RP023-26, Provision of Merchant Processing Services on a Multi-Year Contract

The Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners is soliciting sealed proposals for merchant processing services on a multi-year contract through the Department of Financial Services, with proposals due July 30, 2026 at 2:50 p.m. local time at the Gwinnett County Financial Services office in Lawrenceville, Georgia. Firms currently on the Gwinnett County ineligible source list are not eligible to submit.

The scope encompasses processing Visa, MasterCard, Discover, American Express, and e-check transactions across point-of-sale terminals, online systems, interactive voice response, and telephone call centers. As of June 1, 2026, the County operates 53 Merchant ID numbers and 175 terminals, having processed 1.9 million transactions totaling $278.4 million in 2025. The Department of Water Resources represents the largest volume with 1.73 million transactions and $231.07 million in sales. The service provider must deliver new, non-refurbished equipment at no cost and integrate seamlessly with existing systems including CivicPlus, Accela, iNovah, Oracle Fusion, UMax/Paymentus, and Bluefin without additional County expenditures. Required services include e-check processing, managed service fees for select departments, digital wallet and contactless payment support, next business day funding, customizable reporting, PCI-DSS Level 1 compliance, and 24/7 customer support with a dedicated relationship manager possessing at least five years of government merchant processing experience.

The initial contract term runs January 1, 2027, through December 31, 2027, with automatic renewal for up to four additional one-year periods (five years total) unless either party provides termination notice within 60 days of each calendar year-end. The incumbent, Elavon, holds the current contract expiring December 31, 2026.

Evaluation uses a three-phase process: Phase I scores qualifications (10 points), understanding of proposal (30 points), technical merit (30 points), implementation and project management (10 points), and references (10 points) for 90 points; Phase II scores cost proposals (10 points, lowest cost receiving maximum); Phase III permits optional interviews (10 points) for a total possible 110 points. Pricing must be submitted in a separate sealed envelope. The service provider must carry Commercial General Liability ($2 million minimum), Professional Liability ($1 million per claim / $2 million aggregate), Cyber Liability ($1 million per claim and aggregate), and Crime/Fidelity insurance ($1 million), with all carriers rated A-7 or higher by A.M. Best and naming Gwinnett County as additional insured.