State Benefits Portal Modernization
# Procurement Notice Email From: Department of Social Services Procurement Office To: Registered Vendors and Interested Offerors Cc: DSS Procurement Portal Notifications Sent: Apr 27, 2026, 12:04 PM Subject: DSS-2024-0041 - State Benefits Portal Modernization RFP Package Available The Department of Social Services has released Request for Proposal DSS-2024-0041 for the State Benefits Portal Modernization initiative. The Department is seeking proposals from qualified vendors to modernize the State Benefits Portal, which supports citizen eligibility review, household record updates, payment status inquiries, case-worker task queues, document upload workflows, notices, and citizen-facing account access. The RFP package is available through the procurement portal and includes the following documents: - State Benefits Portal Modernization - Request for Proposal - Pricing and SLA Exhibit - Implementation Exhibit - Security Questionnaire The response deadline is May 14, 2026. Proposals must be submitted electronically through the procurement portal before the stated deadline. Late submissions may be rejected without review. The Department anticipates one award for the full modernization scope. The expected contract structure is a fixed fee of $4,800,000, inclusive of implementation deliverables, integrations, training materials, launch support, transition activities, and post-launch stabilization. Vendors must submit a complete cost proposal in accordance with the Pricing and SLA Exhibit. The modernization scope includes eligibility workflows, payment status workflows, household-record workflows, case-worker review queues, citizen account access, document upload, administrative reporting, and integration with existing agency systems. The Department’s current technical environment includes a citizen web portal, an eligibility mainframe, a payment status service, a document repository, a case-worker queue, and a reporting database. The selected vendor must provide a technical implementation plan. The implementation approach must address kickoff, discovery, configuration, integration readiness, functional testing, integration testing, accessibility review, security readiness review, user acceptance testing, training, production launch, and stabilization. The Department expects production go-live within 12 weeks of contract award. Pilot-only launch approaches do not satisfy the required production milestone. The selected vendor must complete the Security Questionnaire. The portal processes citizen eligibility records, payment records, household records, uploaded documents, account recovery information, notices, and case-worker notes. Vendors must describe controls for data handling, administrator access, role-based access control, audit logging, incident response, secure development, third-party service providers, data residency, retention, and privacy documentation. Vendors should review the RFP package carefully and identify any assumptions or exceptions in their proposals. Assumptions may include agency access, mainframe documentation, integration credentials, test data, subject-matter expert availability, data mapping support, production readiness decision makers, security review timing, and scheduled launch windows. The RFP includes contractual provisions concerning fixed-fee payment, milestone billing, service level credits, indemnification, insurance, audit rights, privacy, data handling, security documentation, and production readiness requirements. Vendors are responsible for reviewing all contractual, financial, technical, and operational requirements before submitting a proposal. All questions must be submitted through the procurement portal. The Department will publish answers to material questions through the portal so that all participating vendors have access to the same information. Vendors should not rely on verbal statements or informal communications as modifications to the RFP. Required proposal components include: - Executive summary - Technical approach - Implementation schedule - Cost proposal - Security questionnaire - Compliance checklist - Staffing plan - Public-sector references - Assumptions and exceptions, if any Incomplete submissions may be rejected without further review. Vendors should ensure that all required attachments are included in the electronic submission package and clearly labeled. Department of Social Services Procurement Office RFP DSS-2024-0041 State Benefits Portal Modernization