RFP 26-26-214617 ARRC Electronic Payment Solution

The Alaska Railroad Corporation is requesting proposals for an electronic payment solution integrating with Oracle JD Edwards EnterpriseOne on IBMi infrastructure, with proposals due August 13, 2026 by 3:00 p.m. local time. Alaska bidders meeting specified criteria qualify for a 5% price reduction.

The scope is a secure, customer-facing Accounts Receivable payment portal enabling customers to view invoices and account balances, make ACH and credit card payments, access payment history, manage payment methods, and reduce manual AR processing. The solution must integrate directly with ARRC's existing JD Edwards EnterpriseOne environment on IBMi DB2 database. ARRC strongly prefers solutions that minimize middleware complexity, utilize native JD Edwards integration methods, support real-time synchronization, minimize PCI scope, employ tokenized payment processing, support SaaS or cloud-hosted deployment, and avoid proprietary payment processor lock-in. ARRC is open to alternative payment processors and gateways where vendors demonstrate meaningful operational, technical, or financial advantages, though ARRC currently uses Wells Fargo Merchant Services and processes credit card payments manually. Mandatory functional requirements include secure customer authentication, self-service payment portals, invoice viewing and payment history tracking, email confirmations, and multiple simultaneous invoice payments; high-priority features include mobile-responsive interfaces and saved payment methods.

Offerors must demonstrate a minimum of five years' experience providing similar services and provide three customer references for production JD Edwards-integrated AR payment portal implementations. All proposals must include a signed cover letter, Service Bid Form with acknowledged addenda, Software Scoring Matrix, and notarized Bidders Questionnaire.

The initial contract term is two years with up to three additional one-year renewal options exercisable at ARRC's sole discretion; ARRC may establish the solution as a long-term standard for up to ten years. Project start is August 19, 2026, with completion targeted for November 1, 2026. Evaluation criteria weighting: Firm Experience & Schedule (10%), Solution (10%), Solution Architecture & Integration (15%), Payment Processing Commercial & Operational Considerations (15%), Functional Requirements Response Matrix (20%), and Cost Proposal (30%). Cost proposals must include all direct and indirect costs with no allowance for charges beyond the grand total.