document translation shall be completed in terms of word count or number of pages of the Target Language translation.

Vendors must provide detailed information on their hours of availability to receive documents and must be available, at a minimum, Monday-Friday, 9 am-5pm. The vendor will provide a quote for the translation as well as an estimate regarding the time it will take to provide the translated document prior to each translation engagement. Vendors must provide detailed information on vendor’s turnaround time; vendors who are able to respond more quickly may receive preferential usage.

DCF is looking to engage with multiple qualified contractors for these written translation services.

3. Billing Procedures

To receive payment for the Interpretation and Translation Services, the vendor must complete and submit invoices and the completed standard DCF Payment Voucher (PV) on a monthly basis to the Area Office or the specific Central Office Unit that requested the specific translation or interpretation services. For Telephonic Interpretation Services or Video Remote Interpretation billing purposes the vendor shall invoice with details (responses to the questions referenced to the interpretation services above) and the number of minutes of each call to each DCF office/unit. The invoice will include list of calls and answers to the list of questions provided above.

For Telephonic, Video Remote, and In-Person interpretation services, DCF will pay for the time when Interpretation Services are provided and not the time needed to connect to an operator or time on hold waiting for an interpreter.

Vendors must submit invoices by the 15th of the month following services to the appropriate Area Office or the specific Central Office Unit that requested the specific translation or interpretation services. The details will be discussed at negotiations.

4. Communication Between DCF and Vendor In addition to the provision of phone numbers or email addresses for DCF to request services (as detailed in sections 2.A and 2.B), each selected vendor must designate a staff member to serve as the point of contact for DCF regarding requests for contract management, quality improvement and service concerns, and billing inquiries, which includes responsibility for receiving and resolving complaints relative to timeliness, accuracy and/or impartiality of interpreters or translation services. The vendor must provide the point of contact’s email address and phone number.

5. Expected Duration This project will be a multi-year engagement and will operate per the terms of the PRF75 contract. DCF will have the option to renew the SOW as long as PRF75 remains in effect and the vendor continues to be qualified under the OSD statewide contract. Decisions to renew will be based on appropriations, service needs, and vendor performance.

DCF reserves the right to seek additional quotes in the future, if at any time it determines its service needs are not being met by the pool of vendors with which it has SOWs.

6. Anticipated Expenditures, Funding or Compensation for Expected Duration The estimated allocated expenditure for all vendors and services engaged under this contract is approximately $700,000-$1,000,000 annually. Actual expenditures will be determined based on use.

7. Contact Information Rebecca Brink 600 Washington Street, Boston, MA 02111 Rebecca.k.brink@mass.gov

8. Respose Requirements

A. COMMBUYS

Online response submission via COMMBUYS is required. All Bidders must submit a response online using tools available only to Sellers registered in COMMBUYS. COMMBUYS provides Seller registration functionality at no charge. To register, go to www.COMMBUYS.com and click on the “Register” link on the front page. All Bidders who are awarded a contract resulting from this Bid, if any, will be required to maintain an active account during the duration of the Contract, by reviewing their registration information regularly and maintaining its accuracy.

B. Response Forms

· Cover Sheet

· Response Sheet

· Attachments

The following documents will be required at time of negotiations, but should not be submitted with the responses to this RFQ:

· Statement of Work

· Contractor Authorized Signatory Form

9. Electronic Submission Format Responses must be submitted and uploaded on COMMBUYS in .doc, .docm, .docx, or .pdf files. Files must be in the following format when documents are printed: type-written 11 point Times New Roman or similar font, one-inch margins, 8 ½ X 11 inch paper, singled spaced and with page numbers in the lower right corner. Scanned documents will be accepted and must be scanned in such a way that they can be read on a computer monitor and printed on 8 1/2” x 11” paper, unless otherwise specified. Zipped files will be accepted and must be in a .zip format when saved, containing only .doc, .docm, .docx, or .pdf files. Other zip file formats will not be accepted.

Submissions must include the following:

A. Cover Sheet and Checklist Bidders must complete all fields and submit the RFQ Cover Sheet and Checklist.

On the Cover sheet, bidders must indicate which service categories in this RFQ they are bidding on. Bidders may submit responses for one or more services detailed in this RFQ for those categories they are qualified and awarded contracts on statewide contract PRF75.

B. Response Sheet Bidders may submit responses for one or more services detailed in this RFQ for those categories they are qualified and awarded contracts on statewide contract PRF75. The vendor must answer all questions on the response sheet directly after each question. Bidders must indicate in their responses if the response is specific to multiple RFQ categories and must answer the question and respond separately where the answer to a question differs between services.

Responses must be limited to 5 pages for each service the bidder is responding to plus requested attachment(s). Reviewers will not read more than 5 pages of narrative per service, or review attachment(s) that were not requested.

C. Attachments The attachment(s) should each be submitted as a word document or excel sheet, clearly numbered or marked.

For Oral Face to Face Interpretation

1. Submit a list of available languages and rates (must be in US dollars), including proposed rates and maximum rates allowable under the statewide contract.

2. Hours of availability and Emergency Response Timeframes

3. Instruction Sheet and Materials to facilitate DCF Access to Service

For Telephonic Interpretation

1. Submit a list of available languages and rates (must be in US dollars), including proposed rates and maximum rates allowable under the statewide contract.

2. Instruction Sheet and Materials to facilitate DCF Access to Service

For Video Remote Interpretation

1. Submit a list of available languages and rates (must be in US dollars), including proposed rates and maximum rates allowable under the statewide contract.

2. Instruction Sheet and Materials to facilitate DCF Access to Service

For Translation

1. Submit a list of available languages and rates (must be in US dollars), including proposed rates and maximum rates allowable under the statewide contract.

2. Hours of availability

3. Instruction Sheet and Materials to facilitate DCF Access to Service

10. Submission Deadline The deadline for submissions is Monday, February 7, 2022, at 2:00 PM. Late responses will not be accepted.

All Bidders are advised to allow adequate time for submission by considering potential online submission impediments like Internet traffic, Internet connection speed, file size, and file volume. DCF is not responsible for delays encountered by Bidders or their agents, or for a Bidder’s local hardware failures, such as computers or related networks, associated with bid compilation or submission. Bids submitted via COMMBUYS are time stamped by the COMMBUYS system clock which is considered the official time of record.

11. Review, Evaluation, Award, and Engagement Process The Review Team will consist of DCF staff. All qualified RFQ responses will be reviewed and evaluated according to the criteria set by the DCF, adherence to the submission requirements, and agency goals.

A. In-Person Interpretation Services, Written Translation Services, and Video Remote Interpretation

The purpose of this RFQ is to create a list of qualified vendors that may be selected to perform specific services throughout the duration of the RFQ for In-Person Interpretation Services, Written Translation Services, and Video Remote Interpretation. The evaluation of the submissions will result in a recommended or non-recommended classification. Bidders must comply with all sections in order to be recommended for inclusion on the approved list of available vendors. Bidders that are not recommended will be notified and may have an opportunity to correct deficiencies.

B. Telephonic Interpretation Services

The purpose of this RFQ is to contract with a single qualified vendor throughout the duration of the RFQ for Telephonic Interpretation Services. The evaluation of the submissions will result in a selected or non-selected classification. Bidders must comply with all sections in order to be qualified for selection, and selection will be based on the evaluation process.

The Review Team will consider each item in the RFQ response package, evaluate each item, taking into consideration the comprehensiveness, responsiveness, and clarity of the response to each requirement as it pertains to the to the vendor’s qualifications to provide the services outlined in Section 2.A and 2.B.

The Department will use a consensus model of evaluating proposals whereby the Review Team members independently read and review their assigned proposals and then meet as a group to jointly discuss and rank each response. All qualified proposals shall be reviewed using the Evaluation Rating Sheet tailored specifically for this RFQ.

The Commissioner or designee will make the final award decision based on the responses that provide the best value to the Commonwealth and the Department.

For selected providers, DCF may negotiate rates with individual vendors relative to the requirements in the statewide contract, the requirements of this RFQ, the Department’s needs, the providers’ service offerings, and other considerations.

12. Performance Requirements and Monitoring

The Department of Children and Families is to deliver the Best Value to meet our needs. However, it is important to measure the bidder’s performance to ensure it is in compliance with what has been requested and what the bidder has offered in this RFQ. Vendors will be expected to provide quarterly reports on the use of service by language and by DCF Area Office/Unit which details:

1. The number of requests received from each DCF Area Office/Unit (listed separately each services the vendor provides);

2. The languages requested from each DCF Area Office/Unit, and the precise frequency of each requested language;

3. The response time to each of those requests;

4. Quality assurance metrics used to ensure interpreters communicated information accurately on every call.

DCF shall negotiate with vendors any requirements not set forth in the RFQ.

13. COMMBUYS Support Technical assistance is available during the procurement process. Every effort is made to respond to inquiries within one business day.

Website: Go to www.mass.gov/osd/commbuys and select the appropriate link, or visit www.commbuys.com Email: Send inquiries to the Operational Services Division (OSD) & COMMBUYS Helpdesk at OSDHELPDESK@MASS.GOV Telephone: Call the OSD Help Desk at 1-888-MA-STATE (1-888-627-8283) or at 1-617-720-3197. The Help Desk is staffed from 8:00 AM to 5:00 PM Monday through Friday Eastern Standard or Daylight time, as applicable, except on federal and state holidays.

Bidders are advised that COMMBUYS will be unavailable during regularly scheduled maintenance hours of which all users will be notified.

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