Delaware Health And Social Services DIVISION OF MANAGEMENT SERVICES PROCUREMENT DATE: January 25, 2010 HSS 10 052 WOMEN, INFANT & CHILDREN (WIC) ELECTRONIC BENEFIT TRANSFER (EBT) PLANNING FOR DIVISION OF PUBLIC HEALTH Date Due: FEBRUARY 26, 2010 11:30 AM ADDENDUM # 1 Please Note: THE ATTACHED SHEETS HEREBY BECOME PART OF THE ABOVE MENTIONED BID. ___________________________ Wendy M. Brown CONTRACT & PROCUREMENT ADMINISTRATOR (302)255-9293 _____________________________ Carolyn Sudler (302) 739-4614 WOMEN, INFANT & CHILDREN (WIC) ELECTRONIC BENEFIT TRANSFER (EBT) PLANNING HSS 10-052 QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FROM PRE-BID MEETING JANUARY 25, 2010 1. Who is the current vendor that performs EBT Services? E-Funds, Inc. currently manages EBT services for the Delaware Supplement Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). 2. Should the completed forms in Appendices B, C, and D be placed in the same tab as the completed Appendix A? (pg 2) Please refer to section IV of the RFP for the proposal format. All material should be submitted on CDs except the Appendices A thru D. The Appendices must be submitted as hard copy, but can also be submitted on the CD. 3. Confidential Information: Is it mandatory to provide these items separately if we do not consider them proprietary? For example, we are a publicly traded company therefore our financials are not considered confidential. (pg 13) Please mark the following information as “confidential”: 1) any financial information relating to the company or organization (not the RFP pricing or budget); 2) Resumes; 3) Organization Charts. If you do not feel this information is confidential, it is not mandatory to provide them separately. However, if information is not marked as confidential it is subject to be released as a result of a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request. 4. If a vendor already has a Delaware business license, is it necessary to provide articles of incorporation? (pg 14 Sec IV, E) A statement must be included under the “Qualification and Experience” section of the vendor’s proposal signifying the vendor either has or certifies he/she will secure a Delaware Business License prior to the project initiation. Articles of Incorporation need to be provided only if asked for. The Delaware Business license or IRS certification of tax exempt status will be required to be submitted at the time the contract is signed. 5. If submitting CDs containing confidential information, should those CDs be separately sealed from the others? (pg 15) The CDs containing confidential information do not need to be separately sealed, but they do have to be separate CDs from those with the RFP information. And, the CDs must be labeled “Corporate Confidential Information”. 6. #2 – Inclusion of all requested elements. We would assume that this evaluation factor would be the same as “meets mandatory RFP provisions”, which is pass/fail. Since this evaluation factor is worth 15 points, could the State be more specific as to how it will measure “provides detailed information”? (pg 20, #2) “Meets Mandatory RFP provisions” is not the same as “Inclusion of all requested elements”. “Meets Mandatory RFP provisions” only refers to the required signature pages, Appendices A through D. “Inclusion of all requested elements” criteria scoring will be based on the submitted proposed methodology and work plan describing the approach that will be taken to carry out the activities conveyed in the Scope of Services section of the RFP. 7. #3 – Available resources. Section IV does not request information on the staff’s “proximity to project site”. Please provide more information on the State’s expectation regarding the proximity of vendor staff. (pg 20, #3) The vendor is expected to be on-site to attend any scheduled meetings. The WIC Program does not have a preference on the proximity to site. 8. If a vendor is not a MBE/WBE, does this form need to be submitted? (Pg 31, Apx D) Yes. This is a dual purpose form. The form needs to be included in the bidder’s proposal and must be filled out and signed by the bidder’s authorized representative for the purposes of this RFP. If the bidder is not a MBE/WBE, then the "no" answers would be circled and the form submitted with their bid. The section at the bottom of the form relates to actual certification as a MBE or WBE by the State of Delaware's Office of Minority and Women Business Enterprise. That portion does not have to be filled out for the purposes of this RFP. You can use this form to apply for certification to the Office of Minority and Business Women Enterprise separate from this RFP. 9. Is there a requirement that contractor staff working on the WIC EBT planning effort be full- time, on-site at the Division of Public Health? If so, will office space and equipment be provided by the State? The contractor staff is not required to work on the WIC EBT Planning effort full-time, on-site at the Division of Public Health. However, the vendor is expected to be on-site to attend any scheduled meetings. 10. Can the Division of Public Health share the budget amount associated with the WIC EBT planning effort? Delaware WIC was awarded $250,000.00 under the WIC EBT Planning Grant Package #2; funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. (ARRA) 11. Please describe in detail the current technical environment for WIC including the data system and infrastructure. Information on the technical environment and infrastructure of the data system will be specified and given to the selected vendor. 12. When was the current WIC data system implemented? Who provided the implementation services? The current Delaware WIC data system has been in use for more than 18 years, and it is based on nearly 20-year old technology. Northrop Grumman provided the implementation services. Delaware WIC is currently in the process of implementing a new EBT-ready, web- based data system. 13. Is there a specific format for the Bidder references? Is the information required the same as for those requested for contracts with the State of Delaware in the second paragraph Section IV: F page 14? There is no specific format for the Bidder references. Please provide names and phone numbers of at least three (3) organizations/agencies. 14. Will this project be fully funded with Federal money or will the State of Delaware be supplementing with State dollars as well? If so, what is the percentage of State contribution to this project? The project will be 100% Federal funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA). 15. How many WIC authorized vendors are there in Delaware? There are currently 90 authorized WIC vendors in Delaware. 16. What is the status of the new WIC data system? Delaware WIC is currently in the process of conducting a Cost Benefit Analysis (CBA) to determine the hosting solution for the new data system. The final CBA will be completed on February 26, 2010. WIC plans to submit a final Implementation Advanced Planning Document (IAPD) to USDA on March 15, 2010. 17. Who is the name of the vendor assisting with the current CBA? Brandywine Technology is currently conducting the CBA. 18. Is the EBT Planning effort to be implemented on the current data system or the new system? The RFP states that the vendor will be looking at the current system as well as the new system. So the vendor needs to look at both the current system and Md. WOW. 19. What type of EBT system/solution is Delaware interested in? Delaware WIC will determine the EBT solution as part of the EBT Planning effort. 20. Please clarify the number of staff included in developing materials and performing an orientation training program. (page 9, #6) Approximately twenty participants will be included in the orientation training exercise. 21. Does Delaware WIC expect the scope of work to be completed within a 12 month period? Yes, Delaware WIC expects the scope of work to be completed within a 12 month period. 22. Any preference given to a Minority owned or Women owned business? No. 23. Do you expect the vendor to assess the skills and abilities of the WIC IS staff and IMS staff to implement the EBT? Yes. 24. How is the Cost evaluation criteria going to be scored? In Professional Service RFPs such as this one, the cost is a factor, not the only factor. This is indicated by the weight of only 5 points out of 100 points given to this criteria. The points will be awarded based on the budget submitted, how it relates to and supports the services being asked for in this RFP, and such things as the level of detail of the budget, reasonableness of the costs, and how those costs apply to the components of the scope of service. 25. Related to the evaluation criteria, is there a preference that bidder staff be familiar with the Delaware WIC program? No.