Q&A - MIC Citizens Guide RFP.pdf

Michigan.gov/MiProcurement

STATE OF MICHIGAN

Department of Treasury 7285 Parsons Drive., Dimondale, Michigan 48821

Bidder Questions & Answers RFP No. 2600000001781

Develop a Citizen’s Guide to Infrastructure Systems

Q

Document and Section

Page Number

Bidder Question State’s Response

Proposal Instructions Timeline:

Proposal Deadline

Would an extension of the proposal deadline be considered? Additional time would support the development of a more comprehensive proposal, particularly given that proposal product quality is a primary component of the evaluation criteria.

Yes, the new proposal due date and time is: May 8, 2026, by 3:00 p.m.

EST.

Hybrid Contract Terms

Timeline, phasing, and contract term Can MIC provide guidance on the expected timeline or sequencing for the different components of the Citizens Guide (e.g., content development, survey execution, review cycles, final delivery). Under the Hybrid Contract Terms (page 18), the contract term is noted as three years. Is MIC’s expectation that this work would be developed and delivered over the full three-year period, or completed within a shorter timeframe inside the contract term?

The MIC would like all contract deliverables completed by October 1, 2026. However, the timeline may be adjusted at a later date if additional time is needed.

Phase 2:

Survey Delivery a.Design, develop, and administer the survey.

Survey reach and success criteria The RFP references public surveys as an input to the Citizens Guide. Can MIC share any expectations around survey reach or participation (e.g., number of responses, geographic coverage), and how MIC would define a “successful”

A successful survey will achieve a high response rate and yield valuable, comprehensive input from across the state, producing actionable insights to guide future planning, maintenance, and investment decisions.

survey? We recognize that public participation can be challenging, and clarity here would help us design an appropriate, realistic engagement approach.

Schedule B - Pricing

Budget clarification Can MIC share the anticipated budget range for the Citizens Guide project?

Understanding the budget envelope would help us right-size the scope, level of effort, and deliverables to ensure we propose an approach that is realistic, effective, and aligned with MIC’s expectations.

The bidder must provide their pricing for all items as noted in Schedule B – Pricing.

Section 1.3 Specific Standards

Under this agreement, the Contractor will be responsible for complying with both public and non-public IT policies and standards. Will the Contractor be provided with applicable non-public IT policies and standards before work commences?

Per section 1.3. Specific Standards, IT Policies, Standards and Procedures (PSP): Non-public PSPs are available to bidders under NDA.

Schedule A: B.

Citizen's Guide Phase 1:

Discovery and Alignment and C. Citizen's Guide Surveys

38/41

Does the MIC AM Education Committee have a set meeting schedule that will drive project input and approval milestones? What is the anticipated review timeline of the 90-page guide?

The MIC AM Education Committee meets quarterly. However, the State’s Program Manager may schedule additional meetings as needed to support program goals.

Committee members will typically have two weeks to review materials and provide feedback.

Schedule A:

Scope B

Does MIC have an email listserv we should plan to utilize, or is the Contractor expected to build it from scratch?

MIC utilizes the Department of Treasury’s listserv which reaches communities across the State Of Michigan and reaches over 10,000 people.

Schedule A:

Scope D

Will the Contractor have Business Manager access to the Michigan Infrastructure Council’s LinkedIn account to promote the Citizen's Guide and related education materials to their established audience as part of the communications strategy?

MIC will need to coordinate with the Department of Treasury’s Communications Office to determine whether access to State systems is appropriate for this work.

Schedule A:

Section 1.1.B.2.h

Is the State providing the Michigan-centric case studies, or is the

The contractor will be responsible for identifying and researching Michigan-centric case studies.

Contractor responsible for identifying and researching these examples?

Schedule A:

Section 2.2

48-49

Understanding milestones are based on the mutually agreed upon Project Plan, which is TBD, is there a launch date that the State is targeting for the Citizen's Guide release (e.g. Fall, end of year)?

The targeted date for release is October 1, 2026.

Schedule B:

Section 2

Is there a separate budget for paid advertising (social media ads, digital display, etc.) to promote the guide, or should the communications strategy rely solely on organic reach and partner organization channels?

The communications strategy will rely solely on organic methods. There is no separate budget to pay for paid advertising.

Schedule D:

Section 5.1

62-32

For the electronic Statewide surveys, if a third-party hosted platform (e.g., SurveyMonkey, SurveyGizmo) is used, does this constitute providing Hosted Services and therefore require the Hosting Provider to maintain FedRAMP authorization or an annual SSAE 18 SOC 2 Type II audit based on NIST 800- 53 MOD Controls?

Yes, this is correct.

Schedule D:

Section 9

Which specific digital deliverables (e.g., the final Citizen's Guide PDF, the survey platform itself, the communication strategy documents) are considered "Contractor provided applications" or "Software" subject to the mandatory Dynamic, Static, and Software Composition Analysis (DAST/SAST/SCA) scanning requirements?

The State is still reviewing this question and a response will be provided as soon as possible.

Schedule D:

Section 9

65-66

Regarding Schedule D, Section 9, can you confirm that given the scope of work, the requirements for vulnerability scans (DAST/SAST) and source code review are not applicable or required?

The State is still reviewing this question and a response will be provided as soon as possible.

Schedule D:

Section 10

If an external, commercially hosted survey platform is utilized, is the Contractor still responsible for providing monthly infrastructure scan assessments (Qualys, Tenable, etc.) for the underlying infrastructure components of that external service?

The State is still reviewing this question and a response will be provided as soon as possible.

Schedule D:

Section 5.1 and Section 8.3

62-65

We expect that hosting services are not required under this RFP - that any and all material created under this project will be hosted by State of Michigan resources upon completion. Is that also the expectation of the State as well?

Hosting services are required under this RFP for the survey.