Digitization of Records

Draft PWS and RFI document attached. Amendment 1: Update: 6/7/2023 - Questions and Answers are posted. Amendment 2: Update 6/12/2023 - Revised - Version 2 - Questions and Answers are posted. "Digitization of Records NOTICE OF SOURCES SOUGHT/REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) - TO ALL INTERESTED PARTIES - 1. SOURCES SOUGHT/RFI: THIS REQUEST FOR INFORMATION (RFI) IS RELEASED PURSUANT TO FEDERAL ACQUISITION REGULATION (FAR) PART 10, MARKET RESEARCH. This RFI/Sources Sought is issued solely for information and planning purposes only and shall not be construed as either a solicitation or the obligation on the part of Government. This is NOT a solicitation for proposals, proposal abstracts or quotations. This notice is for market research purposes only. No reimbursement will be made for any costs associated with providing information in response to this announcement or any follow-up information requests. This notice is published to gain knowledge of potential vendors capable of providing services for the draft Digitization of Records PWS. Vendors with the skill and capability necessary to perform the various requirements described in the attached draft PWS are invited to provide an RFI response per the requirements listed below. The IRS also seeks suggestions and feedback from industry to improve or clarify the attached draft PWS, optimize the acquisition processes, and execute an acquisition that most effectively meets the stated goals. Vendors will NOT be notified of the results of the analysis. All data received in response to this Sources Sought synopsis that is marked or designated as corporate or proprietary information will be fully protected from release outside the Government. The Government shall not be liable for or suffer any consequential damages for any proprietary information not properly identified. Proprietary information will be safeguarded in accordance with all applicable Government regulations. All documentation shall become the property of the Government and will not be returned. 2. OBJECTIVES: Technical Capabilities The IRS seeks to identify potential vendors with the skills and capabilities necessary to perform the requirements outlined in the attached draft PWS. The IRS is looking to identify: Small businesses that can perform the requirements outlined in the draft PWS. Large businesses that are capable of performing the requirements outlined in the draft PWS, and are able to incorporate a small business participation plan to subcontract a minimum percentage as required by the IRS (e.g. 25%, 35%, etc). Feedback from Industry The IRS seeks feedback from industry and government partners on the substance of the draft PWS. This feedback should include: Feedback on how the draft PWS is structured. Feedback if additional documentation/attachments are required. Feedback regarding the level of detail provided by the government in defining its requirements in the draft PWS. Feedback regarding the selected contract type. Vendors are also encouraged to propose or recommend other contract types based on prior experience working on requirements of similar size, scope, and complexity. Feedback (based on a vendor's prior experience working on requirements of similar size, scope, and complexity) regarding any potential benefits or risks involved in awarding this as a single order. Feedback regarding any foreseeable technical risks involved with the work outlined in the draft PWS. Feedback on minimum vendor qualifications/suggested qualifications needed to successfully perform the work as described in the draft PWS. Any other comments or feedback vendors deem appropriate. 3. BACKGROUND: The IRS Office of Chief Counsel's mission is to serve America's taxpayers fairly and with integrity by providing correct and impartial interpretation of the internal revenue laws and the highest quality legal service and representation to the Internal Revenue Service. Issuance of public guidance, including treasury regulations is one of many ways the Office of Chief Counsel serves taxpayers. On August 24, 2012, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) released Memorandum M-12-18, - Managing Government Records Directive. A portion of the memo reads: "By December 31, 2019, all permanent electronic records in Federal agencies will be managed electronically to the fullest extent possible for eventual transfer and accessioning by NARA in an electronic format. By December 31, 2013, each agency will develop and begin to implement plans to achieve this transition. Agencies should also consider the benefits of digitizing permanent records created in hard-copy format (emphasis added) or other analog formats (e.g., microfiche, microfilm, analog video, analog audio)." OMB/NARA Memorandum M-19-21, Transition to Electronic Records, and OMB/NARA Memorandum M-23-07, Update to Transition to Electronic Records, subsequently extended the deadlines contained within OMB/NARA Memorandum M-12-18 to June 30, 2024. Further, the IRS, by request, received a limited exception to the requirements of the above-mentioned memoranda until December 31, 2030. The IRS Office of Chief Counsel Records Room stores legal files, including legal files for treasury regulations, in hard copy format. These hard copy legal files are the official agency files for IRS-published regulations. The files contain relevant memos, important drafts, significant communications, public comments, public hearing documents, clearance documents, and potentially significant research related to the drafting and publication of a regulation. These documents are stored in a room that is not climate controlled nor does the room have a document safe fire-control system. The possibility of a fire or other building issue has the potential to wipe out decades of records. The IRS Office of Chief Counsel is seeking support to digitize the above-described regulation legal files through scanning. The vendor will be required to demonstrate ability to be flexible and work in an agile environment. The number of pages in this collection is estimated to be several million and it is an active collection and grows yearly. The documents within the collection range in age and quality and digitizing the older documents would require trained specialists to scan the fragile portion of the collection to ensure proper handling and preservation. The newer elements of the collection could be scanned using high-speed methods and all pages would undergo Optical Character Recognition (OCR) to make them text searchable. In addition to the digitization effort, the project would require a database solution to store, search, and easily retrieve these records for business purposes. Digitizing this information would provide the following benefits: Easy transfer to NARA in compliance with the records management schedule. Greater access to documents for Counsel attorneys in all offices. Improved management and tracking of important records. Potential reduction or elimination of document storage fees. Preservation of materials and disaster-resilience. Response to FOIA requests, FOIA litigation, and discovery requests will be cheaper, more efficient, and faster. 4. SUBMISSION INFORMATION: See attached for the draft requirements for Digitization of Records. The IRS is requesting submission of Technical Capabilities addressing the following questions. Responses may not exceed 10 pages, excluding any cover page. Each response shall address each of the following sections A-C: A. General Info: Company Name; Company Address; Company Point of Contact, Phone and Email address; Current Contract Number and Task Area(s) appropriate for this notice; including the Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) Number and list related North American Industry Classification System (NAICS) Code that you offer as it relates to this project. Size (Small, Large) and Type of Company (i.e., small business, 8(a), woman owned, veteran owned, etc.) Best In Class (BIC) contract vehicles your company is a contract holder on (if applicable). Provide associated contract number(s). B. Technical Info: The IRS is requesting submission of Technical Capabilities. Question 1 Provide a capability statement that addresses organizational and staff experience and expertise with digitization of paper files, including fragile, onion-skin records and other older records. Question 2 Can you provide the scanned documents in PDF/A-1 file format? This is a file format that is approved by NARA for digitized hard copy to be provided to the administration as records. Question 3 Can you provide color scanning? In general, color imaging provides a truer representation the hard copy than either black and white or grayscale. Question 4 Can you produce scanned images at 300 dots per inch? This is the minimum resolution to allow for accurate OCR rendering. The trade-off between a higher resolution is the increase in file size. A higher resolution does not necessarily provide for greater accuracy in OCR output. Question 5 Can you provide Optical Character Recognition (OCR)? Performing OCR at the page level and incorporating OCR output into the PDF file while matching layout of text is necessary. Question 6 Can you create PDF files at the document level; ie each PDF file will represent the pages physically bound? Question 7 Can you provide a format that is editable by select end users to accommodate additions to the file or removal of pages that are considered privileged in the event the record is used in a litigation or FOIA proceeding? Question 8 List at least three organizations (federal or commercial) to which similar types, size, and complexity of services have been previously provided within the last three years. Include the contract number, description of the requirement, dollar value, contract type, name, and telephone number of the customer. Include the outcome of the contract services rendered for each reference. Question 9 For planning purposes only, select a rough order of magnitude to provide the IRS Office of Chief Counsel with digitization services using the following ranges: Less than $3 million Between $3 and 8 million More than 8 million C. PWS Feedback: Provide any PWS feedback/suggestions as described above in Section 2 Objectives. 5. RFI QUESTIONS/DUE DATE: Questions in response to this Sources Sought/RFI Notice shall be submitted electronically on or before June 5, 2023, 5:00 PM Eastern Standard Time (EST). The Government reserves the right to respond to some, all or none of the questions submitted. Vendors that meet the requirements described in this RFI and draft PWS are invited to submit their responses. The deadline for responses to this RFI is 5:00 PM EST, June 23, 2023. Responses shall be sent via email to both the primary point of contact, contact@example.gov and a copy to contact@example.gov. Responses shall not exceed 10 pages and shall not contain any brochures, advertising or any other type of generic, extraneous, graphic literature or documents that have not been requested and are not relevant or essential in demonstrating the company's ability to provide the required services. Vendors may provide links to relevant websites, as appropriate. Vendors shall reference - RFI Response -Digitization of Records in the subject line of their response email as well as in the subject line of any other e-mail correspondence referencing this notice. The IRS does not anticipate conducting one-on-one meetings with interested vendors. ** THE GOVERNMENT WILL NOT RESPOND TO PHONE CALLS REGARDING THIS NOTICE ** Thank you for your interest. Primary Point of Contact: Melissa Avrutine, General Attorney contact@example.gov Secondary/Copy Point of Contact: Monique Harrison, COR contact@example.gov Draft PWS attached. Amendment 1: Update: 6/7/2023 - Questions and Answers are posted. Amendment 2: Update 6/12/2023 - REVISED - V2 - Questions and Answers are posted.