RFP # 32701-04678 – Amendment # 8 Page 1 of 7

STATE OF TENNESSEE

TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENT AND CONSERVATION

REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS # 32701-04678

AMENDMENT # 8

FOR WIRELESS-AS-A-SERVICE PROVIDER FOR

TENNESSEE STATE PARKS

DATE: March 5, 2026

RFP # 32701-04678 IS AMENDED AS FOLLOWS:

1. This RFP Schedule of Events updates and confirms scheduled RFP dates. Any event, time, or date containing revised or new text is highlighted.

EVENT

TIME

(central time zone)

DATE

1. RFP Issued October 20, 2025

2. Disability Accommodation Request Deadline 2:00 p.m. October 24, 2025

3. Pre-response Conference 2:00 p.m. October 28, 2025

4. Notice of Intent to Respond Deadline 2:00 p.m. October 29, 2025

5. Written “Questions & Comments” Deadline 2:00 p.m. November 4, 2025

6. State Response to Written “Questions & Comments”

January 14, 2026

7. Second Round Written “Questions and Comments” Deadline

January 23, 2026

8. State Response to Second Round Written “Questions and Comments”

March 5, 2026

9. Technical Response Deadline 2:00 p.m. March 20, 2026

10. State Completion of Technical Response Evaluations

April 10, 2026

11. State Schedules State Visit with Qualified Respondents

April 15, 2026

12. Site Visits for Qualified Respondents April 22, 2026

13. Cost Proposal Submission Deadline 2:00 p.m. May 4, 2026

14. State Opening & Scoring of Cost Proposals 2:00 p.m. May 5, 2026

15. Negotiations (Optional) 4:30 p.m. May 7-8, 2026

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16. State Notice of Intent to Award Released and RFP Files Opened for Public Inspection

2:00 p.m. May 11, 2026

17. End of Protest Period May 18, 2026

18. State sends contract to Contractor for signature

May 19, 2026

19. Contractor Signature Deadline 2:00 p.m. May 21, 2026

20. Performance Bond Deadline 4:30 p.m. May 25, 2026

2. State responses to questions and comments in the table below amend and clarify this RFP.

Any restatement of RFP text in the Question/Comment column shall NOT be construed as a change in the actual wording of the RFP document.

RFP

SECTION

PAGE

QUESTION / COMMENT STATE RESPONSE

1. [We are] headquartered in the State of TN with DBE certification. We are more than qualified to bid as Prime for this large Wi-Fi project which we have demonstrated in other similar projects. We look forward to your approval for [us] to submit a bid.

CPO approval is not required in order to submit a bid to this RFP

2. Have we missed any important mandatory meetings that would make us ineligible to participate in RFP # 32701-04678?

No.

3. Please confirm whether any of the priority parks currently have State-provided internet backhaul that respondents may rely on for proposal assumptions, or whether respondents should assume no backhaul is available unless explicitly confirmed during post-award site visits.

The intent if every priority park to have their own internet connection already in place that the vendor will utilize.

4. Where State-provided fiber or circuits exist, please clarify whether the Contractor will be responsible for ongoing middle-mile ISP management, troubleshooting, and service coordination.

If the awarded vendor determines that the issue is with the ISP, parks will be responsible for contacting the ISP to resolve the service issue.

5. If the Contractor procures ISP services on behalf of the State, should recurring ISP costs be embedded within monthly service fees, or itemized within task orders?

The contractor will not procure ISP services on behalf of the State.

6. Please clarify whether trenching, conduit installation, and pole placement may extend beyond park property boundaries if required to obtain backhaul or power access.

2.3 Will the State provide support or

coordination for permitting and environmental reviews (e.g., NEPA, cultural resource review), or should

Trenching and installation may not extend beyond the park boundaries.

The State does not foresee any permits being needed outside of potential easement permits through TDEC’s office of real property. If a situation arises in which other permitting and/or environment reviews are necessary, the contractor will be responsible.

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QUESTION / COMMENT STATE RESPONSE

respondents assume full responsibility for these activities?

7.Are there known environmental, historical, or permitting constraints common to State Parks that respondents should assume when proposing installation and construction approaches?

This will vary by park. Basic environmental and resource protections taken with any construction job should be followed. Any highly sensitive areas will be expressed per park, but most likely, no construction will take place in those locations.

8. Will the State provide support or coordination for permitting and environmental reviews (e.g., NEPA, cultural resource review), or should respondents assume full responsibility for these activities?

The State does not foresee any permits being needed outside of potential easement permits through TDEC’s office of real property. If a situation arises in which other permitting and/or environment reviews are necessary, the contractor will be responsible.

9. Please confirm whether respondents are permitted to reuse existing poles, conduits, fiber, or electrical infrastructure where available, subject to State approval.

All existing equipment should be considered end of life. The only place this may be different is if existing conduit is useable and will remove the requirement to disturb the property for trenching.

10.Will the State provide any as-built documentation, GIS data, or infrastructure inventories prior to post-award task order development?

All existing information was provided in the previous Q&A period. GIS maps of the park boundaries can be provided upon request.

11. Does the State have minimum uptime, throughput, or latency expectations for guest and staff Wi-Fi that respondents should explicitly design toward in their Technical Response?

This information was provided in the previous Q&A period.

12. Please confirm whether service level expectations will be enforced uniformly across all parks, or whether performance expectations may vary by park based on geography and backhaul availability.

Performance expectations will vary based on ISP service provided, use levels, and geography.

13. Please clarify whether the State has a preferred or required guest authentication model (e.g., captive portal, terms-of-service acceptance only, account-based access).

Captive portal is required with associated agreement of terms and conditions.

14. For DMCA compliance, please confirm whether the Contractor is expected to act as the primary point of contact with rights holders and ISPs, or whether the State will retain any involvement.

Yes, the contractor is expected to act as the primary point of contact. Please see A.10. of the pro forma contract.

15. Please confirm that all installed equipment becomes State property upon installation, regardless of funding source or procurement method.

Yes, this is correct. Please refer to section A.9.

of the pro forma contract.

16. Are there minimum or maximum equipment refresh intervals the State expects respondents to plan for within the contract term?

Expected equipment refresh will be dependent on available funding, with an estimate of 5 years for operational equipment. Replacement decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis for all other equipment needs. The State will handle equipment disposal as needed.

17.Please clarify how pricing and scope should be structured to

The scope of the contract is described in section A of the pro forma contract. Pricing will

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QUESTION / COMMENT STATE RESPONSE

accommodate future park additions with significantly different size, terrain, or infrastructure conditions.

be collected during the cost proposal phase of the RFP. For future sites, the State will request a quote from the contractor using a task order process described in A.11. of the pro forma.

The contractor may visit the future site before completing the task order. The pricing used to complete the task order should match the pricing units in pro forma section C.3.

18. Will additional parks be added exclusively through task orders, or may amendments to the base contract be used for large expansion phases?

The State will use task orders (pro forma section A.11.) and MOUs (pro forma section E.2.) to add parks. Any other updates to the contract may require an amendment to the contract.

19. Please confirm whether technical approach consistency across all parks is scored more favorably than park-specific customization described at a high level.

Park specific customization described at a high level is preferential.

20. Are respondents evaluated on proposed technologies by brand/model, or on architectural approach and operational capability?

The respondent will be evaluated on both of these items. Please see RFP Attachment 6.2.

21. Please confirm whether respondents may adjust pricing assumptions between Technical Response submission and Cost Proposal submission based on findings from the mandatory site visit.

Respondents shall only submit the cost proposal if they are ranked in the top three respondents after the General Qualifications and Experience and Technical Qualifications, Experience, and Approach evaluations. Please review RFP sections 3.1.2.5. and 5.2.2.

22. Will the State provide a not-to-exceed framework or budgetary guidance prior to Cost Proposal submission?

The maximum liability for the entire term of the contract and the campsites at all priority parks is set at $10 million. No other budgetary guidance will be provided.

23. Please clarify the expected frequency and format of operational reporting to the State.

Please refer to pro forma section A.5. The

State requires real-time network status visibility, user reporting, and usage reporting available 24/7.

24. Will the State designate a single operational point of contact for contract administration, or should respondents assume coordination across multiple park and IT stakeholders?

The State will designate a few points of contact based on location and subject.

25. To support accurate technical design, construction planning, and pricing assumptions, please provide or confirm the following:

● Number of installations anticipated (by priority park and phase, if known)

● Installation locations for each site (coordinates or GIS points)

● Desired mounting height and azimuth requirements per location/site (where applicable)

● Proposed loading requirements, including equipment quantities and (if known) models/weights

● Proposed or allowable locations for any ground-mounted equipment

Please refer to section A.3. of the pro forma contract for the parks and priority order. Maps have been provided to show locations for each site. Technical design and equipment shall be provided by the selected vendor in accordance with pro forma section A.11. and must meet requirements outlined in the entire pro forma document. For the cost proposal, the State will have a mandatory site visit for Qualified Respondents. Please see RFP section 5.2.2.

for more detail.

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QUESTION / COMMENT STATE RESPONSE

(cabinets, shelters, generator pads, etc.)

● Power and fiber requirements at each location, including available voltage/ampacity and fiber handoff details

● Number of existing structures intended for use (and for each:

structure type and height)

● Access requirements for existing structures (climb access constraints, escort requirements, hours of access, etc.)

● Number of proposed new structures anticipated (and for each: structure type and height)

26. For any existing structures the Contractor may be expected to utilize (e.g., towers, poles, rooftops, shelters), please confirm whether the State will provide the following documentation (or whether it must be independently procured as part of task order execution):

● Structural analyses / capacity certifications

● Most recent inspections and maintenance reports

● Blueprints, fabrication drawings, or as-built documentation

● Geotechnical reports (if relevant)

● Topographical reports

● Surveys and lease exhibits

We can provide documentation as it is available. No significant needs are foreseen where this requirement would play a factor.

27. For any new structure installations (e.g., towers/poles, compounds, shelters), please confirm whether the following items are required under the contract and whether they are expected to be provided by the State/customer vs. obtained by the Contractor:

● Surveys, lease exhibits, and/or 1A certifications

● Utility locate reports

● Geotechnical and topographical reports

● NEPA or environmental reports

● FCC/FAA/ASR filings or reports (if applicable)

● Jurisdictional/local requirements (county/city permits, inspections, zoning, historic review, etc.)

The awarded contractor will be responsible for locating all utilities and infrastructure and coordinating any reports, permits, and inspections. The State is not aware of any FCC filings or reports necessary for installations at this time.

28. To ensure scope alignment in pricing and delivery expectations, please confirm whether the

● H-frames with dual gang meters and telco provisions (including vaults, conduit, and cabling to fiber/power meeting points) – on as needed basis.

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QUESTION / COMMENT STATE RESPONSE

Contractor’s scope for new structures should include the following:

● H-frames with dual gang meters and telco provisions (including vaults, conduit, and cabling to fiber/power meeting points)

● Rocked compounds

● Fencing (and if required, the required dimensions/specifications)

● Access roads or site access paths

● Landscaping and site restoration requirements

● Shelters or equipment pads (and if required, the required dimensions/specifications)

● Generators (including fuel type and runtime requirements, if applicable)

● Grounding requirements and specifications

● Rocked compounds – unknown.

● Fencing (and if required, the required dimensions/specifications) – No

● Access roads or site access paths – Dependent upon location of equipment. If equipment is located in an inaccessible area for some reason, a site access path would be preferred. No access roads will be needed.

● Landscaping and site restoration requirements – This will only be needed if significant landscaping or site disturbance occurs.

● Shelters or equipment pads (and if required, the required dimensions/specifications) – Equipment pads will only be needed if they are required for the selected equipment that is appropriate for that site. No shelters are expected to be needed.

● Generators (including fuel type and runtime requirements, if applicable) – No.

● Grounding requirements and specifications -

Yes

29. There were some questions asked regarding site maps. The responses from the State (in Amendment 4) indicate that Park Site Maps were going to be provided, however, there were no attachments provided showing the maps of the Parks.

Maps have been sent via OneDrive link and posted to the CPO website. Attachment was too large to send as an email attachment

30. In addition, there was supposed to be Equipment lists provided in an attachment (for Amendment 4), however, it does not appear that Equipment lists were provided.

This was provided in the previous Q&A period.

31. “Spectrum Enterprise Service Agreement” signed January 15, 2025 governs terms and conditions negotiated between Vendor and Tennessee State Parks. This document has negotiated Terms and Conditions Managed Services on page 33. Could this fully executed Service Agreement govern the terms and conditions for this proposal?

No, the RFP requires the Contract to be substantially similar to the Pro Forma per RFP Section 5.3.4.

32. Is Wi-Fi 7 the requirement or will you entertain Wi-Fi 6, Wi-Fi 6E, etc?

(Question/Responses for 16, 142 & 154 are contradictory)

Wi-fi 7 with downward compatibility is required.

33. Please confirm Tennessee State Parks will be providing power as needed. (Question/Responses for 12 & 88 are contradictory)

Power will be provided at current locations.

The vendor will need to run power from current locations to any WiFi tower or equipment locations.

34. What are the top 5 trouble ticket reasons Tennessee State Parks have today?

The State does not have this information, but the most ticketed issue is for the local staff to power cycle the Wifi equipment associated with each tower.

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QUESTION / COMMENT STATE RESPONSE

35. With the site visit event scheduled for March 27, 2026 and the Cost Proposal Submission being March 31, 2026, will the park consider an extension for April 7, 2026? To allow time for solution pricing actions following the site visit.

The RFP schedule of events has been adjusted.

36. Can you clarify the user counts provided? Are these individual people counts or camp sites?

The counts are individual user devices.

37. What workmanship warranty term is required for this project?

See Section A.13. of the Pro Forma Contract for the workmanship warranty requirements.

38. In the Pro Forma Contract Section D.18. Limitation of Contractor’s Liability, under Tenn. Code Ann. § 12- 3-701, the liability cap is twice the Maximum Liability listed in Section C.1. Could you explain why Section C.1.’s Maximum Liability was set at $10M, resulting in a $20M cap, instead of $5M, which would yield a $10M cap?

The Maximum Liability amount in Pro Forma Contract Section C.1. represents the State’s best estimate of its total spend over the term of the contract—i.e., the contract value.

39. If bidder's insurance policies comply in all material respects with the requirements of Section D.32, would the State be willing to consider minor modifications to the language in D.32 to more accurately reflect actual language in contractor's coverage?

State cannot make a blanket commitment to consider any and all “minor modifications to the language in D.32 to more accurately reflect actual language in contractor's coverage.”

40. We desire to better understand the State’s invoice delivery timing requirements set forth in Section C. 5 as we want to work with the State to understand the mechanics of delivering invoices in 30 days.

The contractor may submit invoices for goods and services provided no later than 30 days after the goods or services have been provided. The contractor may submit invoices no more frequently than once a month.

41. In reviewing the updated RFP and associated Q&A, we have found that the CMC and/or CE licenses may be unrelated to the work being performed in deploying Wi-Fi at the parks.

Therefore, are one or both of the licenses still a mandatory requirement per A.5.

The State has reviewed this requirement and updated the RFP to remove CE and CMC licenses and instead require a CE-F or S-

Telecommunications and BC-B. See Section 3 of this RFP Amendment for this change.

42. Can we get clarification (per site, # of runs and the cable length) on the cabling that needs to be replaced?

We do not have this full set of information available. It could also change based on equipment coverage and needs for each park.

43. The response is “No” but who provides the RADIUS/NPS, TDEC or the contractor?

All guest Wi-Fi users will be click to connect acknowledging the State’s acceptable use policy.

44. Response says 41 support tickets per month on average, but please clarify that this is across all parks.

Also, if it is 41 across all the parks that is approx. 450/year, this does not align with the statement to expect 500 tickets per park over the life of the contract (5,500 estimated for 11 parks).

The estimate of 500 support incidents is for wifi end user support. The supplied number of 41 per month within the 11 priority parks (question 180 on RFP Amendment 4 on the first State response to questions and comments) refers to break fix tickets. These are not the same.

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45. Does the State require Wi‑Fi access at each individual campsite, including the campsite pad and the immediate area around it? Or, is Wi‑Fi intended to be available only at shared campground areas, such as restrooms and campground check‑in locations, without a requirement to provide signal at every campsite?

Each campsite (pad and immediate surrounding area) in the campground should have Wi-Fi as well as access at shared areas such as restrooms and check in locations.

46. Does Wi‑Fi need to be available when someone is stationary (for example, sitting at a campsite or inside a bathhouse), or continuous connectivity while walking or driving through the campground is also expected. This information helps determine access point placement, coverage density, and how coverage will be tested and validated.

The preference would be to have coverage be continuous, but also understand that full coverage in all transition areas between sites is not a requirement.

3. Delete RFP 32701-04678 Version 2 Attachment 6.2 Section A.5 in its entirety and insert the following in its place (any sentence or paragraph containing revised or new text is highlighted):

A.5. Provide your Tennessee CE-F or S-Telecommunications license number and your BC-B license number.

4. RFP Amendment Effective Date. The revisions set forth herein shall be effective upon release. All other terms and conditions of this RFP not expressly amended herein shall remain in full force and effect.