Request for Information - Automated/Electronic Payment Medium and Payment Processing Application
This is a Request for Information (RFI) (hereinafter Notice). This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts, request for bids or quotations, nor, a promise to issue a solicitation in the future. The purpose of this RFI is to obtain knowledge and information for project planning purposes only.
FAR Clause 52.215-3 --Request for Information (Oct 1997)
(a) The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this solicitation or to otherwise pay for the information solicited except as an allowable cost under other contracts as provided in subsection 31.205-18, Bid and proposal costs, of the Federal Acquisition Regulation.
(b) Although proposal and offeror are used in this Request for Information, your response will be treated as information only. It shall not be used as a proposal.
(c) This solicitation is issued for the purpose of identifying information on Mobile Applications, Online (Internet) Venues, Low Frequency Beacons, Electronic Payment Devices or Other Systems that have already been developed or may be modified from other commercial industry solutions to meet the agency requirement as listed below:
The Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service (IRS), is seeking sources interested in providing information for innovative and state-of-the-art, alternative, non-cash payment methods in which Field Revenue Officers (ROs) can collect tax payments electronically while in the field throughout the United States. These methods must provide ease of use via electronic payment. This RFI is for interested parties to provide information for any mobile applications, online (internet), print receipt of confirmation, automated payment collection medium, and/or any other technology in which ROs may easily collect tax payments daily without handling cash or checks. These methods would also need to include web-based and/or mobile methods for IRS personnel to store, retrieve, monitor, report and enforce said tax payments.
Any method must also provide for security that would protect any Personally Identifiable Information (PII) and must comply with security protocols for electronic transmission of financial data and/or other compliance required. Please be specific in your response. Interested respondents may respond to all or part of this RFI.
Requirements: Responses to this RFI are to include suggestions on design approaches, solutions provided, as well as any benefits or additional services your product could provide with regards to the following specifications:
I. MOBILE APPLICATIONS
1) What mobile operating systems would your application be compatible with-iOS, Android and/or other mobile operating systems? Respondents please also provide a thorough list of compliances, security, reporting, user interface, project management tools, enforcement, and/or other methodologies offered. For example:
2) What mobile solutions would your organization provide for transactions via mobile devices?
3) What security protocols would you put in place to protect personally identifiable and financial information?
4) How might your application process payments and provide on the spot receipt of payment?
5) How might payments be paid directly to the U.S. Treasury?
6) How might Internal Revenue Service personnel verify that a tax payment has been made?
7) If a Revenue Officer wants to collect a payment on-site, yet mobile/cellular connectivity is unavailable, how might your application handle this situation?
8) How might management receive and run reports?
9) How might your application provide geographic and/or other analytics?
10) How might your mobile application provide for other options such as any other possible future upgrade?
11) Please describe any other processes, methodologies, tools or benefits not previously mentioned that your application might also provide.
12) How might your application interface with the IRS remittance processing system applications?
II. ONLINE PRINT ON THE SPOT CONFIRMATION RECEIPT (INTERNET)
Online Payment applications must comply with all current regulations regarding financial transactions over the internet. Respondents, please provide a thorough list of compliances, security protocols, and other functions and/or methodologies. For example:
1) How might the application process payments and receipt of payment?
2) How might your application ensure privacy and security of personally identifiable and financial information?
3) How might payments be paid directly to the U.S. Treasury?
4) How might The Internal Revenue Service personnel verify if a tax payment has been made?
5) How might management receive and run reports?
6) How might your application provide geographic and/or other analytics?
7) How might your application provide for other options, such as maps, weather, or any other possible future upgrade?
8) Please describe any other processes, methodologies, tools or benefits not previously herein mentioned that your application might also provide.
III. LOW ENERGY BEACON TECHNOLOGY
Low energy beacon technology is another possible solution. Respondents, please provide a thorough list of compliances, security protocols, and other functions and/or methodologies. For example:
1) How does the low energy beacon technology comply with all current FCC regulations regarding financial transactions?
2) How might the application process payments and receipt of payment?
3) How might your application ensure privacy and security of personally identifiable or collective financial information?
4) How might payments be sent directly to the U.S. Treasury?
5) How might the IRS personnel verify if a payment has been paid?
6) How might management receive and run reports?
7) How might your application provide geographic and/or other analytics?
8) How might your application provide for other options, such as maps, weather, or any other possible future upgrade?
9) Please describe any other processes, methodologies, tools or benefits not previously herein mentioned that your application might also provide.
IV. MOBILE PAYMENT DEVICES (MPD)
1) Provide IRS with Electronic Payment devices units for ROs to have on hand on site for taxpayers to make payments for taxes due to the IRS. The MPD must provide documenting and reporting payment transactions, user role access control, two-factor authentication, encryption, and production of reports for all functions and data in the system. It is also a goal to provide installation, warranty, training and support of the MPD units.
2) The MPDs must be compliant with the Payment Card Industry (PCI) Data Security Standards (requirements for consumer data protection in credit card processing); requirements of OMB Circular A-123 ("Management's Responsibility for Internal Control"), Federal Information Systems Management Act (FISMA) IT Security, Americans Disabilities Act (ADA), and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act requirements.
3) The MPDs must have all necessary software, hardware, installation, integration, maintenance, training, and technical support to operate the units. The MPDs would include compliance with the relevant federal IT security, credit card security, and other federal requirements described in The MPD units and associated software are to be used in the collection of revenue. They must accept credit cards and debit cards for payment, print receipts, track payment collection details; and capture and transmit transactional data for payment reconciliation reporting.
4) Connectivity - Revenue Officers and or PALS may be in areas that lack good infrastructure, particularly with respect to internet connectivity. Wireless internet availability may or may not available, and satellite communications may be necessary.
5) Configuration may include, but not be limited to, some of the following: Product/items for sale, including pricing, revenue accounts, question prompts for memo or statistical data collection, receipt printing, tender types accepted, receipt configuration printing, user roles and access controls, credit card merchant identification (ID) account number, authorization, and batch processing.
6) PCI Compliance for Services - Providers of the services in this section must provide services in a PCI-compliant manner.
7) Offline Store and Forward - When connectivity is not available to obtain authorization, the MPD software must securely (according to PCI DSS Standards) capture, process, store, and forward the credit card request upon reconnection with the network to the authorizing bank.
8) Merchant ID Account - The MPD unit software must use a Merchant ID account obtained from the US Treasury's Financial Management Systems (FMS) designated merchant processing bank and platform (provided by Vantiv) for each collection location where the connectivity is unique or isolated.
9) Reports - The MPD must produce a variety of reports to assist with transaction reporting. Minimum required reports include:
• Financial reports based on payment type, transaction type, processed (i.e. authorized credit card)
• Credit card sales settlement report must correlate to the bank's auto close settlement time
• Monthly, annual, and fiscal financial summaries
• Detailed record of transactions through a transaction log
• Transactions stored in the offline mode and then rejected
10) Transactional Revenue Data Reports - The MPD software must generate reports by any combination of the following user selected data:
• Unique machine identifier
• Date and time of transaction
• Unique transaction id and number
• Payment Summary Report
• Credit Card Summary Report
• Document Remittance Register Report
• Credit Card Merchant Identification Number (MID)
• End of Day Balance report
• End of Week Balance Report (grouped by area, territory, group, operator)
The system shall allow authorized users to generate:
•Received Date Report
•Reconciliation Report
11) User Accounts - The MPD must generate reports to provide a complete list of the following:
• All authorized users with their role
• All deactivated users
• Date and time of user account creation
• Last user account modified date
12) Remote Monitoring - MPDs must have the capability to be monitored remotely to ensure the machine is functioning properly and to retrieve reports.
13) Technical Requirements of MPD Hardware - The following section documents requirements of all hardware delivered under this SOW must be included.
14) MPD Display The machine must have a screen with visual prompts displaying rates and options that is Section 508 compliant. The display screen must be user friendly, easily read from different angles and under varying lighting conditions (including bright, low or no light),
15) Keypad - The MPD machine shall have a reliable Section 508 compliant keypad which allows taxpayers to enter numbers for their SSN, Tax Period, and drop downs to for other types of tax information.
16) Receipt Printer - The MPD must have a printer for printing receipts, collection and compliance reports with the following features:
17) Receipt Paper - Receipt shall be printed on durable paper stock.
18) Magnetic Stripe Reader - Each MPD unit must include a magnetic stripe reader capable of reading the magnetic stripe on a credit card. The magnetic stripe reader must meet the PCI DSS requirements. Machines must be Chip and PIN (EMV) compliant.
19) Please describe any other processes, methodologies, tools or benefits not herein previously mentioned that your MPD might provide.
20) How might your application interface with IRS remittance processing internal systems?
21) What is the Rough Order of Magnitude (ROM) for all a MPD and consumables?
V. OTHER METHOD
Please suggest any other method or technology which has not herein already been identified which might provide for the innovative collection of taxpayer payments. Method must comply with all current Federal regulations regarding Financial Transactions, as well as security protocols when dealing with personally identifiable and collective financial information. Respondents please provide thorough list of compliances, security, reporting, user interface, project management tools, enforcement, and/or other methodologies offered.
Responses: Responses to this notice should address the above include the following information:
Contractors are requested to respond to the following items:
a) Organization Name (if organization has experienced name changes, please list all previous names used) and CAGE Code.
b) Company's technical and administrative points of contact, including names, titles, addresses, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail addresses.
c) Industry (NAICS) Codes (North American Industry Classification System) and business size for each NAICS code.
d) Business Classification/Socio-Economic Status (e.g., large, small, 8(a), women owned, hub-zone, SDB, Service-Disabled Veteran Owned).
e) Vehicles and contracts held (vehicle, agency, expiration date inclusive of Best In Class contracts, GWACs, IDIQs, and BPAs) - please highlight contracts with the Federal Government clearly.
f) Identification of any Best In Class contract vehicles including Government Wide Acquisition Contracts (GWAC) (e.g. GSA schedule, NASA SWEP, etc.) the company may possess or are aware of that would support this possible requirement.
g) Corporate competencies and past performance experience regarding electronic payment processing and mobile device payment solutions.
h) Companies should present their responses in the form of a whitepaper describing the information requested in this RFI. Specification sheets and product information may also be provided in addition to the whitepaper.
i) Responses shall be in Microsoft WORD and the format of your response shall be as follows:
1) Font size of Times New Roman 12 or a font of similar size and clarity.
2) 8.5 X 11 paper with 1 inch margins on all sides.
3) While there is no page limit, overly verbose qualification statements are strongly discouraged.
Responses to this notice should submit their response to the attention of the individual listed above. Due date for responses is no later than March 21, 2019 2 PM EST. Responses shall be submitted electronically to kathleen.a.guyther@irs.gov. E-mail file sizes shall not exceed 6MBs.
Disclaimer: Any response to this RFI will be treated as information only. No entitlement to payment of direct or indirect costs or charges by the Government will arise as a result of contractor submission of responses to this notice or the Government use of such information. This notice does not constitute a solicitation for proposals or the authority to enter into negotiations to award a contract. No funds have been authorized, appropriated, or received for this effort. The Government does not intend to award a contract on the basis of this RFI or to otherwise pay for the information submitted in response to this notice. Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract or agreement. The IRS will not be obligated to pursue any particular acquisition alternative as a result of this notice. Responses to the notice will not be returned.
The Government reserves the right to use information provided in response to this notice by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any interested party responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed. Interested parties are solely responsible for adequately marking proprietary or competition sensitive information contained in their response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in developing its acquisition strategy and Statement of Work/Statement of Objectives and performance specifications.
Not responding to this notice does not preclude participation in any future solicitation if one is issued.
Interested parties are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback with respect to any information submitted.
Kathleen A. Guyther, Contract Specialist, Phone 2406135170, Email kathleen.a.guyther@irs.gov
