Temporary Professional Staff Services 2026

The South Dakota Department of Social Services is issuing Request for Proposal (RFP) 19317 for Temporary Professional Staff Services, which replaces previous contracts RFP8461 and RFP13379. This is a three-year professional services contract running from June 1, 2026 through May 31, 2029, with work orders created on an as-needed basis across ten service categories: Information Systems, Data Governance, Data Warehousing, Data Reporting, Provider Reimbursement and Financial Analytics, Policy and Program Implementation, Project Management Support, Subject Matter Expertise Consulting, Administrative Support, and Communication Services. Offerors may respond to any combination of work areas and are required to submit fixed hourly rates for each professional resource topic area that will remain constant throughout the contract period. Proposals must be submitted as PDFs via Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) by the March 12, 2026 deadline at 5:00 p.m. Central Time, with a non-binding Letter of Intent due February 12, 2026 and offeror questions due February 19, 2026. The State may require oral presentations at its discretion following proposal submission, with an anticipated award decision scheduled for April 2, 2026. Contractors must maintain commercial general liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 per occurrence, professional liability insurance of at least $1,000,000, business automobile liability insurance of at least $1,000,000 per accident, and workers' compensation insurance as required by South Dakota law. Inquiries regarding the RFP should be directed to Kirsten Blachford at Kirsten.Blachford@state.sd.us with the subject line "RFP19317 Inquiries," and all inquiries and responses will be posted on the state's e-procurement system and DSS website.

Current vendors from the replaced RFPs are required to participate in this new solicitation to be considered for future work orders, and the State reserves the right to reject any or all proposals and waive technicalities as deemed in the best interest of South Dakota. All contractors must comply with the State of South Dakota's Bureau of Information and Telecommunications (BIT) Information Technology Security Policy, which establishes mandatory cybersecurity requirements including multi-factor authentication, data encryption standards, password expiration protocols, background checks, and compliance with federal regulations such as IRS 1075, HIPAA, FERPA, and PCI standards; contractors must sign the BIT Contractor Agreement acknowledging these obligations and committing all employees to policy compliance. Travel expenses will be reimbursed separately at state rates for lodging, mileage, and meals, with airfare reimbursed at actual costs for the lowest available fare, and the contractor's own expenses will not be paid separately. The total contract amount will be determined based on approved work orders with no guarantee of work, as services and payment are defined through individual work orders created as needed by the State. No specific budget ranges or award values are disclosed in the procurement documents, and the State does not specify set-aside designations or restrictions on organizational types eligible to respond beyond the standard insurance, security compliance, and contract administration requirements.