OAM25035S Answered Questions.xlsx
XLSX spreadsheet 61 KB Posted
- Attached to
- USHR - Technology Alliance Program - H-TAP
- Solicitation number
- OAM25035S
- Issued by
-
United States House of Representatives
About this file
This document is a Q&A file for a United States House of Representatives (USHR) Technology Alliance Program (H-TAP) solicitation seeking technical support services. The solicitation seeks a contractor to provide comprehensive Tier 1, 2, and 3 end-user technology support services for House Members, Committees, Leadership Offices, and staff, with an estimated 30 contractors spanning service desk, technical support, and expert support roles. The contract will cover approximately 13,000 devices across 441 district offices nationwide, with support requirements including helpdesk operations, nationwide technical support, asset management, and inventory control.
Key contract details include a base period from October 2025 to January 2027 with three optional extension periods through January 2033, and an anticipated award in Q1 FY26. The contract will be an Indefinite Delivery/Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) with flexibility for Time and Materials or Firm Fixed Price task orders. Vendors can propose their own pricing structure and labor categories, with an emphasis on supporting House technology platforms like Microsoft 365, BMC Helix, and endpoint management tools such as Workspace One and Intune. The solicitation allows for nationwide support, requires 24/7 service capabilities, and mandates rapid response times, particularly for district office support where technicians may need to arrive on-site within 4 hours for critical issues.
View the file
Other files
Show all 26
On GovTribe
Work with this file
- Download the original file
- Contacts named in this file
- Similar government files
- Ask GovTribe AI about this file
Text version
Questions
| Number | Reference | Question | Response |
| 1 | Section L. 1 | Do we need to submit all the 30 Resumes of Tier I, II, III along with the Proposal ? | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding |
| 2 | L.1, G | The House requires offerors to fill out Section G, however there do not seem to be fields to complete in this section. Please confirm how Section G should be completed. | Contractors shall defined an ACR as described in setion G |
| 3 | General | Is Remote work allowed? | See C.3.1(1) |
| 4 | Is the incumbent qualified to bid on this RFP? | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | |
| 5 | General | If rework, Who is the incumbent and Can the Govt. share the Contractor Name, Contract |
No., and Contract Value?
| There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | ||||
| 6 | General | Are Incumbents eligible to Rebid? | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | |
| 7 | General question | Is this new work? If not, who is/are the incumbents | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | |
| 8 | General question | Is there an incumbent currently performing this work? If so, can the Government identify them and whether they are eligible for recompete? | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | |
| 9 | Section C | Can you please confirm the name of the incumbent contractor currently providing services under this requirement? | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | |
| 10 | Can the Government please confirm the incumbent contractor name, contract number, period of performance (PoP), and contract value? | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | ||
| 11 | L.2 | Please confirm that Tab 1 - Administrative is outside of the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 12 | L.1, L.2 | Please confirm resumes are outside of the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 13 | L.2 | Please confirm if a cover letter can be provided and excluded from page count | See question 25 | |
| 14 | L.2 | Can the Government confirm that the Transition Plan and Quality Assurance Plan are excluded from the 15-page limit? | See question 25 | |
| 15 | L.2. | For compliance purposes, will the government please confirm that all Resumes and the Quality Assurance Plan may be submitted as proposal Appendices and thus would be excluded from the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 16 | L.2. | For compliance purposes, will the government please confirm that Executive Summary is excluded from the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 17 | L.2. | For compliance purposes, will the Government please confirm that Tab 5, Price Schedule, is excluded from the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 18 | L.2. | For compliance purposes, will the government please confirm that three (3) Past Performances are excluded from the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 19 | L.1, Tab 6 req. Page 58 and M.1.a.ii.4 | |||
| Page 61 | If KP are required, are KP resumes excluded from the total page count? | See question 25 | ||
| 20 | Section L.2 | Section L.2 states, “The proposal shall not exceed fifteen (15) pages excluding financial information.” Can the Government please confirm whether the materials requested under Tab 1 – Administrative, as well as the resumes required under Tab 6 – Corporate Capabilities and Past Performance, are also excluded from the 15-page limitation? | See question 25 | |
| 21 | Attachment J.1 | Please confirm if Attachment J.1 needs to be completed and submitted with the proposal. If so, please confirm which Tab is should be included in, and that it is excluded from page count. | Yes, and it is excluded | |
| 22 | L.2 | Please confirm that the proposal cover and table of contents are excluded from page count. | See question 25 | |
| 23 | L.2 | Please confirm that headers and footers can be in a 9-pt font. | See question 25 | |
| 24 | L.2 | |||
| Page 58 | The RFP states, "The typeface used shall be no smaller than 12-point pitch in the document itself. Figures, tables, and captions may be 9-point font." Please clarify whether headers, footers and the proposal cover page are excluded from these font size requirements. | Yes, as long as no new information is presented | ||
| 25 | RFP / Section L.1 Content of Proposals / Tab 4 - Management Proposal / page 57 |
and
RFP / Section L.1 Content of Proposals / Tab 6 Corporate Capabilities and Past Performance / Corporate Capabilities / page 58 Please clarify whether each of the below are excluded from the overall 15-page limit of the proposal. We are concerned that a 15-page limit that is inclusive of these sections will not be sufficient for offerors to provide a complete and responsive proposal and fully address other areas required under the proposal (such as the technical approach to accomplishing the SOW requirements) .
1) Proposal Response Cover Sheet and Table of Contents
2) Tab 1 - Administrative
3) Resumes for all senior technical staff and key personnel (under Tab 6)
4) Past Performance References (under Tab 6)
5) Detailed Transition Plan (under Tab 4)
6) Quality Assurance Plan (under Tab 4)
| 7) Outsourcing Plan (under Tab 4) | Yes, but excluded items shall not contain any information that will be considered in other areas of the RFP (i.e. if Technical Approach information is included in Tab 1 Administrative it will not be considered under technical) | |||
| 26 | Section L.1 Content of Proposals/L.2 Submission of Proposals, pages 57-58 | To ensure comprehensive responses, can the Government confirm that the following items are excluded from the proposal page count: Cover pages, Tabs 1 (Administrative), Table of Contents, Acronym List, resumes, Quality Assurance Plan, and Transition Plan? | Yes, but excluded items shall not contain any information that will be considered in other arease of the RFP (i.e. if Technical Approach information is included in Tab 1 Administrative it will not be considered under technical) | |
| 27 | What system and tools are used for ticketing, asset management, remote access, and knowledge bases? | |||
| BMC Helix | ||||
| 28 | Are there any specific technical platforms expected from the Technology support services team (e.g., hardware refresh, O/S migration)? | The support services team will use technology platforms provided by the House . | ||
| 29 | Are contractors responsible for any software development, scripting (e.g., PowerShell), or purely configuration/support activities? | Tier 3 support will be expected to do PowerShell scripting . | ||
| 30 | How is SLA performance currently tracked and reported (e.g., weekly dashboards, monthly reports)? | We would prefer to hear the vendor's SLA plan . | ||
| 31 | Are there any performance gaps with the incumbent team or any changes expected with the new contract? | There is no incumbent for this requirement, contractors performing similar work may submit proposals | ||
| 32 | Could you please provide a list of offices or regions outside DC where Tier 2 and 3 support is typically required? Are they currently supported remotely? Will contractors be reimbursed for travel and lodging, or should pricing be fully laoded? | List to be provided at a later date. Offices are support in-person and remotely. Vendors may propose either. | ||
| 33 | C.3.2.a. | Can the Government please clarify what is meant by 'maintaining' and 'inventory'? For example, does this refer to stocking inventory, and/or maintaining an asset management database? | Maintaining an inventory means ordering and decommissioning computers and other hardware as needed and tracking these devices in the House asset management system . | |
| 34 | C.3.1. 4) | Can the Govt please share additional details regarding the nature of the support required by Nationwide Support partners for inventory control and asset management processes. | Maintaining an inventory means ordering and decommissioning computers and other hardware as needed and tracking these devices in the House asset management system . | |
| 35 | Solicitation, Offer and Award From | The form includes a red X over the Table of Contents, please confirm this is the form in its present form the Contractor is to complete and return in Tab 1. | The table of contents is on page 2 of the document, the red X is to remove ambiguity | |
| 36 | B.1/K.9/M.3/Solicitation, Offer and Award Form | There appears to be inconsistencies Sections B.1, K.9, M.3, and the Solicitation, Offer and Award Form with regard to the use of a GSA MAS schedule as the basis for pricing this proposal. Please confirm this bid is not being bid under a GSA MAS schdule. | You may propose GWAC or open market pricing. It does not HAVE to be GSA. | |
| 37 | B.1 | Please confirm the proposal validity period required by the Government for this solicitation. | The proposal shall remain valid for 120 days. | |
| 38 | C.3.1.4 | Can the Government please confirm that the solicitation requirements supercede the Q&A responses from the RFI Attachment J.4. | The RFP will be updated when answers to questions are provided. | |
| 39 | C.3.4 | Does this solicitation assume incumbent capture? | Generally | |
| 40 | C.5.1.b | Please confirm that for District Office Support all response times requirements are in local time to that District Office. | Yes | |
| 41 | H.1.c | Is it the Government's intent to leave the Discrentionary Contract clause maximum amount that can be awardedunder a single or multiple orders blank. Please advise. | It depends on the contract type proposed by the potential awardee | |
| 42 | H.7 | Warranty. Please confirm this clause is appropriate for a services only contract to provide Tier 1- Tier 3 Help Desk Support. No goods or equipment are anticipated being procured by the Contractor in performance of this award. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 43 | H.10 | We recommend the removal of this clause. The rationale for this is that the anticipated contract will be structured as an IDIQ with fixed labor rates established at the IDIQ level. As such, the pricing with not be adjused upward for future task orders and the Government will not be re-evaluating pricing throughout the term of the contract. The inclusion of this Most Favorable Customer Clause in this context introduces compliance burden for Contractors and is not applicable to rate card based submission which includes pre-negotiated rates. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 44 | F.1 | For Pricing purposes, please confirm the anticiapted Contract start date is 01 October 2025. | The anticipated contract start date is in Q1FY26 | |
| 45 | F.6.b | Payment for Non-Performance. Is it the Government's intent to use this clause as a contract de-incentive for failing to cure Contractor performance? If so, will the Government please add a cure notice clause, e.g. 10 business days for the Contractor to cure the failure. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 46 | L.3 | Can the Government please remove these sentences from this clause as they do not appear applicable to this solicitation: |
"After initial award, the solicitation will remain open for subsequent submission of CMS packages for testing and evaluation and, upon approval, a proposal to provide the respective service for the duration of the then-current Contract period and any available extension as provided in the solicitation. The solicitation will also remain open for the submission of proposals to provide Maintenance Services and/or Systems Administration Services for the duration of the then-current Contract period and any available extension as provided in the solicitation. " "Currently the House anticipates accepting new proposals twice per year in non-transition legislative years and once
| during transition legislative years but may update that guidance at any time at the above website. The CO may close the solicitation for further submissions at any time after the initial award." | Removed | |||
| 47 | I.1 | Rights in New Work Product is included as a clause for the development of new data, inventions, discoveries, intellectual propety, technical communications and records developed, as this is a contract for help desk services and there will be no inventions under this anticipated contract. Please confirm this clause is not applicable for this solicitation. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 48 | I.2 | Software Escrow. Please confirm that this contract is for Tier 1-Tier 3 Help Desk support and not software development, and that no source code will be developed by the Contractor under the anticipated contract. As such, we request removal of this clause, as Software Escrow does not apply to the scope of services being performed and no source code will be held or delivered to the Government. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 49 | I.3 | Please confirm that this clause is applicable to the scope of this procurement. Based on the soliciation, Contractor will not be develping, licensing, or transferring any software or proprietary documents under the anticpated contract. As such, we request removal of this clause. If the Government intends to retain this clause, please modify SOW to identify the specific requirements. This will enable Contractors to the ability to price future ODC's aligned with the scope of services. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 50 | C.3.4 | How many staff augmentation support contractors does the House currently have supporting its Service Desk? | Estimated 10 Tier 1, 15-20 Tier 2 and 1-2 Tier 3. | |
| 51 | C.3.4 | How many staff augmentation support contractors does the House anticipate starting on Day 1 of the contract? | Up to 35 but I'm not sure how long we'd need to phase-in/phase out . | |
| 52 | C.5.1.2 | Will the Government please align its Tier 1 - 3 Help Desk on-site response and resolution time requirements to industry best-practices, i.e., to those of other similarly situated Legislative agencies. | There are no similarly situated Legislative agencies | |
| 53 | C.3.4. | Can the Government please share the number of House District Offices Help Desk tickets per year that require on-site travel. Also, please provide the number of site vists by location? | ||
| Typically 1-3 trips per month on average, depending on customer demand. | ||||
| 54 | I.11. | Based on the soliciation, the Contractor will be providing Tier 1-Tier 3 Help Desk support services and will not be responsible for maintaining or hosting any systems, solutons or infrastructure. Could the Government please confirm that this section is not applicale for the nature of this work and remove this requirement I.11 in its entirety. | The vendor will be expected to maintain existing House owned endpoint management tooling such as Workspace One, Apple Business Manager, JAMF, and Intune . | |
| 55 | I.11.C | Based on the soliciation, the Contractor will be providing Tier 1-Tier 3 Help Desk support services and will not be responsible for maintaining or hosting any systems, solutons or infrastructure. Could the Government please remove I.11 (c). | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 56 | C.9.c | Can the House please confirm that an acceptable way to meet this requirement is for Nationwide support subcontractors to securely ship equipment/media back to the House CAO for permanent disposal. | Member Office is responsible for shipping, not the vendor. | |
| 57 | C.3.2. | How are hardware repairs handled if the technician diagnoses a hardware related issue? | The technician should attempt to repair and, if unable to, should send the hardware to the warranty provider . | |
| 58 | M.1.c. | Can the Government please provide it's methodolgy for determining Price Realism. | It will vary as contractors may propose different pricing structures that will need to be normalized for evaluation | |
| 59 | H.14.b | Can the Government please delete this clause as it is not applicable for the solicitation requirements. | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 60 | F.1 | Can the Government please confirm that Price Proposal should use the end date of January 2, 2033. | Yes the options should be as indicated in the RFP | |
| 61 | C.12 | Can the Government please confirm that this clause is not applicable to the solicitation requirements and should be remooved or reserved for a later time period. | C.12, referring to outsourced systems, does not seem to be applicable | |
| 62 | C.10 | The reference to Section C.15(a) does not appear within the solicitation and may be in error. Additionally, subparagraph (b) does not include a formal cure period prior to the imposition of remedies, and subparagraph (c) introduces unbound financial risk to Contractor. The C.10 clause does not appear to be applicable to the scope of the solicitation's requirements for Tier 1-3 Help Desk support, and thus we request removal of C.10 in its entirety. | I could go either way on C.10, probably not needed . | |
| 63 | M.3.f | Please confirm that subparagraph (f) is limited to the House Terms and Conditions (RFP Sections D through K) and that the Contractor is permitted to include reasonable assumptions in its pricing and technical response (Sections Solicitation Offer and Award Form, B, C, L, M), provided they do not conflict with the contract terms. | As long as the assumptions don't conflict with what is requested in the RFP | |
| 64 | H.29 | Reference in H.29 this sentence: “If separately priced and awarded, travel costs shall be reimbursed in accordance with the Joint Federal Travel Regulations, including per diem rate limitations.” Please confirm that a separately priced CLIN for travel time and costs that is included in an offeror’s Price proposal is in compliance with H.29 and will be awarded by the Government | Yes, but no travel for local work will be considered (DC and surrounding area). Travel may be considered for district office work, but contractors may also propose a plan that does not include travel. | |
| 65 | General | Is this a new Opportunity or Rework? | New Opportunity | |
| 66 | General | Any challenges or Pain points? | The biggest challenge is that the House is converting from Workspace One to Intune for endpoint management . | |
| 67 | General | Can we submit Sample Resumes or Live resumes? | Yes | |
| 68 | General | Can we replace the candidates after the award? | Yes, with House approval | |
| 69 | General | What is the estimated award date? | ||
| For Phase I & Phase II? | Q1FY26 | |||
| 70 | General | What is the maximum ceiling value? | Not provided, adequate competition | |
| 71 | General | Will the Government accept state and commercial past performance? | Yes as long as it is recent and relevant | |
| 72 | General | Can the Govt. provide any Wage determination? | No | |
| 73 | General | Can the Govt. confirm the level of Effort? (i.e No. of FTEs) ? | See 50 | |
| 74 | L.6.4.2.1 | Could the Government please confirm whether the only required Key Personnel Resume at the time of proposal submission is the Program Manager? | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding | |
| 75 | Section L. 1 | Is the Program Manager position considered billable under this contract? | For the hours dedicated to this contract | |
| 76 | Section M.1 | Can the House confirm whether federal, state, local, or commercial past performance examples will be considered acceptable for evaluation purposes? | See 71 | |
| 77 | L.1. Content Of Proposals | Referring to the Tab 6 – Corporate Capabilities and Past Performance, House mentions "Provide background and qualifications of the Program Manager to be assigned to the operation and a brief resume including certifications". Can the House please provide the list of Education Qualification/Certifications and Experience if any for the positon of Program Manager | Bachelor's degree and 5 years' experience | |
| 78 | General | What are the Annual Hours ? Is it 1920 or 2080? | 1960 | |
| 79 | L.1. Content Of Proposals | Referring to the Tab 4 - Management Proposal House has mentioned "Management approach to track the delivery of products and services related to this contract". Do we need to supply any products or Softwares ? | No, you do not need to supply any products or software. | |
| 80 | H.29 | How often travel is required? | As necessary | |
| 81 | General | How many trips are required in a month? | No requirement, as necessary | |
| 82 | L.1. Content Of Proposals | Can we submit the candidate Certification after the award or before the award? | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding | |
| 83 | Section B.1 | Can the House confirm whether submission of a vendor-formatted pricing sheet is acceptable, or will a standard pricing template be released? | See question 343 | |
| 84 | Section C.3 | Can the House confirm whether the firm-fixed price proposal must be broken down by labor category, milestone, or just submitted as a single total? | All costs should be identified | |
| 85 | Section C.4 | Will the 24x7 Tier 1 coverage include holidays, and should vendors account for holiday staffing in their labor cost estimates? | Yes | |
| 86 | Section B.1 | For Congressional Transition surge support, should vendors propose fixed hourly labor rates now or await future task orders for pricing? | Now | |
| 87 | Section L. 1 | Can the House confirm that resumes are only required for designated key personnel Program Manager, and not for all proposed staff, i.e Tier 1 (10), Tier II (15), Tier III(05)? | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding | |
| 88 | Section H.24 | Will substitution of proposed personnel post-award be allowed with prior written approval from the COR? | Yes | |
| 89 | General | Do we need to propose the addition key personnel at this stage? or at Task Order will govt share the Key Personnel Requirements? | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding | |
| 90 | General | Is the Govt looking for only Bill Rates? at the IDIQ level | No, we will consider the entire LOE proposed | |
| 91 | General | Can the government provide the Pricing Template for these requirements and clarify the specific pricing parameters or evaluation criteria being considered? | See question 343 | |
| 92 | General | Do we need to provide resumes for proposed positions for ex: Tier 1, 2, & 3? | Yes | |
| 93 | General | Can the govt please provide the Pricing template of all categories to align with HOR ecxpectations ? And do we need to provide the pricing for all the 30 candidates of Tier I,II,III along with the Key personnal Program Manager? Please Confirm | See question 84 | |
| 94 | Attachment J.1 | The heading when the Attacment J.1 file is opened says "Attachment J.2" - please revise to say "Attachment J.1" | Changed | |
| 95 | H | Please confirm if Section H should be completed and submitted with the proposal. If so, please confirm that it is not included in the 15 page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 96 | Solicitation Offer and Award Form | Field 6 of the Solicitation and Offer Form has been crossed out in red. Please confirm what this means. | The TOC is located on page 2 | |
| 97 | L.1 | Per the solicitation, "Provide background and qualifications of the Program Manager to be assigned to the operation and a brief resume including certifications (not to exceed 4 pages each) of all senior technical staff and key personnel who shall be assigned to this Contract." |
| Please confirm that the Program Manager is the only required key person. | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding | |||
| 98 | L.1 | It is common practice for technical and price proposals to be separate files, however the structure described in Section L.1 has them combined into one file. Please confirm that it is acceptable to have price information included in the same document as the non-price narratives. | No, price proposals shall be a separate document | |
| 99 | C.3.1 | C.3.1 Page 8: "Nationwide Support: Capability to provide logistic support and onsite Tier 2 and 3 technical support for offices outside the Washington, DC, metropolitan area under a Nationwide IT Support contract, including support for inventory control and asset management processes." |
(a) What is included in logistic support?
(b) Can the House provide the number of offices requiring support?
| (c) Of the staffing levels cited in C.3.4 page 12, confirm these are located in DC and nationwide support staff are in addition. If so, what is the anticipated staffing levels for each office / region? | a) Logistical support refers to setting up office hardware and networks. b)There are 441 offices requiring support. C.3.4 staffing levels are for DC. The nationwide staffing need will vary based upon the vendor's proposed methodology | |||
| 100 | L.1, M.1 | According to the evaluation criteria, key personnel are evaulated under the management approach (Tab 4), however the requirements of corporate capabilities (Tab 6) are where the resume requirements are found. Please confirm which tab should include the resumes. | Resume for PM excluded from page limit | |
| 101 | B.1.1 | Can the House provide a template with the desired pricing format to ensure bidders understand the pricing requirements, ensure fairness, and enable bidders to provide more accurate and comprehensive proposals | See question 343 | |
| 102 | B.1.1 | How will the House standardize the price format after the RFP closes, and what timeline can bidders expect for this standardization process? | See question 343, trying to get it out prior to RFP close | |
| 103 | B.1.1 | What criteria will the House use to determine the competitive range, and how will pricing format standardization impact this determination? | Technical acceptability, management approach, price… the pricing format will allow apples to apples comparison at a line item level, but bottom line may be used for competitive range | |
| 104 | B.1.1 | Will bidders have an opportunity to revise or clarify their pricing submissions after the standardized format is introduced? | Yes, if it is not standardized prior to proposal submission | |
| 105 | B.1.1 | How will the House evaluate the total price for the proposed solutions, and what factors will be considered in this evaluation? | See Instructions to Offerors | |
| 106 | H.1 | Under the IDIQ section, the House references labor classifications in "Section [_], Attachment [_]". Can the House provide the referenced Attachment. | That is a contract clause, not a solicitation provision, subject to change based on contract award | |
| 107 | I.10 | Can the House further define the Self-Hosting Option for an onsite service desk in Section I.10? Does pricing need to be provided separately for this? | Standard contract clause at the House | |
| 108 | M.1 | How will the House evaluate price realism, and what criteria will be used to determine if the pricing is realistic and reflects an understanding of the requirements? | Based on the requirements of the SOW and projected service levels | |
| 109 | M.1 | Can you provide examples of "significant inconsistencies" between promised performance and price that may raise concerns about an Offeror's understanding of the work required? | No | |
| 110 | M.1 | During Phase 2, what specific aspects of the price proposal may be discussed or clarified during the oral presentations, if invited? | For vendors invited to oral presentations instructions shall be provided to them | |
| 111 | M.1 | How will the House evaluate the price factor in relation to the non-price factors, given that non-price factors may be more important than price when combined? | Non-price factors are slightly more important than price | |
| 112 | M.1 | Can Offerors provide alternative pricing structures or innovative pricing models, and how will these be evaluated? | Yes | |
| 113 | M.1 | What is the timeline for the price evaluation and clarification process, and when can Offerors expect to be notified about the competitive range and potential award? | Q1FY26 | |
| 114 | General | Can the House provide details on the average number of tickets that come from primary vs. secondary district offices? | 44500 total tickets across Tier 1,2,3 for 2024. (breakdown by location not available) |
Tier 1: 22,250 Tier 2: 250 Tier 3: 22,000
| 115 | General | Does the district office support only include primary offices, or secondary offices as well? | District office support refers to secondary offices that are in the geographically dispersed congressional districts . |
| 116 | General | Can the House provide ticket volume details related to the primary office? | 44500 total tickets across Tier 1,2,3 for 2024. (breakdown by location not available) |
Tier 1: 22,250 Tier 2: 250 Tier 3: 22,000
| 117 | Section C.3.1, Page 7 and Page 8 | Given that existing internal staff (federal) and potential for multiple contractors, is the Government's intention to utilize this contract for staff augmentation purposes or will the Contractor be accountable for overall delivery? | Vendor will be accountable for contractor performance, may vary based on vendor proposals |
| 118 | Section M.1, Page 61 | Does the Government anticipate awarding a fixed-price or labor-hour contract and how will this include surge pricing? Will a template be provided for consistency in evaluations? | See question 343, contract type will be considered during evaluations |
| 119 | Section C.3.1, Page 8 and Section 3.4, Page 12 | Given 30 days notice of surge requirements, will surge hires get expedited support to complete badge processing within 30 days? If not, will Contractor be able to initiate badging process in advance? | Yes |
| 120 | Section C.5.1, Page 12 and Section C.5.2, Page 13 | Is the Contractor required to provide on-site support within 4 hours for all of the 950 district offices? Please clarify the support levels required for the DC Metro area versus district/field offices (outside DC Metro area) and locations. | Yes, critical cases require onsite support within 4 hours. See C.5.1. Field support equates to 1-3 cases per month on average. See. 53. |
| 121 | L.1 Content |
of Proposals
| (Page 57) | In Section L.1, you mention an outsourcing plan is due as part of the management response in our bid submission. In Section C.12, it states the oursourcing plan is to be supplied within a six-month period of the issuance of the contract. Can you confirm whether this needs to be included in our initial proposal or provided upon award? | C.12 has been updated to remove the outsourcing plan | ||
| 122 | General | Can you provide the city/state of all remote locations of Congressional offices needing support? | Assume there are approximately 150 district office dispersed across the country, including Alaska and Hawaii. | |
| 123 | General | How many employees are at each remote location? | The vendor needs to be able to respond to incidents at nation wide district offices but does not need to dedicate staff to those offices . | |
| 124 | General | How many IT support personnel by role are currently staffed at each remote location today? | The vendor needs to be able to respond to incidents at nation wide district offices but does not need to dedicate staff to those offices . | |
| 125 | L.1 Content of Proposals |
Tab 4
| (Page 57) | Under the Management Proposal Tab 4 requirements (Management Approach), can the House please clarify the transition plan requirements if there is not a vendor currently performing similar services today? | Transition requires a temporary increase in staffing to handle an expected surge in tickets. The vendor should have a plan to quickly scale up staff across Tier 1, 2 and 3 . |
| 126 | L.1 Content |
of Proposals
| (Page 57) | If there is a vendor currently supplying services, can the House please describe their process? | There is no incument for this requirement. | ||
| 127 | Content Section 3.2 | |||
| (Page 8) | Is the "Administration Services" personnel headcount included in the total number of contractors llisted on page 12? | Yes , admin services are part of the Tier 2 role- | ||
| 128 | Content Section 3.2 | |||
| (Page 8) | If Administration Services personnel are not included in total number of contractors, can you provide the headcount currently used for those administrative services? | Admin services are part of the Tier 2 role's job duty - | ||
| 129 | Content Sections M.1 a. (page 61) and M.3 a. (Page 62) | Section M.1 a. Evaluation Factors for Award, states: "the House intends to make one or more awards to Offers whose proposals meet the requirements as stated in this solicitation." Section M.3 a. states "the House intends to award a single contract resulting from this solicitation, taking into account the factors contained in M.a 'Evalutation Factors for Award.'" Can the House clarify whether this award will be a single award or awarded to multiple vendors? | The House reserves the right to award one or more contracts as a result of this solicitation | |
| 130 | C.3.2 Responsibilities (Page 8) | Please describe your hardware and software asset management program and expected vendor responsibilities. | Vendor responsibilities include imaging and repair as well as lifespan mangement (3-5 years typically). Vendor will notify Member office at end of life they will need to refresh their equipment by directing them to our House supply store. Vendor will receive end of life mobile phones and turn over to House telecomm team to dispose. Vendor will not handle end of life laptops. | |
| 131 | C.3.2 Responsibilities (Page 8) | Please describe the responsibilities associated with maintaining vendor maintenance agreements. | Vendor responsibilities include imaging and repair as well as lifespan mangement (3-5 years typically). Vendor will notify Member office at end of life they will need to refresh their equipment by directing them to our House supply store. Vendor will receive end of life mobile phones and turn over to House telecomm team to dispose. Vendor will not handle end of life laptops. | |
| 132 | Pg. 61/M1(a) & Pg. 62/M3(a) | Please confirm the government is seeking a single vendor who can perform all tasks listed in the RFP. | The House reserves the right to award one or more contracts as a result of this solicitation | |
| 133 | Pg. 7/C.3.1/Requested Support (itesm 1 - 4) | Will the House consider offfers that do not include all requested services? Example if an offeror can not faciliate nationwide service, will the House still consider proposal for the other requested services? | The House would prefer a complete solution. | |
| 134 | Pg. 7/C.3.1/Requested Support (itesm 1 - 4) | There appear to be four areas of scope listed in this section: |
Tier 1 (Service Desk) – ITIL: First-Line Support, Tier 2 (Technical Support) – ITIL: Second-Line Support, and Tier 3 (Expert Support) – ITIL: Third-Line Support.
Nationwide Support
| It is assumed Tier1-3 are to be bid as fixed hourly rates. Does the House want hourly or fixed unit rate pricing for nationwide support? | We are open to any type of pricing model for nationwide support . | |||
| 135 | Pg 5/B.1 Pricing | Will the House consider providing a pricing table template prior to submission of offeror responses? | Working on it | |
| 136 | Pg 60/L.6 Questions | Will the House consider providing three weeks to provide proposals from the time questions are answered? | The timeline will be extended | |
| 137 | Pg. 8/C.3.1/Item 4 Nationwide Support |
| Pg. 12/C.5.1.1 & C.5.2.1.2 Response and Resolution Times | Please confirm the House is asking for a single fixed unit rate applicable to all Nationwide District Offices with the documented response times. If confirmed, please provide a list of all office locations and confirm if these time frames are intended to be applicable to all CONUS locations and/or any OCONUS locations. | Not able to provide list of district offices. | |
| 138 | L.1, page 57 | May the Offeror submit the proposal as two separate files, structured as follows? |
File I: Including Tab 2 (Executive Summary), Tab 3 (Technical Approach), Tab 4 (Management Approach), and Tab 6 (Corporate Capabilities and Past Performance)
| File II: Including Tabs 1 (Administrative), Tab 5 (Price Schedules) | Yes | |||
| 139 | L.1, page 57 | Please confirm whether Tab 5 (Price Schedules) must be submitted in PDF format or Excel format. | RFP updated | |
| 140 | L.1, page 57 | Does the government have a preferred pricing template or format that offerors should follow for Tab 5 - Price Schedules? | Working on it | |
| 141 | L.1, page 57 | In addition to the fully burdened hourly rate, should the price include the total estimated cost to support the scope for the base? | All costs should be identified | |
| 142 | L.1, page 57 | Would the government provide the labor categories for required staff? | see C.3.3 | |
| 143 | L.1, page 57 | Please confirm whether any portion(s) of the Statement of Work (SOW) are currently being supported by contractors. If so, which specific services or functions are currently supported by contractors? Including the extent of that support | There is no incumbent for this requirement. | |
| 144 | L.1, page 57 | Please clarify whether any portion(s) of the current SOW requirements are currently performed by government personnel. If so, please specify which services or functions are expected to transition to contractor responsibility under this requirement? | N/A | |
| 145 | L.1, page 57 | Section states "Outsourcing plan as described in Section C.12 of the Statement of Work, including assessment and authorization." |
| Please confirm what the government expects or requires to be outsourced under this contract (facility, equipment, operated systems, or other managed services), if any. | C.12 was modified to reflect only House information protections | ||
| 146 | L.1, page 57 | Section states "Proposals may be made for any or all of the three Tasks." |
| As Section C does not use the term "Task," please clarify what the government means by “three Tasks” in this context? For example, do the “three Tasks” correspond to Tier 1, Tier 2, and Tier 3 Technology Support Services, or some other delineation. | That line was deleted. | |||
| 147 | L.1, pages 57-58 | Please confirm that the Executive Summary is not included in the page limit. | It is not included in the page limit but should present no new information | |
| 148 | L.1, pages 57-58 | Please clarify what constitutes the required "financial information" not included in the page limit. | Could be a letter from your bank indicating that sufficient funding is available to perform the contract but see K.1, we may also be checking Dun and Bradstreet for financial stability numbers for vendors invited to Phase 2 | |
| 149 | L.1, pages 58 | The solicitation states "The staffing approach must be definitive enough to provide the House with a clear understanding of how the Offeror intends to staff this contract (with key and non-key technical personnel) to successfully meet all the requirements of the Statement of Work. |
| Is the government expecting a staffing plan matrix with FTEs aligned to position types using quantaties provided in Section C.3.4? | There is no required format for the staffing plan but it must be definitive enough to provide the House with a clear understanding of how the Offeror intends to staff this contract (with key and non-key technical personnel) to successfully meet all the requirements of the Statement of Work | |||
| 150 | L.1, page 58 | Can the government please clarify whether the Program Manager position is considered a billable role? If so, will it be tied to specific Delivery Orders or treated as a centralized oversight function under the contract? | See question 75 | |
| 151 | L.1, page 58 | Will key personnel be designated at the Delivery Order level, based on the scope and complexity of each order. If so, will the government want Offeror's to identify representative Key Personnel that would be maintained at the Delivery Order Level. If not, does the government expect Offerors to identify specific key personnel roles that must be proposed and maintained at the contract level? | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding | |
| 152 | L.1, page 58 | For proposed senior technical staff and key personnel proposed, please confirm resumes will not to be counted against the page limit. | At proposal stage we only need to see resume for Program Manager. We will review and approve resumes of support staff prior to onboarding. Resumes are not counted against proposal page limit (See question 25). | |
| 154 | L.2, page 58 | Could the government confirm that the 15 pages excludes Tab 1, Tab 2, and Tab 5. Please confirm that Tabs 1, 2, and 5 have no page limit. | See question 25 | |
| 155 | M.1, page 61; M.3, page 62 | Section M.1 states "The House intends to make one or more awards." Solification Section M.3 states "The House intends to award a single contract resulting from this solicitation to the responsible Offeror." |
| Please confirm whether a single award is anticipated. | The House reserves the right to award one or more contracts as a result of this solicitation | |
| 156 | C.1, page 6; |
C.3.1., page 7-8;
C.3.4, page 11-12;
C.5.1, page 12-13;
| F.3, page 22 | Please clarify whether Tier 2 and 3 onsite support for District Offices outside of Washington, DC will be handled primarily remotely with onsite support within the "Arrival On-site within 4 hours" timeframe. | Remote support is acceptable if that's all that's required to resolve the case; some cases will require sending a technician to the physical office . |
| 157 | C.1, page 6; |
C.3.1., page 7-8;
C.3.4, page 11-12;
C.5.1, page 12-13;
| F.3, page 22 | Please confirm that onsite Tier 1 staff will be physically located in one of the four House buildings in Washington, DC. | That is correct . |
| 158 | C.1, page 6; |
C.3.1., page 7-8;
C.3.4, page 11-12;
C.5.1, page 12-13;
| F.3, page 22 | Are all Tier 1 shifts, including the “After hours” shift (e.g., 11:00 PM to 7:00 AM), expected to be performed onsite? Or is there flexibility for remote work during “After hours”? | Tier 1 is a hybrid model, with an emphasis on onsite and flexibility to work remote . |
| 159 | C.1, page 6; |
C.3.1., page 7-8;
C.3.4, page 11-12;
C.5.1, page 12-13;
| F.3, page 22 | How are District Offices outside of Washington, DC currently being supported under ITCS? Is this support being outsourced, provided by government contractors, and/or directly by government IT staff. If so, please provide the arrangement and engagement expected by Offerors to support ITCS H-TAP IDIQ Deliver Orders. | The approach will be dependent on the offeror's proposal. | ||
| 160 | C.2., page 6. | Are Nationwide Districe Offices connected to the HouseNet? | Yes | |
| 161 | C.3.4., page 12 | The solicitation states that 25 additional contractor personnel may be required during Congressional Transition periods, but does not specify the duration or timing of that surge. |
Please clarify the following:
1) the expected duration of the surge period (e.g., number of weeks or months);
| 2) What is the expected lead time the government will provide to onboard the 25 surge personnel needed during Congressional Transition periods? | 1) surge period is November - February on a 2 year election swing; 2) 2 months lead time . | |||
| 162 | C.3.1, page 8. | Is there a Nationwide IT Support Outsourced Vendor and/or Contract currently in place? If yes, would that support vendor and/or contract be expected to continue or expected to be replaced under the USHR H-TAP contract? | Depends on the results of the RFP | |
| 163 | C.3.2, page 8 | Which antivirus software would the Contractor support? (e.g., Microsoft Defender, SentinelOne, or another solution). | Microsoft Defender | |
| 164 | C.3.4, page 10 | What are the HIR-developed systems? And to what level of detail will the Tier 1/2/3 contractor staff need to know their inner workings? | The organization primarily uses COTS products such as M365, Remedy Helix, ARS, Click-up, and UEM tools such as ABM, Workspace One, and Intune . | |
| 165 | C.3.1, page 7 | Are there House systems used to conduct House business that are out-of-scope for this contract? (e.g. HR, Accounting/Finance). If so, please identify the categories or types of systems that are excluded from contractor support responsibilities. | We can only specify the systems that are used . | |
| 166 | C.3.1, page 7 | Section states "Augmentation of Existing Technical Team: Tier 1, 2, and 3 contractors to augment House staff. Contractors will be an extension of and will work closely with an existing ITCS team." |
| Please provide a breakdown or explanation of the existing ITCS team, including make-up and quantity of contractators, government personnel, government technical leads and leadership. Also, please provide any relevant organizational structure or reporting relationships that will guide collaboration between contractor staff and the ITCS team. | The contractor will generally report to the contractor officer's representative (COR). | |||
| 167 | C.3.1, page 7 | Please clarify whether the government intends for this contract to support staff efficiencies and potential workforce optimization over time, or if the primary objective is to provide pure staff augmentation on an as-needed basis consistent with issued Delivery Orders. | We are open to either approach . | |
| 168 | C.3.2, page 8 | Please clarify the types of training topics that contractors are expected to provide (e.g., general productivity tools, email/calendar functions, mobile device setup, security awareness, etc.). Please also clarify the expected level of detail or complexity for this training (e.g., basic user tasks such as setting an out-of-office message, or more advanced usage/configuration). | Contractors are not expected to provide formal training to customers but will be expected to show them how to perform basic functions in their work devices as well as Outlook, MyIT and Remedy Helix . | |
| 169 | C.3.2, page 8 | Section states "o) facilitating telecommunications arrangements among House staff, the staff’s district offices and outside services" |
| Please confirm that this is coodinating with established telecommunications providers. | That's correct . | ||
| 170 | C.3.2, page 8 | Under Responsibilities Section C there are several references to "Maintenance Contractor". |
| Please confirm whether this refers to other external contractor companies, such as a dedicated hardware maintenance contractor. What are the specific roles and responsibilities of the Maintenance Contractor in relation to the scope of this contract? How will coordination between the awarded contractor and the Maintenance Contractor be managed? | Yes, this refers to dedicated hardware maintenance contractors. Coordination will have to be worked out . | ||
| 171 | C.3.3, page 9 | Under Tier 1 Technology Support Services, there is mention of supporting COTS. |
| Does this refer to standard desktop and network products or House-specific off-the-shelf applications? If unique, to what level of detail will the Tier 1 staff need to understand them? Will there be orientation/ training to understand them to provide support? Does existing documentation exist? | COTS refers to industry standard off the shelf products (eg, M365, Remedy Helix) . | |||
| 172 | C.3.3, page 9 | Is BMC Helix (Remedy) the only IT service management (ITSM) platform currently used by the House for ticketing and service management? Is the House's BMC Helix (Remedy) instance on-premises or cloud-based? | Yes, Remedy Helix is the only ticketing system. It's cloud based . | |
| 173 | C.3.4, page 12 | The solicitation states: |
The total number of contractors will be approximately thirty (30):
Tier 1 – up to ten (10) Tier 2 – up to fifteen (15) Tier 3 – up to five (5) The total number of additional contractors to support the Congressional Transition periods will be approximately twentyfive (25):
Tier 1 – up to fifteen (15) Tier 2 – up to five (5) Tier 3 – up to five (5)
| Is the total number of contractors provided in the solicitation the maximum FTE for the contract in its entirity or the maximum level that can be executed for each issued Delivery Order? | Most likely, we will not use Delivery Orders and will instead use one overarching Purchase Order. Contractor counts are estimates based on forecasted demand. | ||
| 174 | C.5, pages 12-13 | Regarding support for nationwide District Offices, please clarify the following: |
a. Would the government provide a list of all the District Office Locations that will be supported?
b. What are the government’s expectations for full-time equivalent (FTE) staffing dedicated to supporting District Offices nationwide?
c. What is the anticipated breakdown of remote versus onsite support for District Offices? Does the percentage split provided in the previous government RFI questions response also apply to District Office locations?
d. Do the response and resolution times outlined in Section C.5.2 ("Summary of Contractor Response and Resolution Times") apply specifically to support for District Offices only? If not, please clarify what service level expectations (response and resolution times) apply for local (Washington DC) as well as District Offices support. a. Assume there are approximately 150 district office dispersed across the country, including Alaska and Hawaii.
b/c. Assume 1-3 site visits per month to district offices.
d. C.5.2. refers to district offices.
175 C.5.1.2 and C.5.2, page 13 Resolution Times Section C under the current solicitation only provides response times for District Offices as follows:
Initial Contact - 1 hour Arrival On-site within - 4 hours Resolution Time within - 8 hours
The Government questions and answers document under the RFI provided the following response time:
Tier 1 - first contact (1 hour) Tier 2 - 1-3 days, depending on ticket type Tier 3 - up to 5 days
Please clarify the ticket response times. Disregard the response times in the RFI and address the response times in the RFP for district offices:
Initial Contact - 1 hour Arrival On-site within - 4 hours Resolution Time within - 8 hours
| 176 | H.1, page 32 | Would the government provide examples of Delivery Orders that would be issued under USHR H-TAP? | No |
| 177 | H.1, page 32 | Would the government be able to provide an estimate of the anticipated number of Delivery Orders expected to be issued under this contract and the ceiling value for individual Delivery Orders and/or the total estimated value? | No |
| 178 | H.1, page 32 | What is the expected contract value to be issued for the first 12 months? | Adequate competition is anticipated |
This is the start of the file's text. The full file is on GovTribe.
File details come from the government source that posted it. Updated .