KSFB Ticketing System RFP

The Commonwealth of Kentucky Finance and Administration Cabinet, on behalf of the Kentucky State Fair Board (KSFB), issued RFP 758-2000000273 for a comprehensive point-of-sale ticketing system to serve the Kentucky Exposition Center and Kentucky International Convention Center in Louisville, Jefferson County. The solicitation seeks a vendor to provide complete ticketing software and hardware solutions including on-site installation, 24/7 technical support, training, and system maintenance, designed to replace the current Ticketmaster Host system. Required deliverables encompass software capable of supporting multiple sales channels (box office, phone, and internet sales), handling 45-50 concurrent users, processing various ticket types (subscriptions, memberships, season tickets, group sales, and general admission), and integrating with third-party systems including credit card processors, CRM platforms, email marketing tools, and parking ticket systems. Hardware specifications include two redundant servers, 18 permanent and 18 mobile box office computers with chip-enabled credit card machines, 20 ticket printers, 62 guest services scanners, and associated infrastructure. The contract term is four years from the award date with two optional three-year renewal periods. Proposals were due April 22, 2020, at 3:30 PM ET, with vendor questions due by March 10, 2020, and Commonwealth responses issued March 13, 2020. Evaluation occurs on a 10,000-point scale: 6,000 points for technical proposal criteria including system capabilities, implementation planning, vendor experience, reporting functionality, hardware specifications, installation procedures, support and training provisions, website features, system redundancy with 100 percent failover capability, marketing integration, access control mechanisms, and settlement processes; and 4,000 points for cost proposals submitted on a firm fixed unit price basis with no price increases permitted during the first 12 months.

The procurement includes reciprocal preferences for Kentucky resident bidders and qualified bidder preferences as defined by Commonwealth regulation, including nonprofit corporations under KRS Chapter 163 and nonprofit agencies for individuals with severe disabilities. The RFP requires compliance with mandatory affidavits addressing campaign finance law compliance, tax registration and non-delinquency, boycott prohibitions, and Kentucky business authorization requirements for resident bidder status. The KSFB currently utilizes Ticketmaster Host, which charges customers per-ticket fees; the new vendor is expected to charge minimal customer fees to maximize ticket sales. All proposals must comply with Commonwealth Information Technology Standards, including NIST Special Publication 800-53 moderate-level security controls, Section 508 accessibility compliance, SOC 2 Type II annual reporting, GDPR requirements, PCI compliance standards, and encryption of all data transmissions with data maintained within the contiguous United States. The Commonwealth retains ownership of all Commonwealth data and any custom-developed software, with the vendor prohibited from assigning the contract without prior written Commonwealth consent. The RFP specifies firm fixed unit pricing with the Commonwealth tax-exempt status excluding federal excise tax and Kentucky sales or use tax from cost proposals; the specific contract value or budget range is not disclosed in the available solicitation documents.