IV_11 JOFOC_Redacted.pdf

IRS Form (Rev. 6/21)

IRSAP 1006.3

JUSTIFICATION FOR OTHER THAN FULL AND OPEN COMPETITION

(JOFOC)

FAR SUBPART 6.3

I recommend the use of other than full and open competition for the acquisition of the following supplies or services. If this acquisition is to be made with only one source or a limited number of sources, negotiations will be conducted with the indicated proposed supplier(s).

1. IDENTIFICATION OF THE AGENCY AND CONTRACTING ACTIVITY:

Requiring Activity: Office of Wage and Investment Contracting Activity: Office of Business Solutions Acquisition, Support Services Branch, Studies & Analysis Section

2. NATURE/DESCRIPTION OF THE ACTION BEING APPROVED:

The purpose of this sole source justification is to obtain approval to award three no-cost contracts to Link2Gov, WorldPay, and ACI Payments for the provision of electronic payment (e-payment) services as described in Section 3. The current bridge contracts (2032H5-22-C-00012, 2032H5-22-C-00014, and 2032H5-22-C-00015) expire on December 31, 2023. The need date for these services is January 1, 2024. The anticipated period of performance will be for a 12-month period from January 1, 2024, through December 31, 2024.

3. DESCRIPTION OF SUPPLIES OR SERVICES:

The Internal Revenue Service has a continuing need to have an Electronic Credit Card Payment Program that allows taxpayers to pay their federal tax liabilities by means of Interactive Voice Response (IVR), Internet or mobile device. The Electronic Credit Card Payment Program�s mission is to offer convenient, safe, and secure payment methods that allow taxpayers to electronically pay individual and business taxes. The current credit card payment program is a key tax payment method that encourages and reduces paper handling for the service. The credit card program supports IRS and Wage and Investment (W&I) Strategic goals of promoting paperless filing and enables taxpayers to conduct transactions electronically with the IRS. The contractors capture taxpayer card and payment information, obtain real time authorization of the line of credit, provide taxpayers with a confirmation number at the end of the transaction and transmit files to a Treasury Financial Agent as required by the Electronic Federal Tax Payment System (EFTPS) Credit Card Bulk Provider Requirements. Currently the e-Payments Office provides IRS with an estimated revenue of $8.6 billion annually through the credit card program.

4. SHOPPING CART

NUMBER:

5000173652

5. NAME OF PROPOSED SOURCE(S):

Link2GOV Corporation 113 Seaboard Lane Nashville, TN 37215-6104

IRS Form (Rev. 6/21)

IRSAP 1006.3

10. JUSTIFICATION

(add pages if needed)

A. DEMONSTRATION THAT THE PROPOSED CONTRACTOR�S UNIQUE QUALIFICATIONS OR

THE NATURE OF THE ACQUISITION REQUIRES USE OF THE AUTHORITY CITED.

The following outlines the proposed contractor�s unique qualifications and the nature of the acquisition requires use of the authority cited as follows:

i. The Government issued solicitation no. 2032H8-22-R-00002 and awarded two no-cost contract(s) for e-payment services in August 2023. However, due to the protests filed, those awards were canceled. The Government is in the process of taking corrective action to the protests by reevaluating proposals. Given the critical nature of these services, it is necessary to seek short-term bridges to the incumbents to prevent a lapse in services.

ii. Any new contractor�s credit card processing payment system must pass the testing and evaluation phase before commencing services of collecting and processing card transactions.

The process for testing and evaluation phase occurs between May to December of each calendar year. It is a fixed schedule that would significantly and unreasonably burden the government and external stakeholder to adjust to accomplish the testing by an Independent Verification and Validation (IV&V), and an onsite (s) assessment review by IRS Cyber-Security Team. Further, the system and physical location(s) must be in compliance with all IRS applicable directives, guidelines, and security and functional requirements and all employees must successfully pass the background verification security requirements. No other contractors can provide these services without having undergone extensive required Independent Verification & Validation (IV&V) and IRS Cybersecurity testing to ensure that the IRS e-Payment Credit Card Program requirements are met without delay for the upcoming filing season. This testing process takes a minimum of eight (8) months. It is essential that the IRS review and approve the vendor�s functional and security documentation and applications prior to the upcoming filing season.

Contractors also need to complete testing and certification through the Treasury Financial Agent, . A new vendor cannot provide services until January 2025 because of the required testing process. Only the existing vendors can provide uninterrupted support that will ensure the U.S. taxpayers have access to the approved and required web, phone, mobile and tablet applications support.

iii. Only the existing vendors can provide uninterrupted support that will ensure the U.S. taxpayers have access to the approved and required web, phone, mobile and tablet applications support.

The three current contractors collectively possess 26 years of experience with Federal electronic tax payment services and all three contractors are currently performing at satisfactory level. The proposed contractors currently already possess the IRS specific and relevant knowledge to immediately support the services specifically required for this acquisition and have successfully passed the IV&V and Cybersecurity testing and are currently collecting payments for the 2023 filing season. Marketing for filing season 2023 has already been submitted through IRS.gov/e-pay and IRS tax products and materials. The current card processors have already submitted their Marketing Plan to e-Pay and have begun marketing efforts for 2024. Also, their e-Pay information is already available via the IRS.gov website and cannot be changed during the filing season due to the IRS strict policies and procedures of the IV&V testing process.