HomeMy WebLinkAboutRFP 2026291-01 On-Premise Emergency Services Telephony System FINALANNOUNCEMENT
The Franklin County Board of Commissioners is requesting sealed proposals from qualified telecommunications solution providers for an On-Premise Emergency Services
Telephony System. Contractors are to provide design, installation, configuration,
migration, and support of a new on-premise enterprise voice communication system.
To obtain a copy of the RFP go to https://www.franklincountypa.gov/current-solicitation-opportunities/ or contact procurement@franklincountypa.gov.
REQUEST FOR PROPOSAL
ON-PREMISE EMERGENCY SERVICES TELEPHONY SYSTEM
Franklin County, Pennsylvania
RFP 2026291-01
TABLE OF CONTENTS
SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION & INSTRUCTIONS ................................................................... 1
SEC. 1.01 PURPOSE OF THE RFP ....................................................................................... 1
SEC. 1.02 RFP SCHEDULE ................................................................................................... 1
SEC. 1.03 DEFINITIONS ....................................................................................................... 1
SEC. 1.04 COPIES OF PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS ............................................................... 2
SEC. 1.05 REQUIRED REVIEW ............................................................................................. 2
SEC. 1.06 AMENDMENTS TO PROPOSALS ....................................................................... 2
SEC. 1.07 AMENDMENTS TO THE RFP .............................................................................. 2
SEC. 1.08 QUESTION & ANSWER PERIOD .......................................................................... 2
SEC. 1.09 PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE ......................................................................... 2
SEC. 1.10 RETURN INSTRUCTIONS .................................................................................... 3
SEC. 1.11 PRIOR EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS.......................................................... 4
SEC. 1.12 PROJECT TIMELINE ........................................................................................... 4
SEC. 1.13 NDAA COMPLIANCE ........................................................................................... 4
SEC. 1.14 CONTRACTOR EMPLOYEE SCREENINGS ......................................................... 4
SEC. 1.15 SUBCONTRACTORS............................................................................................ 4
SEC. 1.16 NONDISCRIMINATION CLAUSE ......................................................................... 5
SECTION 2. BACKGROUND INFORMATION .......................................................................... 5
SEC. 2.01 BACKGROUND INFORMATION .......................................................................... 5
SECTION 3. SPECIFICATIONS ................................................................................................ 6
SEC. 3.01 OVERVIEW ........................................................................................................... 6
SEC. 3.02 SYSTEM USERS ................................................................................................... 6
SEC. 3.03 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................. 7
SEC. 3.04 SYSTEM FUNCTIONALITY & COMPATIBILITY REQUIREMENTS .................... 8
SEC. 3.05 EQUIPMENT & OTHER SUPPORTING INFRASTRUCTURE ............................... 9
SEC. 3.06 SYSTEM INSTALLATION, CONFIGURATION & TESTING ................................. 9
SEC. 3.07 DOCUMENTATION/DELIVERABLES ................................................................ 10
SEC. 3.08 TRAINING .......................................................................................................... 10
SEC. 3.09 SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS .............................................................................. 10
SEC. 3.10 WARRANTY ....................................................................................................... 11
SEC. 3.11 WORK SCHEDULE ............................................................................................. 11
SECTION 4. PROPOSAL FORMAT AND CONTENT ............................................................. 11
SEC. 4.01 TRANSMITTAL LETTER (Max 1 page) ............................................................ 12
SEC. 4.02 STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS ................................................................. 12
SEC. 4.03 BRIEF STATEMENT ON THE COMPANY (Max 2 pages) ............................... 12
SEC. 4.04 SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE (Max 5 pages) ....................................................... 13
SEC. 4.05 BILL OF MATERIALS (No page limit) .............................................................. 13
SEC. 4.06 MANUFACTURER CERTIFICATIONS (No page limit) .................................... 13
SEC. 4.07 SUBCONTRACTOR INFORMATION (no page limit) ........................................ 13
SEC. 4.08 PROJECT MANAGEMENT & TIMELINE (Max 3 pages) ................................. 13
SEC. 4.09 IMPLEMENTATION PLAN (Max 3 pages) ....................................................... 14
SEC. 4.10 TRAINING & DOCUMENTATION PLAN (Max 2 pages) .................................. 14
SEC. 4.11 SYSTEM SECURITY PLAN (Max 2 pages) ...................................................... 14
SEC. 4.12 WARRANTY ....................................................................................................... 14
SEC. 4.13 MAINTENANCE & SUPPORT ............................................................................ 14
SEC. 4.14 NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT ........................................................................... 14
SEC. 4.15 SUPPLEMENTAL SECTIONS ............................................................................ 14
SEC. 4.16 COST PROPOSAL .............................................................................................. 14
SECTION 5. EVALUATION CRITERIA ................................................................................... 15
SECTION 6. GENERAL SELECTION PROCESS INFORMATION .......................................... 16
SEC. 6.01 CLARIFICATION OF OFFERS ............................................................................ 16
SEC. 6.02 DISCUSSIONS WITH OFFERORS ...................................................................... 16
SEC. 6.03 EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS ......................................................................... 16
SECTION 7. CONTRACT PROVISIONS & INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS ........................... 17
SEC. 7.01 CONTRACT PROVISIONS ................................................................................. 17
SEC. 7.02 PROGRESS PAYMENTS AND RETAINAGE ..................................................... 18
SEC. 7.03 FINAL PAYMENT ............................................................................................... 18
SEC. 7.04 BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AGREEMENT.............................................................. 18
SEC. 7.05 INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS .......................................................................... 18
SECTION 8. GENERAL LEGAL INFORMATION .................................................................... 21
SEC. 8.01 RIGHT OF REJECTION ...................................................................................... 21
SEC. 8.02 WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSALS ....................................................................... 21
SEC. 8.03 EXEMPTION FROM FEDERAL EXCISE AND PENNSYLVANIA SALES TAX... 21
SEC. 8.04 CONTRACTOR CLEARANCE ............................................................................ 21
SEC. 8.05 COUNTY NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR PREPARATION COSTS ........................... 22
SEC. 8.06 DISCLOSURE OF PROPOSAL CONTENTS ....................................................... 22
ATTACHMENT A NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT
ATTACHMENT B STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS
ATTACHMENT C BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AGREEMENT
RFP 2026291-01 Page 1
SECTION 1. INTRODUCTION & INSTRUCTIONS
SEC. 1.01 PURPOSE OF THE RFP
The Franklin County Board of Commissioners ("Board") is requesting sealed proposals
from qualified telecommunications solution providers (“Contractor”) for an On-Premise
Emergency Services Telephony System. Contractors are to provide design, provision of
materials, installation, configuration, migration, and support of a new on-premise
enterprise voice communication system for the Department of Emergency Services.
This system will replace a legacy voice platform currently supporting mission-critical
emergency communications, including internal coordination of first responder
operations and failover handling of Next Generation 911 (NG911) call routing.
The County requires a highly reliable solution that maintains local survivability, copper-
based PRI connectivity, and operational independence from cloud voice services or
internet connectivity disruptions.
SEC. 1.02 RFP SCHEDULE
The RFP schedule set out herein represents Franklin County’s best estimate of the
schedule that will be followed. If a component of this schedule, such as the deadline for
the receipt of proposals, is delayed, the rest of the schedule may be shifted accordingly.
All times are Franklin County, Pennsylvania time (ET).
RFP Released …………………………………..………………………………………………………………August 19, 2026
Mandatory Pre-Proposal & Site Visit Conference …11:00 AM Tuesday September 1, 2026
Question and Answer Period …………….September 1, 2026 – 4:00 PM September 22, 2026
Proposals Due ……….……………………………………………………………………..… 4:00 PM October 5, 2026 Contact Selected Contractor(s) for Review Meeting ………………………………………………………..
…………………………………………………………..……………….. Estimated Date of October 28, 2026
Anticipated Contract Date ….…………………….……………………………………………... December 1, 2026
System Go Live by ………………………………………………………………………………..…… February 28, 2027
SEC. 1.03 DEFINITIONS
DID – Direct Inward Dialing
EMA – Emergency Management Agency
EOC – Emergency Operations Centers IP – Internet Protocol
NG911 – Next Generation 911
NICE – NICE Inform Recorder solution from Motorola Solutions.
PoE – Power over Ethernet
PRI – Primary Rate Interface
RFP 2026291-01 Page 2
QoS – Quality of Service
SIP – Session Initiation Protocol
SLA- Service Level Agreement
VLAN – Virtual Local Area Network
WAN – Wide Area Network
SEC. 1.04 COPIES OF PROPOSAL DOCUMENTS
To obtain a copy of the RFP go to https://www.franklincountypa.gov/current-
solicitation-opportunities/ or contact procurement@franklincountypa.gov.
SEC. 1.05 REQUIRED REVIEW
Offerors should carefully review this solicitation for defects and erroneous material.
Comments concerning defects and erroneous material should be made in writing and received by the Procurement Department at least ten days before the deadline for
receipt of proposals. This will allow time for the issuance of any necessary
amendments. It will also help prevent the opening of a defective proposal and exposure
of offeror's proposals upon which award could not be made. The Contractor shall not be
allowed to take advantage of any errors, inconsistencies, irregularities, or omissions in the specifications.
SEC. 1.06 AMENDMENTS TO PROPOSALS
Amendments to or withdrawals of proposals will only be allowed if an acceptable request is received prior to the deadline that is set for the receipt of proposals. No
amendments or withdrawals will be accepted after the deadline.
SEC. 1.07 AMENDMENTS TO THE RFP
If an amendment is issued, it will be provided to all those who were notified of the RFP
and to those who have registered with the procurement office after receiving the RFP
from the Franklin County website.
SEC. 1.08 QUESTION & ANSWER PERIOD
All questions must be submitted in writing to procurement@franklincountypa.gov.
Questions may be submitted starting with the Pre-Proposal Conference on September 1,
2026 until September 22, 2026 at 4:00 PM, Franklin County, Pennsylvania time.
SEC. 1.09 PRE-PROPOSAL CONFERENCE
A Mandatory Pre-Proposal Conference will be held at 11:00 AM ET on Tuesday
September 1, 2026 to address questions from any interested potential respondents. A
RFP 2026291-01 Page 3
walk-through of the facility will be included during the meeting. All questions will be
documented and posted at www.franklincountypa.gov following the meeting.
The conference will be held at the Department of Emergency Services 390 New York
Avenue Chambersburg, PA 17201
During the site visit:
• All attending must provide photo ID and company name.
• Cell phones or cameras will be allowed at the discretion of the County. If allowed, they may only be used to take pictures when approved by County staff.
• No weapons are permitted on County property.
SEC. 1.10 RETURN INSTRUCTIONS
Proposals shall be submitted to the Procurement Office as electronic PDF files at the
following address:
Procurement Department RFP #2026291-01
272 North Second Street Chambersburg, PA 17201
Franklin County, Pennsylvania
The electronic files may be submitted via email to procurement@franklincountypa.gov
or via a USB flash drive.
The technical proposal shall be titled in the format of “OFFEROR A – On-Premise
Emergency Services Telephony System – TECHNICAL” where OFFEROR A is the name
of your firm.
The cost proposal shall be saved in a separate PDF file from the main proposal and
clearly named in a format such as “OFFEROR A – On-Premise Emergency Telephony
System – COST PROPOSAL”.
Any confidential information submitted by the offeror must be submitted in a separate PDF Document from the main proposal and labeled similarly as described above
including the word “Confidential” at the end of the file name. See Section 8.06.
The County is not responsible for deliveries that do not reach the Procurement
Department by the required due date and time which will be strictly enforced. Note that email transmission is not instantaneous. If emailing your proposal, the County
recommends sending it ahead of the deadline to ensure the email is delivered by the
receipt for proposals deadline. It is the responsibility of the proposer to contact the
RFP 2026291-01 Page 4
Procurement Office at 717-709-7229 to confirm that proposal has been received. The
County is not responsible for unreadable, corrupt or missing attachments.
All materials submitted with the response will become the property of the County of
Franklin. No materials submitted will be returned to the Respondent with the exception of confidential items upon written request.
SEC. 1.11 PRIOR EXPERIENCE & QUALIFICATIONS
The selected contractor shall demonstrate:
• Experience with public safety and/or emergency communications environments,
• Experience implementing PRI-based telephony solutions,
• Certified technical staff,
• Manufacturer partnership status, and
• A minimum of three (3) government or emergency services references.
To demonstrate a contractor’s qualifications to perform the Work, all offerors will be
required to submit written evidence such as financial data, previous experience, present
commitment and other data as required by the Statement of Qualifications.
SEC. 1.12 PROJECT TIMELINE
The system shall be fully operational by February 28, 2027.
SEC. 1.13 NDAA COMPLIANCE
All items and services proposed and procured under this RFP shall be compliant with
the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The County will require verification of
compliance before installation of any item.
SEC. 1.14 CONTRACTOR EMPLOYEE SCREENINGS
The selected contractor and any approved subcontractors shall be required to complete
and produce current state and federal background checks, to include fingerprinting, for
all employees working on this project before they commence work on the project.
SEC. 1.15 SUBCONTRACTORS
The wish of the County is to minimize the use of subcontractors. When subcontractors
are used, project management, coordination of subcontractors and deliverables will
remain the responsibility of the prime contractor. After the new system is live, the County desires to be able to look to the prime contractor for any and all service,
maintenance, warranties, and training.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 5
ALL subcontractors shall be approved in advance by the County. At any time during the
solicitation process or the execution of the project, the County reserves the right to
request additional information about a subcontractor that the County deems necessary
to evaluate the qualifications of the subcontractor to perform the services required by
the contractor.
The Contactor shall ensure lower-tier subcontractors in support of this solicitation
comply with the requirements included herein.
SEC. 1.16 NONDISCRIMINATION CLAUSE
Franklin County assures that no person shall be excluded from participating in, be
denied the benefits of, or be otherwise subjected to discrimination on the grounds of
race, gender, creed, color, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or in
violation of the Pennsylvania Human Relations Act, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religious creed, ancestry, age, sex, national origin, handicap or
disability, or in violation of any applicable local, state, or federal laws. With advance
notification, accommodations may be provided for those with special needs for
language, speech, sight or hearing. If you have a request for a special need, wish to file
a complaint, or desire additional information please contact the Risk Department at (717) 261-3819 or riskmgt@franklincountypa.gov.
SECTION 2. BACKGROUND INFORMATION
SEC. 2.01 BACKGROUND INFORMATION
Franklin County is situated in south central Pennsylvania along the Maryland border at
the convergence of several major highways including Interstates 81 and 76, U.S. Route
11, and U.S. Route 30. The County seat of Franklin County is Chambersburg Borough. Franklin County is a fourth-class county comprising fifteen townships and seven
boroughs. The County encompasses 754 square miles and has a 2020 US Census
population of 155,932. The County provides many public services and community
programs to ensure the safety, health and general welfare of its residents. With the
diversity of its economic base and steady growth over the last ten years, the residents enjoy the advantages of both urban and rural opportunities within Franklin County.
The Franklin County Department of Emergency Services is responsible for providing all
aspects of a comprehensive emergency management program in Franklin County as
well as all aspects of call receipt and call processing for all fire, emergency medical service and law enforcement agencies, with the exception of the Pennsylvania State
Police. The existing telephony system has reached end-of-life. Telephony service and
provision of internet is provided through Brightspeed.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 6
SECTION 3. SPECIFICATIONS
SEC. 3.01 OVERVIEW
The objective of this project is to provide a complete turn-key solution for the
Department of Emergency Services that is modern, supported, resilient telephony
system to replace the current system that is at end-of-life. This system supports the
administrative functions of the Department of Emergency Services.
While this system is not the primary system for receipt of 911 calls, in the event that the
NG911 system fails, this is the secondary backup for receipt of these calls. In the event
of NG911 failure in Franklin County the calls roll to other counties in our region. In the
event of a larger NG911 failure that affects all counties in our region, calls would then
roll to this system.
The successful contractor will provide:
• System Engineering & Design,
• Equipment & Software,
• Installation & Configuration,
• Migration & Cutover, and
• Documentation & Training.
SEC. 3.02 SYSTEM USERS
There are currently:
• Nine (9) EMA user/lines
• Three (3) 9-1-1 Admin users/lines
• Ten (10) Main Dispatch users/lines
• Five (5) Backup Center 9-1-1 users/lines located at 157 Lincoln Way East
Chambersburg, PA 17201
• Nineteen (19) EOC users/lines
• Three (3) conference room phones/lines
• One (1) lobby phone/line
• One (1) server room phone/lines
• Three (3) wireless phones for 9-1-1 administration
• Two (2) wireless phones for EMA administration
The number of users/lines is expected to remain consistent with the above. However,
the system shall be scalable for potential future expansion if required.
Unless otherwise noted, all users/lines are located at 390 New York Avenue
Chambersburg, PA 17201.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 7
SEC. 3.03 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
The successful contractor shall be responsible for the engineering and design of the
new system including but not limited to:
• Review of the existing PRI infrastructure and call flows,
• Voice architecture design and survivability planning,
• Network readiness validation,
• High-availability configuration planning, and
• A detailed migration plan ensuring minimal service interruption with after-hours
cutover execution. NG911 failover testing and validation and possibly parallel
operation.
The system shall provide a communications environment that must remain functional during:
• WAN / Internet outages
• Cloud voice platform disruptions
• SIP trunk failures
• Regional emergencies
• Power interruption events (facility is generator-backed)
The proposed solution shall provide:
General
• Fully operational on-premise call control,
• PRI gateway or native PRI interface capability, and
• System management and monitoring software.
Architecture
• Provides for on-premise call control,
• Support for PRI/copper telephony connectivity,
• Capability to function without internet access, and
• Ability to support SIP trunking for future expansion.
Capacity
• Licensing for approximately:
o 50 IP desk phones and
o Up to 25 DID numbers.
• Capacity and minimum support for:
o 50 endpoints and
o 25 DID lines.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 8
• Platform scalability without forklift replacement.
Network capability
• PoE-capable enterprise handsets and support,
• VLAN segmentation capability,
• QoS compatibility, and
• Interoperability with existing County switching infrastructure.
Resiliency
• Generator compatible operation,
• Survivability during WAN outages, and
• Support for emergency call routing scenarios.
System Security
The telephony system selected and installed shall be compliant with NIST-CSF
standards.
Other
The new system shall be equipped with two PRI circuits for trunking as well as
voicemail capability. If switch upgrades are necessary, they are to be included in this
project. The new system shall provide for scalability and expansion if required in the
future.
The County prefers that the proposed solution provide redundant power supply options.
Non-proprietary equipment is preferred.
SEC. 3.04 SYSTEM FUNCTIONALITY & COMPATIBILITY REQUIREMENTS
The system shall provide for standard telephony functions such as receiving, holding,
transferring and conferencing calls and Caller ID. The system shall also have the ability
to forward calls both internally and to mobile devices and allow calls to be transferred
between the primary 390 New York Avenue location and the backup center at 157 Lincoln Way East. Video conferencing is not required.
The system shall provide voicemail with notification on the physical phone and via
email. A minimum of 1 phone shall have recording capabilities.
Each phone line/user shall have a different extension programmed to the phones. Note
that several of the phones are tied to the County’s NICE inform recording system. Any
RFP 2026291-01 Page 9
phone tied to the NICE inform recording system is required to beep upon call
connection to make the caller aware they are being recorded. Compatibility with the
NICE inform recording system is required.
A designated administration line shall be provided that can be used to re-route Emergency 9-1-1 calls to this on-premise system in the event that the primary 9-1-1 call
handling equipment or system goes down.
It is strongly desired that five (5) phones provide administrative ability to oversee
administrative (non-EOC) lines and be able to have preprogrammed lines for quick transferring capability.
Brightspeed will remain the telephony service and internet provider.
SEC. 3.05 EQUIPMENT & OTHER SUPPORTING INFRASTRUCTURE
In addition to the equipment to be proposed by the potential contractor to meet the
requirements of this RFP, the following additional equipment is provided:
• Eight (8) spare phones
• Three (3) conference call phones
• Three (3) wireless phones for 9-1-1 administrators
• Two (2) wireless phones for EMA administrators
The successful contractor is expected to determine what (if any) wiring, fiber or cabling
will need to be run.
SEC. 3.06 SYSTEM INSTALLATION, CONFIGURATION & TESTING
The successful contractor shall be responsible for the installation, configuration and
testing of the entire system to create a fully functioning turnkey solution including but not limited to:
• Equipment installation and rack integration,
• PRI circuit configuration and testing,
• Extension provisioning and call routing configuration,
• Auto attendant/hunt group/emergency routing configuration, and
• Quality of Service (QoS) implementation guidance.
The successful contractor shall be responsible for arranging cutover and working with Brightspeed to ensure the successful transition of PRI circuits. Comprehensive testing
of end-to-end call scenarios is required to ensure that incoming, outgoing and extension
to extension calls complete as required. The contractor shall also work with County
staff to ensure that the correct IP addressing is in place as well as proper firewall
RFP 2026291-01 Page 10
provisioning and network provisioning is in place, tested and approved by the County
prior to cutover.
Note that the existing system must remain operational throughout the installation of the
new system and the day-to-day operation of the Department of Emergency Services must be maintained. All work must be completed as to not interfere with the
Department’s operations. Cutover must be coordinated with the County to ensure
minimum downtime and impact to operations and safety. This is likely to include an
after-hours cutover.
SEC. 3.07 DOCUMENTATION/DELIVERABLES
The successful contractor shall provide:
• As-built diagrams,
• Administrative procedures documentation,
• Disaster recovery procedures documentation,
• End-user reference materials, and
• Warranty documents.
All documentation shall be provided in a PDF format or a mutually agreed upon
equivalent.
SEC. 3.08 TRAINING
The successful contractor shall provide technical training for all County staff including
daily end users, supervisors, technical staff and administrators. Training shall be
provided for software and equipment to allow for operation, administration,
configuration, troubleshooting and maintenance of all components. Emergency procedures shall also be included in the training. After-hours training will be required to
ensure that all shifts receive adequate training. It is anticipated that 4 sessions will be
needed. Question & Answer sessions for all shifts will also be required after the initial
training.
SEC. 3.09 SUPPORT REQUIREMENTS
This system is critical to the life and safety of Franklin County residents. A five (5) year
service agreement is requested and shall provide on-going support after installation
including:
• 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year technical support
• A defined critical incident response SLA.
• Remote diagnostics capability
• On-site support availability
RFP 2026291-01 Page 11
• Software patching, upgrades and lifecycle management
• Hardware replacement timelines
• Escalation procedures
In the event of an outage the contractor shall provide in-person response in two (2) hours or less. Repair or replacement of any nonfunctioning part is required in twenty-
four (24) hours or less with return of the system to full operating status also within
twenty-four (24) hours.
The County is able to provide secure means for remote access for the purposes of response and support if required.
Additional requirements to be listed in the Service Contract;
• All labor, parts, and travel costs,
• Factory-authorized field upgrades,
• System software support, modifications, hot fixes, updates, upgrades, new driver
packs, etc. as needed,
• Training on upgrades as necessary for seamless implementation as they occur,
SEC. 3.10 WARRANTY
A minimum of a one-year parts and labor warranty for all systems and equipment is
required in addition to the service agreement outlined above.
SEC. 3.11 WORK SCHEDULE
Business hours for the Franklin County Department of Emergency Services are 8:30 AM
to 4:30 PM Monday through Friday excluding County holidays. However, due to the nature of this project the contractor may be required to perform work on the system
outside normal business hours. The County will work with the contractor to determine
the optimal schedule, but the County will have the final determination in its sole
discretion of the work schedule with the selected Contractor.
SECTION 4. PROPOSAL FORMAT AND CONTENT
The County discourages overly lengthy and costly proposals. However, in order for the
County to evaluate proposals fairly and completely, offerors must follow the format set
out in this RFP and provide all information requested in sufficient detail to enable the County to properly evaluate the proposal. Any information that exceeds page
maximums provided will be redacted from the evaluation committee and not reviewed.
If your firm has prior experience working with the County DO NOT assume this prior
work is known to the evaluation committee. All firms are evaluated solely on the
information contained in their proposal, information obtained from references,
RFP 2026291-01 Page 12
interviews or presentations if requested. All submittals must be prepared as if the
evaluation committee has no knowledge of the firm, their qualifications or past projects.
Any submission that does not follow this format or does not require all the information
requested may be deemed unresponsive by the County and not evaluated.
All contractors’ proposals shall meet the requirements listed herein. If the proposal differs from these requirements, the contractor must note the difference and describe in
detail how their proposal will meet the County's needs despite differing from the
specified requirement. Failure to do so may result in the contractor's proposal being
deemed non-responsive.
SEC. 4.01 TRANSMITTAL LETTER (Max 1 page)
A transmittal letter must accompany the RFP submission. The purposes of this
letter are to transmit the proposal, acknowledge receipt of any addenda and to allow the
firm an opportunity to indicate their ability to provide the services requested. The letter must contain the following information:
• Primary Point-of-Contact Name
• Primary Project Lead Name (if different from above)
• Primary Contact Address
• Primary Contact Phone and Email
• Confirmation of receipt of any addenda published
• Authorized signature confirming the proposal will remain open and valid for at
least three (3) months from the date set as the deadline for the receipt of
proposals.
SEC. 4.02 STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS
Complete the Statement of Qualifications from Attachment B.
Franklin County reserves the right to contact and/or visit references/owners of similar
projects without the contractor’s representation for live demonstrations. The results of
any reference contacts may be used in the evaluation of the proposal.
SEC. 4.03 BRIEF STATEMENT ON THE COMPANY (MAX 2 PAGES)
Supplement the information provided in the Statement of Qualifications and provide a
description of your company including your work in designing, furnishing, installation
and providing on-going support of systems similar to this project in emergency services
facilities or similar projects.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 13
Identify the names and qualifications of the offeror’s key personnel not previously
identified including those that will be designing and/or installing and configuring the
system. Resumes are not counted toward the page limit.
Provide any licenses and certifications held (not counted toward the page limit).
SEC. 4.04 SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE (MAX 5 PAGES)
Provide a detailed description of the proposed architecture and describe how the
proposed solution meets the specific functional requirements listed in Section 3.
SEC. 4.05 BILL OF MATERIALS (NO PAGE LIMIT)
Provide a detailed list of all new equipment proposed for this project. Clearly state the
manufacturer, quantities, model number, and other pertinent information related to the proposed components. Identify all proprietary equipment, technology and/or software
proposed. Pricing should not be included in this section.
SEC. 4.06 MANUFACTURER CERTIFICATIONS (NO PAGE LIMIT)
Provide letters and/or certificates from manufacturers of the equipment proposed
stating the contractor is a certified partner.
SEC. 4.07 SUBCONTRACTOR INFORMATION (NO PAGE LIMIT)
Provide a list of subcontractors the offeror plans to use in this project. Include name,
address, the nature of the work they are to perform, and the percentage of the overall
project they will perform. The County reserves the right to request additional
information on any subcontractor to verify their ability to perform the work including but
not limited experience, licensing, certifications, and financial stability.
SEC. 4.08 PROJECT MANAGEMENT & TIMELINE (MAX 3 PAGES)
The contractor shall explain their approach to management of this project. Define key
deliverables and proposed dates for completion. Include a conceptual schedule service to depict milestones and benchmark dates for elements such as project kick-off, check
in meetings, status reports, etc.
Identify and prioritize all major risks, controllable and uncontrollable, that may impact a
successful delivery of this project. Describe your plan to mitigate each of these risks. Please note that a final schedule will be established and agreed upon during the
scoping and contracting phase with the selected successful offeror.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 14
SEC. 4.09 IMPLEMENTATION PLAN (MAX 3 PAGES)
The contractor shall explain their approach to implementation of this project and to how
they anticipate executing the scope of this project to minimize system down time while
still being cost effective.
The discussion should address strategies and plans for testing, verification, validation
and contingencies. Include proposed quality control and quality assurance plans.
SEC. 4.10 TRAINING & DOCUMENTATION PLAN (MAX 2 PAGES)
Describe the proposed plan and schedule for training including how the plan will meet
the needs described in Section 3 as well as a description of documentation provided.
SEC. 4.11 SYSTEM SECURITY PLAN (MAX 2 PAGES)
Provide a narrative demonstrating how your firm will meet the system security
requirements described in Section 3.
SEC. 4.12 WARRANTY
Describe or provide a copy of the contractor’s warranty for the system.
SEC. 4.13 MAINTENANCE & SUPPORT
(Max 2 pages not including maintenance agreement) Describe your ongoing support model for after implementation. Include the process and
schedule for upgrades and bug fixes. Include a copy of your maintenance agreement.
SEC. 4.14 NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT
Include the completed non-collusion affidavit from Attachment A.
SEC. 4.15 SUPPLEMENTAL SECTIONS
As needed, respondents may provide additional information not covered in the above sections that the respondents believe shall be beneficial to the County during the
selection process.
SEC. 4.16 COST PROPOSAL
The cost proposal shall be included in a separate PDF file named OFFEROR A - Cost
Proposal.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 15
Provide subtotals for installation, equipment and annual support costs for 5 years post
go-live. Note any and all fees associated with an annual maintenance agreement
including but not limited to licensing, upgrades, patches and support.
Note any benchmark points along with any software, hardware, installation and training costs. All costs must be included including but not limited to freight and shipping,
implementation, training, support, maintenance and licensing. The contractor is
responsible for all taxes, permits, fees, insurance and bonding costs for this project.
Additionally, the Proposal may provide other ‘value-added’ propositions, along with proposed cost, that may be of interest to the County. List these costs separately.
SECTION 5. EVALUATION CRITERIA
This telephony system is of significant importance to Franklin County, and to rely
exclusively on price is not in the best interest of the County. Award of a contract shall be
at the sole discretion of Franklin County. Franklin County reserves the right to accept or
reject any or all submissions in whole or in part and to waive any irregularities in the
proposal process. Further, Franklin County reserves the right to enter into any contract deemed in its best interest and to engage contractors in best and final offers, at its
discretion. The County reserves the right to reject any and all proposals and to waive
any and all irregularities.
All proposals will be evaluated for completeness of the required elements. If one of the required elements is not submitted in the required format, the County may deem the
proposal nonresponsive.
The selection committee will evaluate all responsive proposals with regard to the
following criteria factors:
(Total scoring= 100 points)
• Demonstrated ability to meet the technical requirements based on the submitted
Proposal (25 points)
• System Reliability & Resiliency Design (20 points)
• References and experience (15 points)
• Warranty, maintenance, and support capabilities (15 points)
• Project Management, Implementation Approach & Timeline (10 points)
• Proposed final cost. (15 points)
Cost will be scored based on the total cost of ownership. Total cost
includes all purchase and implementation costs, all costs of operation for
the 5 years, and internal costs. Franklin County will estimate internal costs
of staff and hardware required to support the proposed solution based on
the information provided in the proposal.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 16
Points will be awarded according to the following formula:
(Overall Lowest Total Cost of Ownership/Proposed Total Cost of
Ownership) x 15 available points.
SECTION 6. GENERAL SELECTION PROCESS INFORMATION
SEC. 6.01 CLARIFICATION OF OFFERS
In order to determine if a proposal is reasonably susceptible for award, communications
by the procurement officer or the proposal evaluation committee are permitted with an
offeror to clarify uncertainties or eliminate confusion concerning the contents of a proposal. The evaluation by the procurement officer or the evaluation committee may
be adjusted as a result of a clarification under this section.
SEC. 6.02 DISCUSSIONS WITH OFFERORS
The County may conduct discussions and/or interviews with offerors. The purpose of
these discussions and/or interviews will be to ensure full understanding of the
requirements of the RFP and proposal. Discussions will only be held with offerors who
have submitted a proposal deemed reasonably viable for award by the procurement
officer. Discussions, if held, will be after initial evaluation of proposals by the
procurement officer or the evaluation committee. If modifications are made as a result of these discussions they will be put in writing. Following discussions, the procurement
officer may set a time for best and final proposal submissions from those offerors with
whom discussions were held. Proposals may be reevaluated after receipt of best and
final proposal submissions.
SEC. 6.03 EVALUATION OF PROPOSALS
A selection committee made up of at least 3 County employees or public officials shall
review the submissions and select finalists based on evaluation of the proposals as
described in Section 5. Evaluation Criteria.
After receipt of proposals, if there is a need for any substantial clarification or material
change in the RFP, an amendment will be issued. The amendment will incorporate the
clarification or change, and a new date or time established for the new or amended
proposals. Evaluations may be adjusted as a result of receiving new or amended
proposals.
After determining the list of responders deemed qualified, interviews may be scheduled
with selected firms. The County reserves the right, at their discretion, to interview none,
some or all of the applicants.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 17
SECTION 7. CONTRACT PROVISIONS & INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS
SEC. 7.01 CONTRACT PROVISIONS
After the County of Franklin makes its selection, it shall proceed to negotiate a contract
based upon a Scope of Work for the project. If the County is unable to negotiate a
satisfactory contract with the most highly qualified person or firm, the County shall
formally end negotiations with that person or firm and begin to negotiate with the
second most highly qualified person or firm. Negotiations shall continue in this sequence until a contract is agreed upon.
The performance of this contract shall be in accordance with all Federal, State and local
laws as may be applicable. Any contract between the County of Franklin and the
consultant shall be subject to the rules and regulations of any agencies where funding is being requested.
The contract between the County and the selected consulting firm will include the
following non-negotiable contract provisions:
1. Indemnification of the County. 2. Non-Indemnification of the Contractor.
3. Forum Selection (Franklin County, PA Court of Common Pleas).
4. Choice of law (Commonwealth of Pennsylvania)
5. Prevailing party attorneys’ fees.
6. Termination for convenience/termination for cause by the County. 7. County ownership of the instruments of service/deliverables.
8. All data is the property of the County of Franklin. The contract must
include express provisions guaranteeing County ownership of all data and
guaranteeing that the data may be accessed post-contract using non-
proprietary means. No mining, analytics, or duplication is allowed without the County’s express written permission.
9. Data security, confidentiality, and use of County data and information. No
sharing of public and/or County generated data Is permitted with any third
or related party, except to the extent necessary to provide the goods or
services proposed in the response. 10. Nondiscrimination.
11. Suspension and debarment.
12. Release of liability in favor of the County.
13. Non-release of liability of the contractor.
14. Insurance coverage and County status as additional insured as set forth in Section 7.05.
15. Terms of payment and invoicing, including 45-day payment period.
16. Any and all federal and state provisions required as a result of grant
funding.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 18
17. Compliance with the current fiscal year National Defense Authorization
Act (“NDAA”), including, but not limited to, the NDAA prohibited
manufacturers/ban list.
Any proposal at variance with the above shall be conclusively and irrevocably deemed nonresponsive. A separate “Data Sharing Agreement” will be signed by the selected
contractor and Franklin County during the Scope of Work process.
The County reserves the right to request additional contract provisions it deems
necessary as needed to protect the best interest of the County.
Any work proposed and undertaken by this RFP that requires the use, access, and
sharing of County data shall be addressed via a “Data Sharing Agreement” as compliant
with current County of Franklin processes and procedures.
SEC. 7.02 PROGRESS PAYMENTS AND RETAINAGE
On this Project, Owner will retain 10% of the amount due to the Contractor on
each progress payment.
SEC. 7.03 FINAL PAYMENT
Final payment, constituting the entire unpaid balance of the Contract sum, will be paid
by Owner to Contractor in accordance with the provisions of the subchapter on
substantial/final payment found in the Commonwealth Procurement Code, 62 Pa. C.S. § 3941-§3942 and the Contract Documents, all of which all are incorporated herein by
reference and made a part hereof as if those provisions were fully and at length herein
recited, except that, where those provisions refer to the government agency, it is
deemed to refer to Owner.
SEC. 7.04 BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AGREEMENT
A Business Associate Agreement is required. See Attachment C.
SEC. 7.05 INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS
Prior to and during the performance of any services covered by this RFP, the contractor
shall provide the County, upon execution of an agreement, in a form and manner
reasonably acceptable to the County Solicitor or Risk Manager, a certificate of
insurance as evidence that it has obtained and maintains in full force and effect during the term of this Agreement the types of insurance in the amounts described in this
section.
RFP 2026291-01 Page 19
SEC 7.05.1 The Contractor shall provide to the County, prior to the effective date of this
Agreement, a valid proof of insurance certificate indicating insurance coverage in the
amounts required by this document. This certificate of insurance shall be on file with
the County throughout the term of the agreement. As a condition subsequent to this
agreement, Contractor shall insure that the certificate of insurance provided to the County will at all times be current. The parties agree that failure by the Contractor to
maintain a current certificate of insurance with the County shall be a substantial breach
of the contract and payments on the contract shall be withheld by the County until a
certificate of insurance showing current insurance coverage in amounts required by the
contract is provided to the County.
Any policy obtained and maintained under this clause shall provide that it shall not be
canceled, materially changed, or not renewed without thirty days’ notice thereof to the
County. County shall, at any time during the period of the Contract, have the right to
require that Contractor secure any additional insurance, or additional feature to existing insurance, as County of Franklin may reasonably require for the protection of their
interests or those of the public. In such an event the Contractor shall proceed with due
diligence to make every good faith effort to promptly comply with such additional
requirement(s).
The successful offeror shall be required to provide the following insurance coverage
and submit evidence of the coverage required below in the form of an ACORD certificate
of insurance. The County of Franklin shall be named as the certificate holder. Liability
Insurance shall include all major divisions of coverage and be on a
comprehensive basis including: • Premises Operations (including X, C and U as applicable).
• Independent Contractors’ Protective.
• Products and Completed Operations.
• Personal Injury Liability with Employment Exclusion deleted.
• Contractual Liability. • Owned, non-owned and hired motor vehicles.
• Broad Form Property Damage including Completed Operations.
SEC 7.05.2 Certificates shall name the County of Franklin as an additional insured on all
liability policies. Prior to the start of work, the successful Proposer shall furnish certificates or adequate proof of the foregoing insurance. Certificates furnished by the
successful Proposer or their subcontractors shall contain a clause stating, “The County
of Franklin is to be notified in writing at least thirty (30) days prior to cancellation of, or
any material change in, the policy.” Such notice is to be sent to Owner’s Purchasing
Agent. The successful Proposer shall provide a waiver of subrogation for workers compensation and commercial auto policy in favor of the County of Franklin. The
company providing insurance for the successful Proposer and their subcontractors
must be licensed to do business in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and be
RFP 2026291-01 Page 20
acceptable to the County of Franklin. The successful Proposer shall be responsible for
all losses that fall under any deductibles on required insurance coverage.
SEC 7.05.3 If the General Liability coverages are provided by a Commercial General
Liability Policy on a claims made basis, the policy date or Retroactive Date shall predate the Contract; the termination date of the policy or applicable extended reporting period
shall be no earlier than the termination date of the coverages required to be maintained
after the final payment. The County of Franklin should be listed as Additional Insured
under the Contractor’s General Liability Policy.
SEC 7.05.4 The successful Proposer shall purchase and maintain such insurance as will
protect it from claims set forth below that may arise out of or result from their
operations under the contract, whether the operations be by them, by a subcontractor,
or by anyone employed by them. The successful Proposer agrees to indemnify and hold
the Owner harmless from any and all claims, demands, damages, actions, or causes of action arising or to arise against the Owner by reason of the successful Proposer’s
performance of the contract. Such insurance shall be acquired for and on behalf of the
successful Proposer in protecting them from claims for damages for bodily injuries,
including sickness or disease, death, and care and loss of services, as well as from
claims for property damages, including loss of use, which may arise from operations under the contract, whether such operations be by the selected Proposer or anyone
directly or indirectly employed by them. Indemnity provisions set forth above, it will at all
times during the term of this Agreement, keep in force the following insurance
protection in the limits specified:
i. Commercial General Liability with contractual liability coverage in the amount of $2,000,000 each occurrence, $4,000,000 aggregate combined single limit for bodily
injury liability and property damage liability.
ii. Professional Liability with coverage in the amount of $2,000,000 each occurrence,
$4,000,000 aggregate combined single limit.
iii. Comprehensive Automobile Liability: Including non-ownership and hired car coverage as well as owned vehicles with minimum limits of Pennsylvania of a limit
of $1,000,000.
iv. Worker’s Compensation in statutory amount. $100,000 each accident for bodily
injury by accident; $ 100,000 each employee for bodily injury by disease; and
$500,000 policy limit for bodily injury by disease. v. Umbrella/ Excess Policy $5,000,000
SEC 7.05.6 Owner Liability Insurance: The contractor shall provide an Owner’s and
Contractor’s Protective Liability Policy in the name of the Owner with limits as follows:
Bodily Injury with the coverage of each occurrence $500,000, $500,000 aggregate. Property Damage with the coverage of each occurrence $500,000, $500,000 aggregate.
SEC 7.05.7 Property Insurance: The Contractor will purchase and maintain property
insurance upon the entire work at the site to the full insurable value thereof as follows:
RFP 2026291-01 Page 21
The form of policy for this coverage shall be Completed Value. If the Owner is
damaged by the failure of the Contactor to maintain such coverage, then the
Contractor shall bear all reasonable costs properly attributable thereto.
This insurance shall be specific as to coverage and not considered as
contributing insurance with any permanent insurance maintained on premises. Before any exposure to loss may occur, the Contractor shall file with the Owner
two certified copies of the policy or policies providing this Property Insurance
coverage, each containing those endorsements specifically related to this
project. Each policy shall contain a provision that the policy will not be canceled
or allowed to expire until at least 30 days prior written notice has been given to the Owner.
SEC 7.05.8 Cyber Insurance Liability Coverage: The Contractor shall have and maintain
a cyber liability insurance policy with a minimum $2,000,000 aggregate limit, and a
$1,000 deductible. The Contractor shall also have and provide to the County a Technology Errors and Omission Policy.
SEC 7.05.9 Personal Liability and Employee Dishonesty Coverage The Contractor shall
have a Personal Liability policy for their employees with a $100,000 per occurrence limit
and an Employee Dishonestly policy with a minimum of $25,000 per employee coverage.
SECTION 8. GENERAL LEGAL INFORMATION
SEC. 8.01 RIGHT OF REJECTION
Franklin County reserves the right to cancel this request for proposals at any time for
any reason. Any proposal received may be rejected in whole or in part when in the best
interest of the County.
SEC. 8.02 WITHDRAWAL OF PROPOSALS
Proposals may not be modified, withdrawn or cancelled by the offeror for three (3)
months after the time designated for the receipt of proposals.
SEC. 8.03 EXEMPTION FROM FEDERAL EXCISE AND PENNSYLVANIA SALES TAX
The County of Franklin, PA is exempt from Federal Excise Taxes and Pennsylvania Sales
Taxes as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Prices as shown
in the proposal shall exclude such Federal and State Taxes.
SEC. 8.04 CONTRACTOR CLEARANCE
All contractors will be required to submit a W-9 and pass clearance checks including a
debarment check and other background checks as deemed necessary by Franklin
RFP 2026291-01 Page 22
County. A contract will not be awarded to any offeror who is suspended or debarred by
the Pennsylvania Department of General Services or any Department of Agency of the
United States Government.
SEC. 8.05 COUNTY NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR PREPARATION COSTS
The County will not pay any cost associated with the preparation, submittal,
presentation, or evaluation of any proposal.
SEC. 8.06 DISCLOSURE OF PROPOSAL CONTENTS
All responses are subject to the Pennsylvania Right to Know Law, 65 P.S. §§ 67.101-3104, (“RTKL” or Right to Know Law”), which may mandate the release of any and all
information and documents submitted by the proposer. By submitting a proposal, all
proposers acknowledge the County’s non-waivable duties under the Right to Know Law,
and agree to cooperate therewith.
Any information deemed by the proposer to be confidential or proprietary shall be
marked accordingly. Additionally, any confidential information submitted by the offeror
must be easily separable from the non-confidential sections of the proposal and as
such must be submitted in a separate PDF Document from the main proposal and
labeled similarly to as described above including the word Confidential in the file name.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, all proposals, documents, submissions and data are subject to the Pennsylvania Right to Know Law, and nothing contained herein shall be
construed to bind the County to the determinations made by the proposer.
Any exceptions taken to such mandatory terms shall result in rejection of the
proposal.
RFP 2026291-01 Non-Collusion Affidavit Page 1
ATTACHMENT A
INSTRUCTIONS FOR NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT
This Non-Collusion Affidavit is material to any contract awarded pursuant to this proposal and in accordance with the Pennsylvania Antibid-Rigging Act, 62 Pa. Cons.
Stat. Ann. § 4501 et seq.
This Non-Collusion Affidavit must be executed by the member, officer or employer of
the Offeror who makes the final decision on prices and the amount quoted in the proposal.
Bid rigging and other efforts to restrain competition, and the making of false sworn
statements in connection with the submission of proposals are unlawful and may be
subject to criminal prosecution. The person who signs the Affidavit should examine it very carefully before signing and assure himself or herself that each statement is true
and accurate, making diligent inquiry, as necessary, of all other persons employed by or
associated with the Offeror with responsibilities for the preparation, approval, or
submission of the Proposal.
In the case of a proposal submitted by a joint venture, each party to the venture must be
identified in the proposal documents, and an Affidavit must be submitted separately on
behalf of each party.
The term “Complementary Proposal” as used in the Affidavit has the meaning commonly associated with the term in the proposal process, and includes the knowing
submission of proposals higher than the proposal of another firm, any intentionally high
or noncompetitive proposal, and any other form of proposal submitted for the purpose
of giving a false appearance of competition.
Failure to file an Affidavit in compliance with these instructions will result in
disqualification of the RFP.
A person’s affidavit stating that the person has been convicted or found liable of any act
prohibited by State or Federal law in any jurisdiction involving conspiracy or collusion with respect to bidding or proposing in any public contract within the last three (3) years
does not prohibit a governmental agency from accepting a proposal or awarding a
contract to that person, but may be a ground for administration, suspension or
debarment in the discretion of a governmental agency under the rules and regulations
of that agency, or, in the case of a governmental agency with no administrative suspension or debarment regulations or procedures, may be a ground for consideration
on the question whether such agency should decline to award the contract to that
person on the basis of a lack of responsibility.
RFP 2026291-01 Non-Collusion Affidavit Page 2
NON-COLLUSION AFFIDAVIT
Contract/Proposal No : 2026291-01
State of: ________________________:
: ss County of: ______________________:
I state that I am ____________ of __________________________________________________
(Title) (Firm)
and that I am authorized to make this affidavit on behalf of my firm, and its owners,
directors, and officers. I am the person responsible in my firm for the price(s) and the amount of this proposal.
I state that:
• The price(s) and amount of this proposal have been arrived at independently and without consultation, communication or agreement with any other contractor,
offeror or potential offeror.
• Neither the price(s) nor the amount of this proposal, and neither the approximate
price(s) nor approximate amount of this proposal, have been disclosed to any other firm or person who is an offeror or potential offeror, and they will not be
disclosed before an award is made in this project.
• No attempt has been made or will be made to induce any firm or person to
refrain from proposing on this contract, or to submit a proposal higher than this proposal, or to submit any intentionally high or noncompetitive proposal or other
form of complementary proposal.
• The proposal of my firm is made in good faith and not pursuant to any
agreement or discussion with, or inducement from, any firm or person to submit a complementary or other noncompetitive proposal.
• ________________________________, its affiliates, subsidiaries, officers, directors,
and
(Firm) employees are not currently under investigation by any governmental agency and
have not in the last four years been convicted or found liable for any act prohibited by State or Federal Law in any jurisdiction, involving conspiracy or collusion with respect
to bidding or proposing on any public contract, except as follows:
RFP 2026291-01 Non-Collusion Affidavit Page 3
• ___________________________ has or has not been convicted or found liable for any act prohibited by State or Federal Law in any jurisdiction involving conspiracy or
collusion with respect to bidding or proposing on any public contract within the
last three (3) years.
I state that ____________________________________ understands
(Firm)
acknowledges that the above responsibilities are material and important,
and will be relied on by the Owner in awarding the contract(s) for which
this Proposal is submitted. I understand and my firm understands that any mis-statement in this affidavit is and shall be treated as fraudulent
concealment form the Owner of the true facts relating to the submission
of proposals for this contract.
______________________________________
Name
______________________________________ Company Position
SWORN TO AND SUBSCRIBED
BEFORE ME THIS ___________ DAY OF _________, 20 _______.
_______________________________________
Notary Public
My Commission Expires:
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 1
ATTACHMENT B
STATEMENT OF QUALIFICATIONS
FRANKLIN COUNTY
ON-PREMISE EMERGENCY SERVICES TELEPHONY SYSTEM
OFFEROR (Name and Address):
________________________________________
________________________________________
________________________________________
OWNER: COUNTY OF FRANKLIN PROJECT: FRANKLIN COUNTY ON-PREMISE
272 North Second Street EMERGENCY SERVICES
Chambersburg, PA 17201 TELEPHONY SYSTEM
1. Companies submitting proposals on this Project must submit this Qualification
Statement to COUNTY OF FRANKLIN (“Owner”).
2. Only companies that are deemed to be responsible contractors under the laws and
regulations of the Contract Documents will be designated as qualified offerors at the
time that awards are made on the Project.
3. The Request for Proposal will govern Owner’s consideration of this Statement.
4. Offeror shall answer all questions on this form, supplying the requested documents,
using the spaces indicated (and additional pages if necessary), and attaching
documents as required.
5. This Statement must be notarized.
6. Offeror may submit additional information as desired.
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 2
I. Capability
A. Name of Offeror: _________________________________________________________________
2. State the address of Offeror’s principal place of business (main office or
headquarters): _______________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
3. State Offeror’s form of organization (sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation,
limited liability company, etc.): ________________________________________________________
4. If Offeror is a corporation, state:
a. Date of incorporation: _______________________________________________________
b. State of incorporation: ______________________________________________________
c. Names and titles of all officers: ______________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
d. Provide the names of all of Offeror’s subsidiaries or parent organization and all
affiliated organizations, stating the relationship of each to Offeror:
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
5. If Offeror is a limited liability company, state:
a. Date of filing of the certificate of organization: _______________________________
b. State where filed: ___________________________________________________________
c. Names and titles of all officers: ______________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
d. Provide the names of all of Offeror’s subsidiaries or parent organization and all
affiliated organizations, stating the relationship of each to Offeror:
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 3
6. If Offeror is a partnership (including a joint venture), state:
a. Date of formation: ___________________________________________________________
b. State under which partnership formed: _______________________________________
c. Whether partnership is general or limited: ____________________________________
d. Names and home addresses of all partners (indicate any limited partners):
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
e. Provide the names of all of organizations controlled by Offeror or any of its
partners:
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
7. If Offeror is a sole proprietorship or some other form of organization other than a
corporation, limited liability company, or partnership, attach the operating agreement or
other documentation governing the activities of the organization and state:
a. Type of organization: ________________________________________________________
b. Date of formation: __________________________________________________________
c. Names and home addresses of all principals: ________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
d. Provide the names of all organizations controlled by Offeror or any of its
principals: _____________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
8. Regarding ownership and control:
a. List all organizations and individuals who have a financial interest greater than
five percent (5%) in Offeror: ____________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 4
b. Identify any other organization or individual who controls or substantially
influences the proposing or operation of Offeror: _______________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
9. Provide the numbers, categories, and locations of all employees and officers:
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
10. Is Offeror currently registered to do business in Pennsylvania: ______________________
If not, does Offeror have a pending application for registration: __________________
11. Does Offeror hold all necessary licenses to perform the work for which it desires to
be considered for the Project? If so, identify those licenses. ___________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
If not, identify all pending applications for those licenses: _______________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
12. Identify all of Offeror’s offices located in Franklin County: __________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
13. Identify all of Offeror’s offices located in Pennsylvania: ____________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________________
14. List the number of years Offeror has been engaged in business under its present
business name: _______________________________________________________________
15. List the years of experience Offeror has in the type of work for which it desires to be
considered for the Project:
a. As a prime contractor: ______________________________________________________
b. As a subcontractor: _________________________________________________________
16. State:
a. The percentage of work normally completed using Offeror’s own employees:
_______________________________________________________________________________
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 5
b. The percentage of work Offeror intends to complete itself on the Project:
______________________________________________________________________________
c. The nature of the work Offeror will perform itself on the Project:
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
d. The nature of the work Offeror would expect to subcontract on the Project:
_____________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________
e. The names and addresses of Offeror’s major suppliers for the Project: ________
_____________________________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________________________
17. List the three (3) principal officers, administrators, managers, and superintendents
who will be assigned to the Project, including qualifications, years in present position,
years with Offeror, years of experience in this field, and magnitude and type of related
work: ________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________________
18. Identify any work Offeror has performed for COUNTY OF FRANKLIN in the last 10
years, including the location of the project, the nature of the contract, the contract
amount, the kind of work, and the nature of the project: ________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
19. List other similar projects that Offeror has performed, prioritizing emergency
services facilities, (minimum of 3, maximum of 7), identifying the name and address of
the owner, the location of the project, the nature of the contract, the contract amount,
the kind of work, and the nature of the project: ________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 6
______________________________________________________________________________________
20. List the name of the project, the owner, the total contract value, the date of
completion, and the percentage of work completed with Offeror’s own forces of the
similar major projects that it currently has under contract and awarded: ________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
21. List all past due or delinquent obligations to local, state, or federal taxing authorities,
including but not limited to income, withholding, and unemployment taxes: _____________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
22. List any projects awarded but that Offeror failed to complete or that Offeror was
declared to be in default, identifying the dates, name and address of owner, name and
location of project, kind of work, and the reasons why the project was not completed:
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
23. List any projects where Offeror received change orders, settlements, or awards
exceeding ten percent (10%) of the original value of the contract in the past five (5)
years: ________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
II. Financial Integrity
1. Offeror shall provide a complete copy of its most recent financial statement, with an
explanation of whether it is a certified statement or a compilation, including but not
limited to the following items:
a. Current assets, net fixed assets, and other assets;
b. Current liabilities, other liabilities, and capital;
c. Date of preparation and name and address of preparer;
d. Identification and relationship to Offeror of the organization whose financial
statement is provided, if such organization is not the identical organization
identified as Offeror; and
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 7
e. A statement as to whether the organization whose statement is provided will
serve as Offeror’s guarantor under any contract for the Project.
Financial information identified as such and enclosed in a separate, sealed envelope
marked as confidential for paper copies and in a separate file labeled in the format for
OFFEROR A Financial Information - Confidential will be treated as confidential.
If Offeror is a limited liability company with a corporate parent or other subsidiary and
if Offeror intends to rely on the financial resources of the parent or other subsidiary,
Offeror must submit financial information for that entity as well.
Offeror agrees to provide the financial statement: □ Yes □ No
*A negative response shall be conclusively treated as nonresponsive and shall
disqualify Offeror.
2. In the last three (3) years, has Offeror been in a reorganization under Chapter 11 of
the United States Bankruptcy Code or in any other manner seeking an arrangement or
debt adjustment with its creditors? If so, explain: ______________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
3. Identify any parent, subsidiary, or other company affiliated with Offeror that has
declared bankruptcy or has been placed into bankruptcy in the past ten (10) years:
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Have any of Offeror’s officers or principal operating personnel been employed or
associated with a company that has been in bankruptcy or ceased to operate at any
time in the past ten (10) years? If so, state the person’s name, title, and the name of the
company involved: ___________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 8
5. Identify all cancellations, terminations, or rescissions of contracts of insurance or
suretyship involving Offeror in the past five (5) years: __________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
III. Conduct
1. List all felony convictions, all bidding-related or proposal-related offenses, and all
misdemeanor convictions involving moral turpitude of Offeror, its affiliates, its owners
holding more than five percent (5%) interest, its officers, and its administrators,
managers, and superintendents that may be assigned to the Project: __________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
2. List all debarments, suspensions, and denials of pre-qualification of Offeror, its
affiliates, and its holders owning more than five percent (5%) interest, for any federal,
state, local, or other governmental contracting, including but not limited to prevailing
wage and Davis Bacon debarments: __________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________________________
3. Identify all disputes of any kind related to similar projects, including lawsuits,
arbitrations, mechanics’ lien proceedings, and other claims that were either brought by
or against Offeror in the last ten (10) years: ___________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
4. Identify all proceedings of a governmental, administrative, or enforcement nature of
whatever kind, including minority/women business enterprise program, environmental,
wage and hour, prevailing wage, employment discrimination, or other kind of proceeding
involving Offeror that is currently active or that was resolved in the last five (5) years:
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________________
RFP 2026291-01 Statement of Qualifications Page 9
Offeror hereby authorizes and requests that any person, firm, or corporation may furnish
any information requested by the COUNTY OF FRANKLIN to verify the information
contained in this Statement.
SWORN TO AND SUBSCRIBED ________________________________
BEFORE ME THIS _____ DAY Signature
OF_____________, 20 _______.
________________________________
Printed Name
_________________________________ ________________________________
Notary Public Title
My Commission Expires: ______________ ________________________________
Firm
________________________________
Date
ATTACHMENT C
BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AGREEMENT
This Business Associate Agreement (this “Agreement”) is entered into by [BUSINESS
ASSOCIATE] (“Business Associate” and Franklin County, Pennsylvania (“Covered
Entity”), individually referred to as “Party” and collectively as the “Parties.” This Agreement is effective as of [DATE] (“Effective Date”).
RECITALS
WHEREAS, Covered Entity is a covered entity under the Health Insurance
Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (“HIPAA”). Covered Entity must comply with
the Administrative Simplification Provisions of HIPAA, including the Privacy Rule and Security Rule, as defined in Article 1 of this Agreement, and with the applicable
provisions of the Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health Act of
2009 (“HITECH”).
WHEREAS, Covered Entity has engaged Business Associate to furnish certain
services to Covered Entity pursuant to the Services Agreement, as defined below.
WHEREAS, Business Associate is a business associate under HIPAA. Business
Associate must comply with the provisions of the Privacy Rule and Security Rule made
applicable to business associates pursuant to HITECH and with all other applicable provisions of HITECH.
WHEREAS, Covered Entity is not permitted to allow Business Associate to create,
receive, maintain, or transmit Protected Health Information on behalf of Covered Entity
without satisfactory assurances that Business Associate will appropriately safeguard
the information. Therefore, Covered Entity will only disclose Protected Health Information to Business Associate or allow Business Associate to create or receive
Protected Health Information on behalf of Covered Entity in accordance with the
requirements of HIPAA, HITECH, and provisions of this Agreement.
NOW, THEREFORE, in consideration of the mutual promises below and for other
good and valuable consideration, the receipt and adequacy of which are hereby
acknowledged, the Parties agree as follows:
ARTICLE I
DEFINITIONS
Terms used in this Agreement that are specifically defined in HIPAA shall have the
same meaning as set forth in HIPAA. A change to HIPAA which modifies any defined
HIPAA term, or which alters the regulatory citation for the definition shall be deemed
incorporated into this Agreement.
1.1 Breach means the unauthorized acquisition, access, use, or disclosure of
Protected Health Information which compromises the security or privacy of such
information, except where an unauthorized person to whom such information is
disclosed would not reasonably have been able to retain such information. The term “breach” does not include the exceptions described in 42 U.S.C. § 17921(1)(B)
summarized below.
(a) Certain uses or disclosures by a Covered Entity’s work-force
members (defined as persons acting under the authority of the
Covered Entity or Business Associate), if the use or disclosure was made in good faith, was within the scope of the disclosing
individual’s authority, and does not result in a further violation of the
Privacy Rule.
(b) Inadvertent disclosures from one person who is authorized to
access PHI to another person who is also authorized to access PHI within the same Covered Entity, Business Associate, or organized
health care arrangement when the disclosed PHI is not further used
or disclosed in a manner not permitted under the Privacy Rule.
(c) A disclosure of PHI when a Covered Entity or Business Associate has a good faith belief that an unauthorized person to whom the
disclosure was made would not reasonably have been able to
retain such information.
1.2 Designated Record Set, as defined under the Privacy Rule at 45 C.F.R. § 164.501, means a group of records maintained by or for a Covered Entity that are:
(a) the medical records and billing records about
individuals maintained by or for a covered health care
provider;
(b) the enrollment, payment, claims adjudication, and case or medical
management record systems maintained by or for a health care
plan; or
(c) used, in whole or in part, by or for the Covered Entity to make
decisions about individuals.
For purposes of this section, a “Record” is any item, collection, or grouping of
information that includes PHI and is maintained, collected, used, or disseminated by or
for a Covered Entity.
1.3 Electronic Health Record has the same meaning that applies under
Section 13400(5) of ARRA and currently means an electronic record of health-related information on an individual that is created, gathered, managed, and consulted by
authorized staff.
1.4 Electronic Protected Health Information (EPHI), as defined by 45 C.F.R.
§ 160.103, means individually identifiable health information that is transmitted by electronic media, or maintained in electronic media, but not certain education and
employment records described in 45 C.F.R. § 160.103, the definition of Protected
Health Information. EPHI also includes any EPHI provided by Covered Entity or created
or received by Business Associate on behalf of Covered Entity.
1.5 HHS means the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
1.6 Individual, as defined by 45 C.F.R § 160.103, means the person who is the subject of PHI. It also includes a person who qualifies as a Personal Representative in
accordance with 45 C.F.R. § 164.502(g).
1.7 Limited Date Set, as defined by 45 C.F.R. §164.514(e) is partially de-
identified data that may be used or disclosed for research, public health and health care
operation purposes, such as quality assurance, as long as a recipient signs a data use agreement that complies with HIPAA requirements.
1.8 Privacy Rule means the Standards for Privacy of individually Identifiable Health Information codified at 45 C.F.R. §§ 160 and 164, Subpart E, any other
applicable provision of HIPAA, and any amendments to HIPAA, including HITECH.
1.9 Protected Health Information (PHI) as defined by 45 C.F.R. § 164.103,
mean individually identifiable health information that is:
(a) transmitted by electronic media;
(b) maintained in electronic media; or
(c) transmitted or maintained in any other form or medium;
PHI does not include certain education and employment records described in 45 C.F.R.
§ 160.103, the definition of PHI. PHI includes, without limitation, any PHI provided by
Covered Entity or created or received by Business Associate on behalf of Covered
Entity. Unless otherwise stated in this Agreement, any provision, restriction, or obligation in this Agreement related to the use of PHI shall apply equally to EPHI.
1.10 Required By Law, as defined by 45 C.F.R. § 164.103, means a mandate contained in law that compels an entity to make a use or disclosure of PHI and that is
enforceable in a court of law; and any additional requirements created under HITECH.
1.11 Secretary means the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services or his/her designee.
1.12 Security Incident, as defined by 45 C.F.R. § 164.304, means the
attempted or successful unauthorized access, use, disclosure, modification, or
destruction of information or interference with system operations in an
information system.
1.13 Security Rule means the Security Standards for the Protection of
Electronic Protected Health Information codified at 45 C.F.R. §§ 160 and 164, Subpart
C, any other applicable provision of HIPAA, and any amendments to HIPAA, including
HITECH.
1.14 Services Agreement means the underlying agreement(s) that outline the
terms of the services that Business Associate agrees to provide to Covered Entity and that fall within the functions, activities or services described in the definition of
Business Associate at 45 C.F.R. § 160.103.
1.15 Unsecured PHI shall mean PHI that is not rendered unusable, unreadable,
or indecipherable to unauthorized individuals through the use of a technology or
methodology specified by the Secretary of HHS, such as encryption in compliance with the National Institute of Standards and Technology standards or destruction.
ARTICLE II
BUSINESS ASSOCIATE OBLIGATIONS
2.1 Request, Use and Disclosure of PHI. Business Associate agrees that it will
only request, use and disclose PHI in accordance with the terms of this Agreement, and as is Required by Law. Business Associate acknowledges that it may only request, use
and disclose PHI obtained or created pursuant to this Agreement with Covered Entity if
the request, use or disclosure is in compliance with each applicable requirement of the
Privacy Rule found in 45 C.F.R. § 164.504(e).
2.2 Permitted Requests, Uses and Disclosures. Business Associate will not request, use or disclose PHI except for the purpose of performing Business Associate’s
obligations to Covered Entity as described in the Services Agreement, consistent with
the requirements of HIPAA and this Agreement, and for other uses and disclosures
permitted under this Agreement. Business Associate may request, use or disclose PHI
only if such request, use or disclosure does not violate the Privacy Rule or this
Agreement. To the extent Business Associate is to carry out any of Covered Entity’s
obligations under the Privacy Rule, Business Associate will comply with the
requirements of the Privacy Rule that apply to Covered Entity in the performance of the applicable obligations.
In accordance with the provisions of 45 C.F.R. § 164.504(e)(4), Business
Associate also may request, use or disclose PHI, if necessary:
(a) for the proper management and administration of
Business Associate’s organization, or
(b) to carry out the legal responsibilities of Business Associate.
Business Associate may only disclose PHI for these purposes, in
accordance with the provisions of 45 C.F.R. § 164.504(e)(4)(ii), if either
(i) the disclosure is Required By Law, or
(ii) Business Associate obtains reasonable written assurances
from the person to whom Business Associate discloses the PHI that the PHI will be held confidentially and used or
further disclosed only as Required By Law or for the
purposes for which it was disclosed to the person and that
the person agrees to notify Business Associate of any
instances of which it is aware in which the confidentiality of the information has been breached.
2.3 Prohibited Requests, Use and Disclosures. Business Associate will not
request, use or disclose PHI in any manner that constitutes a violation of the Privacy Rule, this Agreement, or the Services Agreement.
2.4 Minimum Requirements. Business Associate will only request, use and
disclose the minimum amount of PHI necessary for Business Associate to perform the
services for which it has been retained by Covered Entity, in accordance with 42 U.S.C.§ 17935(b). Business Associate agrees to comply with the Secretary’s guidance on what
constitutes minimum necessary.
2.5 Administrative, Physical and Technical Safeguards. Business Associate will develop, implement, maintain, and use appropriate safeguards to prevent any use
or disclosure of the PHI other than as provided by this Agreement. Business Associate
will implement administrative, physical, and technical safeguards that reasonably and
appropriately protect the confidentiality, integrity and availability of EPHI. Business
Associate acknowledges that the Security Rule provisions regarding administrative, physical, and technical safeguards, policies and procedures and documentation
requirements found in 45 C.F.R. §§ 164.308, 164.310, 164.312 and 164.316 apply to
Business Associate in the same manner as to Covered Entity and Business Associate
will fully comply with such Security Rule provisions.
2.6 Unusable, Unreadable or Indecipherable Technology. Business Associate
will, to the extent feasible, adopt a technology or methodology specified by the Secretary pursuant to 42 U.S.C. § 17932(h) that renders PHI unusable, unreadable, or
indecipherable to unauthorized individuals.
2.7 Agents and Sub-contractors. Prior to making any permitted disclosures,
Business Associate will ensure that any of its agents, including subcontractors, to
whom it provides PHI received from, or created or received by, Business Associate on
behalf of Covered Entity agree in writing to be bound by the same privacy and security
restrictions and conditions that apply to Business Associate under this Agreement,
including but not limited to those conditions relating to termination of the contract for improper disclosure. Further, Business Associate shall implement and maintain
sanctions against agents and subcontractors, if any, that violate such restrictions and
conditions. Business Associate shall terminate any agreement with an agent or
subcontractor, if any, who fails to abide by such restrictions and obligations. Business
Associate shall not provide any PHI to any third party or subcontract any services described in the Services Agreement without Covered Entity’s express written
permission.
2.8 Reporting Obligations. Business Associate will report, in writing, to
Covered Entity any use or disclosure of PHI that is not authorized by this Agreement,
including Breaches of Unsecured PHI. In addition, Business Associate will report in writing, to Covered Entity any Security Incident of which it becomes aware that it, its
employees, or its agents or subcontractors experience involving or potentially involving
Covered Entity EPHI. The written notice shall be provided to Covered Entity within five (5) business days of becoming aware of the non-authorized use or disclosure or
Security Incident.
2.9 Notification to Covered Entity of Breach of Unsecured PHI. Business
Associate will provide written notification to Covered Entity within seventy-two (72)
hours of discovering a Breach of Unsecured PHI. Such notification will identify, to the
extent possible, (1) each individual whose Unsecured Protected Health Information has
been, or is reasonably believed by Business Associate to have been, accessed, acquired or disclosed during the Breach, (2) the nature of the non-permitted access, use or
disclosure, including the date of the Breach and the date of discovery of the Breach;
(3) Protected Health Information accessed, used or disclosed as part of the Breach
(e.g., full name, social security number, date of birth, etc.); (4) who or what area of
Business Associate’s operation made the non-permitted access, use or disclosure and who received the non-permitted disclosure; (5) identify what corrective action the
Business Associate took or will take to prevent further non-permitted accesses, uses or
disclosures; (6) identify what Business Associate did or will do to mitigate any
deleterious effect of the non-permitted access, use or disclosure; and (7) provide such
other information that is reasonably available to Business Associate that Covered Entity may request. For purposes of the preceding sentence, Business Associate will be
treated as discovering the Breach on the first day on which the Breach is known (or by exercising reasonable diligence should have been known) to Business Associate
(including any employee, officer or other agent of Business Associate other than the
person committing the Breach). Whether a Breach has occurred will be determined in accordance with applicable regulations or other authoritative guidance issued pursuant
to the HITECH Act. A delay in notification of a Breach that qualifies as a “law enforcement delay” under 45 CFR Section 164.412 will not be treated as a violation of
this Agreement. Business Associate will supplement its initial notification to Covered
Entity with additional information as any additional information becomes available. Business Associate will implement a reasonable system for discovery of Breaches.
2.10 Breach Notification Expenses. Business Associate agrees to indemnify, defend, and hold harmless Covered Entity and its employees, agents, and
representatives from any and all direct, reasonable and actual costs, settlements,
judgments, and expenses incurred by Covered Entity caused by a Breach of Unsecured
Protected Health Information while in the possession of Business Associate, or its
employees, subcontractors or agents. Such costs will include those related to Breach
notifications sent to the affected individuals and the media, as required by Section
13402(e) of ARRA and 45 CFR Part 164, and any costs incurred by Covered Entity or its employees, agents or representatives to mitigate potential harm to individuals from the
Breach.
2.11 Notification to Covered Entity of Use or Disclosure Data. Business
Associate will notify Covered Entity in writing of any actual or suspected use or
disclosure of data in violation of any applicable federal or state laws or regulations or any legal action against Business Associate arising from an alleged HIPAA
violation. Business Associate shall take:
(i) prompt action to correct any such deficiencies; and
(ii) any action pertaining to such unauthorized disclosure
required by applicable federal and state laws and regulations.
Business Associate will provide the written notice to Covered Entity within
five (5) business days of becoming aware of the violation or legal action.
2.12 Mitigation of Harmful Effect. Business Associate agrees to mitigate, to the extent practicable, any harmful effect that is known to Business Associate of a use or
disclosure of PHI by Business Associate in violation of the requirements of this
Agreement.
2.13 Designated Record Sets. Business Associate will make PHI in Designated
Record Sets that are maintained by Business Associate or its agents or subcontractors,
if any, available to Covered Entity or to an individual for inspection and copying within
ten (10) business days of a request by Covered Entity to enable Covered Entity to fulfill its obligations under the Privacy Rule, including, but not limited to the requirements
concerning access to individuals to PHI found at 45 C.F.R. § 164.524. If Business
Associate maintains Protected Health information in the form of an Electronic Health
Record for any individual, Business Associate agrees to provide, at the request of
Covered Entity or an individual, and in the time and manner designated by Covered Entity, a copy of such information in an electronic format to that individual or, if clearly,
conspicuously and specifically directed by the individual (or by Covered Entity based on
a clear, conspicuous and specific request of the individual) to transmit an electronic
copy of that information directly to an entity or person designated by the individual. Any
fee charged to the individual for providing such information (or a summary or explanation of such information) may not exceed Business Associate’s labor costs
incurred in responding to the individual’s request.
2.14 Amendments to PHI and EPHI. Within ten (10) business days of receipt of
a request from Covered Entity for an amendment of PHI or a record about an individual contained in a Designated Record Set, Business Associate or its agents or
subcontractors, if any, shall make such PHI available to Covered Entity for amendment
and shall incorporate any such amendment to enable Covered Entity to fulfill its obligations under the Privacy Rule, including, but not limited to, 45 C.F.R. § 164.526. If
an individual requests an amendment of PHI directly from Business Associate or its agents or subcontractors, if any, Business Associate must notify Covered Entity in
writing within five (5) business days of the request. Any denial of amendment of PHI
maintained by Business Associate or its agents or subcontractors, if any, shall be the responsibility of Covered Entity. Upon the approval of Covered Entity, Business
Associate shall appropriately amend the PHI maintained by it, or any agents or subcontractors.
2.15 Accounting of PHI and EPHI. Within ten (10) business days of notice by
Covered Entity of a request for an accounting of disclosures of PHI, Business Associate and any agents or subcontractors shall make available to Covered Entity the information
required to provide an accounting of disclosures to enable Covered Entity to fulfill its obligations under the Privacy Rule, including, but not limited to, 45 C.F.R. § 164.528 and
any additional information required under the HITECH Act, including Section 13405(c) if
Business Associate maintains information in the form of an Electronic Health Record, and any implementing regulations.
(a) If a request for an accounting is made directly to Business
Associate or its agents or subcontractors, Business Associate will
notify Covered Entity of the request within five (5) business days of having received the request. Covered Entity shall either inform
Business Associate to provide the requested information directly to the individual or request Business Associate to immediately
forward the information to the Covered Entity for compilation and
distribution to the individual.
(b) In the case of a direct request for an accounting from an individual
related to treatment, payment or health care operations disclosures
through Electronic Health Records, Business Associate will provide
the accounting to the individual in accordance with 42 U.S.C.
§ 17935(c) and any regulations adopted subsequent to this Agreement. Business Associate will confirm with Covered Entity
that Covered Entity provided Business Associate’s name to the
individual in response to a request for an accounting before
providing the requested accounting to the individual.
2.16 Retention of Accounting Documentation. Notwithstanding termination of this Agreement, Business Associate and any of its agents or subcontractors shall
continue to maintain the information required for purposes of complying with this
Section 2.14 for a period of six (6) years after termination of the Agreement.
2.17 Business Associate’s Compliance with HHS. Business Associate will
make its internal practices, books and records relating to the use and disclosure of PHI available to the Secretary of HHS in the time and manner designated by the Covered
Entity or the Secretary of HHS for purposes of determining Covered Entity’s compliance
with the Privacy Rule. Business Associate will notify Covered Entity regarding any PHI
that Business Associate provides to the Secretary of HHS concurrently with providing
the requested PHI to the Secretary of HHS. Upon request by Covered Entity, Business Associate will provide Covered Entity with a duplicate copy of the requested PHI.
2.18 Inspection by Covered Entity. Within five (5) business days of a written
request by Covered Entity, Business Associate and its agents or subcontractors, if any, shall allow Covered Entity to conduct a reasonable inspection of the facilities, systems,
books, records, agreements, policies and procedures relating to the use or disclosure of
PHI pursuant to this Agreement for the purpose of determining whether Business Associate has complied with this Agreement, the Security Rule and provisions of the
Privacy Rule directly applicable to Business Associate or as deemed necessary by Covered Entity to determine whether a Breach has occurred. Both Parties agree to the
following:
(a) Business Associate will cooperate with Covered Entity’s risk
assessment without unreasonable delay;
(b) Business Associate and Covered Entity will mutually agree in
advance upon the scope, location and timing of such an inspection;
and
(c) Covered Entity will protect the confidentiality of all confidential
and proprietary information of Business Associate to which
Covered Entity has access during the course of such inspection.
2.19 Damages. Business Associate shall be responsible to compensate the
affected individual for any reasonable damages as a result of a Breach caused by
Business Associate.
2.20 No Ownership Rights. Business Associate agrees that Business
Associate does not and will not have any ownership rights in any of the PHI.
2.21 Additional HITECH Requirements. The additional requirements of Title
XIII of HITECH that relate to privacy and security and that are made applicable with
respect to covered entities are also applicable to Business Associate and by this reference these requirements are hereby incorporated into this Agreement.
2.22 Standard Transactions. In conducting any standard transaction that is
subject to the Standard Transaction Regulations (set forth in 45 C.F.R. Part 162) on
behalf of Covered Entity, Business Associate agrees to comply with all requirements of
the Standard Transaction Regulations that would apply to Covered Entity if Covered
Entity were conducting the transaction itself and shall require the same of any subcontractor or agent involved with the conducts of such Standard Transactions.
2.23 Limitations on Marketing. Business Associate may not use and disclose
PHI for “marketing,” as defined in 45 C.F.R. § 164.501, unless expressly permitted to do
so in the Services Agreement.
2.24 Sale of PHI. Except for compensation set forth in the Services Agreement
between Business Associate and Covered Entity, Business Associate shall not receive
any direct or indirect remuneration in exchange for the provision of Protected Health
Information.
ARTICLE III
COVERED ENTITY OBLIGATIONS
3.1 Risk Assessment of Breach by Covered Entity. Covered Entity shall make
the final determination of whether for a Breach of PHI occurred.
3.2 Restrictions. Covered Entity shall notify Business Associate of any
restriction to the use or disclosure of PHI that Covered Entity has agreed to or must
comply with in accordance with 45 C.F.R. § 164.522 and 42 U.S.C. § 17935(a).
3.3 Notification of Changes or Revocations of Permission. Covered Entity
shall provide Business Associate with notice of any changes to, revocation of, or
permission by individual to use or disclose PHI, if such changes affect Business
Associate’s permitted uses or disclosures, within a reasonable period of time after
Covered Entity becomes aware of such changes to or revocation of permission.
3.4 Permissible Requests by Covered Entity. Covered Entity shall not request Business Associate to use or disclose PHI in any manner that would not be permissible
under the Privacy and Security Rules if done by Covered Entity.
ARTICLE IV
TERMINATION
4.1 Term and Survival. The term of this Agreement shall be effective as of the
Effective Date of this Agreement and continue until terminated by Covered Entity or any
underlying Services Agreement expires or is terminated. Any provision related to the use, disclosure, access, or protection of PHI or EPHI or that by its terms shall survive
termination of this Agreement shall survive termination.
4.2 Termination for Breach. A material breach by Business Associate, or its
agents or subcontractors, if any, of this Agreement, as determined by Covered Entity,
shall constitute a material breach of the Services Agreement. As provided for under 45 C.F.R. §§ 164.314(a)(2)(i)(D) and 164.504(e)(2)(iii), the Covered Entity may immediately
terminate this Agreement and the Services Agreement or, alternatively, the Covered Entity may choose to provide Business Associate with written notice of the material
breach and an opportunity to cure the material breach or end the violation within thirty
(30) calendar days. If Business Associate becomes aware of a material breach of this Agreement by Covered Entity, Business Associate shall (1) provide an opportunity for
Covered Entity to cure the breach or end the violation and terminate this Agreement (and any applicable portion of the Services Agreement between the parties) if Covered
Entity does not cure the breach or end the violation within thirty (30) calendar days, or
(2) immediately terminate this Agreement (and any applicable portion of the Services Agreement ) if Covered Entity has breached a material term of this Agreement and cure
is not possible.
4.3 Termination for Violation by Business Associate. Covered Entity may
terminate this Agreement and the Services Agreement effective immediately, if (i)
Business Associate is named as a defendant in a criminal proceeding for a violation of HIPAA, HITECH, or other security or privacy laws or (ii) there is a finding or stipulation
that Business Associate has violated any standard or requirement of HIPAA, HITECH, or other security or privacy laws in any administrative or civil proceeding in which
Business Associate is involved.
4.4 Return or Destruction of PHI.
(a) Upon termination of this Agreement for any reason, Business
Associate shall return or, at Covered Entity’s request, destroy all
PHI received from Covered Entity or created or received by
Business Associate on behalf of Covered Entity that Business
Associate still maintains in any form. If Business Associate destroys the PHI, Business Associate shall certify in writing to
Covered Entity that such PHI has been destroyed. This provision
applies to PHI that is in the possession of agents or
subcontractors of Business Associate. Business Associate will
retain no copies of the PHI.
(b) If Business Associate determines that returning or destroying the
PHI is not feasible, Business Associate shall explain to Covered
Entity why conditions make the return or destruction of the PHI not feasible. If Covered Entity agrees that the return or destruction of
PHI is not feasible, Business Associate will retain the PHI, subject
to all of the protections of this Agreement, and limit further uses and disclosures of the PHI to those purposes that make the return
or destruction of the PHI infeasible for so long as Business Associate maintains the PHI.
(c) If Business Associate determines that it is infeasible to obtain from
an agent or subcontractor any PHI in the possession of the agent or subcontractor or to destroy the PHI, Business Associate will provide
Covered Entity written notification explaining why obtaining the PHI is infeasible. If Covered Entity agrees that the return or destruction
of PHI is not feasible, Business Associate will require the agent or
subcontractor to extend the protections of this Agreement to the PHI and limit further uses and disclosures of the PHI to those
purposes that make the return or destruction of the PHI infeasible for so long as the agent or subcontractor maintains the PHI.
4.5 Termination of Services Agreement. If this Agreement is terminated for any reason, Covered Entity will also terminate the Services Agreement between the
Parties. This provision shall supersede any termination provision to the contrary which may be set forth in the Services Agreement.
ARTICLE V
MISCELLANEOUS
5.1 Acknowledgement. By affixing their respective signatures below, the
Parties certify that they have read and understand each and every provision in this
Agreement. Each Party certifies that it possesses the authority to enter into the
Agreement. The execution and performance of this Agreement by each Party has been duly authorized by all necessary laws, resolutions or corporate actions, and the
Agreement constitutes valid and enforceable obligations of each Party in accordance with its terms.
5.2 Amendment. This Agreement shall not be amended, altered, or modified,
except by an instrument in writing duly executed by the Parties to the Agreement.
5.3 Assignment. This Agreement may not be assigned by Business Associate without the prior written consent of Covered Entity.
5.4 Binding Effect. Subject to provisions hereof restricting assignment, this
Agreement shall be binding upon and shall inure to the benefit of the Parties and their
respective successors and permitted assigns.
5.5 Change in Law. The Parties agree to take such action as is necessary to amend this Agreement from time to time as is necessary for Covered Entity and
Business Associate to comply with the requirements of HIPAA and the HITECH Act,
and of the regulations issued pursuant to those laws. If Covered Entity reasonably
concludes that an amendment to this Agreement is needed because of change in
federal or state law or changing industry standards, Covered Entity shall notify Business
Associate of such proposed modification(s), “Legally-Required Modifications”. Such
Legally Required Modifications shall be deemed accepted by Business Associate and this Agreement so amended, if Business Associate does not, within thirty (30) calendar
days following the date of notice, or within such other time period as may be mandated
by applicable state or federal law, deliver to Covered Entity its written rejection of such
Legally-Required Modifications.
5.6 Compliance with Laws. Business Associate will comply with all applicable federal and state security and privacy laws, to the extent that such laws apply to
Business Associate or are more protective of individual privacy than HIPAA.
5.7 Entire Agreement. This Agreement, including attachments, constitutes the entire Agreement between the Parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and it supersedes all prior oral or written agreements, commitments, or understandings with
respect to the matters provided for herein.
5.8 Execution. This Agreement and any amendments thereto shall be
executed in duplicate copies on behalf of the Parties by an official of each, specifically authorized by its respective Party to perform such executions. Each duplicate copy
shall be deemed an original, but both duplicate originals together constitute one and the
same instrument.
5.9 Indemnification by Business Associate. Business Associate and any of its
subcontractors and agents shall indemnify, hold harmless and defend Covered Entity and its employees, officers, directors, agents, and contractors from and against any and
all claims, losses, liabilities, costs, attorneys’ fees, and other expenses incurred as a
result of or arising directly or indirectly out of or in connection with Business
Associate’s or its subcontractors’ or agents’ breach of this Agreement, violation of
HIPAA, HITECH or other applicable law, or otherwise related to the acts or omissions of Business Associate or its subcontractors or agents.
5.10 Independent Contractors. This Agreement establishes an independent
contractor relationship between Covered Entity and Business Associate. Nothing in this
Agreement is intended, nor may anything be construed, to create a partner, joint venture
employer/employee, or agent relationship.
5.11 Limitations on Benefits of this Agreement. Nothing express or implied in
this Agreement is intended to confer, nor shall anything herein confer, upon any person
other than Covered Entity, Business Associate, or their respective successors or assigns, any rights, remedies, obligations or liabilities whatsoever. It is the express
intent of the Parties that no person or entity other than the Parties shall be entitled to
bring any action to enforce any provision of this Agreement against either of the Parties,
and that the Agreement set forth shall be solely for the benefit of, and shall be
enforceable only by, the Parties to this Agreement or their respective successors and assigns as permitted hereunder.
5.12 Notices. All notices which are required or permitted to be given pursuant
to this Agreement shall be in writing and shall be sufficient in all respects if delivered
personally, by electronic facsimile (with a confirmation by registered or certified mail
placed in the mail no later than the following day), or by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, addressed to a Party as indicated below:
If to Business Associate: If to Covered Entity, to:
[INSERT APPROPRIATE CONTACT INFORMATION]
Notice shall be deemed to have been given upon transmittal thereof as to
communications which are personally delivered or transmitted by electronic facsimile
and, as to communications made by United States mail, on the third (3rd) day after
mailing. The above addresses may be changed by giving notice of such change in the
manner provided above for giving notice.
5.13 References. A reference in this Agreement to a section in the Privacy
Rule or Security Rule means the section as in effect or as amended at the time of
reference and as interpreted pursuant to any applicable guidance provided by the
Secretary or other responsible regulatory authority and any applicable case law.
5.14 Severability. If any part of any provision of this Agreement, or any other agreement, document or writing given pursuant to or in connection with this Agreement,
shall be held invalid or unenforceable, the holding of invalidity or unenforceability will
apply to the invalid or unenforceable part of the provision only, without in any way
affecting the remaining parts of said provision or the remaining provisions of said
Agreement.
5.15 Sub-Contract. Business Associate may not sub-contract any services
under the Services Agreement without the express written consent of Covered Entity.
5.16 Waiver. Neither the waiver by either Party of a breach of or a default under any of the provisions of this Agreement, nor the failure of either of the Parties, on one or
more occasions, to enforce any of the provisions of this Agreement or to exercise any
rights or privilege hereunder shall thereafter be construed as a waiver of any
subsequent breach or default of a similar nature, or as a waiver of any such provisions,
rights or privileges hereunder.
5.17 Interpretation. Any ambiguity in this Agreement shall be resolved in favor
of a meaning that permits Covered Entity to comply with applicable requirements of
HIPAA HITECH Act, the Privacy Rule and the Security Rule. Any conflict between a
provision of the Services Agreement and this Agreement regarding the subject matter of
this Agreement, shall be resolved in favor of this Agreement
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, the parties have caused this Agreement to be executed by their respective duly authorized representatives as of the dates set forth below.
BUSINESS ASSOCIATE COVERED ENTITY
By: By:
Name: Name:
Title: Title: