RFI J26190: Request for Information Relating to Public Safety, Act 179 - To develop a statewide program that permits the posting of monetary bail seven (7) days a week online

The Hawaii Judiciary is seeking to develop a statewide online bail payment system that allows defendants, their families, and legal representatives to securely post monetary bail seven days a week, including weekends and holidays, starting January 1, 2027. To inform this effort, they issued a Request for Information (RFI) to gather details from qualified vendors on secure, user-friendly online payment platforms capable of handling multiple payment methods such as debit cards and electronic checks, with features like multi-step forms, real-time reporting, and administrative portals. The RFI emphasizes strict security and compliance standards, including PCI DSS, FedRAMP, SOC 2, encryption (FIPS 140-2), tamper-evident audit logs, breach notification protocols, and role-based access controls, ensuring data resides within U.S. data centers. The procurement process is scheduled to culminate in a future RFP, tentatively released in 2026, with the program operational throughout 2027. The contract documents specify that the system must be highly available, with 99.99% uptime, and capable of processing payments during specified hours on all days, including holidays. The platform should generate invoices with unique IDs, support multiple line items per transaction—such as case and party IDs—and enable secure delivery via email or text. Administrative staff will manage and monitor payments through a secure web portal, with functionalities for viewing, canceling, and exporting reports, as well as maintaining detailed audit trails. The project’s performance period spans the entire year of 2027, with the initial planning and development informed by the RFI responses. No formal contract clauses, specific evaluation criteria, or detailed packaging, marking, or shipping requirements are included at this stage, as the RFI is solely for market research to guide future procurement and system development efforts.