Short Form IAS TORFP Instructions for Drafters and Procurement Officers

1. Introduction

This document outlines the process for preparing, soliciting, and awarding task orders for the statewide Independent Assessment Services (IAS) Master Contract using the Short Form IAS TORFP Template.

Direct any questions or concerns about this task order process to the Director of the IT Procurement Office (ITPO) at itpo.doit@maryland.gov.

2. Criteria for Short Form IAS TORFP Usage

The Short Form IAS TORFP is intended for use on IAS TORFPs which meet one or more of the following criteria. Are expected to:

Have a maximum total cost less than $200K for Fixed Price (FP) payment for deliverables
Have a maximum level of effort less than 2000 hours for Time & Materials (T&M).
Have a maximum Period of Performance of less than 6 months.
Be only T&M or FP by deliverable Task Order types. No hybrid T&M and FP TOs will be allowed.
Have a scope of work encompassing no more than one State agency or MITDP and is a single task. No subsequent work orders will be allowed.
Have limited change orders, which must be approved by DoIT prior to execution.
Use the Short Form IAS TORFP and proposal without modification.

If the anticipated IAS TORFP does not meet these criteria, then the Long Form IAS TORFP form and process should be used.

3. IAS TORFP Origination

The requesting agency consults the Guidance For Writing a Short Form IAS TORFP to learn about requirements gathering and other preparations that occur before initiating a IAS TORFP, including IAS TORFP templates and example supporting documents.
The agency obtains the latest Short Form IAS TORFP Template from the Agency Service Center.
The agency obtains an IAS TORFP number in ADPICS by preparing a Reference Blanket Purchase Order (BPO) release against the IAS BPO (060B4400002).
The agency identifies its TO Manager and TO Procurement Officer for this IAS TORFP and includes this information in the draft IAS TORFP.
The agency identifies the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) goal for the IAS TORFP by following the Guidance on IAS TORFP MBE Goal Setting Process, completing and internally approving the appropriate worksheets following agency policy.
The agency completely fills out the IAS TORFP Short Form describing the scope, requirements, deliverables and all other information required on the form.
The agency Assistant Attorney General reviews the draft IAS TORFP for legal sufficiency (optional but recommended).
The agency submits the IAS TORFP, signed IAS MBE Participation Worksheet and GOMA MBE Subgoal Worksheet to the ITPO mail box via email at itpo.doit@maryland.gov.

4. IAS TORFP Review

ITPO and DoIT Procurement Management Office reviews the IAS TORFP and the MBE determination, and provides feedback to the TO Procurement Officer. The agency will revise the IAS TORFP, as necessary, and return it to the ITPO. See details of the ITPO review process here. Important! ITPO reviews take between 7 and 14 days. Use of the most recent Short Form IAS TORFP Template will improve response times.
The ITPO approves the IAS TORFP for release and sends an email authorizing the agency to proceed with IAS TORFP release.

5. IAS TORFP Solicitation

The TO Procurement Officer will release the IAS TORFP to all Master Contractors identified for the task order, and cc: itpo.doit@maryland.gov.
The IAS TORFP will be released for a minimum of 5 days.
The TO Procurement Officer will conduct all communications with the Master Contractors during the solicitation process. The solicitation process will include a pre-proposal conference, answering Master Contractor questions, amending the IAS TORFP where necessary, proposal evaluation, and award recommendation.
The agency will email a copy of any released IAS TORFP amendments to itpo.doit@maryland.gov.
The agency will form an evaluation committee. The Committee is to include project stakeholders, as well as technical and subject matter experts.
The TO Procurement Officer will receive Technical and Financial Task Order Proposals (TO Proposals) from the Master Contractors that choose to respond to the IAS TORFP. Master Contractors choosing not to respond with a TO Proposal are required to provide the TO Procurement Officer with feedback on the IAS TORFP. The required feedback form is included in the IAS TORFP and is also available on the Service Center page.
The TO Procurement Officer will deliver the technical proposals to the Evaluation Committee. With the TO Procurement Officer's guidance, the Evaluation Committee will conduct an appropriate evaluation of each TO Proposal in accordance with all applicable State laws and regulations. This may include requests for clarification, additional information, oral presentations, and best and final offers.
The Evaluation Committee will establish the technical rankings based on the evaluation criteria outlined in the IAS TORFP. Upon completion of technical rankings, the TO Procurement Officer will forward the financial proposals for each qualified TO Proposal to the Evaluation Committee. The TO Procurement Officer may request a Best and Final Offer from the offeror of each qualified TO Proposal. The Evaluation Committee will establish the financial ranking and the combined technical and financial ranking of each qualified TO Proposal and recommend an awardee based on best value.
The TO Procurement Officer will submit a IAS TORFP Award package to the ITPO consisting of:
1. An award recommendation summarizing the evaluation and selection process;
2. A technical, financial and combined ranking of each qualified TO Proposal;
3. Rationale for selecting the recommended Master Contractor's TO Proposal for award;
4. The proposed MBE participation from the recommended Master Contractor, including completed MBE Forms Attachments D-1 through D-2 as submitted by the recommended Master Contractor, and any waiver documentation, if applicable.

6. IAS TORFP Award

The ITPO will review for approval the IAS TORFP award package. Once approved, the ITPO will notify the TO Procurement Officer.
The TO Procurement Officer will notify the recommended Master Contractor of the award. Utilizing the Task Order Agreement (TO Agreement) Template, the TO Procurement Officer will complete the TO Agreement and forward it to the recommended Master Contractor.
The recommended Master Contractor will sign and email a PDF file to include the TO Agreement to the TO Procurement Officer with MBE Attachments D3 through D4 and any waiver documentation.
The TO Procurement Officer will notify all Master Contractors who submitted a TO Proposal of the selected Master Contractor. The agency may provide debriefings to the Master Contractors not selected, upon request.
The TO Procurement Officer will send the following documents to the selected Master Contractor, with a copy to the ITPO:
1. Signed purchase order;
2. Fully executed TO Agreement; and
3. Notice to Proceed.
4. Reference BPO in ADPICS
ITPO will approve the final award documents and ADPICS Reference BPO.