IFB No. 132760 Over-the-Phone Translation Services

The California Employment Development Department (EDD) is soliciting sealed bids under IFB No. 132760 for over-the-phone interpretation, voice-over talent, and scheduled video remote interpreting (VRI) and in-person interpretation services, with questions due November 13, 2026 and bids due November 23, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. PT. No set-aside applies: disabled veteran business enterprise (DVBE) participation is available as an incentive but is not mandated, and 5 percent Small Business/Microbusiness (SB/MB) and Small Business/Nonprofit Veteran Service Agency (SB/NVSA) certification preferences apply when applicable.

Contractors must cover 259 languages, with the top 15 (including Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, and Punjabi) receiving priority. Required service levels are average queue times of no more than 59 seconds for the top 15 languages and three minutes for others, capacity for approximately 1,000 simultaneous calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and a dedicated toll-free number. Qualifications include at least five years regularly engaged in interpretation and translation services, interpreters holding professional certifications (ISO 17100 or equivalent), interpreters meeting Federal Interagency Language Roundtable (ILR) Scale certification requirements, HIPAA compliance, and at least two years of professional interpreting experience for over-the-phone work. Contractors must also carry general liability insurance of at least $1 million per occurrence, workers' compensation, and professional liability coverage. Upon award, the contractor must submit training materials supporting up to 10,000 EDD employees, and EDD may immediately terminate for failure to meet mandatory system requirements or repeated service failures.

Pricing is per-minute flat rate for all service types, with no minimum charges or first-minute connection fees. Billing must be itemized and submitted within five business days of month-end. The contract term runs February 6, 2027 through February 28, 2029.

EDD will respond to questions by November 18, 2026, publicly open bids on November 24, 2026 at 9:00 a.m., and intends to award during the week of December 7, 2026.