Utilities Invoice Processing Services for approximately 4,000 plus federal facilities/offices located across the the United States and its territories: 3,200 vendors and 15,900 utility accounts equating to approximately 205,380 utility invoices per year

UPDATE 5/02/2022: The Q&A has been uploaded/attached to this RFI as a PDF document for viewing and consideration. UPDATE 4/28/2022: Please Note that Q&A Closes 4/28/2022 at 11:00 pm EST and that Q&A Response will be uploaded/attached to this RFI NLT 5/04/2022 at 12:00 pm EST. This initial Request for Information and Sources Sought seeks capable, proven, and established companies that provide the following services to current commercial or government customers. Please provide relevent, current, and past performance along with cababilities statements that include business size, platforms, systems, and software utilzed. Please submit any questions in writing NLT 4/28/2022 at 11:00 pm EST. Q&A Responses will be published and provided as an attachment to this RFI NLT 5/04/2022 at 12:00 pm EST. Estimated Solicitation date: June 2022. Estimated Award Date August 2022. Currently, this requirement is "Unrestricted" and is open to Large Business to respond based on preliminary market research. Anticipated/Estimated maximum cost per invoice processed is $6.00 at an approximate 50% mix of manual vs. automated processing. 1.0 BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Office of the Chief Financial Officer (OCFO) is currently responsible for processing and payment of utility invoices for Twelve (12) United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) agencies, termed - USDA. Utilities used by USDA and its agencies include Potable water, Non-potable heated and chilled water, electricity (including Demand/Reactive and Renewable electricity), natural gas, Ethanol 85 (E85), propane (LPG), steam, #1 and #2 fuel oil, diesel, bio-diesel, kerosene, coal, biomass (wood), sewer, gasoline, bulk gases (O2, N2, and CO2), recycling, and trash collection services when combined with other utilities that are not separable. The Department requires an integrated invoice processing and payment solution that has the capability to capture cost and consumption data at the meter level (multiple meters could be included on a single invoice). The current invoice processing system contains data for approximately 3,200 vendors and 15,900 utility accounts equating to approximately 205,380 utility invoices per year. Currently, the utilities invoice processing and telecom invoice processing are separated by two separated contracts. The Forest Service would like to combine these services if possible. 2.0 OBJECTIVE The Department and its Agencies require an integrated invoice processing and payment solution to support respective utility vendors and to capture and report energy and water consumption from the processed invoices. The reporting of cost and consumption of utilities and water is required of Federal Agencies by Rules, Statutes, and Executive Orders including The Energy Policy Act of 2005, and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007. Federal Agencies must have accurate cost and consumption data by location and ZIP code for the Annual Energy Data Report, the Department of Energy (DOE) Compliance Tracking System, and the Corporate Property Automated Information System, among other mandatory reports, as well as internal tracking and decision making. The government's objective is to award an Indefinite Delivery-Indefinite Quality (IDIQ) contract award based on best value. Contractor shall respond to this Statement of Objectives (SOO) by providing a Performance Work Statement (PWS), Quality Assurance Surveillance Plan (QASP), and relevant Past Performance. 3.0 SCOPE The Forest Service may select a contractor for utility accounts services and another contractor for telecommunications accounts services or may select a single contractor for both utility accounts services and telecommunications services, if in the best interest of the government. The Contractor shall function as the invoice processing and payment vendor for all applicable Forest Service utility accounts (and up to 12 USDA agencies) serve as the primary point of contact with these utility vendors and capture and report on energy and water consumption and conservation on all utility accounts to meet Federal Energy Acts, laws, and policies. The contractor will provide services to the US Forest Service and potentially other USDA agencies. The selected contractor shall provide all necessary resources (management, supervisor, labor, tools, materials, and other items and services) to perform this scope of work. The contractor will be required to process all invoices on time and accurately. Failure to do so will result in late fees and possible service disruptions for the Forest Service facilities. Utilities provided include natural gas, propane, electricity to include demand/reactive and renewable electricity, sewage, trash (in some but not all locations), recycling, water, purchased steam, chilled water, fuel oil, biomass, gasoline, E85, and bulk gases (O2, N2, and CO2) . This may also include Telecommunications provided to include but not limited to: wireless, landline, internet, cable, security alarms, radios, and satellite services. A large percentage of the invoices currently processed are received as paper bills via the US Postal Service and will require some degree of manual input and/or scanning. Ideally, where possible, the contractor should maximize online bill paying to better streamline the process and for paper invoices, newer digital scanning technologies that utilize machine learning, AI, and/or automation. The contractor will need to provide access to an online tool to allow government budget, procurement and contracting personnel to view transactional data in near real time. The contractor also will be responsible for providing monthly consumption reports.