14-RFP-002-LJ (REISSUE) Comprehensive Performance Audit Services of SBD Incentive Agreements Technical Questions and Answers.

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Howard Snow
6 years ago
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1 Responden t Question Number* RFP Page Number, Section Number, Subsection Reference* Pg., 47, Section C: Scope of Work, C.4 Question* Is there an incumbent contractor or are the current services supported by DEO resources? If there is an incumbent, who is the contractor and what is the annual contract amount? What is DEO s budget for this work? Section C refers to sub-recipients, please define who is considered the sub-recipient? Is the respondent to this RFP considered a Sub-recipient? No. Response The budget is to be determined based on estimates provided in the responses to the RFP. The department may submit a budget amendment in accordance with Chapter 216, Florida Statutes, to transfer funds provided in specific appropriation 2220, or any other operating appropriation category within this budget entity, to implement the comprehensive performance audits, as authorized in the proviso that precedes Specific Appropriation 2215 in the Fiscal Year General Appropriations Act (ch , Laws of Florida). The respondent is considered a subrecipient. Part of the duties of the selected respondent includes statutory duties and program requirements of DEO; therefore, the entity is acting as a subrecipient rather than a vendor. 4 If the respondent is considered a sub-recipient, what is Part of the duties of the selected Page 1 of 6

2 Pg. 45, section C: Scope of Work, C.3., Task #2 Pg. 46, Section C: Scope of Work, C.3, Task #4 the reason that the respondent, especially if the respondent is a CPA firm, is not considered a vendor? Does DEO have a current written performance audit program objectives and procedures? If written programs with objectives and procedures are available are they available to prospective bidders? How will 100% of submitted claims be agreed upon by DEO and the auditor? What are the methods that are acceptable to DEO to document that 100% of non-submitted claims have been contacted? How many of the claims require more than the standard 1-2 days processing? respondent includes statutory duties and program requirements of DEO; therefore, the entity is acting as a sub-recipient rather than a vendor. Yes. Yes. This will be determined and agreed upon during the entrance meeting. Respondents may propose methods for documenting communications, including, but not limited to, electronic communications, phone, and written. At this time the exact amount is unknown. 9 Is any of the claim data submitted by incentive awardees electronic? Yes, most claim data are submitted electronically Does verification of performance include an on-site visit to the incentive awardees place of business. Are all of the requirements of the incentive agreement the same for each incentive awardees, excluding job The sub-recipient is to use industry s best accepted practices to verify performance, which may include site-visits, however there is no such requirement by the department. No. Individual requirements are included in the incentive agreements. Performance Page 2 of 6

3 B.6, Calendar of Events Page 20 of 70 C.1 Purpose Page 42 of 70 C.2. Overview, Page 42 of 70 creation numbers? requirements include job creation and retention, wages, taxes paid, and capital investment. What is the estimated start date of the project? February 3, 2014 RFP mentions audit confirmations as a part of claim review. This is the only place this appears in the RFP. Please provide any additional detail possible as to what is meant by audit confirmations. Will the sub-recipient be required to prepare, submit and collect formal written confirmations from Awardees or is this terminology just referring to the overall claim validation process in the scope of work Section C? We note that the RFP specifies that The Sub-recipient will be responsible for collecting, analyzing, and confirming all claims of jobs created and retained, average wages paid, amount of capital investment expenditures, and taxes paid as applicable to the Incentive agreement, in accordance with the industry s best accepted practices and Florida Statutes. Subrecipient will directly communicate with and collect all documents from the Incentive Awardee. Our understanding of industry best accepted best practices would include obtaining the source documentation as support of the submitted claim data. For example, for the jobs and wages schedule submitted by the respective business, we would request and review source documentation such as an accounting system Audit confirmations relate to the processes (as determined by the subrecipient) during the course of a claim audit that is a means by which the subrecipient can receive and analyze evidence from an incentive awardee regarding assertions that have been made by the incentive awardee with respect to its performance claim. Respondents to the RFP may identify the practices and methods it proposes to employ in the review and confirmation of the incentive performance claims. Page 3 of 6

4 produced, PDF copy of their payroll data / register that reconciles with the Microsoft Excel version submitted for calculation purposes as verification of jobs created and retained and average wages paid etc). For the capital investment expenditures, we would request and review such source documentation as vendor invoices and cancelled checks as evidence; For taxes paid, we would request and review cancelled checks & copies of the return. Is this what the DEO means by the industry s best accepted practices? C.2 Overview, Page 42 of 70. C.3 Tasks, Deliverables, and performance measures Page 47 of 70 Upon the Sub-recipient s request, will claim information be provided to the Sub-recipient electronically by the respective businesses (Incentive Awardees)? Task Number 7 states the sub-recipient will assist in the preparation of the Annual Incentives Report. Please provide any additional detail possible as it relates to the scope of this assistance. For example, will the subrecipient be required to develop the report template and all content and submit for the DEO/EF Inc. s review, or will the sub-recipient only assist the DEO/EF Inc. in compiling the more quantitative aspects of the report? Yes, most claims are submitted electronically. In coordination with DEO and Enterprise Florida, Inc., Sub-recipient will provide ideas, improvements, and analysis. There is a general template available. 17 C.4 Sub-recipient Responsibilities (16) Page 47 of 70 RFP Section C.4 (16) states periodic in-house training on industry standards is a part of the sub-recipient s responsibilities. Please provide any additional detail possible on the frequency and delivery method of such training. At least twice a year and as needed throughout the contract. Page 4 of 6

5 18 19 C.4 Sub-recipient Responsibilities 9) Page 47 of 70 C.4 Sub-recipient Responsibilities 15) Page 47 of 70 Can the monthly scheduled meetings be done via teleconference? This section states that the Sub-recipient must Provide at least one employee with experience in creating or maintaining employee payroll and benefits tracking and payment systems.? What level of experience is in view here? As a CPA firm, we perform numerous reviews and analysis of employee payroll and benefit tracking and payment systems is this what the DEO has in view? Yes. Respondents provide a description of the experience levels of their proposed staff, which will be evaluated by DEO according to Attachment H of this RFP. DEO will use this information to gauge and evaluate the respondent s experience levels C.3 Tasks, Deliverables, and performance measures Page 46 of 70 C.10, Contract Term page 45 of 70 Task Number 3 requires submission of a written claims review packet. Will an electronic claim review packet be acceptable for this deliverable? Also, once the packet has been submitted, will DEO be responsible for responding to any public records request regarding that claim? This section of the RFP indicates this contract may be renewed for a period of one year. Clause 26 on page 15 of 70 indicates that the contract may be renewed for 3 years, or the term of the contract, whichever period is longer. Section C9 on page 49 of 70 indicates the term is for 12 months. Please clarify the term of this contract. Yes, DEO will accept electronic submissions of claim review packets. DEO is responsible for responding to public records requests; however, Subrecipient must allow public access to all records made or received by the Subrecipient in conjunction with its agreement with DEO, unless such records are exempt from section 24(a) of Article 1 of the State Constitution and Subsection (1), Florida Statutes. PUR 1000, General Contract Conditions contains standard terms and conditions that apply to contracts. In accordance with section 60A-1.002(7)(b), FAC, DEO may attach additional terms and conditions specific to each particular Page 5 of 6

6 22 Is it possible for the Division to give some indication of the hours each of the seven tasks should require? I am not expecting anything exact. Just an idea of how much time each task, on average, should require. solicitation. Section C9 on page 49 of 70 supersedes the General Contract Condition, Clause 26. Therefore, the renewal term is 12 months. At this time the exact amount is unknown. Man-hours will vary based on the proposed best-industry practices used to verify performance claims. Page 6 of 6

SECTION 6.2: CONTRACT MANAGER

SECTION 6.2: CONTRACT MANAGER : Section 287.057(15), Florida Statutes, requires the department, for each contractual service contract, to designate an employee to be responsible for enforcing the performance of the contract terms and