Incarcerated Person Communication Services (IPCS)

The Minnesota Department of Information Technology Services (MNIT), in partnership with the Minnesota Department of Corrections (DOC), is requesting proposals for a secure electronic services and communications platform for incarcerated persons across all 11 Minnesota DOC facilities, with proposals due October 13, 2026, at 2:00 p.m. CDT and a mandatory site visit at Minnesota Correctional Facility–Lino Lakes on September 21, 2026, from 10:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. CDT.

Vendors must apply for facility site visit access by September 14, 2026, at 12:00 p.m. CDT through a background-check process. Certified targeted-group businesses, economically disadvantaged businesses, and veteran-owned businesses receive preference points equal to 12 percent of total available points. The RFP includes a diversity and inclusion questionnaire requiring identification of Minnesota-based status and small-business or minority-, woman-, disability-, or veteran-owned certification eligibility under the State's Small Business Procurement Program.

The scope encompasses infrastructure deployment including approximately 4,000 wireless access points, approximately 900 wall-mounted phones, and approximately 127 TRS/VRS accessibility stations serving approximately 8,000 incarcerated persons across all facilities. The vendor must provide 8,000 assigned portable electronic devices with maintenance and replacement (minimum 10 percent spare inventory per facility), integration with DOC's Offender Management System (OMS) and Cashless Commissary and Trust Fund Accounting System (CACTAS), video visitation, electronic messaging, digital media, financial services, and educational programming. Voice communications must be provided at no charge under Minnesota Statute 241.252 and the Martha Wright-Reed Just and Reasonable Communications Act. All pricing must comply with FCC rate caps under 47 C.F.R. Part 64, Subpart MM.

The platform must achieve 99.5 percent monthly uptime, provide 24/7/365 support with Priority 1 response within 30 minutes, comply with Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility (VPAT 2.5 INT submission required), and meet FBI CJIS Security Policy and correctional-grade environmental resistance standards (MIL-STD-810 or equivalent). Cloud-based solutions must obtain or commit to GovRAMP authorization at Moderate Impact Level by April 1, 2027. All data remains DOC property with seven-year minimum retention in exportable formats.

The contract runs five years from program execution with two optional renewals of three and two years respectively (ten-year maximum). Implementation begins June 2027, with voice cutover by December 1, 2027, and device deployment by November 1, 2028. Infrastructure becomes DOC property immediately upon installation acceptance. Prevailing wage requirements apply under Minnesota Statutes 177.41 to 177.44. The evaluation uses a two-tier scoring methodology with 1,000 base points plus up to 120 preference points per tier. The vendor must finance completion costs and may recover costs through fee-based services on non-voice offerings. Contact: Haylie Anne Janette Heil, haylie.heil@state.mn.us.