INTENT TO SOLE SOURCE-SC THRIVE

The South Carolina Department of Corrections is pursuing a sole source procurement for SC Thrive training and access services through solicitation 5400025414. The primary objective is to contract with SC Thrive for providing training and system access to counselors utilizing The Benefit Bank of South Carolina (TBB-SC), a digital platform enabling electronic resource application submissions for individuals and households. The contract will span an initial one-year term from June 5, 2023, through June 4, 2024, with four potential automatic one-year renewals, potentially extending the total contract period to five years through June 4, 2028. Responses must be submitted by June 5, 2023, at 10:00 a.m. to the SC Department of Corrections Purchasing Branch located at 4530 Broad River Road, Columbia, South Carolina 29210. Vendors are required to complete the Intent to Award Sole Source response form, providing comprehensive business information including legal business name, business type, state vendor number, state of incorporation, home office address, and contact details.

No specific set-aside designations or disadvantaged enterprise requirements are mentioned in the solicitation. The technology platform is exclusively licensed to SC Thrive by Solutions for Progress (SfP) of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, with SC Thrive serving as the sole contractual state affiliate responsible for platform maintenance and support. While no specific pricing, set-asides, or funding amounts are detailed, the procurement allows for potential protests, which must be submitted in writing to the Chief Procurement Officer at the Materials Management Office within defined timeframes: a notice of intent to protest must be filed within five business days of posting, with the actual protest due within fifteen days of posting. The notice was published in the South Carolina Business Opportunities (SCBO) for the statutorily required five to ten business days as mandated by South Carolina Code 11-35-1560. The procurement appears focused on ensuring continued access to and support for the existing Benefit Bank platform within Richland County and potentially statewide.