Research Report on China's Smart Cities Development
REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS:
January 23, 2019
PERIOD OF PROPOSAL SUBMISSION ENDS:
February 20, 2019
ABOUT PROPOSALS. The U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission (hereafter "the Commission") invites submission of proposals to provide a one-time unclassified report on China's smart cities development.
ABOUT THE COMMISSION. The Commission was established by Congress in 2000 to monitor and report to Congress on the national security implications of the bilateral trade and economic relationship between the United States and the People's Republic of China. Further details about the Commission are available on its website at: www.uscc.gov.
The Commission solicits this research pursuant to its Congressional mandate (contained in Pub. L. No. 113-291, Section 1259B), which states, "The Commission ... shall investigate and report ... on..."
"A) The role of the People's Republic of China in the proliferation of ...other weapon systems (including systems and technologies of a dual use nature), including actions the United States might take to encourage the People's Republic of China to cease such practices.
(B) The qualitative and quantitative nature of the transfer of United States production activities to the People's Republic of China, including the relocation of manufacturing, advanced technology and intellectual property, and research and development facilities, the impact of such transfers on the national security of the United States (including the dependence of the national security industrial base of the United States on imports from China), the economic security of the United States, and employment in the United States, and the adequacy of United States export control laws in relation to the People's Republic of China."
"(D) Foreign investment by the United States in the People's Republic of China and by the People's Republic of China in the United States, including an assessment of its economic and security implications, the challenges to market access confronting potential United States investment in the People's Republic of China ...."
"(H) The drivers, nature, and implications of the growing economic, technological, political, cultural, people-to-people, and security relations of the People's Republic of China's with other countries, regions, and international and regional entities (including multilateral organizations)....
(J) The implications of restrictions on speech and access to information in the People's Republic of China for its relations with the United States in economic and security policy, as well as any potential impact of media control by the People's Republic of China on United States economic interests."
This report's key research requirements are:
1. Describe Chinese policies for the development of "smart cities." What specific policy plans have the central, provincial, and local governments developed to foster smart cities? What key attributes are Chinese smart cities expected to contain and what role are smart cities expected to play in China's development strategies? How do smart cities align with China's domestic security, industrial policy, and foreign policy objectives? How does the central government coordinate smart city development, and what role do local governments play in rolling out the concept? Identify environmental, mass transit, water infrastructure, broadband/5G, surveillance, and other objectives for smart city development.
2. Describe China's development of smart cities, particularly key enabling technologies including 5G, cloud computing, big data, artificial intelligence, and block chain. How is the government (central and local) funding the development of smart cities? What kind of support (financial, regulatory, etc.) has the Chinese government provided to its domestic firms, research institutes, and universities? How successful have those efforts been? What are the challenges to enhancing those capabilities? What cooperative development programs for smart cities has China engaged in or announced with foreign entities (governmental, business, or academic)?
3. Assess China's application of mass surveillance in smart cities. To what extent are smart city technologies enabling mass surveillance? Does China's application of mass surveillance in smart cities differ from other countries?
4. Evaluate U.S. capabilities and China's in development and deployment of smart city technologies. In which technologies and applications has China gained an edge, and how? How is this competitive landscape likely to evolve in the next 5-10 years? What are the implications for U.S. global competitiveness and national security? How should the U.S. government and U.S. Congress mitigate the security and privacy risks and improve U.S. economic competitiveness in smart cities?
5. Describe China's promotion of its smart city technologies abroad. What tools has the Chinese government used to promote Chinese technologies, standards, and concept of smart cities abroad, particularly through the Belt and Road Initiative? Where is initial deployment occurring, and how effective have these efforts been? What future plans has the Chinese government announced? What are the implications for U.S. foreign policy objectives, national security, and global competitiveness?
6. Evaluate the role of Chinese products in U.S. smart city critical infrastructure. How reliant are the U.S. local and municipal governments and providers of critical infrastructure and services (e.g., port authorities, emergency responders) on Chinese firms and Chinese-made products and services? What are the potential vulnerabilities from U.S. usage of Chinese-designed or -manufactured technologies in U.S. smart cities to U.S. economic health, national security, democracy, privacy, and supply chain integrity? Are these risks unique to Chinese-designed or -manufactured technologies? How are local and municipal governments addressing those risks? Are there any standards or protocols that exist to promote proper security protocols regarding deployment of products/services for smart cities? What are the types and volume of data Chinese firms are collecting or are capable of collecting from products and services they provide to U.S. smart cities? What role does the U.S. government play in overseeing smart city technologies or deployment? Should the U.S. government and Congress take additional steps to mitigate any risks arising from the use of Chinese smart city technology?
The report should include an executive summary of the report's key findings; a brief overview of the sources and analytic methodology used for the report; and a brief explanation of the scope and limitations of the report.
Additional Requirements:
1. Prior to the award of any contract, the contractor must be registered in the federal System for Award Management (SAM).
2. Once the Commission selects a contractor for this project, and a contract is signed, public notice of this may be made on the Commission's website.
3. The Commission's goal is to have a report prepared for review in a timely fashion. In ordinary circumstances, once the Commission selects a contractor and a contract is signed, a draft report must be submitted to the Commission for review no later than 90 days from the date the contract is signed. The Commission will then endeavor to provide comments and requests for adjustments within 30 days; subsequently, the final report must be submitted within 30 days of formal receipt of the Commission's comments. The Commission recognizes, under certain circumstances, a contractor may wish to have more time to prepare the first draft of the report under the contract. The contractor, in their contract proposal, should stipulate the time frame for submission of the draft report. It is to be understood; however, that time is of the essence in completing research contracts for the Commission.
4. As work on the report progresses, the Commission's Research Coordinator shall act as the Commission's representative in monitoring the progress, quality, and responsiveness of the report to the major issues of concern identified in this Request for Proposals (RFP). The Research Coordinator shall, on request to the contractor, be entitled to informal briefings on the status of the research work and to readings of the draft in progress.
5. The report shall be free of typographical errors and conform to the Chicago Manual of Style. Upon receipt of all drafts, the Commission will inspect the document for typographical errors and deviations from the Chicago Manual of Style guidelines. At the discretion of the Commission, if a draft contains excessive deficiencies, the Commission will return the draft to the contractor and request the contractor cure the draft of deficiencies within five (5) working days (not counting weekends and Federal holidays). Upon resubmission of the draft by the contractor to the Commission, should deficiencies remain, the Commission, at its discretion, will submit the draft to its copyeditor for correction, the cost of which ($40.00 per hour) will be deducted from the final cost of the contract. The contract shall be subject to termination if the Commission deems that the work is of unsatisfactory quality.
6. At the Commission's discretion, the report procured via this RFP may be posted on the Commission's website.
7. Each organization or individual responding to this request must warrant they will perform this work solely for the Commission, and the resulting report will not be shared with other parties without the prior written consent of the Commission.
8. The Commission expects contractors to identify all personnel working on the contract, and that there will not be any delegation of responsibilities to other parties without prior written approval of the Commission.
9. After completion of the report, the Commission staff, in consultation with the contractor, will prepare a short summary of the research for posting on the Commission's website and other media. The Commission staff may consult with the contractor in preparing said document.
10. At the discretion and request of the Commission, the contractor shall, within a year after publication of the report, agree to participate in up for two (2) separate briefings, and up to one (1) public hearing, held by the Commission, of up to two (2) hours each in the Washington, DC area, supported by at least one (1) individual affiliated with the contractor identified as "key personnel." This could include, but not necessarily be limited to, briefing the content of the research to Commissioners and Commission staff, appearing as witnesses at a public hearing held by the Commission, and briefing the content of the research to Members of Congress and/or their staff. No additional remuneration will be provided to the contractor for these briefings or a hearing. The Commission will make a good faith effort to schedule briefings and a hearing at times that are subject to mutual agreement.
Primary Selection Criteria:
1. The Commission will determine which organization or individual responding to this request will be awarded the contract based on a comprehensive "best value" analysis of the proposals received, to include costs, technical value, and ability to complete the work satisfactorily and on time, and past performance with the Commission, if applicable.
2. The primary weighting criterion in selection shall be the assessed qualifications and ability of an organization or individual to address the fundamental research points enunciated above ("key research requirements").
3. The cost and amount of time necessary to complete the report will also be considered as criteria in the selection process.
4. The Commission is a Legislative Branch agency not subject to the Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR).
Proposal submissions should include:
1. A statement of the applicant's relevant qualifications to satisfy the terms of this RFP, to include curricula vitae for personnel intended for work on the project.
2. Identification of the principal researchers who will be responsible for the preparation of the report. It is understood that the designation of the researchers is a critical element of the proposal, and any changes regarding which individuals will be involved in the report's preparation must be approved by the Commission in advance and in writing.
3. A description of the research methodology the applicant proposes to employ. In describing methodology, the submission should provide detailed descriptions of the sources and methods that will be used to research the report's topic and the extent to which Chinese language sources, if any, and other primary materials will be used.
5. A list of any entities for whom you have conducted research or provided consulting services in the past. The Commission understands you may be limited in providing such information by confidentiality agreements.
6. An estimate of the time the applicant will need to complete the required work.
7. The price the applicant will charge to the Commission to complete the work set forth in this RFP.
Organizations and individuals wishing to submit a proposal in response to this RFP must ensure that the response arrives at the location noted below by 5:00 p.m. (EST) on February 20, 2019, or it will not be accepted or considered.
Electronic submissions are acceptable.
Proposals, as well as inquiries or any other correspondence related to this matter, should be directed to:
Christopher Fioravante
Director of Operations and Administration
U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission
Hall of the States, Suite 602
444 North Capitol Street NW
Washington, DC 20001
phone: 202-624-1455
email: cfioravante@uscc.gov
Christopher Fioravante, Director of Operations and Administration, Phone 202-624-1455, Fax 202-624-1406, Email cfioravante@uscc.gov
