This is a Request for Information to enable the Social Security Administration (SSA) to make an appropriate business size, set-aside determination for the services described below.   This is not a solicitation.

SSA requests interested vendors provide the following information by email to [email protected]:

-their size status and what NAICs code they perform under

-what Region(s) they would be interested in

-brief capability statement (no longer than 2 pages)

SSA anticipates awarding contracts for the services described below on a Regional basis.   The Regions are defined as follows:

Region 1 - Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, Rhode Island, Vermont

Region 2 - New York, New Jersey, Puerto Rico, US Virgin Islands

Region 3 - Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, West Virginia, District of Columbia

Region 4 - Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee

Region 5 - Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin

Region 6 - Arkansas, Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas

Region 7 - Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska

Region 8 - Colorado, Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, Utah, Wyoming

Region 9 - Arizona, California, Nevada, Hawaii

Region 10 - Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, Washington

Contractors may be awarded one or more Regions. 

Following is the draft Statement of Work.

Background:

The Social Security Administration's (SSA) Office of Disability Adjudication and Review (ODAR) requires disability appeals heard before an Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) be recorded.  Hearings are held at SSA Hearing Offices (HOs) and at other sites throughout the United States as well as in Guam, Puerto Rico, and American Samoa.

Tasks:

•1.      The contractor shall provide qualified and trained personnel to attend and record disability appeal hearings in HOs or remote sites as scheduled by the HO.

•2.      The contractor shall be responsible for training its staff on required procedures and the use of the Government furnished equipment.

•3.      The contractor shall be responsible for ensuring all hearing equipment is set-up correctly and functioning properly prior to the start of each hearing.

•4.      The contractor shall provide notes on each scheduled  hearing that contains at minimum:  Claimants name, last four digits of the claimants Social Security number, hearing date, ALJ name, number of exhibits, and any directives the ALJ asks the contractor to make note of.   The notes will be typed into a government provided computer using Word.

•5.      The contractor shall collect all documents the ALJ indicates are related to each hearing, and label the documents according to the ALJ's instructions (i.e. Exhibit 1, etc) in addition to indicating on the document label the Claimants name, last four digits of the claimants Social Security number, hearing date, and ALJ name. 

•6.      The contractor shall provide the Government with a complete and audible digital recording of the hearing.

Additional Tasks:

In addition to the tasks listed above, the contractor shall be responsible for the following when the Hearing Office Director (HOD) or National Hearing Center indicate these tasks are required.

•1.      The contractor shall be responsible for transporting equipment to the site if the equipment is stored elsewhere.

•2.      The contractor shall be responsible for opening the hearing room and setting up   Government-provided hearing equipment such as a laptop computer, video teleconferencing equipment, and electronic folder viewing equipment.

•3.      The contractor shall be responsible for greeting and ushering claimants into the hearing room.

•4.      The contractor shall be responsible for initiating or accepting the video teleconferencing call.

•5.      The contractor shall be responsible for presenting the case file to Claimants for their viewing.

•6.      The contractor shall be responsible for repacking any hearing-related equipment as well as transporting it back to its storage location.

Hearing Sites and Times

Hearing Offices and sites are listed in Attachment 1.  Hearings are usually conducted between 8:00am and 5:00pm on non-federal holiday weekdays.