Security Processing Support Services (SPSS)

Overview

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is planning to obtain support for the Program Support Center (PSC) / Real Estate, Logistics, and Operations / Intake, Suitability, and Badging Services (ISBS) to provide credentialing services to HHS customers nationwide and for the coordination of background check investigations of potential sponsors; case management; coordination with Federal and State child protective services and various administrative service needs supporting the office environment. The Security Personnel also handle personnel security front-end adjudications by processing security background investigations for employees and contractors. This includes, but is not limited to:

• Credentialing lifecycle management


• Identity proofing


• Enrollment


• Fingerprinting


• The issuance of personal identity verification (PIV) cards


• Associated credentials and their maintenance


• Coordination of background check investigations of potential sponsors


• Case management


• Coordination with Federal and State child protective services and various administrative services needs supporting their customer base.

HHS has a customer base of approximately 10,000 employees. The office oversees upwards of 25,000 individual cases per year for background investigations, and our office oversees upwards of 30,000 individual cases per year for our lines of business in child abuse and neglect checks and fingerprint checks. The preponderance of the work will be conducted mainly in Washington, DC, and Rockville, MD; however, contractor support is required for providing teams who will travel to HHS client sites when requested. Travel may be local, regional, or across the continental United States, and on very short notice.

This Request for Information (RFI) is intended as market research to enable HHS to understand the Security Processing Support Services (SPSS) experience, expertise, and capabilities related to performing personnel security and badging work of potential Quoters. In addition, the gathering of information through this RFI may inform HHS’ approach and preparation of a future solicitation to procure SPSS.

Confidentiality. No proprietary, classified, confidential, or sensitive information should be included in your response. The Government reserves the right to use any non-proprietary technical information in any resultant solicitation(s).

Disclaimers and Notices. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes and does not constitute a solicitation or a promise to issue a solicitation in the future. This RFI does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service. Responses to this RFI are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract.

This RFI does not obligate the Government to award a contract or otherwise pay for the information provided in response. The Government reserves the right to use information provided by respondents for any purpose deemed necessary and legally appropriate. Any organization responding to this notice should ensure that its response is complete and sufficiently detailed. Information provided will be used to assess tradeoffs and alternatives available for the potential requirement and may lead to the development of a solicitation. Respondents are advised that the Government is under no obligation to acknowledge receipt of the information received or provide feedback to respondents with respect to any information submitted. Responses to this RFI will not be considered adequate responses to a solicitation.

The awardee of the personnel security and badging work and their team members will be required to sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) and shall not share details with those outside of their team or HHS.

Submission Instructions. Please provide brief responses to the listed questions. Your response is limited to three (3) pages, single sided on 8 ½” x 11” size paper / electronic layout, in Times New Roman 11-point font. The pages shall be numbered. Each 8 ½” x 11” electronic page shall constitute one (1) page. Each page shall have one (1) inch margins on all sides. Please title your document, “HHS Security Process Support Services Request for Information – Vendor Name” and specify your company’s name as the Vendor Name. A cover page is not necessary. Please name your file: “HHS Security Process Support Services Request for Information – Vendor Name”.

In reply to this RFI, please, include the following information:

General Vendor Information:

• Organization Name


• Mailing address


• Name, phone number and e-mail address of designated point of contact


• Business type (large business, small business, small disadvantaged business, 8(a) SBA-certified small disadvantaged business, HUBZone small business, woman-owned small business, veteran-owned small business, service-disabled veteran-owned small business)


• Any current or previous federal contracts on the GSA, Governmentwide Acquisition Contracts (GWAC), or any other relevant federal contracts held by your organization.

Respondents are encouraged to provide complete but concise responses to the question listed below.

Please submit your response as a PDF via email to bryan.daines@psc.hhs.gov by 10:00 AM EST October 28th, 2024.

Questions

1. If an SPSS solicitation is released, would your company bid on it? Please respond with “Yes” or “No” and briefly explain why.


2. Does your company have experience providing SPSS? Please provide an explanation with details.


3. Does your company have experience providing enterprise-level SPSS at other Federal Agencies of similar size, scope, and complexity? Please provide an explanation with details.


4. What potential conflicts of interest would your company have if they were do this work? (For instance, do you have any other current HHS contracts?)


5. What are challenges that you foresee in appropriately staffing a team to support HHS needs?


6. What other information should HHS be aware of or consider prior to releasing an SPSS solicitation?